A Time for Change

Herbert Hoover

In an assault on the American worker, Republicans have once again shown their true colors by killing the deal to allow GM and Chrysler bridge loans so that they can survive and keep millions of workers employed. The Republican Senators’ next campaign slogan should be “Never let doing the right thing for the country stand in the way of partisan politics.”  

After a bailout deal passed in the house, Senate Republicans insisted that American workers’ and retirees’ wages and benefits be cut to allegedly bring them in line with foreign automakers Toyota, Honda and Nissan who build cars here.  However, according to the Associated Press, has reported that the only difference between the pay of UAW workers and those employed for foreign auto makers is the high cost of health care ion this country.

Hourly wages for UAW workers at GM factories are about equal to those paid by Toyota Motor Corp. at its older U.S. factories, according to the companies. GM says the average UAW laborer makes $29.78 per hour, while Toyota says it pays about $30 per hour. But the unionized factories have far higher benefit costs.

GM says its total hourly labor costs are now $69, including wages, pensions and health care for active workers, plus the pension and health care costs of more than 432,000 retirees and spouses. Toyota says its total costs are around $48. The Japanese automaker has far fewer retirees and its pension and health care benefits are not as rich as those paid to UAW workers.

How interesting that just weeks after members of the party sought election or re-election based on caring for the man in the street that they turn their back on hard working Americans, insist that they cut their wages and then when they refuse to be paid less than those who work for foreign manufacturers,  they refuse to provide assistance so that millions will not lose their jobs.

The Los Angeles Times confirmed yesterday that Democrats and Republicans were attempting a compromise, but the deal fell through when pay and benefit cuts for workers and retirees was not accepted by Senate Democrats.

Some have said that this was just the Senate Republicans attempt to be fiscally conservative. First, even if that were true, and it is not, after voting over the last 8 years to squander the surplus that Bill Clinton left and spending out of control on things that failed to give any real benefit to the country, during the greatest economic crisis that the country has faced, they decide to be fiscally conservative!  Oh and there’s more, they want to be fiscally conservative by demanding that American workers cut their wages in the economically ravaged and foreclosure ridden Midwest that has been suffering for years before the recession hit the rest of the country.

Second, that is not why they did it.  At a press conference yesterday, the UAW discussed a memo that a source gave them that demonstrates that it was an anti-union vote as payback for the UAW’s support for the Demcrats during the 2008  election.  

The memo was also posted on Keith Olbermann’s website.  The memo is entitled  ”Action Alert – Auto Bailout,” and sent Wednesday at 9:12am, to Senate Republicans.

The names of the sender(s) and recipient(s) have been redacted in the copy Countdown obtained. The Los Angeles Times reported that it was circulated among Senate Republicans. The brief memo outlines internal political strategy on the bailout, including the view that defeating the bailout represents a “first shot against organized labor.” Senate Republicans blocked passage of the bailout late Thursday night, over its insistence on an immediate union pay cut. See the entire memo after the jump.

From:

Sent: Wednesday, December 10, 2008 9:12 AM

To:

Subject: Action Alert — Auto Bailout

 Today at noon, Senators Ensign, Shelby, Coburn and DeMint will hold a press conference in the Senate Radio/TV Gallery.  They would appreciate our support through messaging and attending the press conference, if possible.  The message they want us to deliver is:

1.       This is the democrats first opportunity to payoff organized labor after the election.  This is a precursor to card check and other items.  Republicans should stand firm and take their first shot against organized labor, instead of taking their first blow from it.

 2.       This rush to judgment is the same thing that happened with the TARP.  Members did not have an opportunity to read or digest the legislation and therefore could not understand the consequences of it.  We should not rush to pass this because Detroit says the sky is falling.

 The sooner you can have press releases and documents like this in the hands of members and the press, the better.  Please contact me if you need additional information.  Again, the hardest thing for the democrats to do is get 60 votes.  If we can hold the Republicans, we can beat this.

It is the Senate Republicans’ “War on Labor” at the expense of $3 million working men and women.

Senator Dodd, (D-Conn) said, ”We will leave here tonight to go home for the holiday recesses, but for the literally hundreds of thousands of people whose jobs depend on this industry, this will not be a joyous season, wondering whether or not their jobs, their livelihoods, their homes, their children’s futures are at risk.”

According to a Senate Republican aide, while trying to convince them to vote for the bridge loans, Cheney told them, “If we don’t do this, we will be known as the party of  Herbert Hoover forever,” thus evoking the president whose inaction is widely blamed for helping trigger the Great Depression in the early 1930s. 

Please do not forget that this is the party who cares nothing for the hard working Americans who labor in manufacturing plants or with their hands and generate less than $250,000 a year in income.  Remember this every election and make the Herbert Hoover party remember it too with your vote and let them hear you.