House Democrats are starting to push back against labor unions that are lobbying them to oppose the “fast track” trade bill.
Cedric Richmond, the lone Democratic House member from Louisiana, told reporters Wednesday that labor union organizations are threatening Democrats who might vote for the bill, which would make it easier for President Obama to authorize international trade deals.
Richmond said he is “leaning no” on the bill, but said union leaders are threatening some Democrats with primary challengers if they support the measure.
“Labor has gone a little overboard and I think there is some potential backlash for how far they are going,” Richmond said. “I’m watching them do it and it bothers me.”
Richmond’s remarks come a day after House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer, D-Md., said the union tactics were “not helpful.”
Democrats, he added, “have urged our friends in labor to have respect for the decision of members.”
Union leaders have been putting intense pressure on some lawmakers, including Hoyer. They staged a protest outside his district office last month.
Unions are also bearing down on Reps. Ami Bera and Scott Peters, both California Democrats, to get them to vote “no” on the bill.
The AFL-CIO, for example, has threatened to spend millions of dollars to unseat Peters, who is undecided on the bill, while AFL-CIO president Richard Trumka has criticized lawmakers who support the bill.
The California Labor Federation, meanwhile, has denounced Bera in the Sacramento Bee after he announced he would back the trade bill. The union also said it is “pulling out all the stops to hold Bera accountable.”
Unions are deeply opposed to new international trade pacts because they believe they will kill manufacturing jobs, which occurred after past trade deals were signed including the North American Free Trade Agreement. But Democrats may have to decide soon where they stand, as House Republicans could call up the trade bill as early as this month.
