Blog

Leo W. Gerard

By Leo W. Gerard
USW International President

Not the wars. Not greenhouse gasses. Not even the deficit. The issue most important to Americans is jobs.

Despite that, jobs failed to make an appearance in the State of the Union address.

The talk was all about business. Business was doing better. Business needed taxpayers to help pay for research and innovation. Business will get government help to eliminate pesky regulations. Business must have lower taxes.

The most telling statement was this:

“We have to make America the best place on Earth to do business.”

Especially because it wasn’t matched by a companion:

“We have to make America the best place on Earth to work.”

The speech expressed a policy in which business is the focus of government, taking precedence over workers.  The American colonists created a government for their own benefit; they did not constitute an agent to serve business. A policy giving corporations primacy is risky for American workers.

The state of the union noted that happy days are here again for corporations and banks:

“Two years after the worst recession most of us have ever known, the stock market has come roaring back. Corporate profits are up. The economy is growing again.”

Never mentioned, however, were the 14.5 million unemployed Americans, the sustained record rate of foreclosure, and the increasing poverty and food bank reliance among citizens of the richest nation in the world.

The state of the union outlined a plan under which the government will coddle corporations, essentially proving companies government welfare using American workers’ tax dollars. If businesses create jobs for workers as a result, fine. If they don’t, there’s no plan to exact a penalty.

For example, under the policy described in the speech, American workers will fork over tax dollars to pay for research and development for businesses that are sitting on a record $1.8 trillion in cash reserves — hoarding it rather than creating jobs.

The president said:

“Two years ago, I said that we needed to reach a level of research and development we haven’t seen since the height of the Space Race. And in a few weeks, I will be sending a budget to Congress that helps us meet that goal. We’ll invest in biomedical research, information technology, and especially clean energy technology — an investment that will strengthen our security, protect our planet, and create countless new jobs for our people.”

Maybe it will create new jobs. Hopefully. But no guarantees were offered. Mentioned as a business success story in the speech was a Michigan company, Luma Resources, which began manufacturing solar shingles with the help of a $500,000 government grant. It created 20 jobs, $25,000 a job.  American taxpayers might think that’s a little pricey, but what’s worse is the potential for Luma Resources to go the way of Evergreen Solar, squandering the corporate welfare.

Evergreen, the third largest maker of solar panels in the U.S. and recipient of at least $43 million in corporate welfare, announced earlier this month it would close its main American factory in Massachusetts and move manufacturing to China. Eight hundred Americans will lose their Evergreen jobs by April.

Evergreen officials said China will give the company even higher amounts of corporate welfare, which, of course, makes sense since China is not a capitalist country. Its economy is government controlled. And that government routinely violates international trade regulations – by providing banned subsidies to industries and by deliberately devaluing its currency.

No matter how better educated American workers get. No matter how much more innovative. No matter how much more productive. No matter how many tax dollars the government spends on research and development, if the corporations that benefit move manufacturing overseas, the American workers who paid for it will suffer.

In fact, it’s more than suffering; it’s betrayal by their government that provided tax benefits to companies for off-shoring jobs. It is betrayal by their government that fails to stop violations of trade laws by countries like China that lure away firms like Evergreen.

At the end of the State of the Union speech, the president said:

“From the earliest days of our founding, America has been the story of ordinary people who dare to dream.”

An ordinary American dreams of a family-supporting job, owning a home, saving enough to pay for a child’s college education, helping to build a safe community. Corporations aren’t Americans, no matter how often the U.S. Supreme Court grants them rights that the U.S. Constitution guarantees to human beings. Businesses aren’t citizens. Their allegiance isn’t to America. It’s to profits. They dream only of dollars. They concede no responsibility to family, community or country.

They were not included when the president said:

“Tucson reminded us that no matter who we are or where we come from, each of us is a part of something greater — something more consequential than party or political preference.  We are part of the American family.”

The top priority of the American government must be making America the best place on Earth for Americans.  If that’s good for corporations, great. The government must never place American citizens second.

***

Leo W. Gerard also is a member of the AFL-CIO Executive Committee and chairs the labor federation’s Public Policy Committee. President Barack Obama recently appointed him to the President’s Advisory Committee on Trade Policy and Negotiations. He serves as co-chairman of the BlueGreen Alliance and on the boards of the Apollo Alliance, Campaign for America’s Future and the Economic Policy Institute.  He is a member of the IMF and ICEM global labor federations and was instrumental in creating Workers Uniting, the first global union.

I contacted the White House to give them my ideas regarding higher education. I believe states’ public colleges should pool their resources concerning online courses and offer two levels of degrees statewide. For example, in engineering something geared to Penn State might be level  one and to MIT level two.

This should greatly reduce the cost which could be passed on to the consumer/student. Eventually it could be done nationally, and the private schools could be brought into the mix as well.

If done properly, even minimum wage earners could afford to burn the midnight oil without huge debt at graduation. And as a country, we would be far more competitive which should increase jobs. That way everyone could get a college education, not just the rich and handful of lucky that get scholarships, which are hard to come by.

Bruce Sunderland
Conshohocken, Pa.

