The Tennessee AFL-CIO is angry.
Apparently, buying politicians who turn around and vote against union-friendly measures is not how union bosses want their members’ money spent.
As a result, the union federation has decided to quit funding the Demmocratic Party in Tennessee and, instead, only give its members’ money to individual politicians.
Tennessee AFL-CIO President Gary Moore, a former Democratic House member, emphasized that unions still intend to give to individual lawmakers and candidates. Unions will support any Democrat — or Republican — deemed “friendly to working people” on various issues, Moore said.
The new policy is intended to address labor’s concerns in the recent legislative session when several Democratic lawmakers joined with majority Republicans to pass various bills. Democratic support helped Republicans pass Gov. Bill Haslam’s controversial overhaul of workers’ compensation, which unions opposed, Moore said.
“This past legislative session we tracked everybody’s voting record,” Moore explained. “We expected the majority of the Republicans to vote against us. What we didn’t expect was some of the Democrats to vote the wrong way.”
He said the “shining example” was Rep. Charles Curtiss, D-Sparta, who voted for all six Republican bills that labor groups opposed. Moore said he considers Curtiss a friend but was upset.
The issue was that”we had no control where they [parties and caucuses] spent the money” given by labor unions, Moore said. “They might spend the money on candidates who are not very friendly to the working men and women of this state.”
Well, that will show the Democrats who’s boss, won’t it?
