Legal Commentary

Teamsters Cave On Public Option

By Big Tent Democrat

Teamsters head James Hoffa capitulates on the public option:

Teamsters President James Hoffa said dropping the so-called public option wouldn’t be a “deal killer” for health-care legislation, signaling a split among leaders of unions that are a core constituency of President Barack Obama. “We’ve got to find out what’s doable,” Hoffa, head of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, said in an interview on Bloomberg Television’s “Political Capital with Al Hunt,” which airs today. “I think it’s important to get something done this time and declare a victory.”

(Emphasis supplied.) The funny thing is that Hoffa declares card check (EFCA), which is absolutely dead, a deal breaker. The AFL-CIO, through its future head Richard Trumka, has declared a robust public option a must, and its absence a deal breaker with the AFL-CIO and Democrats. The Teamsters are part of the union coalition Change To Win. Hoffa's statement puts pressure on the other unions in the coalition, especially SEIU's Andy Stern (who claims to be a leader in the health care reform fight, see EmptyWheel on Stern's muddled message so far), to make their position on the public option clear.

Speaking for me only

Full post as published by TalkLeft on September 04, 2009 (boomark / email).