It's official, SEIU is endorsing Barack Obama, a move that supersedes any state-level endorsements of other candidates. I'm given to understand that the move was less about any particular SEIU-related policy issue than about the idea that an Obama endorsement and an Obama win is the best possibility for building the sort of broad, powerful progressive coalition that SEIU seeks.
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SEIU for Obama
15 Feb 2008 02:27 pm
Comments (15)
Oh look! Wealthy, white leadership making the call for its mostly latino membership. I hope it works as good as the culinary workers endorsement did in Nevada. Silly people.
I'm curious about the impact this endorsement has on any potential Edwards endorsement. As more and more unions endorse Obama, does that make it more difficult for Edwards to endorse Clinton? Does it have no impact? I doubt it would make it easier for her to endorse her . . . .
Ezra Klein's reporting Rep. John Lews is defecting from Team Clinton, too, which is good news.
The Wall Street Journal has a piece saying Hillary will stay until the end and will fight to seat Michigan and Florida delegates, even if they don't do well on March 4th. Hardball!
(Doesn't the SEIU know that Hillary will pass universal health care and Obama won't? Hmm, they must have been fooled by his speeches.)
Oh look! Wealthy, white leadership making the call for its mostly latino membership. I hope it works as good as the culinary workers endorsement did in Nevada. Silly people.
I thought Obama did well in Nevada. Texas has 40% of its delegates chosen by caucuses, so does this mean it only counts 60% (or 3/5)?
I guess choosing a union buster as your "chief strategist" is perhaps not the best strategy for getting union backing.
But she's still ready on day one.
"I doubt it would make it easier for her to endorse her . . . ."
Who? The breck girl? :)
I have a question about union endorsements.
How much impact do they have on the actual votes cast by the members they represent?
Does this type of endorsement have the capacity to seriously sway the impact of large numbers of voters, or is the result fairly minor?
Thanks in advance for any feedback.
Now, here's the side of the SEIU you won't hear from MattY. They paid someone's salary for six months while he organized marches in support of illegal immigration... at the same time as he serves on an advisory board to Mexico's president.
"Who? The breck girl? :)"
Ooops!
Humanities Grad: I think in some ways it does, in some ways it doesn't. I used to work in the political department of a local labor council - the main thing I did was work on political endorsements (grunt work - I was very, very low on the totem pole). My experience was that you have a relatively small group of union members who will just vote according to union endorsement. The majority, though, will engage in independent analysis of the candidates. Of that group, if the union member is going to vote based on union issues (and that is a goodly-sized "if"), the union endorsement holds significant but not overriding importance. The more transparent the endorsement process - and it differs from union to union - the more sway the endorsement has. You also, though, have a lot of union members who do not vote on union issues. For them, obviously, the endorsement means a lot less.
"How much impact do they have on the actual votes cast by the members they represent?"
I don't really know then answer to that. But they do have a lot of resources to put into the fight. The most valuable contribution is ground troops to educate and get out the vote. This union is apparently planning on doing a pretty sizeable independent expenditure on his behalf.
Israel,
That would be the "elected leadership" of the SEIU -- I don't think they are particularly wealthy by say GOP standards. By the standards of their membership, probably. So you think the people running a 1.9 million person organization should be making minimum wage?
I think the value in the endorsement is, as someone else has noted, getting the muscle of a remarkably effective organization behind you. This is the fastest growing union in America, by a long shot, one that has succeeded in organizing difficult industries against the backdrop of incredibly anti-union times. I think it can also bring a sizable amount of the membership along. I think it could be a pretty substantial plus for Obama.
Wealthy, white leadership making the call for its mostly latino membership.
Ummm... no. You may want to get your facts straight. it only takes about 30 seconds of research.
From SEIU.org:
SEIU is the nation’s most diverse union. Fifty-six percent of SEIU members are women, and some 40 percent people of color. SEIU represents more immigrant workers than any other union in the United States.
Nice try though.
Oh... and a significant portion of the "people of color" are African American.
So no... SEIU is not "mostly Latino." Or anything close to it.
@Humatities Grad, 3:46 pm--
I used to know a woman at a college where we both worked whose job was transcribing audiotapes. With an election coming up, she once said "I really like my union. I want to see who they endorse." I'd never heard anyone say this before. All I could think of was, "How about making your own decision? Or not voting?" So I kept quiet.
But I guess if SEIU members like their union, the fact of the endorsement should be worth some votes, even apart from the organizational muscle.
Comments closed February 29, 2008.
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Heads in the Sand
Good for them. Considering that Hillary did nothing for unions while she sat on the board of union-busting Wal-Mart, I'm surprised any union has endorsed her.
Posted by Traven | February 15, 2008 2:35 PM