Union Activists Staged Protests before Washoe County Republican Headquarters

Posted on August 27, 2008
Filed Under Repo Homes |

Dressed in grim costumes, union activists staged protests before the Washoe County headquarters of the Republican Party. The parade was modest in numbers. Armed with cut out faces of Senator John McCain they displayed a cardboard coffin stuffed with foreclosure notices. They wanted to drive home the point to the voters that the McCain, the Republican candidate for the presidency was not the fit person to make the economy turn around.

The drama in front of Republican headquarters in Washoe County was the start of a three-week tour of important states organized by a coalition of the largest labour unions of the country. The aim is to give a fillip to the campaign of Barack Obama and also to strengthen union bonds. The group has plans for staging similar demonstrations to draw the attention of the media during the rest of their tour.

In Carson City the unionists sought to link McCain to Governor Jim Gibbons. Gibbons reputation is mired by a series of scandals and false moves. The tour participants included nine union workers – one being Judy Bagley who works in a casino in Las Vegas. She harangued McCain for the comments of a former advisor, Senator Phil Gramm, who had said that the economic slump was due to “mental recession” and that USA was a “nation of whiners”. Gramm no longer acts as campaign advisor. Bagley was harsh in her criticism that “McCain had lost all touch with realities of American families.” She added that McCain possessed seven houses and as such it would be impossible for him to understand the pain or foreclosures and the suffering the people of Nevada was facing because of the foreclosure tidal waves.

Rick Gorka, spokesperson of McCain said the latter’s economic plans required substantial help to be given to house owners who were under risk from home repos. He wanted qualifying house owners to modify the risky loans to new ones backed by FHA for 30 years. These loans would reflect the real value of the houses. Gorka said, “Considering John McCain has a legitimate and great plan to help homeowners, engaging in warfare and engaging in politics of the past doesn’t do anything to help us move forward.”

While the politicians trade words and the unions gesticulate, the ordinary American is staggering under a three-pronged attack of foreclosures, rising food and fuel prices and slump in real estate.