UPDATE: Congress passes union payback bill – here’s why

August 10, 2010 15:04


UPDATE: Congress passes union payback bill. Here’s why – In one of the most blatant examples of the union / Democrat money laundering, Speaker Pelosi has interrupted congress’ campaigning time at home by calling Congress back into session to pass a bill that primarily provides money to keep public union employees working so their dues can support Democrats in November.

usACTIONnews.com Editorial

(Note: This editorial was first published 8/9/10 as “Dems scurry back to buy election support with union bailout bill “)

Public employee unions pay dues from the wages that they get from the public taxes. Those dues then go into campaigning for and helping to elect Democrats. (99% goes to Democrats).

Here is a list of the top twenty recipients of public union money from an earlier editorial. This list is just public unions. It does not include trade unions, United Auto Workers (UAW) or AFL-CIO or other non public unions.

Hoyer, Steny H (D-MD) $1,017,978

Kildee, Dale E (D-MI) $608,789

Obey, David R (D-WI) $574,400

Pomeroy, Earl (D-ND) $551,706

Ackerman, Gary (D-NY) $537,400

Frost, Martin (D-TX) $534,761

Levin, Sander (D-MI) $519,975

DeLauro, Rosa L (D-CT) $505,050

Slaughter, Louise M (D-NY) $500,270

Waxman, Henry A (D-CA) $494,415

Rangel, Charles B (D-NY) $493,150

Bonior, David E (D-MI) $491,466

Pelosi, Nancy (D-CA) $488,500

Evans, Lane (D-IL) $486,240

Abercrombie, Neil (D-HI) $482,680

Edwards, Chet (D-TX) $479,506

Pallone, Frank Jr (D-NJ) $470,600

Hill, Baron (D-IN) $445,750

Gephardt, Richard A (D) $444,800

Lampson, Nick (D-TX) $434,400

You can see why Pelosi has hurried congress back to pass this ‘important’ bill. Teachers are one of the most influential groups on capitol hill because of the millions of dollars they spend in contributions and lobbying efforts. Teacher groups have spent almost $3 million in contributions in the 2009-2010 cycle and almost another $3 million in lobbying in 2010.

According to RiShawn Biddle in a Capital Research Center report:

‘The NEA took in an estimated $569 million that it spent on local, state and national political campaigns during the 2007-2008 election cycle, according to the National Institute on Money in State Politics. This made the NEA the nation’s single-biggest campaign contributor for the 2009-2010 election period, the NEA has raised another $15 million to date – double the amount raised at the same time two years ago. This fund raising prowess is why Harvard University education scholar Paul Peterson declares that the NEA is “in a position to tell state legislatures what to do.”’

But we must save the teachers for our children right? Don’t believe the teacher propaganda. In a Washington Post article ‘Myths About the Teacher Layoff Crisis’ Charles Lane points out some of the myths of the teacher ‘crisis’. The scary numbers about teacher layoffs all come from the unions pushing the bill and they use the term ‘education jobs’ so its not all teachers.:

“That’s because the figures actually include not only kindergarten through 12th grade classroom instructors, but also support staff (bus drivers, custodians, et al.) and even community college faculty. And 300,000 is the upper end of a range that could be as low as 100,000. Nationwide, there are about 3.2 million K-12 public school teachers.”

Lane also points out that the bill’s fine print allows states to hire ‘other’ public employees if they determine that they have excess funds from saving ‘education’ jobs. That way all the money can get recycled into salaries for union dues paying workers whose unions will then spend the taxpayers money to protect Democrat incumbents in November. Unions have already pledged over $100 million to save Democrats this fall.

In a recent local election SEIU (Service Employees International Union) spent $500,000 and may end up as high as a $1 million. Why so much? To prevent cuts to exorbitant union wages and benefits that are bankrupting the county.

This is just the beginning. Bills are floating around congress that would spend $165 BILLION to bail out union pension funds. Taxpayers have already lost $34 billion in the GM / Chrysler bail out which gave the union ownership and partial control of the auto companies that they helped to bankrupt. Unions have been given favors in Obamacare, the financial reform bill, and all government contracts.

The only way to end the perpetual recycling of your taxpayer dollars to unions and back to Democrats is to vote out anyone who supports these union bribery schemes and work for right work legislation in your state and city to end preferential treatment of unions.

– Editor



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