***

To submit a blog to Free Speech Zone, e-mail it to bstack@usw.org. Keep it to 250 words or fewer. You MUST include your full name, hometown, and state. You may attach a photograph of yourself. Please include a phone number. This WILL NOT be published. Posting any given blog is within the discretion of the USW.  No blog using foul language (this is a family site), false information (we don’t want to get sued), or unnecessary personal attacks (again, we don’t want to get sued) will be used. Wait a reasonable period of time, then blog again! This is a Free Speech Zone.

Dave Johnson

By Dave Johnson
Fellow with Campaign for America’s Future

Last Tuesday, the President pledged to improve Social Security “without putting at risk current retirees” and “without slashing benefits for future generations.” With the State of the Union speech out of the way Progressives can claim some credit and breathe a little bit easier for a while. But the fight is not over — it never is. The door is still open for new attacks. And Social Security’s attackers never, ever, ever, ever give up.

Demonstrating that, Ross Douthat in the NY Times calls President Obama’s statement of support for Social Security “evasion,” lamenting the “looming insolvency of our entitlement system.” Others in the “conventional wisdom” machine continue to demand cuts to ward off the threat of future cuts, claiming the cuts will “save” the system from cuts.

There is one and only one reason Social Security is such a topic of discussion and that is because it is a target of the corporate-conservatives who denigrate government itself. Social Security is government, therefore it just can’t be true that it works well, helps people and is the right thing to do. But it is. All the facts line up on Social Secuirty’s side, so they have to use trickery. They have to claim “insolvency.” They have to claim that life expectancy is longer now — even though they are referring to the effect of infant morality on statistics. (more…)

James Parks

By James Parks
AFL-CIO Senior Writer

The United Steelworkers (USW) is filing a formal protest with the U.S. State Department after USW Sub-District Director Manny Armenta was arrested this week by Mexican border guards while on his way to meet with lawyers for the Los Mineros Mexican miners union.

On Jan. 24, a customs officer stopped Armenta’s car, which is leased by the union, accusing him of driving a stolen vehicle. He presented documentation, but to no avail. Armenta was arrested, detained overnight and released early Jan. 25 after posting a bond of 80,000 pesos (about $7,750).

Members of the USW and supporters protested the Mexican government’s repression of workers’ rights during a May 2010 visit to the nation’s capitol by Mexico’s president.

The car was impounded, and it has not been returned. His wallet was taken from him in the arrest, but later returned, minus $700 in cash, according to the union.

The USW is helping the members of Los Mineros, who have been on strike since July 2007 at Grupo Mexico’s Cananea mine, address dangerous safety conditions.

USW President Leo Gerard said in a statement:

This outrageous treatment by Mexican federal authorities shows the extent of the government’s corruption. We demand that these bogus charges be dropped with the immediate return of the union property along with what belongs to Manny.

Armenta is not deterred by his arrest. He told Workers’ Independent News:

It just gives me more energy to continue doing my job.

***

Re-posted from the AFL-CIO Now Blog

Joshua Holland

By Joshua Holland
An editor and senior writer at AlterNet

Ayn Rand was not only a schlock novelist, she was also the progenitor of a sweeping “moral philosophy” that justifies the privilege of the wealthy and demonizes not only the slothful, undeserving poor but the lackluster middle-classes as well.

Her books provided wide-ranging parables of “parasites,” “looters” and “moochers” using the levers of government to steal the fruits of her heroes’ labor. In the real world, however, Rand herself received Social Security payments and Medicare benefits under the name of Ann O’Connor (her husband was Frank O’Connor).

As Michael Ford of Xavier University’s Center for the Study of the American Dream wrote, “In the end, Miss Rand was a hypocrite but she could never be faulted for failing to act in her own self-interest.”

Her ideas about government intervention in some idealized pristine marketplace serve as the basis for so much of the conservative rhetoric we see today. “The reason I got involved in public service, by and large, if I had to credit one thinker, one person, it would be Ayn Rand,” said Paul Ryan, the GOP’s young budget star at a D.C. event honoring the author. On another occasion, he proclaimed, “Rand makes the best case for the morality of democratic capitalism.”

Ayn Rand

“Morally and economically,” wrote Rand in a 1972 newsletter, “the welfare state creates an ever accelerating downward pull.” (more…)

Richard (R.J.) Eskow

By Richard (RJ) Eskow
Senior Fellow, Campaign for America’s Future

The Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission’s report couldn’t come at a better time. At a moment when it seems that Washington would rather forget what happened two years ago, it documents the opportunism, bad judgment, and criminality that crashed the world’s economy once – and could again at any time. An interconnected web of Wall Street criminality, discredited ideology, and politicians chasing big money – along with a surprising amount of executive incompetence – has caused continued suffering for millions. At a time when the nation’s capital is convinced that CEOs need appeasing rather than policing, the FCIC report is a badly needed return to reality.

Wall Street executives weren’t mentioned in the State of the Union or the Republican response. But their actions caused this crisis, and they can’t be ignored politely like tipsy uncles at a family wedding. The only way to prevent the next crisis is by understanding the last one – and then taking the right actions.

