Barack Obama, Community Organizer, Welcome Back! Obama Defends Shafted Workers in Hometown of Chicago.

THE BUZZFLASH EDITOR'S BLOG: The View from Chicago
by Mark Karlin

Derided and mocked by Sarah Palin and the Republican pitchfork/Wall Street alliance as a "community organizer" because he worked with the poor and working class, Barack Obama emerged from weeks of putting together a "blue chip/pin stripe" cabinet to show loudly and clearly that he's sticking with his roots in the neighborhood.

In BuzzFlash's hometown, as you might know from our frequent recent postings this weekend, workers abruptly fired due to a questionable plant closing in Chicago, occupied their former factory: Republic Windows and Doors, which is located not too far from the BuzzFlash home office.

It's not clear if the owners are responsible for the sudden shut-down or their creditors: the Bank of America, which has received billions of dollars in bailout money.  But what is clear is that the workers were not adequately compensated, given the required 60 day notice of closure, and that their union contract was violated (Local 1110 of the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America).

Well, Barack Obama held a rare Sunday political appointment news conference to announce the appointment of General Eric Shinseki as Veterans Affairs Secretary.  This was a fantastic choice to clean up a department shamefully neglected under the Bush Administration and a boost to the needs of our Veterans. But it was also the first cabinet appointment to signal that Obama might shake things up after all, given that Shinseki was fileted by the Bush Administration for being critical of Iraq War strategy early on.  Obama poked Bush, Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz and Cheney all in the eyes.

But even more telling was an unrelated question to Obama about the worker occupation of Republic Windows and Doors, within a short driving distance from where his news conference was being held.

When asked about what he thought of the worker revolt, Obama responded: “When it comes to the situation here in Chicago with the workers who are asking for their benefits and payments they have earned, I think they are absolutely right. What’s happening to them is reflective of what’s happening across this economy."

Happy days are here again!

Obama could have chosen to sidestep the question.  After all, if either the owners of Republic (who some workers claim plan to move the business offshore) or Bank of America asked the police to remove the workers for trespassing, they'd be cleared out in a New York minute, because the law is on the side of management and banks.

But Obama risked upsetting all the goodwill with the "establishment" he had built up with his cabinet appointments by wholeheartedly and vigorously backing the plight of the Republic workers and those throughout America. 

On Wall Street and "K" Street, there may have been some fear and trembling when Obama continued his answer:

When you have a financial system that is shaky, credit contracts. Businesses large and small start cutting back on their plants and equipment and their workforces. That’s why it’s so important for us to maintain a strong financial system. But it’s also important for us to make sure that the plans and programs that we design aren’t just targeted at maintaining the solvency of banks, but they are designed to get money out the doors and to help people on Main Street. So, number one, I think that these workers, if they have earned their benefits and their pay, then these companies need to follow through on those commitments.

Number two, I think it is important for us to make sure that, moving forward, any economic plan we put in place helps businesses to meet payroll so we are not seeing these kinds of circumstances again,’’ he said. Have we done everything that we can to make sure credit is flowing to businesses and to families, and to students who are trying to get loans? And to homeowners who have been making payments on their homes but are still finding their property values so depressed that it becomes very difficult for them to make the mortgage payments?

That’s where the rubber hits the road and that’s going to be the central focus of my administration.

And on "Meet the Press" on Sunday, Obama had these fighting words to say on behalf of beleaguered mortgage owners: 

Obama is considering a moratorium on foreclosures, among other steps. He has also urged the Bush administration to figure out a way that banks and mortgage holders can renegotiate the terms of their existing deals, to bring payments down.

In an appearance on "Meet the Press," Obama said that it is more important to address the issue promptly than to worry about whether undeserving homeowners will take advantage of any new recovery program.

"If my neighbor's house is on fire, even if they were smoking in the bedroom or leaving the stove on, right now my main incentive is to put out that fire so that it doesn't spread to my house."

Barack, the community organizer is back, the one Michelle Obama and America fell in love with.

And not a moment too soon.

Given increasingly vociferous concerns from the progressive community about Obama's cabinet appointments (although BuzzFlash should note that there are some very progressive people in the secondary level appointments and in Obama's kitchen cabinet and among his key fundraisers), the Obama transition team had his deputy campaign manager write an op-ed of reassurance to the liberal blogosphere. 

But that's just a staffer putting out a fire.

It's far more reassuring when the boss is the one carrying the bucket of water to put out the fire in his neighbor's house, signaling to all Americans that we are once again a national community of individuals committed to our mutual welfare.

Barack Obama, community organizer, welcome back!

THE BUZZFLASH EDITOR'S BLOG: The View from Chicago

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