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Pelosi, Reid Visit To Say: "Thank You, AFSCME!"

December 7, 2006

Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid, the new Democratic leaders of the House and Senate, made personal visits to International headquarters Dec. 7 to express their gratitude for the decisive role AFSCME played in the 2006 elections.

“We would not have won this election without you being everywhere we faced a challenge,” Speaker-designate Pelosi (D-CA) told members of AFSCME’s International Executive Board. “I want to stress that: Without your help, we would not have won the majority.”

AFSCME spearheaded labor’s unprecedented GOTV midterm political program in 2006, recruiting a record number of volunteers and spending more than any other non-party organization to influence congressional races this cycle. Incoming Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) acknowledged AFSCME’s efforts and the work of the entire labor movement.

“I’m an old Woody Guthrie fan,” Senator Reid said. “He has a song called, ‘Union Maid.’ It goes, ‘I’m not scared. I’m sticking with the union.’

“Well, I’m not scared,” Reid roared. “And I’m sticking with the unions.”

Reid shared with AFSCME’s leaders his reaction when he learned that the Democrats had defied the odds on Election Night and won the six seats needed to reclaim the Senate.

“I remember it was 1 a.m., and I was sitting on the couch with my wife, and Senator Schumer was there with us, when Claire McCaskill declared victory in Missouri,” Reid recalled. “Besides my wedding night, that was the happiest moment of my life. I walked right up to the TV set and kissed Claire McCaskill on the lips.”

Pelosi thanked AFSCME for leading the effort to defeat the Bush administration’s plan to privatize Social Security. Pelosi said the momentum gained from that successful fight was the beginning of the end for Bush.

“How dare he threaten a social pillar of our society,” Pelosi said. “We couldn’t just defeat the President on Social Security, we had to make him pay. This is a rough business.”

AFSCME helped Pelosi break into the business, endorsing her in her primary during her first run for the House of Representatives 19 years ago, which she acknowledged several times in her talk with the Board.

“I have no better friend in labor than AFSCME,” said the country’s first woman to become Speaker of the House.

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