As we continue to swelter in what has proven to be a very, very warm summer, keep in mind the winter of 2001/2001. That memory alone should make the heat somewhat bearable. 

A little more than a year ago the Nation's economic future was as bright as it had been for a decade. Projections for the Nation's budget surplus seemed to grow every day and even as signs of a recession began appearing the budget surplus was viewed as a shield against any serious downturn. The only question seemed to be, would the surplus be channeled to address working families? Soaring Health Costs? Create decent jobs at livable wages or strengthen social security? The current resident of "the White House", a known foe of labor unions, answered these questions when he mounted a massive campaign to win a $1.6 trillion tax cut that would most benefit the wealthy. The President and the Republican controlled Congress promised there was enough to go around. Working families would get theirs later.

Later has not yet come for working families. The recession, after eight years of economic growth under the Clinton administration, worsened and layoffs began to increase. When terrorists struck on September 11th, the economic aftershocks that rolled through the economy devastated some industries, such as aviation and hospitality, with hundreds of thousands of workers losing their jobs, their health insurance and their retirement security. Many of them, and many of our IBEW brothers and sisters did not qualify for unemployment benefits. Yet help for working families was held hostage for months as our President and his allies in Congress insisted on tying economic relief for working families to huge tax breaks for business. Can you imagine? Helping the Enrons, Worldcoms and Adelphia Cables of the world by providing tax breaks for them, using the  budget surplus, creating a deficit without taking one step for our working families. 

Brothers and sisters, we need to begin working now to insure that labor union friendly candidates for public office get elected in November and every November thereafter. Our standard of living is in jeopardy and we cannot sit idly by as it is taken from us.  

Fraternally,