AFL-CIO Abandons Sen. Stevens

In 2006, pro-Big Labor Republicans were stabbed in the back by the AFL-CIO, who decided it was more important to elect a Democrat Congress than a handful of pro-Big Labor Republicans. We are now seeing that same mindset in the U.S. Senate.

Roll Call reports that Sen. Ted Stevens (R-AK) has lost the endorsement of the AFL-CIO, who chose to back Democrat Senate candidate Mark Begich.

Alaska AFL-CIO President Vince Beltrami said the union endorsed Stevens in all of his re-election campaigns in recent memory, though Stevens had either a minimal or token challenger in many of those campaigns.

“My sense, having been a 20-year resident of the state, is that he’s not been not endorsed for decades,” Beltrami said. “So this is a significant departure.”

Beltrami lauded Begich’s support for the Card Check Forced Unionism Bill. This bill is the most significant pro-forced union legislation in decades.