Social Security Update

Westray, We Will Never Stop

The Bitter End

The Power Of Unity

Meet Our New SOAR Director, Julie Stein

Charlottsville Comment by Del Lowery

"I'm trying to envision 500 black people bringing automatic rifles, helmets, shields, torches, etc into a town square, and across a college campus. Then they threaten people, beat people and kill people. 
What would the police and government response be? I find it hard to believe they would have allowed it to happen. Tanks would have rolled and real bullets would have flown. 
RACISM - big time. Not just from the far right."

-Del Lowery

Healthcare Is A Right

Healthcare Is A Right

I lay awake at night,

knowing damn well we’ll have to fight

Because healthcare is our right.

They want to close the E.R. down

Drive the patients away cross town.

They say you’ll get better care

But you’ll be dead when you get there.

So don’t get old or don’t get sick

or McGuinty will beat you with a stick;

The sick will moan the old will cry

He wishes they would all just die.

Do I have to tell you why?

You loudly hear McGuinty say

The old and sick get in his way.

He’ll tell you that you’ve just got gas

As a kidney stone you pass;

Some say that he’s smoking grass

I say he can kiss my ass.

Rebel Rhymes by Bill Mahoney

Resident Poet, USW Local 1005

USW Local 12775 is all UNION

Under the leadership of Local Union President Vern Beck, the 1,557 members of USW Local 12775 representing workers and retirees at the northern indiana public service company (nipsco) remain 100% union, despite Indiana being a "republican infested right to work for less state".

Congratulation to this local union. Your service to your members and retirees has kept your union totally free of scabs.

July/August 2017 issue of the SOAR Chapter Connection newsletter

To get the July/August 2017 issue of the SOAR Chapter Connection newsletter just click here. 

Are You A Veteran of the Canadian Armed Forces?

If you are a Veteran of the Canadian Armed Forces, please click here.

Are You A Veteran of the U.S. Armed Forces?

The United Steelworkers Union family would like to recognize your service to our country, and commend you for your courage and commitment to defending the freedoms of every American. 

We are starting Veterans of Steel to create a larger voice in issues prominent for those who served, as well as a way to develop networking opportunities, support, and protect jobs for those who have fought for our country’s freedom. We want a place in our union where vets can continue the camaraderie and solidarity found in the military. 

To stay updated on upcoming news about Veterans of Steel, please visit www.usw.org/vetsofsteel, text VET to 47486 and follow @steelworkers on social media. We will be in touch to learn from you so that the program meets your needs and expectations. 

Thanks for all you do - for our country and our union. 

In solidarity,

Leo W. Gerard, International President

Thomas M. Conway, International Vice President - Administration, Sgt. USAF 1970-1974

25th Amendment

Congressional Issues by Ken Kovack

Congressional Issues:

Upon returning from their ten-day July 4 holiday, and in some Districts testy meetings with constituents, the House and Senate members are facing about 17 issues for floor action before the annual August vacation. A few of the issues are on timelines and must be acted upon, moving some members to state that the August vacation should be canceled.

The main House issues include HR 867, a bill to terminate the Environmental Protection Agency; HR 175, the Obama Care Repeal Act; and HR 899, a bill to terminate the Department of Education.

The main Senate issues include S 106, the Obama Repeal Act and S 65, the Presidential Conflict of Interest Act.

Joint Resolution 19 was introduced to amend the Constitution by abolishing the electoral college and provide for the direct election of the President and Vice President.

Less than three weeks remain before the August recess; during which the republican goal of passing a healthcare reform bill, tax reform and the annual budget bills are uncertain, according to several republicans plus a bill to raise the budget ceiling.

The administration is looking for a victory on anyone of these issues but, according to media reports, the President has not used his clout sufficiently. Also, the President’s recent trip attending the G-20 meetings in Europe did not go well. By deliberately offending our long-time allies while praising Putin, the President has harmed our alliances. European leaders expressed concerns that a chasm has opened up between the United States and the rest of the world. French President Emanuel Macron said “our world has never been so divided.” Other statements by our allies were referred to as unsettling.

