Posts tagged Republicans
Post-midterms, federal unions push for pay raise, restoration of bargaining rights
November 6, 2026 // Labor leaders said they are hopeful lawmakers could tackle some priorities in Congress’ "lame duck" session, ahead of Democrats’ formally taking control of both the House and Senate next year.
Teamsters Voted Trump. O’Brien is Still Sending Their Dues to Democrats Anyway.
November 4, 2026 // No Teamsters financial support went to Sen. Moody or Sen. Marshall this cycle. Meanwhile, Teamsters' PAC, DRIVE, was sending checks to the two biggest Democratic super PACs fighting for control of Congress: $300,000 to Senate Majority PAC in September and $500,000 to House Majority PAC in October. That's $800,000 aimed at handing Chuck Schumer the Senate and Hakeem Jeffries the Speaker's gavel. O'Brien endorsed Marshall on September 3. Two weeks later, DRIVE sent $300,000 to the super PAC whose whole purpose is flipping Republican Senate seats. Then on October 6, DRIVE gave half a million dollars to House Majority PAC, the group that exists to defeat House Republicans like Mike Lawler. Sixteen days after that, O'Brien was standing next to Lawler calling him a friend of labor.
Op-ed: Big Labor Schemes Power Grab for Democrats
November 3, 2026 // But there’s reason to doubt the sincerity of labor groups in building a long-lasting relationship. Away from the headlines, Big Labor has been an obstacle against the Trump Administration in court. Unions have sued the Trump Administration more than 70 times–nearly once a week–to stop initiatives including reducing and reorganizing the bloated federal bureaucracy, reducing federal spending, and reining in rogue “independent” bureaucracies full of personally motivated actors who didn’t want to be accountable to the President.
Consumer Action for a Strong Economy: New Issue Brief Examines Organized Labor’s Political Agenda
November 2, 2026 // According to the brief, unions have filed more than 70 lawsuits challenging President Trump’s agenda, directed the vast majority of their political contributions to Democrats, and backed redistricting efforts designed to increase Democratic representation in Congress. Taken together, those actions raise questions about organized labor’s recent outreach to Republicans. “Working families deserve transparency from organizations asking Congress for more power,” said CASE Chairman Gerard Scimeca. “At the same time union leaders are seeking greater support from Republicans, they continue spending millions backing Democratic candidates and opposing key parts of President Trump’s agenda.”
Granholm, not Republicans, put Detroit Schools under state control in 2009
October 28, 2026 // The Detroit school district incurred a $139.7 million operations deficit in 2007-08. By the end of 2008-09, that deficit grew to $218.9 million. Granholm appointed an emergency financial manager halfway through the 2008-09 school year, effectively placing the district in a form of state receivership. By the end of that fiscal year, the district's deficit had increased to $327.3 million. That was the responsibility of the locally-elected school board. There were two significant events in 2016. The state bailed out the school district and the state was sued by a group of Detroit Public Schools Community District students. Those Detroit students claimed they didn’t receive an education.
Congress Just Learned an Important Lesson About Collective Bargaining
October 14, 2026 // Eight congressional employees negotiating with a strongly pro-union member of Congress took four years to get their agreement right. FLCA essentially gives private-sector workers and employers roughly four months before the process can move toward having outsiders determine the terms for them. And those agreements can be vastly more complicated than a congressional office contract.
Editorial Board: Congress wants faster union contracts — except for its own staff
October 8, 2026 // Nicole Waring, the shop steward in Khanna’s office, explained why it took so long. “There’s a lot of back and forth. It takes time to review each passback of the contract [and] redline everything,” she told Politico. “The biggest thing was we wanted to make sure that this contract would be governable, and rather than just make things convenient and take shortcuts, make sure that it was going to be something that we knew would stand the test of time.” Other staff explained that going slowly was important because union contracts are binding and directly affect workers’ lives. They noted the unique workplace circumstances of a congressional office. Here’s the thing: Every workplace is unique. Every union contract directly affects workers’ lives. And that’s why the government should never force a contract on people without their consent.
Editorial: Against the Hollywood bailout
October 1, 2026 // The greatest job decline after Covid was in 2023, before Hollywood’s chief competitor, the U.K., expanded its film subsidies. That was the year of the industry’s “double strike,” when actors and writers simultaneously walked off studio lots for months. Hundreds of projects were delayed or outright canceled as filming rolled to a halt, costing the entertainment industry billions of dollars. When studios finally signed contracts to end the strikes, they had to accept unions’ core demands, ballooning their compensation in perpetuity. Is it any wonder they have looked to film elsewhere? The proposed federal tax credit would bail out the union workers who bargained for more than they were worth. It would subsidize almost all labor costs — for employees and contractors, both pre-production and post-production — of film crews, animators, special-effects artists, writers, actors, and even producers and directors. There are no limits on eligible compensation, so taxpayers would pick up a good chunk of the salaries of Christopher Nolan and Tom Cruise.
NEW AFFT REPORT: Teachers Pour Millions Into Colorado’s Largest Union. CEA’s Spending Still Outruns Its Revenue
September 29, 2026 // CEA spent $17 million in fiscal year 2025, including $10.5 million — 61.4% of all spending — on salaries, benefits, pensions and payroll taxes for its own staff. For every dollar the union distributed in grants, it spent about $5.88 on its own workforce. And despite collecting roughly $13 million in membership dues, CEA’s expenses again exceeded its revenue when a one-time asset sale is excluded. CEA reported a $2.6 million surplus, but that included a $3.1 million gain from selling assets. Without that gain, CEA finished $535,034 in the red — the fourth consecutive year its expenses exceeded revenue on that basis. At the same time, accounts payable and accrued expenses nearly doubled in one year, from approximately $4.4 million to $8.8 million. CEA’s public filing does not specify what drove the increase.
Reed Larson built a movement for the long fight
September 24, 2026 // As union membership continues a decadeslong decline, nearing historic lows, union officials are spending billions on politics every election cycle. Traditionally, Democrats have been the main recipients of union political funding. However, major unions, notably the Teamsters, have begun to turn toward populist Republicans to advance their legislative agenda. Teamsters head Sean O’Brien has taken up with Republicans such as Sen. Josh Hawley (MO), who, along with union-label Democrats, introduced the Teamsters-endorsed FLCA into the Senate.