Evidence Of GOP Interference In VW Election Is Now Overwhelming - Truth-Out [View all]

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Evidence of GOP Interference in VW Election Is Now Overwhelming
Friday, 11 April 2014 10:20
By John Logan, Truthout | Op-Ed

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Last week's disclosure by respected Tennessee journalist Phil Williams concerning Republican dirty tricks in the Chattanooga union election demonstrates beyond any doubt that the GOP committed grand theft at Volkswagen. The confidential documents obtained by Williams show that Governor Bill Haslam offered Volkswagen $300 million contingent on the outcome of the election, and that Sen. Bob Corker's chief of staff coordinated anti-UAW messaging with Tennessee Republicans and anti-union groups. The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) must restore democracy and overturn the flawed election.

The evidence of external interference with workers' choice is as follows:

1. Shortly before the election, senior Tennessee lawmakers threatened to withhold hundreds of millions of dollars in state incentives if workers voted for the United Auto Workers union (UAW).

2. Confidential documents show that Gov. Haslam offered Volkswagen nearly $300 million in subsidies, but only if the union election were concluded "to the satisfaction" of his administration.

3. Neither Haslam nor his staffers have been able to explain the revelations. Haslam previously denied a connection between the subsidies and the election result, but when questioned by Williams, he responded, "We've been really clear all along that we had an interest in the outcome of that vote." He apparently does not understand that the purpose of federal labor law is to protect the choice of workers, not GOP politicians. After continued inquiries, a spokesperson for the governor explained that, "the state of Tennessee has incentivized unionized companies before." So Haslam's best excuse for interfering with the election is that this is not his first offense?

4. Republicans' statements on the election were in direct conflict with their actions behind the scenes. While Republicans tried to blackmail the company and colluded with anti-union extremists, Haslam warned Volkswagen management that it was essential that workers be allowed to vote "without undue influence," and stated that a fair vote was essential to the "acceptance of any result by the employees and the community." But thanks to the GOP's litany of dirty tricks - which gets longer with each new revelation - the Chattanooga vote was anything but fair.

5. Sen. Corker (R-Tenn.) twice told workers...

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More: http://truth-out.org/opinion/item/23007-evidence-of-gop-interference-in-vw-election-is-now-overwhelming