The unionists said the plan that the U.S. House of Representatives rejected on Monday would not help working people, including homeowners losing their mortgages. They said only a separate stimulus plan would do that.
Their statements came as both Democratic and Republican House leaders struggled to round up votes for the plan, which was backed by the Bush administration. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson warned that without it, Wall Street would crash and take the economy – including jobs, homes and pensions – with it.
But AFL-CIO President John Sweeney, Change to Win Chair Anna Burger, Laborers President Terry O’Sullivan, Teamsters President James Hoffa and Service Employees President Andrew Stern were skeptical. The Laborers urged their members to call Congress and demand defeat of a "no-strings-attached" bailout.
"The bailout bill gives too little relief to homeowners and too much power to an administration that has demonstrated neither competence nor foresight," Sweeney said. "It will require vigilant monitoring. And without a robust economic recovery package and concrete help for homeowners, the bailout will not work.
"It will not address the real underlying weaknesses in the U.S. economy, and it will not earn the confidence of working men and women. It should not be enacted unless Congress moves forward with a meaningful economic stimulus package now," he declared.
Laborers President O\'Sullivan took an even sterner tack, while campaigning for the $100 billion in construction projects a stimulus package would provide. He said the Wall Street financiers "should be thinking about bail"— for staying out of jail – rather than a bailout.
"The most important asset in America is not Wall Street – it\'s Main Street and working people. Unfortunately all Americans are stuck in the same boat with those at fault and if they sink, they will drag us down with them."
Change to Win put forth an ambitious reform proposal that includes extended unemployment benefits, funding of infrastructure projects and assistance for state and local governments to prevent devastating cuts in essential public services.
This article is adapted from one written by Mark Gruenberg of Press Associates, Inc., news service.
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The unionists said the plan that the U.S. House of Representatives rejected on Monday would not help working people, including homeowners losing their mortgages. They said only a separate stimulus plan would do that.
Their statements came as both Democratic and Republican House leaders struggled to round up votes for the plan, which was backed by the Bush administration. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson warned that without it, Wall Street would crash and take the economy – including jobs, homes and pensions – with it.
But AFL-CIO President John Sweeney, Change to Win Chair Anna Burger, Laborers President Terry O’Sullivan, Teamsters President James Hoffa and Service Employees President Andrew Stern were skeptical. The Laborers urged their members to call Congress and demand defeat of a "no-strings-attached" bailout.
"The bailout bill gives too little relief to homeowners and too much power to an administration that has demonstrated neither competence nor foresight," Sweeney said. "It will require vigilant monitoring. And without a robust economic recovery package and concrete help for homeowners, the bailout will not work.
"It will not address the real underlying weaknesses in the U.S. economy, and it will not earn the confidence of working men and women. It should not be enacted unless Congress moves forward with a meaningful economic stimulus package now," he declared.
Laborers President O\’Sullivan took an even sterner tack, while campaigning for the $100 billion in construction projects a stimulus package would provide. He said the Wall Street financiers "should be thinking about bail"— for staying out of jail – rather than a bailout.
"The most important asset in America is not Wall Street – it\’s Main Street and working people. Unfortunately all Americans are stuck in the same boat with those at fault and if they sink, they will drag us down with them."
Change to Win put forth an ambitious reform proposal that includes extended unemployment benefits, funding of infrastructure projects and assistance for state and local governments to prevent devastating cuts in essential public services.
This article is adapted from one written by Mark Gruenberg of Press Associates, Inc., news service.