International Longshore and Warehouse Union
International Executive Board
May 11, 2020

 ILWU ENDORSES VICE-PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN FOR PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES

As the nation faces the weight of an ongoing pandemic, the corrosion of labor law, environmental protection, budget cuts in education, public services, growing tolerance of racism and gender prejudice, the collapse of the health care system, and ongoing economic recession, there has never been a more urgent time to defeat Donald Trump than in this presidential election. Vice President Joe Biden is the only candidate for the task of uniting Americans and other candidates. He has a solid record of supporting working families and their interests. We are confident the Vice President will support sensible tax policies (rather than tax cuts for the one percenters); public education (rather than charter schools and vouchers); expanded health care coverage; reform of our labor laws, fairer trade agreements, and reasonable immigration policies.

Over the past several months, Vice President Biden has demonstrated a remarkable ability to campaign and activate voters. His campaign, once thought to be moderate, stormed back to build an insurmountable lead in the Democratic Party forcing the other candidates to drop out in unity and endorse him for President. His electability is critical if we are to have any hope of removing the current occupant of the White House. Simply said, we need a candidate who can beat Donald Trump in November and Vice President Joe Biden is that candidate at this time in U.S. history.

It goes without saying that the number one priority in the 2020 election is to remove Trump while electing a progressive Congress to pass the laws that we need to protect U.S. workers, families, and our cities. The specter of Trump appointing another Supreme Court justice—will tilt the balance of this Court and other federal courts to the far right for decades to come—is limiting our democracy judicially and structurally, as a major threat to U.S. democracy. Vice President Biden will appoint justices—not just Supreme Court justices, but also district and appeals court justices—that better reflect and understand the importance of diversity of life in the U.S.

It is time for Vice President Biden to be elected President of the United States, restore dignity to the office, reverse the hateful, divisive and harmful policies of Trump, and lead the United States for the next four years.

For these reasons, the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) endorses Vice President Joe Biden for President of the United States.

M/S/C

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