Obama for President

On June 27, 2008, the delegates to the conference of the Steelworkers Organization of Active Retirees (SOAR) unanimously passed the following resolution:

Whereas, the present administration in Washington has seriously damaged the very fabric of our society by its repeated failures in both domestic and foreign policy, such as its incompetence in meeting the needs created by the tragedy of Katrina, its increase in the national debt to unprecedented levels, its increase in the threat of terrorism by its ill timed and mismanaged invasion of Iraq rather than focusing on the terrorists who attacked the world trade center in New York, by failing to support the standards for the administration of justice for which a
America had been held in highest regard throughout the world, to mention but a few;

Whereas, the present administration has not only failed to meet effectively the health and educational needs of the American people but has continued a calculated attack on social security as well as a campaign against meeting the need for health care insurance for all Americans;

Whereas, as a result of these and other similar failures of policy and action, America’s reputation as a leader of the free world has been severely damaged in the eyes of democratic nations throughout the world and its influence, therefore, greatly reduced;

Whereas, we now face an economic crisis that may well be the most serious since the Great Depression, as a result of the unconscionable increase in the inequality of incomes between the wildly excessive incomes of corporate executives and the stagnation and frequent decline in the incomes of working and middle income citizens, compounded by the absence of a policy to maintain and build manufacturing capacity in America and the promotion of so-called free trade agreements that, in fact, provide additional opportunities for corporations to exploit the low wages of workers in the developing countries;

Whereas, in November we are provided the opportunity to elect a President who, along with further changes in the composition of Congress, can lead the country in preventing further deterioration and in building an America of which we can all be proud, which meets the needs of its people and restores its reputation as a leader in the society of nations;



Whereas, the Republican candidate offers more of the same kind of administration that has reduced our strength and our status to its present low level;

Whereas, by way of contrast, the Democratic Party candidate, who throughout a vigorous and demanding primary contest demonstrated both a broad and detailed understanding of the situations we face, a vision of how change can be achieved and in what directions it must move, an ability both to inform and inspire our people;

Therefore be it resolved, that the Conference endorse the Democratic candidate Barack Obama as the candidate who presents the program and possesses the qualities of leadership and the background necessary to meet the challenges we face; and

Be it further resolved, that we commit our organization to act in every possible way to achieve the success of the campaign; and

Be it further resolved, we instruct our Executive Board to develop a set of plans and procedures that will assure that the campaign achieves the best possible result.