Public Sector Unions and their Political Donations

American Thinker ^ | March 1, 2010 | Ed Lasky

[jazusamo]

Governments across the nation, including the one headquartered in Washington, D.C., are approaching their fiscal death throes. Most of the states that are on life-support got transfusions from the stimulus bill that showered money on areas painted blue on the political map. Liberal, Democrat-voting states are the ones spilling the most red ink because they follow policies that are inimical to their fiscal health dictated by special interest groups.

Each budget should come stamped with a warning "passing of this budget will harm the pocketbooks and future of our state's citizens."  The result? Taxes soar; credit ratings plummet (causing states to have to pay higher interest rates on the debt they float) and the death spiral begins, as businesses and productive workers vote with their feet and move to more congenial climates.

Why do politicians kill states? Perhaps because they cater to and are in hock to the public sector unions who line their pockets with campaign funds and provide the cheap (to politicians anyway -- because "we the people" ending up paying their salaries and benefits) labor needed to operate the phone banks and canvass the neighborhoods.

How do politicians pay them off? By showering public sector unions and their members with high salaries, gold-plated retirement and health benefits (that  government workers all too often do not even have to contribute toward), by allowing retirements to start early (in some cases at 50), and by abuse of overtime pay ( a bus driver in Madison Wisconsin earns $160,000 a year, much of it due to overtime. He earns more than the mayor and he has plenty of fellow bus drivers there who qualify for the country club set.) I have written about this damaging dynamic here http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2009/09/public_servants_no_we_are_the.html http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2009/10/the_coming_public_pension_nigh.html http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2009/02/post_159.html http://www.americanthinker.com/2010/02/obama_and_the_government_emplo.html http://www.americanthinker.com/printpage/?url=http://www.americanthinker.com/2009/07/public_workers_versus_the_publ.html .

Since John F. Kennedy signed an executive order allowing federal workers to unionize, there has been an explosion of government workers who become members of unions such as the ever-powerful American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. But this union is not alone. Teachers are government workers and their union is prettified by using euphemisms (they are teachers after all -- and know how to use a thesaurus): the two major teacher unions are called the National Education Association and the American Federation of Teachers.

I was curious and decided to discover how much these public sector unions (and other unions) gave to political candidates through their political action committees

Here is a table of the top twenty PACs, provided by OpenSecrets.Org:

                                                                                                               D     R

AT&T Inc	$44,225,588	44%	55%
American Fedn of State, County & Municipal Employees	$41,945,511	98%	1%
National Assn of Realtors	$35,633,473	48%	51%
Intl Brotherhood of Electrical Workers	$31,544,407	97%	2%
Goldman Sachs	$31,544,275	64%	35%
American Assn for Justice	$31,425,529	90%	9%
National Education Assn	$30,162,867	92%	6%
Laborers Union	$28,993,900	92%	7%
Teamsters Union	$27,992,624	92%	6%
Service Employees International Union	$27,933,232	95%	3%
Carpenters & Joiners Union	$27,768,183	89%	10%
Citigroup Inc	$27,150,883	50%	49%
Communications Workers of America	$27,047,896	99%	0%
American Medical Assn	$26,307,905	39%	60%
American Federation of Teachers	$26,285,941	98%	0%
United Auto Workers	$25,775,002	98%	0%
Machinists & Aerospace Workers Union	$25,205,277	98%	0%
National Auto Dealers Assn	$24,409,058	32%	67%
United Parcel Service	$24,232,224	36%	63%
United Food & Commercial Workers Union	$24,216,183	98%	1%

The D and R at the top of the table refer to percentages of the funds that flowed to Democrats and Republicans. The herd of blue donkeys reveals -- surprise! -- that the vast amount of money is focused on Democrats. Even Goldman Sachs, reviled as a company filled with fat cat bankers and plutocrats, gives to Democrats (hence Obama's recent papal dispensation regarding their bonuses -- he regally decides who is a "fat cat" worthy of scorn ).

Consider the American Association of Justice (euphemism alert!)  This is the group that was formerly known as the Association of Trial Lawyers of America. The plaintiff bar is a key source of support for Democrats.

Barack Obama routinely railed against special interest groups during the campaign. Obama was to bring reform to government; change was in the air-over and over. Lobbyists were to become endangered species (meanwhile they are one of the few groups who enjoyed a banner year in 2009. K Street (where many lobbyists work) is a street paved with gold.

