Several Democrats reacted overnight to the news that the Teamsters, led by Executive Director Sean O'Brien, had decided not to endorse the president.
“Unfortunately, neither major candidate has been able to seriously promise unions that workers' interests will always come before big business,” O'Brien said in a statement.
Rep. Jim McGovern (D-Mass.), who like O'Brien is from the Boston area, called former President Donald Trump “the most anti-worker president in history.”
“It's clear that these workers are misinformed and ignorant about Trump's labor record,” McGovern said. The Washington Times“His loyalty is not to the workers.”
McGovern, the top Democrat on the House Rules Committee, said it was clear Trump favored “the wealthy” over the working class.
The Teamsters haven't endorsed a candidate since the 1996 contest between former President Bill Clinton and Sen. Bob Dole (R-Kansas). The party last backed a Republican in 1988, when it supported former President George H.W. Bush against then-Massachusetts Gov. Michael Dukakis.
Meanwhile, Rep. Steven Horsford (D-NV) tweeted that Harris ran in the Senate runoff elections “to protect Teamsters pensions.”
The Teamsters boss doesn't regret his altercation with Senator Mullin: “It sounded like he wanted to date me, not fight me.”
James McGovern of Massachusetts, ranking member of the House Rules Committee;
Horsford said the Nevada Teamsters Council went against the national organization and independently endorsed Harris.
“She's fighting for us,” Horsford said.
Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) echoed Horsford, saying, “Silver State Teamsters know that Kamala Harris is a fighter for our union members.”
“What I learned from my dad, who was a Las Vegas Teamster, is that if we stick together, we can win,” Cortez Masto said.
Meanwhile, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) called the Teamsters' decision “disappointing.”
“Donald Trump refused to support a Teamsters pension bill. It was Biden-Harris and the Democrats who saved Teamsters pensions with our American Rescue Plan Butch Lewis Act. Not one Republican vote,” she said on X (formerly Twitter).
But Trump said it was a “great honor” for him not to endorse Harris.
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Rep. Steven Horsford (D-Nev.) speaks with President Joe Biden. (Getty Images)
“They're not going to support the Democrats. That's a big thing,” Trump said during a campaign event in New York City. The Republican candidate added that internal Teamsters polls showed about 60 percent of the union's national members support his candidacy.
Rep. Pramila Jayapal of Washington state, a leader of the Congressional progressive wing, called the decision not to endorse Harris “disappointing,” adding that the evergreen state's House of Representatives still supports Harris.
“I think we're going to see more of this across the country,” she told The Times.
In a more direct attack on O'Brien, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-New York) argued that he has “boosted the Republican Party all year while supporting anti-worker, anti-choice Senate candidates.”
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O'Brien has reportedly reached out to several Republican lawmakers, including Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Missouri) and Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio). According to the BBCBut it was the Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transport Workers union that recently gave its support to the Conservatives.
However, the union has endorsed two U.S. Senate candidates: Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) and Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.).
In a statement carried by multiple media outlets, a spokesman for Harris' campaign said Trump believes striking workers should be fired, but that Harris “literally walked the picket line.”
“The Vice President's strong union record is why Teamsters chapters across the country have already endorsed her, along with the overwhelming majority of union members,” said Lauren Hitt.
On that point, the council representing 35,000 Teamsters in the key battleground state of Pennsylvania ignored O'Brien's refusal to endorse him and backed Harris.
The board of directors of Teamsters Joint Council 40, which covers Pittsburgh, Erie, State College and Washington, voted separately and unanimously selected Harris.
“She's the best person for our local residents and for our union,” Council President Carl Bailey said. Pittsburgh Tribune Review.
O'Brien And Trump isn't afraid to get into fights with Republicans. During a 2023 confirmation hearing, Trump and Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., nearly got into a fistfight when Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., had to intervene after the two men told each other to “stand up” and Mullin rose from his chair.
