CLEVELAND, February 27 — The Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen announced today that its Executive Committee voted unanimously to endorse Senator John F. Kerry for President of the United States.
The Executive Committee decision follows an online poll in which a wide majority of BLET members chose Senator Kerry as their favorite among the Democratic candidates.
Senator Kerry has won 18 of 20 Democratic primaries and caucuses, and has a commanding lead in the race for the Democratic nomination. He has also won the endorsement of the AFL-CIO and the International Brotherhood of Teamsters.
One of the major factors in the BLET’s endorsement of Senator Kerry is his support for full funding of Amtrak.
“For 18 years in the Senate, John Kerry has been a friend of working families,” said BLET National President Don M. Hahs. “We believe that he will continue to support working men and women and will provide the best opportunity for Amtrak’s long-term survival.”
On February 17, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters announced their endorsement of Kerry at a rally in Milwaukee. The IBT, along with the 18 other member unions of the Alliance for Economic Justice, rallied with Kerry in support of job creation and workers.
“Working families need a fighter like John Kerry in the White House,” said James P. Hoffa, Teamsters General President. “With a President Kerry, we will develop a pro-worker agenda and defeat President Bush’s assault on America’s jobs and America’s working families.
“We look forward to working with our next President — John Kerry — to create jobs, fix the health care system, negotiate fair trade agreements and protect workers pensions,” Hoffa added. “Working families will play a pivotal role in the fall election and we look forward to the campaign to put a pro-worker President in the White House.”
John Kerry has a 90 percent AFL-CIO voting record over an 18-year Senate career. He has fought to raise the minimum wage, cosponsored bills that would outlaw striker replacement and would provide workers with Family and Medical Leave to spend time with a new child or care for a family member.
He has helped beat back Republican efforts to gut OSHA, weaken worker safety rules and cut funds from worker training and employment programs.