A Million Little Pieces
IAFF General President Harold Schaitberger, by failing to either stand up to Donald Trump or defend his own members, has severely weakened the IAFF.
For an international union to be on the wrong side of a presidential election is always problematic.
Schaitberger has taken that problem to a whole new level.
He has sat comfortably swilling wine and gorging on steak at the Prime Rib as Donald Trump and his fervent supporters have variously shamed a Gold Star family, made lewd remarks about women, and attacked those with disabilities.
They hate labor and love right-to-work, too.
In fact, Trumpsters are aggressively attacking American Muslims and Jews, proving that there intolerance is pervasive and especially ignorant.
By his silence, Schaitberger has broken the IAFF into a million little pieces.
Who is the IAFF?
If Schaitberger’s conduct is any clue, the answer is that the IAFF is now made up of Old White Guys who have zero commitment to either a diverse union or the future.
The failure to vocally protest Trump’s treatment of Veterans and their families proves that all the showy patriotism on display at the IAFF convention and other events is just plain bullshit.
After all, real leaders move beyond sputtering empty words.
Schaitberger’s silence on Trump’s groping comments means he can be no advocate for women’s rights in the fire station or our union.
You can’t both be a leader and be quiet when our dignity is at stake.
Of course, Schaitberger has a substantially new board and it is especially disheartening to see them fall in to the Old White Guy club, too.
Silence equals consent.
Twenty Days and 92%
With but twenty days to go, Clinton has a 92% chance of succeeding.
Schaitberger has no plan for what to do if she does win as he both betrayed and insulted her last summer when he left her high and dry.
That may be politics but so is not having a place at the table afterwards.
Truth be told, we don’t deserve a place at the table.
We can wait patiently outside the White House gate to beseech real AFL-CIO Clinton supporting union leaders when they leave their meetings to see if they will drop us a crumb or two.
Perhaps they will even put in a good word for us.
The same will be true in Congress, too, as members have watched how we stayed on the sidelines when the future of America and our union is truly in play.
Spent
Our Dear Leader
Schaitberger was always risk-averse, protecting his own deal, first and foremost.
He has relentlessly wined and dined his cronies while tossing the occasional bone to keep them curled at his feet.
Now, when it matters most, the verdict is in.
He is a spent force who lacks the conviction to even stand up for us, much less to champion our causes.