The largest labor federation in the United States, the AFL-CIO, endorsed Hillary Clinton for president of the United States on Thursday, vowing to throw the full weight of more than 50 unions representing about 12.5 million workers behind the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee.
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An analysis of labor endorsements by The Intercept found that Clinton managed to win support when union leadership voted while Sanders won when the decision was left to union members.
On energy, Hillary Clinton wants to shut down the coal mines, block the Keystone pipeline, and destroy millions of good union jobs through executive action.
The president of the largest labor union to support Sanders, the Communications Workers of American, told his members this week that it was time to unify the Democratic Party around Clinton.
The AFL-CIO’s general board voted to endorse Clinton over Vermont Sen. Those endorsements proved vital in establishing her as an “inevitable” candidate, but Sanders’ popularity among workers led to distrust between union members and their leaders.
“The IAM is a great union and I am very proud to be a member”.
The same goes for the National Union of Healthcare Workers, another independent union, which said they will let voters weigh in on an endorsement in coming days.
Labor leaders loyal to Sanders said they are anxious their members could defect to Trump now that Clinton is the Democrats’ presumptive nominee. While Clinton promoted the agreement dozens of times as secretary of state, she has since said she can not support the deal in its current form. “Hillary Clinton has proven herself as a champion of the labor movement and we will be the driving force to elect her President of the United States”.
Clinton’s record on free trade has already exposed a rift in her relations with organized labor.
Former Labor Secretary Robert Reich, an early Sanders ally, wrote on Facebook that Sanders supporters should start taking another look at Clinton.
Clinton was “gushing” about the gear available to first responders in the wake of Sunday’s Orlando massacre, despite her previous support of Mr. Obama’s order. In too many statehouses across the country – and even in the halls of Congress – these rights are under concerted attack by Republicans.
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The union pledged to boost the Clinton campaign on the ground, providing volunteers to knock on doors and rally support for her candidacy. Its super PAC, which spent almost $22 million to help President Obama in 2012, has already raised about $4.5 million in 2016.
