Negative headlines keep rolling in for Kamala Harris.
This isn’t how any campaign wants it to be in such a close race.
And Kamala Harris took a gut punch when this loyal supporter refused to endorse her.
Battleground state firefighter union refuses to endorse Kamala Harris
Signs keep popping up that Kamala Harris is cratering with working-class voters.
The latest setback for Kamala Harris came when the Michigan Firefighters Union refused to endorse any candidate in the 2024 election.
“We are following the IAFF recommendation on the presidential election,” Michigan firefighters union boss Matt Sahr told POLITICO. “However, we have made it clear to our members that our executive board believes Harris is the best choice for supporting our labor issues.”
The Michigan Firefighters Union didn’t back Kamala Harris on orders from their national leadership.
“IAFF General President Edward Kelly asked state firefighter unions to not issue any of their own presidential endorsements, according to three people familiar with the call who were granted anonymity to discuss the matter. Kelly said other battleground states rolling out their own endorsements could ultimately hurt Harris, given Pennsylvania, North Carolina and Arizona could all come out against Harris in response,” POLITICO reported.
Trouble for Democrats
Union bosses pour hundreds of millions of dollars into the coffers of Democrats like Kamala Harris every election cycle.
Winning the endorsement of Big Labor is supposed to be a layup for Democrats.
But even though Democrats carry the water for Big Labor by opposing Right to Work laws – which remove union bosses’ ability to have workers fired if they don’t want to fork over cash to Democrat-supporting Big Labor brass – and other pro-worker freedom agenda items, this cycle presents a problem for Democrats.
And that’s because rank-and-file union members back Donald Trump.
Trump’s America First agenda on trade, immigration, and foreign policy won over working-class voters fed up with the Democrat Party’s fixation on open borders, Critical Race Theory, and other woke policies like forcing transgenderism on kids.
International Association of Firefighters General President Edward Kelly revealed that his union didn’t endorse Kamala Harris because the average firefighter supports Donald Trump.
“The IAFF Executive Board determined that we are better able to advocate for our members and make progress on the issues that matter to them if we, as a union, are standing shoulder-to-shoulder,” a statement from Kelly read. “This decision, which we took very seriously, is the best way to preserve and strengthen our unity.”
Similarly, the Teamsters Union didn’t endorse Kamala Harris – the first time the union didn’t endorse a Democrat since 1984 – because polls showed nearly 60 percent of members backed Trump.
The Teamsters put out a statement claiming that since not 100 percent of their members supported Trump, it would pass on an endorsement.
“The union’s extensive member polling showed no majority support for Vice President Harris and no universal support among the membership for President Trump,” the Teamsters statement read.
Union bosses stand for re-election too.
And the last thing the kingpins who run Big Labor want is to lose their jobs because they ticked off the rank-and-files by backing Kamala Harris.
