According to AFL-CIO boss Richard Trumka, we should expect passage of the Card Check Forced Unionism bill by April. All hands on deck.
On December 3, 2009, By Post
With less than a month left in 2009, President Obama gave Big Labor Bosses, ACORN, American Rights At Work, and other Big Labor-front groups another gift. This time Labor Secretary Solis’ Department will not require Big Labor to complete labor union trust disclosure documents.
Big Labor has fought the disclosure of information for thousands of “slush” funds and front groups since 2003. By 2008, courts grew weary of Big Labor’s excuses for wanting to continue to hide billions in forced union dues that it transferred to groups like ACORN and the AFL-CIO’s American Rights At Work.
Today, the Department published its intent to rescind these disclosures and to allow union bosses to ignore reporting until the Obama Administration disclosure rescission is final.
Why did Big Labor want to stop these disclosures, referred to as Form T-1 Trust disclosures? Because, these reports disclose the finances of every significant union controlled trust or Big Labor-front group. In essence, this information provides the schematic of Big Labor-forced dues funded political operations.
These reports, if filed, will lead to more disclosures of ACORN financing and reveal more about the Big Labor-Front Group American Rights at Work, a political and lobbying operation, where Obama’s Labor Secretary served as Treasurer while a member of Congress..
Today’s Obama Administration’s notice reads in part:
The Department now seeks comments on a proposal to delay the filing due date of the initial Form T–1 reports, pending the outcome of the Department’s proposal to withdraw the October 2, 2008 rule.
The comment period on this proposal will close on December 14, 2009. [Eleven Days of Comments] Time is running out, to share your comments with the Department of Labor follow this link or click here to comment.
On December 2, 2009, By Post
From the the National Right To Work Legal Defense Foundation:
Union Watchdog Files Second Disclosure Request to Investigate Obama Labor Department Stonewalling
Media report indicates Department of Labor officials are “in a tizzy and freaking out” over federal lawsuit
Washington, D.C. (December 2, 2009) – The National Right to Work Foundation has filed new disclosure demands on the heels of its lawsuit to compel the Department of Labor (DOL) to release information related to high-ranking officials’ connections to powerful union lobbying interests.
A media report indicates DOL officials have deliberately ignored disclosure laws, and Right to Work attorneys are seeking internal DOL records backing up the report.
National Right to Work originally lodged a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request last April citing concerns about Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis, who previously held a key leadership position at the Big Labor-front group “American Rights at Work,” and Deborah Greenfield, who was a lawyer for the AFL-CIO involved in a lawsuit challenging DOL union disclosure regulations that she now oversees as an Administration appointee.
For the last seven months, the Obama Administration has stonewalled the Foundation’s FOIA request seeking disclosure of the high-ranking DOL officials’ contacts with union operatives. Late last month, Right to Work attorneys filed suit in federal court to force the Obama Administration to fulfill its obligations under the Freedom of Information Act.
Subsequent media coverage [Mark Hemingway in the Washington Examiner] has revealed DOL officials apparently decided to ignore the Foundation’s FOIA request, but facing the lawsuit and negative publicity is now reconsidering. Additionally, one media report cited a high-placed source stating that panicked DOL officials “are in a tizzy and freaking out” because of the Foundation’s lawsuit.
Today, Foundation attorneys filed another FOIA request this time for the DOL’s search plan and interoffice communications – including emails, meeting minutes, notes, and other interoffice correspondence – relating to the initial FOIA request.
“President Obama’s widely-touted promise of unparalleled transparency has been met with unparalleled secrecy,” said Stefan Gleason, vice president of the National Right to Work Foundation. “The Department of Labor’s deliberate stonewalling is unsettling. It suggests the administration is hiding damaging information about whether Hilda Solis and Deborah Greenfield are coordinating their activities with pro-compulsory unionism extremists.”
“Giving Big Labor undue influence over the Department’s rule-making and administrative oversight is a slap in the face of America’s independent-minded workers. The public deserves to know about any collusion between this administration and Big Labor bosses.”
The National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation is a nonprofit, charitable organization providing free legal aid to employees whose human or civil rights have been violated by compulsory unionism abuses. The Foundation, which can be contacted toll-free at 1-800-336-3600, is assisting thousands of employees in over 200 cases nationwide. Its web address is http://www.nrtw.org/.
On November 23, 2009, By Post
The Obama Administration promised unparalleled transparency in government but is giving the American people unparalleled secrecy. The Department of Labor continues to ignore a Freedom of Information Request from the National Right to Work Legal Foundation.
On September 3, 2009, By Post
The union-front group American Rights at Work is back on the air with television commercials aimed at revitalizing the Card Check Forced Unionism Bill, S.B. 560.
The group run by former House Democrat Whip David Bonior of Michigan is running the ads nationwide on cable TV. The group’s spokesman says that they are “redoubling” their efforts to force the bill through the Senate. So much for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid’s comments on the demise of the bill this year…
On July 15, 2009, By Post
President Obama took time from his schedule to meet a number of union bosses in his effort to enact a government-run health care plan in the United States. Among those in the room included Andrew Stern of the SEIU — the union intent on organizing the new government health care employees the president will create with his plan. Others included James Hoffa of the Teamsters and Ron Gettelfinger of the UAW. The union heads pledged their help in passing health care legislation by the end of the year and the president in turn promised to support forcing millions of Americans into the ranks of the unions thought the Card Check Forced Unionism bill. This sure isn’t the “hope and change” millions of Americans voted for.