Category: New York Times

Romney Vows to Deliver Country From Economic Travails

 New York Times
August 30, 2012

Romney Vows to Deliver Country From Economic Travails

By

TAMPA, Fla. — Mitt Romney accepted the Republican presidential nomination on Thursday by making a direct appeal to Americans who were captivated by President Obama’s hopeful promises of change, pledging that he could deliver what the president did not and move the country from its worst economic downturn since the Great Depression.

In his address on the closing night of the Republican National Convention, Mr. Romney asked voters to consider whether their lives had improved over the last four years and urged them not to feel guilty about giving up on Mr. Obama. He left little doubt about his chief argument against Mr. Obama in the fall, saying: “What America needs is jobs.”

But Mr. Romney not only delivered a forceful critique of Mr. Obama, he also used the marquee speech of his presidential campaign to make a case for himself, summoning people from each chapter of his life to paint a humanizing portrait in hopes of helping voters see him with a trusting eye. The effort underscored how Mr. Romney’s path to winning the White House reached well beyond Republican activists gathered here. Continue reading “Romney Vows to Deliver Country From Economic Travails”

G.O.P. Platform Seeks to Weaken Powers of Unions

 

New York Times
August 30, 2012, 10:58 am

G.O.P. Platform Seeks to Weaken Powers of Unions

By STEVEN GREENHOUSE

 

Unlike in the past, this year’s Republican platform in Tampa, Fla., does not contain any sympathetic nods to the nation’s labor unions, which have become among the Republicans’ most formidable political foes. Instead, the platform calls for numerous steps that could significantly weaken America’s labor unions — public-sector and private-sector ones — and help speed organized labor’s overall decline.

The 2012 platform urges elected officials across the country to change their laws regarding public-sector unions and follow the lead of Wisconsin’s governor, Scott Walker, who spearheaded an effort to curb the ability of his state’s public employees to bargain collectively. The platform states, “We salute Republican governors and state legislators who have saved their states from fiscal disaster by reforming their laws governing public employee unions.” Mr. Walker said that that legislation was needed to weaken overly powerful unions and balance Wisconsin’s budget, while labor leaders said the legislation aimed to destroy public-sector unions and cripple them politically. Continue reading “G.O.P. Platform Seeks to Weaken Powers of Unions”

Labor Day message credits union belt-tightening for putting city’s construction industry back on track

Labor Day message credits union belt-tightening for putting city’s construction industry back on track  

Be Our Guest Richard Roberts, of Steamfitters Local 638, says cooperation jumpstarted building projects, kept union members employed

By Richard Roberts / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Published: Monday, August 27, 2012, 4:00 AM
Updated: Monday, August 27, 2012, 4:00 AM

Steamfitters official Richard Roberts says collaboration between union and management has resulted in benefits for both.

Steamfitters official Richard Roberts says collaboration between union and management has resulted in benefits for both.

For many working Americans, Labor Day is viewed as an opportunity to visit family and have a day at the beach. But what many don’t realize is that the first Monday in September wasn‘t always a vacation day.

The labor movement has fought for more than a century to ensure that workers have safe working conditions, holidays, sick days and family healthcare protections when needed. The 40-hour work week that most American workers take for granted is the result of years of sacrifice by industrialized workers who came before us.

Now, in 2012, the labor movement is faced with new challenges, especially in light of the lingering economic slowdown. Many argue that the need for unions is past and its workforce costs our economy too much to maintain. I couldn‘t disagree more. Continue reading “Labor Day message credits union belt-tightening for putting city’s construction industry back on track”

Fast Rise Built With Discipline

August 29, 2012

Fast Rise Built With Discipline

By and

WASHINGTON — In the early 1990s, Tortilla Coast, a popular Capitol Hill watering hole, was staffed by ambitious young men and women flinging Tex-Mex and margaritas at patrons whose jobs in the nearby House and Senate office buildings they not so secretly coveted.

One of those waiters, a tall, dark-haired Midwesterner named Paul Ryan, stood out to his boss and co-workers. He was the guy who always showed up for work on time, wore neatly pressed khakis and chatted about economic policy as he floated along in a kayak at an after-work party. While the other twentysomethings pounded beers after work, Mr. Ryan was known to stick to just a few.

“I think even then he probably had an eye toward his future,” said Scott Johnson, a waiter back then who was looking for work in the Clinton administration. Continue reading “Fast Rise Built With Discipline”

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