There was a lot of talk on Tuesday night about the need for jobs, but very little about why we need them. The President lamented the fact that “there are at least five different entities that deal with housing policy.” But he didn’t point out that the housing market was undone by too little regulation, not too much – leaving one mortgage in five underwater, 3.4 million homes in foreclosure, and a generation’s wealth wiped out in a few short months. And the Republicans sang the money-saving virtue of “less government” – even though we’ve learned that a government which spends less on regulation is the most expensive government of all.

As the New York Times reported, the FCIC report will conclude that “the 2008 financial crisis was an ‘avoidable’ disaster caused by widespread failures in government regulation, corporate mismanagement and heedless risk-taking by Wall Street.” It will document banker misdeeds that range from irresponsibility and mismanagement to corruption and criminality. It’s been reported that the Commission will also refer a number of cases to the authorities for possible prosecution.

This report has had a long and sometimes challenging history. But to paraphrase an old gospel song, it “may not be here when you want it, but it’s right on time.” (more…)

Stan Sorscher

By Stan Sorscher
Labor Representative, Society for Professional Engineering Employees in Aerospace (SPEEA)

Last spring, a congressional staffer introduced me to a new expression. She said, “Our job is to make business succeed.”

My message to her had been that careers in science and technology were threatened as our economy de-industrialized. As manufacturing work goes to low-wage countries, the engineering and R&D jobs will go, too. American engineers and technical workers will have fewer opportunities for career growth. Already, engineering and science graduates compete with hundreds of thousands of foreign temporary high-tech workers for entry-level high-tech jobs. About half of all engineering and science students find work outside of engineering and science, when they graduate from college. Our policies are undermining high-tech workers in America.

She was gently explaining how I had missed the point. Her job was to make business succeed. I was worried about workers. Her priorities and mine did not match up.

I assume she meant large businesses, with very large PACs, who have more influence with congressional committees than I do.

Shortly afterward, US Commerce Secretary Gary Locke said it more artfully in a radio interview, “Our job is to make businesses succeed… so they can create good new jobs.” (more…)

Michael Winship

By Michael Winship
Former senior writer at Bill Moyers Journal on PBS

The Detroit Tigers are retiring the great baseball manager Sparky Anderson’s number 11 this season. “It’s a wonderful gesture,” Detroit Free Press columnist Michael Rosenberg wrote. “I just wish Sparky could see it.”

Anderson won three World Series — one managing the Tigers, two with the Cincinnati Reds — and passed away this past November. Rosenberg said, “Retiring his number now is the baseball version of waiting until a relative dies to say thank you.”

That’s because it comes sixteen years after Anderson left the Tigers in a bitter feud with owner Mike Ilitch. Yet as Sparky once said, “I’ve got my faults, but living in the past is not one of them. There’s no future in it.”

I wish I could say the same, let bygones be bygones and the rest, but when it comes to two other baseball devotees, the Presidents Bush, it’s tough. Father and especially son left behind a heap of wreckage. (more…)

Michael Brune

By Michael Brune
Author and Executive Director of the Sierra Club

This weekend, two billionaire brothers will hold a private, closed-door meeting of elite and powerful donors and supporters of the oil industry. You can bet that along with conga lines and Jello shooters, the agenda at Charles and David Koch’s little bash will include doing everything possible to ensure that nothing gets done that might result in clean energy, green jobs, or a healthy environment.

If you’ve heard of the Koch brothers, it’s probably because of the article that Jane Mayer wrote about them for The New Yorker last year. As a rule, the Kochs prefer to keep a low profile and let their money do the talking — and their combined wealth of an estimated $30 billion from their Koch Industries has a very loud voice. When you spend more each year than ExxonMobil to fund climate-opposition groups and obstruct environmental policy, your money is shouting like a street-corner evangelist. In the case of the Koch brothers, the false gospel is spread by think tanks, foundations, and (unfortunately) many of the new faces in Congress — elected with a lot of help from the Kochs.

I don’t know a word that means the exact opposite of environmentalist — but then we didn’t really need one until the Kochs came along. Greenpeace put out a shocking report focused on how Koch Industries and its owners fund the climate-denial machine, but it also gives some insight into why the Kochs are also going after all environmental safeguards as well as the Environmental Protection Agency. (more…)

George Lakoff

By George Lakoff
Author, “The Political Mind,” “Moral Politics,” “Don’t Think of an Elephant!”

For the first two years of his administration, President Obama had no overriding narrative, no frame to define his policymaking, no way to make sense of what he was trying to do. As of his 2011 State of the Union Address, he has one: Competitiveness.

The competitiveness narrative is intended to serve a number of purposes at once:

Split the Republican business community off from the hard right , especially the Tea Party. Most business leaders want real economics not ideological economics. And it is hard to pin the “socialist” label on a business-oriented president. He may succeed.

Attract bi-conceptuals — those who are conservative on some issues and progressive on other issues. They are sometimes mistakenly called “moderates” or “independents,” though there is no one ideology of the moderate or the independent. They make up 15 to 20 percent of the electorate, and many are conservative on economic issues and progressive on social issues. He attracted them in 2008, but not in 2010. He needs less than half to win in 2012. He may well succeed. (more…)