-By Warner Todd Huston
We have been talking about it for some time here, that most odious provision in the Democrat pushed Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) that eliminates the secret ballot for prospective union members. Democrats want to eliminate the secret ballot because, they say, it will make it easier to enlarge union membership without all that messy votes of conscience stuff. It’s easier, they feel, to leave prospective new members open to union intimidation to get them to vote pro-union.
So, doing away with the secret ballot is a particular goal of the EFCA. Democrats are dead set on passing this act with this anti-democratic voting measure intact.
Yet in 2001 the same Democrats that are so intent on eliminating the secret ballot for American workers were all exercised over maintaining the secret ballot for Mexican workers.
The DC Examiner has this story:
Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.), the main “card check bill” sponsor on the House side, and nine other Democratic co-sponsors,” all signed the letter to Mexico demanding that the secret ballot be maintained. Rep. Joe Baca (D-Calif.), Rep. Bob Filner (D-Calif.), Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.), Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio), Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio), Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.), Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.), Rep. James McGovern (D-Mass.), Rep. Pete Stark (D-Calif.). All joined Miller in both co-sponsoring EFCA and signing the 2001 letter.
“We understand the secret ballot is allowed for, but not required by Mexican labor law. However, we feel that the secret ballot is absolutely necessary in order to ensure that workers are not intimidated into voting for a union they might not otherwise choose,” Miller and the other card check co-sponsors said in the letter.
“We respect Mexico as an important neighbor and a trading partner, and we feel that the increased use of the secret ballot in union recognition elections will help bring real democracy to the Mexican workplace,” they said.
(Full text of letter in .pdf format)
So, to these Democrats the secret ballot is of extreme importance for Mexican workers but for our own it is easily dispensed with? Seriously? Do these Democrats even know the definition of the word hypocrisy?
Naturally, they all want to imagine that there were key difference between the situations with Mexican workers and American. But their protestations about these differences are completely unsatisfactory as explanation.
As Ed Morrissey over at Malkin's HotAir.com says,
The secret ballot exists to protect people from influence and intimidation, both in the workplace and in the electoral system. It’s a sad day in America when one major political party has no problem defending that principle in someone else’s nation and abandons it for Americans.
Hear, hear.
Sadly, what this incident proves is that Democrats have no principles. They only want power. That is the beginning and end to their philosophy.
____________
Warner Todd Huston is a Chicago based freelance writer, has been writing opinion editorials and social criticism since early 2001 and is featured on many websites such as newsbusters.org, Human Events Magazine, townhall.com, New Media Journal, Men’s News Daily and the New Media Alliance among many, many others. Additionally, he has been a frequent guest on talk-radio programs to discuss his opinion editorials and current events. He has also written for several history magazines and appears in the new book "Americans on Politics, Policy and Pop Culture" which can be purchased on amazon.com. He is also the owner and operator of publiusforum.com. Feel free to contact him with any comments or questions : EMAIL Warner Todd Huston
Fair Use: This site may contain copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. I am making such material available in my efforts to advance understanding of political, human rights, economic, democracy, and social justice issues, etc. I believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research, educational, or satirical purposes. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site/blog for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.