Tannishblog

I’m suffering from despair reading the endless mudslinging from the democratic Party. Enough! “Just gimme some truth!” Or substance, I’ll settle for that…

But one young senator has my best interest at heart, and he writes nice letters, too (or his staff does). Below is a reply from an internet-activist-petition thingy I sometimes agree with. This time its about the shafting our moron-in-chief gave the survivors of the hurricanes las month.

Dear T(annish):

Thank you for writing me regarding the President’s suspension of the Davis-Bacon Act. I agree with you that the last thing that workers affected by Hurricane Katrina need is to have one of their most basic labor protections suspended.

On September 8th, President Bush proclaimed that all federal contracts to be performed in the hurricane-affected areas of Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, and Mississippi would be exempt from Davis-Bacon Act requirements. The Davis-Bacon Act ensures that workers earn prevailing local wages on federally-funded construction contracts. The President’s move suspends this requirement, and permits contractors to pay less than the locally prevailing wage on contracts entered into after September 8th.

I think the President was wrong to suspend the Davis-Bacon Act, which is why I co-sponsored with Senator Kennedy the Fair Wages for Katrina Recovery Workers Act. If passed, this bill would reverse the President’s suspension and ensure that the workers involved in the recover and reconstruction effort will earn a prevailing wage. I am hopeful that my Republican colleagues will see the need to protect workers affected by Hurricane Katrina, and work to pass this bill.

An estimated 400,000 to 1 million workers may become unemployed as a result of Hurricane Katrina. These hard-working Americans will need good jobs quickly. Workers in Mississippi and Louisiana were among the poorest in America even before the hurricane; the states rank 1st and 2nd among the poorest states in the nation. The President’s move to depress their wages even further is confounding, and extremely unfortunate.

President Bush would have Americans believe that Davis-Bacon wages are exorbitant, and that contractors would not be able to afford to do their jobs and pay their employees’ wages. Nothing could be further from the truth. For instance, sheet metal workers in Pearl River County, Mississippi earned $9.16 an hour before the Hurricane, and truck drivers in Mobile, Alabama made $8.54 for an hour’s work. I am sure you will agree with me that by any reasonable estimates, these wages are not prohibitively high.

T(annish), thank you for writing. As this fight for fair wages for America’s workers continues in the coming days, I will be certain to keep your communication in mind.

Sincerely,

Barack Obama
United States Senator

This guy rocks! I stand here being represented by Barack Obama and Jan Schakowsky, how lucky can one Get?

(That was rhetorical)