THE Democrats went into a state of panic on Thursday after the powerful Teamsters union, which makes drivers and dockers, abandoned its support for the Vice President Kamala HarrisDemocratic candidate, after poll results showed his members preferred the Former US President Donald TrumpRepublican candidate. This is the first time in 24 years that they have decided not to announce the traditional approval (official support) for the Democratic presidential candidate: in 2020, they supported Joe Biden, in 2016 Hillary Clinton, in 2012 and 2008 Barack Obama, in 2004 John Kerry and in 2000 Al Gore. In 1996, they did not support Bill Clinton, whom they had supported in 1992, and in 1988, they supported Republican George H. W. Bush. After his announcement, Democrats launched an attack on union president Sean O’Brien and Trump: “O’Brien backs anti-worker candidates“, lashed out at left-wing Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Unions acknowledge they don’t need Harris’ “care economy” with increased aid for children and would rather be informed about tariffs on China and infrastructure investments like Trump.
Instead, The Teamsters acknowledged that they preferred Trump in their internal polls: In the electronic survey, 59.6% acknowledged that they would vote for Trump, while 34% expressed support for Harris. Meanwhile, in the telephone survey, 58% expressed support for Trump. 31% indicated that they would vote for Kamala Harris. On the other hand, they would support Joe Biden.
The findings match those of Rasmussen, who has been surveying members of the powerful union since July 23, just after Joe Biden announced his resignation from the presidential campaign. announcing his support for Kamala Harris.
Why did Kamala Harris lose your support?
The criticism from the powerful union comes because Kamala Harris has focused on what she calls the “care economy,” which includes expanding child care assistance and affordable housing policies.
TEAMSTERS RELEASE PRESIDENTIAL POLL DATA
“Over the past year, the Teamsters Union has been committed to conducting the most inclusive, democratic and transparent presidential endorsement process in our 121-year-old organization’s history, and today we are delivering… pic.twitter.com/CnFNN9uosx
—Teamsters (@Teamsters) September 18, 2024
The move comes as a blow to Harris after the Teamsters backed Biden in 2020 and have consistently supported Democratic candidates over the past several decades, as previously reported.
The split reflects the Democratic Party’s continuing transformation away from its traditional working-class base –Illustrated by Biden, a veteran of more than 50 years of partisan politics – and its growing ranks of voters belonging to various minorities.
This worries Democratic Party leaders who still rely on working-class voters, including union members, who have not been convinced by Kamala Harris’ “care economy” policies. They need this. Harris tells them about Trump’s extension of tariffs on Chinese importssupport unions and authorize billions of dollars of investment in manufacturing and infrastructure, as Biden has done, through the Inflation Reduction Act, the CHIPS Act or the bipartisan Infrastructure Act.
