Senator Bernie Sanders
(I-Vermont)
By Elaine Magliaro
Dave Jamieson (Huffington Post) reported this morning that Larry Cohen, the longtime leader of one of the country’s most powerful labor unions, is joining the Democratic presidential campaign of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.). According to Jamieson, Cohen said that Hillary Clinton, the presumed frontrunner, “made it an easy call.”
Cohen, the outgoing president of the Communications Workers of America, told The Huffington Post he plans to serve as an unpaid volunteer stumping for Sanders. Cohen said that one of the main factors in his decision “was Clinton’s equivocation on granting President Barack Obama so-called fast-track authority on his mammoth trade deal.”
Larry Cohen
Cohen was quoted as saying, “I did everything I knew how to do to get Clinton to speak out on fast track, and she wouldn’t…We begged her to speak out.” He continued, “There was a million ways she could have done it. … Why was she silent on this?”
Daily Kos said that the Communications Workers of America (CWA), an AFL-CIO affiliate, is—by far and away–the largest communications and media labor union in the U.S. It reportedly has well over 600,000 members.
Jamieson:
Labor unions, environmental groups and most Democrats rallied against giving Obama fast-track authority on the Trans-Pacific Partnership. TPP, as it’s known, is a multinational trade pact that the White House and Republicans say will boost trade between the U.S. and 11 Pacific Rim countries. Progressive groups worry it will send more jobs overseas, worsen income inequality and include weak protections for workers in developing countries. The approval of fast track last week prevents Congress from amending or filibustering the deal that the White House is negotiating.
TPP has put Clinton, Obama’s former secretary of state, in an uncomfortable position with progressives. Though she once referred to TPP as a possible “gold standard” as a trade deal, she has avoided staking out a firm position on the trade pact as a candidate and hesitated on the question of fast track. In an interview in June, she said she would “probably not” grant fast track, “because that’s a process vote, and I don’t want to say that’s the same as TPP.”
Although Bernie Sanders is considered a long shot for the presidency, Cohen said that “Clinton’s handling of the trade issue helped clarify why he wanted to get behind Sanders. The Vermont Senator has been one of the most vocal critics of giving Obama fast-track trade authority.
Cohen said, “Without a candidate like Bernie, we’re going to get a repeat of the same stuff. Bernie is movement-building, and we need a new movement. We need to get big money out of politics.”
SOURCE
Labor Leader Joins Bernie Sanders’ Campaign, Citing Clinton’s ‘Silence’ On Fast Track (Huffington Post)
Outgoing CWA Union President, Citing Clinton’s ‘Silence’ On Fast Track, Joins Sanders Campaign (Daily Kos)
Nicole Plyler Fisk
Gene Howington
FFS Guest Blogger
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Chuck Stanley
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Terry Welshans
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wordcloud9
Flowers For Socrates 
Oh oh, this is someone I have to listen to.
SwM,
What do you think about this? This man is solid and his opinion matters to me.
“Cohen said, “Without a candidate like Bernie, we’re going to get a repeat of the same stuff. Bernie is movement-building, and we need a new movement. We need to get big money out of politics.” ” My question is to Mr.Cohen is how are you going to get the money out of politics. The democrats could be very well running against Jeb Bush. Will take a lot of money to beat him. I took that quiz that everyone is taking and I lined up with Bernie 95% of the time and Hillary 93%, Blouise.
SwM,
I haven’t taken it yet. I’m going to have to read a couple of emails I have sitting in my inbox from the AFL-CIO
“Without a candidate like Bernie, we’re going to get a repeat of the same stuff. Bernie is movement-building, and we need a new movement. We need to get big money out of politics.”
I categorically agree.
Bernie Sanders Draws His Biggest Crowd Yet In Progressive Stronghold
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/07/01/bernie-sanders-madison_n_7709966.html
Excerpt:
When it comes to filling a venue, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) is not exactly 2016’s underdog.
Sanders, who is running as a progressive alternative to presumed Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton, spoke Wednesday at Madison’s Alliant Energy Center, which seats 10,231 people. The campaign had expected a massive turnout in the left-leaning city, which has deep roots in progressive politics and activism. Their prediction was correct: Arena staff said 9,600 people were in attendance.
“Tonight, we have more people at any meeting for a candidate of president of the United States than any other candidate,” Sanders said, according to the Associated Press, who put the turnout at 10,000…
Wednesday’s rally was Sanders’ largest yet, and may be the biggest of the 2016 cycle overall. Clinton’s campaign launch drew approximately 5,500 people to New York City’s Roosevelt Island, while about 3,000 supporters attended Jeb Bush’s kickoff in Miami.
Sanders’ progressive messages resonated strongly in Wisconsin’s liberal, capital city. “The big money interests — Wall Street, corporate America, all of these guys — have so much power that no president can defeat them unless there is an organized grassroots movement making them an offer they can’t refuse,” he said as the crowd erupted in cheers, the AP reported.
I heard his speech online, wish I could’ve been there in person. The speech was excellent, touched on every major issue and spelled out exactly what Republicans are attempting to do to the average citizens of this country. The crowd was very engaged, he could win big in Wisconsin.
Ok. I put my name in for a “Meetup” later this month.