March 11, 2009 07:59 PM UTC

Employee Free Choice Act and "Business Community" Myth

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• by: Colorado Pols

The Employee Free Choice Act was introduced in Congress yesterday with much hyperbole. As The New York Times reports:

Business and organized labor unleashed what each called its biggest lobbying effort in history on Tuesday as Democrats in the House and Senate introduced legislation that would make it far easier for workers to unionize.

Their target: a handful of moderate Democrats and Arlen Specter, Republican of Pennsylvania…

…Republican and business strategists said some former co-sponsors felt they had a free pass to back the bill when President Bush appeared likely to veto it. But now that the bill appears to have a real chance of passage, they said, some moderate senators, heavily lobbied by business, are backing off the bill, worried that it might hurt or anger their business constituents.

We can’t speak for business constituencies in other states, but here in Colorado, we’ve already debunked the business community myth. Democratic Sens. Mark Udall and Michael Bennet may be worried about the “business communities,” but as we’ve written before, it’s not like those constituencies are going to support them in an election anyway:

The truth is that the “business community” needs Democrats a lot more than Democrats need the “business community.” Democrats have proved that they can win elections with or without them…

…In fact, you could make the case that in this economic environment, it is the “business community” that people are really angry with. It seems like every other week that we read about corporations continuing to hand out huge bonuses or perks even after pleading for bailout money.

Again, our point here isn’t to attack the “business community,” but merely to point out the fallacy that Democrats must always placate this group that isn’t going to support them in an election anyway–and isn’t all that beloved by the average voter. Democrats have won recent elections not because they were supported by business interests, but in spite of the opposition from them. The “business community” spent millions of dollars in the 2008 cycle on TV ads attacking Democrat Mark Udall for supporting the Employee Free Choice Act. Udall ended up beating Republican Bob Schaffer by double digits.

Udall doesn’t face re-election for six more years, and he was already viciously attacked over the Employee Free Choice Act last year. Why he would support those folks now would be a mystery.

As for Bennet, CACI and other right-wing business groups in Colorado aren’t going to support him in 2010 anyway – so why would he worry about their complaints now?