[H/t CSpanJunkie]
Finally the Employee Free Choice Act will be introduced in both House and Senate Tuesday and that should provide plenty of fireworks for sure. The right-wing corporate militia has spent millions of dollars to have their propaganda about the act infiltrate the media and have had their suck-ups openly lie about what is contained in the bill.
Update: Here's the full text of the bill.
It's all about the workers' right to form a union how they see fit, period. The biggest lie being told is that it will end "the secret ballot" and destroy democracy. Does anybody know what a secret ballot is? What about the phrase "card check?" It's not surprising that Warren Buffett is against it as well, since he's against unions generally.
A USA Today blog and the Politico both repeated the false suggestion that a National Labor Relations Board election is currently required before obtaining union representation. In fact, current law already allows a union that shows it has the support of a majority of workers to represent the workers if their employer voluntarily agrees to recognize the union...read on.
Howie Klein has a great rundown of the House and Senate members and where they stand on this bill.
So now the far right-- as well as off da hook and much beleagured temporary RNC chair Michael Steele-- is threatening to finance primaries against any Republican who votes for the bill. The Chamber of Commerce has also been actively courting right-wing Democrats with carrots and sticks. The other day Dan Boren (Blue Dog-OK) announced to his Chamber allies that, as expected, he would vote against working families once again.
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Over on the Senate side, where the attempt to close down the Grand Obstructionist Party's de facto filibuster was defeated, 51 in favor of the bill and 48 opposing it, every Democrat plus Arlen Specter (R-PA). In 2007 every Democrat co-sponsored the bill except conservatives Ben Nelson, Blanche Lincoln and Mark Pryor (all of whom voted for it).
This year the only Democrats who haven't signed on as co-sponsors are Max Baucus, Evan Bayh, Colorado freshmen Michael Bennet and Mark Udall, Jeff Bingaman, Illinois freshman Roland Burris (although probably because no one asked him to), Kent Conrad, Claire McCaskill, Byron Dorgan, Herb Kohl, North Carolina freshman Kay Hagan, Mary Landrieu, Jon Tester, Blanche Lincoln, Mark Pryor, Mark Warner, Jim Webb, and Dianne Feinstein. (Bolded names were sponsors in 2007 and I'm sure they're still on board now and just haven't gotten around to sign up for co-sponsorship.)
He's got a lot of info in the post so please read the entire thing.
d-day also has this about Blanche Lincoln:
...for those who say that someone like Blanche Lincoln has to watch herself for the 2010 midterms, consider Senate Guru's analysis that nobody's really running against her worth a darn. Therefore we can conclude that, if Lincoln votes against Employee Free Choice, it's not because she has to, but because she wants to.
