Big Labor to Spend Big Bucks to Re-Elect Small President

The unions plan to spend big this year to re-elect Barack Obama, knowing that ownership comes in the bargain:

Unions are gearing up to spend more than $400 million to help re-elect President Barack Obama and lift Democrats this election year in a fight for labor’s survival.

Under siege in state legislatures around the country—and fearing the consequences of a Republican in the White House—union leaders say they have little choice as they try to beat back GOP efforts to curb collective bargaining rights or limit their ability to collect dues.

Actually, the taxpayers have been under siege figuratively, and the legislatures were under siege literally. But ok, AP, let’s make it out that the unions are under siege when they demand more and more and then shut down the democratic process when they don’t get their way. Whatever gets y’all through the night.

This year, AFSCME is expected to spend at least $100 million or more on political action, including television advertising, phone banks and member canvassing. The effort is to help the president, Democrats running for the House and Senate, gubernatorial candidates and key state lawmakers.

With increased spending planned by other labor groups, including the powerful Service Employees International Union and the AFL-CIO, unions are likely to top the $400 million they spent to help elect Obama four years ago.

AFSCME stands for the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. They’re government workers paid with taxpayer dollars, pumping up to pour our massive money to keep their unsustainable government gravy train rolling along. I’ll make a bold statement: As long as government workers have significant union power, there will not be significant spending reform in America. The government unions just have too much pull with the Democratic Party at every level.

Remember Obama’s cluck-clucking that super PACs are bad? Yeah, about that:

The SEIU teamed up with Priorities USA Action, the major super PAC backing Obama, to buy ads in Florida and Nevada accusing Romney of flip-flopping on immigration policy. SEIU is the single largest contributor to Priorities USA after making a $500,000 contribution in December.

—

The AFL-CIO also started its own labor super PAC, which allows it to raise unlimited amounts of money and mobilize support beyond its traditional base. The new super PAC has already pulled in $3.7 million.