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Highlights from AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka’s Major Address at the National Press Club

AFL-CIO

Today, AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka gave a major address before the National Press Club, calling upon leaders of both parties to not only pursue an agenda that benefits working people across the country, but that strengthens the right of every American to negotiate for better wages and benefits. He described the choice we face as a country:

Republicans, and too many Democrats, have rigged our economy to enrich a select few at the expense of everyday, hardworking Americans. It has been a direct assault on our deeply held national values of unity, justice and broad opportunity. It’s been done under the guise of creating jobs and justified by a fanatical economic theory that seeks to remove or destroy anything seen as a barrier to the free market, including unions.

We see it in our trade deals that create special rights for corporations. We see it in our health care system that is a windfall for insurance companies and a complicated, unaffordable mess for patients and families. We see it in our financial sector that has become the master...