Key Labor Union Endorses Howard Dean
Thu November 6, 2003 05:47 PM ET
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Excerpt:
reuters.com By John Whitesides, Political Correspondent
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - One of the nation's largest labor unions endorsed Democratic presidential contender Howard Dean
on Thursday, providing his campaign a huge boost in momentum and grass roots muscle.
The executive board of the 1.6 million-member Service Employees International Union, one of the most diverse and politically
active unions, backed the former Vermont governor over his eight Democratic rivals after a meeting in Washington.
"We have reached a decision and we are hopeful there are other unions who share our excitement for Dr. Dean's candidacy," said SEIU President
Andrew Stern, with Dean standing by his side wearing a union jacket.
Stern declined to formally announce the endorsement until next week's meeting of officials of the 1.4 million-member American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, who could give Dean his second big labor endorsement in less than a week.
"We respect the fact that AFSCME is making an important decision and want to wait for that outcome," said Stern, who was asked by AFSCME president Gerald McEntee to hold off on his announcement.
But several of the 63 SEIU executive board members, who met with Dean for
about 45 minutes, said there was widespread enthusiasm for his candidacy
as they voted to endorse.
The show of support comes at a good time for Dean, who has been
caught in a firestorm of criticism all week for saying he wanted to be the candidate
for "guys with Confederate flags" in their pickup trucks.
the comment drew charges that Dean was insensitive to blacks
and demands that he apologize, and caused Dean on Wednesday to say he regretted the
pain he may have caused African-Americans or Southern white voters.
DIVERSE UNION
The SEIU is one of labor's most diverse unions. A majority of members are
women and 20 percent are black. It represents more immigrant workers than
any other U.S. union.
Board members said Dean's comments were discussed in the meeting.
Tyrone Freeman, an African-American who heads the SEIU local in Los Angeles,
said the discussion was frank and he left "not only pleased and satisfied but very enthusiastic."
The highly coveted SEIU endorsement will give Dean's insurgent, Internet-driven campaign a more mainstream
source of party backing and could begin to ease Democratic complaints that his support is concentrated too heavily on white, upper and middle-class liberals.
It also enhances his grass roots organizational reach, with the union promising
to mobilize supporters in key early states. It is the largest union in the first
primary state of New Hampshire, where Dean leads in the polls, and
represents 2,500 nurses in the caucus state of Iowa, where he
is battling Rep. Richard Gephardt of Missouri for the
top spot.
The move is a blow to Gephardt, who has strong labor support nationwide
and the backing of 20 international unions. Gephardt is counting on
labor to put him over the top in Iowa and elsewhere, but failed to win the
backing of the full AFL-CIO labor federation last month.
SEIU represents about 750,000 health care workers, an issue that Dean, a doctor,
has promised to highlight during the campaign, although he
has been largely defined by his outspoken stance against the Iraqi war.
Martha Baker, a registered nurse and president of an SEIU local in Miami,
said, "Our positions fit very well with Dean's views. We feel he's
closest to us on the issues."
Dean picked up his first AFL-CIO endorsement, from the painters union, last week, along with one from the California Teachers Association.
Continued ...
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