If we're going to tackle massive wealth inequality, and it’s urgent that we do, we have to start here: Every American has the universal right to a living wage and the right to organize.

 

We're up against a Republican Party that for 40 years has teamed up with corporations to destroy organized labor. For them, it’s a twofer: cut off the arms and legs of the Democratic Party, and keep all the money for themselves. In those same 40 years, incomes have stayed flat. Health care has become so outrageously expensive it eats up any additional income. While corporate interests strip our right to form unions and negotiate fair pay, they are seizing our land for their pipelines. They're raising drug prices with no transparency, and threatening our entire planet with air pollution.

 

The number one thing we need to do to address these problems, and the reason I'm running for president, is take back our democracy. 

 

Tomorrow at 5:30 p.m. Pacific Time, I’m hosting a town hall where we’ll talk about my Justice-Centered Climate Plan to grow the economy, create new jobs, and support the labor movement. Let me know if you plan to listen in or participate.

 

Our response to the climate crisis must include supporting our union sisters and brothers — just as a sustainable economy must include support for women and people of color, a minimum wage of at least $15, and affordable health care. If elected president, I’ll work to ensure these rights are protected by law. 

 

As I said at the AFSCME Public Service Forum last month: My first and best partner for organizing in the United States has been labor, and that will never change. 

 

Hope to see you Tuesday, 

Tom