Democratic Underground Latest Greatest Lobby Journals Search Options Help Login
Google

Specter eyes support for Employee Free Choice bill

Printer-friendly format Printer-friendly format
Printer-friendly format Email this thread to a friend
Printer-friendly format Bookmark this thread
This topic is archived.
Home » Discuss » Archives » General Discussion (1/22-2007 thru 12/14/2010) Donate to DU
 
babylonsister Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed May-06-09 04:58 PM
Original message
Specter eyes support for Employee Free Choice bill
Edited on Wed May-06-09 05:01 PM by babylonsister
Now here's a man with principles, but they depend on the day of the week and what party he's in at the time. Win/win this time.

Specter eyes support for Employee Free Choice bill
Author: John Wojcik
People's Weekly World Newspaper, 05/06/09 14:28



A spokesperson for Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), the lead sponsor of the Employee Free Choice Act, confirmed today that an agreement is near that will allow Sen. Arlen Specter (D-Pa.) to return to his earlier position of support for the legislation.

Specter, originally a co-sponsor of the bill, announced on March 24 that he had switched to the opposition. At the time, as a Republican senator, he was under pressure from business lobbyists and right-wing Republicans lining up against him in that party’s coming primary election.

Since then he switched to the Democratic Party, and today he signaled his willingness to switch back to the pro-union side on the Employee Free Choice Act. He said, “I’m opposed to giving up the secret ballot or mandatory arbitration, as they are set forth in the bill, but I do believe that labor law reform is past overdue.”

Harkin confirmed, early this morning, that “Senator Specter’s staff and my staff have been working diligently over the last several days to get everything ready.”

Harkin was not specific about any particular compromises in the bill that he was willing to make. When a message was left on his answering machine, asking for confirmation of a Bloomberg news report that giving up majority signup was a “possibility,” Harkin’s spokesperson quickly returned the call and insisted there would be “no compromise on any of the core principles.”

more...

http://www.pww.org/article/articleview/15517/
Printer Friendly | Permalink |  | Top
Soylent Brice Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed May-06-09 05:00 PM
Response to Original message
1. curious what kind of concessions are being discussed...
either way, he still sucks.
Printer Friendly | Permalink |  | Top
 
Occam Bandage Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed May-06-09 05:02 PM
Response to Original message
2. Huh. Guess losing seniority bites hard, Arlen. nt
Printer Friendly | Permalink |  | Top
 
AlinPA Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed May-06-09 05:05 PM
Response to Original message
3. Let's not get confident - he will switch to voting against it to bow to his republican
masters. Don't trust this guy.
Printer Friendly | Permalink |  | Top
 
Occam Bandage Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed May-06-09 05:32 PM
Response to Reply #3
4. If he "bowed to his Republican masters,"
he'd have beaten Toomey and wouldn't have had to bolt the party. They hate him even more than we do.
Printer Friendly | Permalink |  | Top
 
TwilightZone Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed May-06-09 05:41 PM
Response to Reply #3
5. Republican masters?
They couldn't even keep him in the party.
Printer Friendly | Permalink |  | Top
 
AlinPA Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed May-06-09 09:24 PM
Response to Reply #5
6. So far he is 0-2 on votes (bankruptcy,budget). Don't expect him to vote with
Democrats.
Printer Friendly | Permalink |  | Top
 
JimGinPA Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed May-06-09 09:43 PM
Response to Reply #6
7. I Think He Got A Wake-Up Call Last Night
It's in his best interest to get along now.
Printer Friendly | Permalink |  | Top
 
backscatter712 Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed May-06-09 10:51 PM
Response to Original message
8. He's a sleazy snake, but he can be our sleazy snake.
Funny how yoinking his seniority can make him miraculously turn pro-labor again.

He's very self-serving, which makes him predictable, and manipulatable.

Pennsylvania's very much a union state, and he needs the unions to stay in office. I'm sure a few representatives from the AFL-CIO and SEIU had a chat with him...

The truth is that we've got him by the short and curlies. He had to make a show on TV of not being our bitch, but overplayed it, and well, now he's our bitch. Let's have some fun...
Printer Friendly | Permalink |  | Top
 
Ysabela Donating Member (208 posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed May-06-09 11:08 PM
Response to Reply #8
10. LOL Your assessment of the situation is both hilarious and dead on. n/t
Printer Friendly | Permalink |  | Top
 
firedupdem Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed May-06-09 10:59 PM
Response to Original message
9. He's waking up....I figured he would start to see the light. n/t
Printer Friendly | Permalink |  | Top
 
DU AdBot (1000+ posts) Click to send private message to this author Click to view 
this author's profile Click to add 
this author to your buddy list Click to add 
this author to your Ignore list Thu May 16th 2024, 03:15 PM
Response to Original message
Advertisements [?]
 Top

Home » Discuss » Archives » General Discussion (1/22-2007 thru 12/14/2010) Donate to DU

Powered by DCForum+ Version 1.1 Copyright 1997-2002 DCScripts.com
Software has been extensively modified by the DU administrators


Important Notices: By participating on this discussion board, visitors agree to abide by the rules outlined on our Rules page. Messages posted on the Democratic Underground Discussion Forums are the opinions of the individuals who post them, and do not necessarily represent the opinions of Democratic Underground, LLC.

Home  |  Discussion Forums  |  Journals |  Store  |  Donate

About DU  |  Contact Us  |  Privacy Policy

Got a message for Democratic Underground? Click here to send us a message.

© 2001 - 2011 Democratic Underground, LLC