State Democrats led by Gov. Mark Warner (D) begged leaders of the labor movement to help them elect a slate of Democratic candidates this November.
Speaking before the Virginia AFL-CIO's political convention at the Tysons Corner Sheraton in Vienna on Friday, Warner thanked labor leader for their help in getting him elected in 2001 and urged them to get involved again this year. Labor contributed $2.2 million to Warner's 2001 campaign, the most any Democrat has ever received.
"My hope and prayer is that you will do everything you can to help our candidates this fall," he said.
"The things that we have accomplished have been accomplished because you care enough to elect a Democratic governor," he added, listing the balanced budget, continued support to schools and an expanded child care program as a few of those achievements.
State Sen. Mary Margaret Whipple (D-31), who chairs the Senate's Democratic Caucus, noted that 17 of the current state Senators are Democrats while 23 are Republicans.
"That is the wrong ratio so we need to turn that around," she said. "This year is a critical year. We need your help, your advice, your support."
WARNER ALSO sharply criticized Republicans in the General Assembly for their unwillingness to compromise.
"We run time and time gain into a legislature whose whole political philosophy revolves around the word 'no,'" he said. "After 19 months of dealing with this General Assembly let me assure you elections do matter."
The Republicans' "top legislative agenda was to pass another tax cut for people in my income bracket," Warner told the union members.
The estate tax repeal that Warner vetoed would have cost the state another $150 million a year, he said.
"That's not the kind of politics we need if we're going to move this state forward," Warner said.
Nevertheless, Warner said, "we also know that labor and business have got to work together."
Jim Lealand, secretary treasurer of the Virginia AFL-CIO, said unions spend about 80 percent of their time working with businesses. About 98 percent of contract negotiations happen without controversy, he said.
"It's just unfortuante," he said. "The only ones you hear about are when there's controversy or work stoppage."
DEMOCRATS ARE appealing to labor at a time when unions are particularly vulnerable.
In the past several years, Virginia has lost about 5,000 manufacturing jobs, said Lealand. "It all adds up," he said. "It's all manufacturing."
Nationwide, the economy has lost 3.1 million jobs since President George W. Bush came to power, 2.2 million of those in manufacturing.
Jack Hinman a Mt. Vernon resident who is a member of the American Federation of Government Employees said the labor movement in Virginia is "struggling, like labor everywhere."
"It's almost like the whole country has a default setting to the right."
It doesn't help, he added, that "The only place in Virginia that has a really strong labor tradition is the Southwest."
Lealand said the AFL-CIO counts about 30,000 members in Northern Virginia, many from the AFGE or the United Food and Commercial Workers. Statewide the union has about 190,000 members.
Hinman said the labor movement had gotten Warner's message.
"Right now we're going to try and get some better candidates elected," he said.
"We're going to sit down now that we've had our endorsement process and identify key incumbents that we need to protect and certainly certain challengers," said Leaman.