8-30-05, 2:45 pm
As the 2006 election draws nearer, Congress is becoming the battleground for Bush administration policies. The President’s loyalists continue to support the war drive and privatization of Social Security, but more than a few are jumping ship. The shifts within Congress, and breaks in the Republican stronghold, provide an important opening to mobilize voters, blunt the attacks, and build support for bold pro-worker legislation.
In response to Bush’s falling ratings, unions, peace and civil rights groups are turning up the heat on Congress to heed grass roots demands to end the war on Iraq, repeal the Patriot Act and halt privatization of Social Security.
Demands are also heating up for the right to unionize, universal single-payer health care, immigrant rights, an expansion of voting rights, and for unbiased judicial appointments. Breaking through the Republican lockstep, labor and allies have received bi-partisan co-sponsors for the Employee Free Choice Act, the Secure America and Orderly Immigration Act, and the SAFE Act that would place important limits on the government’s surveillance powers and access to personal records.
Splits within the Republicans have dealt Bush several setbacks. Early in the year, the vote to prohibit stem cell research did not pass. The Bush administration has also been setback with bi-partisan Congressional support for investigations against Tom DeLay, and calls to close Guantanamo base.
Perhaps the most significant development is the 64-member Out of Iraq Caucus led by Rep. Maxine Waters. The Caucus formed following a June vote for an immediate plan to withdraw from Iraq, which received 128 votes including five Republicans.
Earlier, 51 members signed Rep. John Conyers request for a special counsel to investigate torture and possible violations of the war crimes act. Over 500,000 voters and 91 members of Congress signed Rep. Conyers letter to the president demanding answers on the Downing Street memo leading up to the war on Iraq. Outrage at this memo has led to increasing opposition to the war. The facts around this memo have catapulted members of Congress who supported the war to question their past actions.
As popular support for the war wanes, the potential to force Congress to end the war increases. As the truth becomes known on the Iraq war, the economy, and Social Security, Bush’s poll ratings have fallen to historic lows, only 30 percent to 40 percent approval.
The 200 municipalities who took a stand against the Iraq war have now joined together as Cities for Progress, linking the demand to bring the troops home with economic issues including living wage jobs and healthcare, and incorporating the Mayors’ Campaign to abolish nuclear weapons. The war on Iraq and Social Security are key issues upon which Congressional incumbents will be judged, and upon which the Bush administration could fall. The administration policy in both cases is based on big lies, and in both cases the stakes are extremely high.
Bush has been met with protests on every stop of his tours to promote privatization of Social Security. Everywhere he goes, including areas where he won the election, support for his program decreases. Once people get a true picture that this is no more than a gift to Wall Street at their expense, they are not ready to support. The young generation, targeted by the Bush administration with the expectation that they would be lured by private accounts, has turned out to be more sophisticated, and even among young people support for privatization is down.
These experiences are an indication that the Republican majority in Congress is not unshakable, and that the 2006 elections could result in a major upset.
Congress by the Numbers
The full House is up for re-election in 2006 as are 33 Senate seats, including 15 Republicans and 19 Democrats. If six Republican seats are lost, Democrats win control. With Jeffords retiring in Vermont, it seems likely that Bernie Sanders will become the first left independent to serve in the Senate. Democratic Senators Sarbanes in Maryland and Dayton in Minnesota are also retiring. Other hotly contested races are in Florida, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Washington State. Also in 2006, 36 Governors will be up for election. There are 22 Republicans, including New York, Illinois, Ohio, Maryland, Massachusetts, Texas and an open seat in Florida where Jeb Bush is term limited. In addition 14 Democrats are up for election including Jennifer Granholm in Michigan and Janet Napoletano in Arizona and Bill Richardson in New Mexico.
Local ballot initiatives are already in the planning for states with hotly contested Senate and Governor races in 2006. Ballot initiatives to raise the minimum wage are being prepared for Ohio, Michigan and Arizona. Labor-led legislative initiatives to require Wal-Mart to provide health care or pay into state funds are unfolding in many states.
In addition, all but 13 State Legislatures are taking up the issue of paper trail on voting machines so that votes can be manually recounted. In many states, restoration of voting rights, same day registration, public financing of elections and a host of other bills are being fought through. The Pro-Democracy March in Atlanta, Georgia demanding the re-authorization of the Voting Rights Act, opened a massive organizing drive in the South to defeat the extreme right-wing in 2006 and 2008.
Bold Action
This is a time for bold demands and bold action. Congressional Democrats are under fire to come out fighting against Bush administration policies. This was the theme running through the annual meeting of the America’s Future conference, as well as grass roots organizing efforts like MoveOn and Progressive Democrats of America.
The America’s Future Conference expressed a new appreciation of the role of labor in electoral politics, and the need for the entire community to participate in growing the union movement as essential to move a progressive agenda forward.
In a parallel vein, the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists convention rejected as defeatist any approach within labor of a split or a withdrawal form the legislative electoral movement against Bush.
The local victories won by broad, issues based labor and community coalitions across the country show that even in the present climate of fear and attack, gains can be achieved. These gains lay the foundation for bigger challenges in the 2006 Congressional elections.
The potential for broad coalitions to win can be seen in the election of Antonio Villaraigosa as Mayor of Los Angeles. It can be seen in the eight State Legislatures that shifted from Republican to Democrat in the 2004 elections. It can be seen in the overwhelming votes to raise the minimum wage in Florida and Nevada in 2004.
In Florida the minimum wage referendum received one million more votes than Kerry did. 850,000 workers received a raise as a result of this bill. It shows that Kerry should have stood with the referendum. It also shows that decisive numbers of voters can be won away from Bush on issues of survival that affect their lives.
It would be a huge mistake to become complacent. While there are shifts taking place, the extreme right-wing is not backing off. The attacks are in part out of a position of weakness within US imperialism, and weakness within the far-right. Their think tanks are busy at work, developing different ideas to try and appeal to various sections of the population.
The Bush administration has shown it will attempt to ram through their agenda no matter how small the support. For example, the administration is wooing centrist Democrats to support plans to privatize Social Security. However, the ability of the Bush administration to force it’s agenda through the Republican controlled Congress can be blunted with an approach that includes individual Republican support on specific issues like no privatization.
In this context, strong voices with advanced demands are critical to influence the issues on the table at the moment, as well as to build a grass roots base for electoral victories that will change the balance of forces in Congress and overall.
For the broad labor and peoples’ movement there is little choice but to stick together and increase the street heat. The number of unemployed remain shockingly high even more so among African American and Latino youth. The numbers of uninsured and those without pensions continues to skyrocket while huge sums are sent on the Iraq war and tax cuts to the super rich. Institutional and overt racism are widening the gaps of inequality. New economic crises threaten to further undermine the security of working families. The need is for universal health care, living wage jobs, affirmative action, equal rights for immigrants, and an end to the war.
Every local issue is related to the actions of Congress. Every member of Congress must be judged on the basis of their votes and their actions. This is not a time to pull back or stand still. This is a time to be bold and connect every movement to getting out the vote this year and especially to change Congress in 2006 and deliver a blow to the Bush agenda.
--Joelle Fishman chairs the Political Action Commission of the Communist Party USA. Reach her at pa-letters@politicalaffairs.net.
