Most of the Labor Party supporters I know are against the China PNTR/WTO deal.
While the LP hasn't made a specific statement on it -- the last statement on fair trade was the resolution passed at the 1998 in Pittsburgh (the same convention addressed by George Becker of the Steelworkers) -- I would bet 90% of the LP membership feels the same way.
If Nathan had ever been to an LP convention, he'd know that the majority of the union delegates to the LP are regular working folks, not sectarian lefties with nostalgia for Chinese stalinism.
-Andy English
-----Original Message----- From: Nathan Newman <nathan.newman at yale.edu> To: lbo talk <lbo-talk at lists.panix.com> Date: Tuesday, May 23, 2000 2:45 PM Subject: Labor Boycotts MCI Fundraising Bash (Re: UAW prez slams Gore onChina PNTR
>
>Having just started my summer job here at the Communication Workers of
>America (CWA) legal department, I just received email informing everyone
>that there would be no tickets for the DNC's fundraising Gala "The
>National Tribute to President Clinton."
>
>Sweeney has apparently asked all labor folks to boycott the event as a
>protest over the China trade vote.
>
>So folks are really pissed. Too bad most of the usual third party folks
>on this list can't hype the Dem's betrayal of the working class, since
>they are in the cheering section with the Wall Street Journal, the DNC and
>the RNC for passage of the China trade deal :)
>
>-- Nathan Newman
>
>On Tue, 23 May 2000, Andrew English wrote:
>
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Larry Weiss <Lweiss at Americas.org>
>> To: 'mnlabor at egroups.com' <mnlabor at egroups.com>
>> Date: Tuesday, May 23, 2000 12:03 PM
>> Subject: [mnlabor] FW: UAW president Yokich jumps all over Gore, not just
House, on PNTR
>>
>>
>> See particularly the final paragraph!!!
>>
>>
>>
>> Released today:
>>
>> Statement by UAW President Stephen P. Yokich:
>>
>> President Clinton and Vice President Gore hail the U.S.-China agreement
on
>> WTO accession, "a hundred percent win" for America that will increase
U.S.
>> exports to China and create jobs for American workers. Nice words, but
they
>> made the very
>> same claims for NAFTA. They were wrong then, and they are wrong now.
>> On this issue of critical importance to working people -- one that
could
>> cost hundreds of thousands of American workers their jobs -- President
>> Clinton and Vice President Gore once again have sided with multinational
>> corporations against workers here and abroad.
>> Over the past weeks, proponents of giving China PNTR have portrayed
the
>> same multinational corporations who today are exploiting the Chinese
>> government's well-documented brutal repression of basic human and
workers'
>> rights to fatten profits as the champions for a more free and open
Chinese
>> society. Meanwhile, the labor movement's insistence that the Chinese
>> government demonstrate progress on human and workers' rights before the
U.S.
>> Congress permanently gives up its power of annual review is dismissed as
>> selfish, myopic, and worse.
>> We are deeply disappointed that Vice President Gore has failed to
speak
>> out against these cynical attacks on the labor movement and our partners
in
>> this fight. Instead, he has tried to have it both ways on China PNTR.
One
>> moment, presidential candidate Gore is telling the labor movement that he
>> believes human rights, workers' rights, and environmental protections
>> should be included in core trade agreements; the next, Vice President
Gore
>> is holding hands with the profiteers of the world and singing the praises
of
>> the U.S.- China WTO accession agreement while lobbying for PNTR for
China.
>> And, obviously, we cannot turn to Republican candidate George W. Bush;
his
>> positions on issues of concern to working families are far worse.
>> America's working families need and deserve a president they can
count
>> on to stand with them on their tough issues, not just the easy ones.
That's
>> why we have no choice but to actively explore alternatives to the two
major
>> political parties. It's time to forget about party labels and instead
focus
>> on supporting candidates, such as Ralph Nader, who will take a stand
based
>> on
>> what is right, not what big money dictates. Supporting those who support
us
>> is our political agenda, not just a slogan.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> =====================================================================For
more information on current fair trade issues, visit www.tradewatch.org If
you have received this message in error, we apologize. To be removed from
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>>
>> =====================================================================
>>
>>
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>>
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>>
>>
>>
>>
>