These unions are a special interest. Many of them are beneficiaries of taxpayer funds -- especially government workers. They are a major cause of the red ink that is swamping us (Obama pledged to stop the rise of oceans, not the rise of red ink-though he did pledge to exercise fiscal restraint-but that was so 2008).

They buy politicians-and, they favor Democrats.

Please keep that in mind when our politicians call for us to support bond issues and increased taxes. We should follow the money trail -- because it is our money and the next generation's future.

[EagleUSA]

Buying their voter army.....the beat goes on. And where do you think many “stimulus” dollars are going to end up PRIOR to November??? Of both 2010 and 2012....

[jazusamo]

Correct...From what I’ve read there has already been a lot of stimulus money go to public sector jobs.

[rrrod]

union scum alert!

[Painesright]

PAC’s and the influence they buy (which causes politicians to pass legislation that benefits the PAC, not necessarily what benefits America) is one of the biggest challenges we face.

On a similar note, have you seen this Reason TV video (more like a high quality short movie) that details how public employee unions have bankrupted California?

It’s extremely well done, entertaining and infuriating.

http://reason.tv/video/show/hasta-la-vista-arnold

[peeps36]

Without the stimulus money the states would have been forced to cut union jobs and other wasteful spending. B_arrogant used tax payer money to buy his owners another year on the tax payer gravy train. The stimulus was nothing more then a political payoff by the corrupt creep and his corrupt political party.

[KansasGirl]

bookmark

So this public union mess is JFK’s fault? Why hasn’t a Republican President reversed this?

[jazusamo]

I believe that’s a darned accurate depiction of what’s happened in CA and a lot of other states, especially blue ones.

[jazusamo]

I don’t believe he said it was all JFK’s fault, he merely said the public sector unions started then.

I do seem to remember a lot of union Air Traffic Controllers really ticked off at Ronald Reagan when they were fired. :)

[OregonRancher]

JFK signed executive order #10,988 allowing civil service
unions..

[taildragger]

Without the stimulus money the states would have been forced to cut union jobs and other wasteful spending. B_arrogant used tax payer money to buy his owners another year on the tax payer gravy train. The stimulus was nothing more then a political payoff by the corrupt creep and his corrupt political party

Ding, Ding, Ding..... Post of the Day!!!

Yes but Obozo can't run away from the accounting equation, and if he does he destroys the currency or the country or both.

Had he spent it all on eating the cost of Plant Permits for 50 Nuke Plant, 1 per state, and 3D mapping of gas and oil throughout the entire US it would have done something for the future.

Right now it is keeping states like my Michigan alive. When "Porkulus" runs out Michigan is in serious, serious trouble....

[Enchante]

It’s also most “interesting” to note that the 7 PACs in the top 20 which give significant amounts to Rs are all fairly balanced i.e., about 50-50 or 60-40, but the 13 top PACs which are union-driven give in the range of 90-99% to the ‘rats because of course they know who will best protect their “special interests” to the death..... oh, I forgot, unions and liberal PACs and NGOs etc. can’t be “special interests” b/c they are raised on the pure milk of the public interest.... just think of all those altruistic union officials......

American Fedn of State, County & Municipal Employees
$41,945,511
98%
1%

Intl Brotherhood of Electrical Workers
$31,544,407
97%
2%

American Assn for Justice
$31,425,529
90%
9%

National Education Assn
$30,162,867
92%
6%

Laborers Union
$28,993,900
92%
7%

Teamsters Union
$27,992,624
92%
6%

Service Employees International Union
$27,933,232
95%
3%

Carpenters & Joiners Union
$27,768,183
89%
10%

Communications Workers of America
$27,047,896
99%
0%

American Federation of Teachers
$26,285,941
98%
0%

United Auto Workers
$25,775,002
98%
0%

Machinists & Aerospace Workers Union
$25,205,277
98%
0%

United Food & Commercial Workers Union
$24,216,183
98%
1%

[jazusamo]

Good point...I noticed that when I first looked at it. The majority of them don’t give enough to Repubs for it even to be a token. At least it shows there are a few conservative trial lawyers and it probably irks the majority of them that they give any to Repubs.

[Fitzy_888]

National Auto Dealers Assn
$24,409,058
32%
67%

That’s why the car czar closed their doors.