How is it that in such a short time allies are fearful of losing a global alliance and the ongoing goal of unity among the nations? Expressions are being offered about the possibility of another war and the fear of a nuclear threat by a President known for reacting on impulse or a gut reaction. However, for the moment, our concerns should be directed to the legislative issues noted above and continued involvement in every way possible to remove this President from office. A casual review of his appointments, the hiding of his tax records, his reactions to unfavorable opinion, his threat to a free press (fake news, the media is the enemy) and more, much more, indicates that he is not, as many professionals and statesmen/women have publicly expressed, worthy of the office he holds.

Ken Kovack, SOAR Legislative Director

Let's Celebrate Medicare's BD of 52 Years By Protecting It

Let’s Celebrate Medicare’s Birthday of 52 Years By Protecting It

On July 30th the Medicare program celebrated its 52nd birthday as a cornerstone of retirement security in America.

When President Johnson signed Medicare and Medicaid into law in 1965, growing older often meant poverty and illness. Only half of our nation’s seniors had health insurance. While many retirees received health coverage through unions, the millions of seniors paying out of pocket faced premiums as much as three times what younger workers paid. Insurance was seen as a luxury that many seniors simply couldn’t afford.

For millions of uninsured seniors, an illness could mean being thrust into poverty or going without treatment altogether. Around one in three seniors lived out their older years in poverty, and many were forced to lean on friends and family to provide care and financial support during times of illness.

Today, Medicare and Medicaid find themselves under attack. Politicians in Washington like House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI), Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price and President Donald Trump are pushing to dismantle the Medicare program and roll back the clock. The support and passage of the American Health Care Act (Trumpcare) in the House, an opening attack, would decimate Medicaid and raid three years of solvency from the Medicare trust fund.

This summer, the Alliance for Retired Americans, along with affiliates, is celebrating Medicare’s 52nd birthday with grassroots events all across the country. Please join us in celebrating Medicare’s track record of success, and together we will work to make sure it’s around for 52 more.

Robert Roach, Jr. is president of the Alliance for Retired Americans.  He was previously General Secretary‐Treasurer of the IAMAW.  For more information, visit www.retiredamericans.org.

Report From The Alliance For American Manufacturing (AAM)

Report from the Alliance for American Manufacturing (AAM)

President Trump hosted a Made in America event week at the White House from July 17 through July 21. 

Products, entirely Made in America, were showcased from all 50 states.

But at the Alliance for American Manufacturing every week is Made in America week.

Trump is certainly not the leader of Made in America products. Many of the products he sources for his business ventures, as well as his daughter Ivanka’s line of clothing, are made overseas. The President’s clothing line, hotel furnishings and even steel for his massive buildings are often produced in China, Mexico and Bangladesh.

It’s a case of do as I say, not as I do.

It’s pure hypocrisy that the President of the United States promotes products Made in America, while at the same time he is purchasing manufactured products from countries that contribute immensely to our trade deficit.

No matter what your opinion is of President Trump, it is important to get behind Made in America. If every American committed to buying $64 worth of American-made goods each year 200,000 new jobs would be created.

American-made products are much better for the environment and are critical to our National Security. There is just one aluminum smelter remaining in the United States that can produce the purest quality aluminum for our fighter jets and navy fleet. American-made steel is losing the capacity to rebuild our Navy fleet of battleships and Army tanks.

Made in America matters. It’s also perhaps one of the few issues that Americans tend to agree on, with 95 percent of voters polled in 2014 having a favorable view of American-made products.

We’ve lost so much ground in American manufacturing over the past 30 years, it is not always possible to Buy American. But with a concerted effort, Americans can research and purchase what is Made in America. It will bring back thousands of manufacturing jobs and protect our National Security.

Jeff Bonior is a staff writer for the Alliance for American Manufacturing

We Need Some Common Sense Solutions by Bill Gibbons

We Need Some Common Sense Solutions

It has become very disturbing to listen to the reports on the Republican efforts to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA) also known as Obamacare. The idea that millions of citizens would lose coverage and costs would be increased, while the wealthy would get tax cuts, is further disturbing.

There is no question that the ACA requires some corrections and fixes and it should have included a “Public Option” that would have prevented many of the market problems that have occurred. It appears that much of the problem with insurers leaving the ACA market is due to the uncertainty that has been created. For example, the ACA provided cost sharing reductions (CSRs) and subsidy reimbursement to insurance companies, which in 2016 amounted to 7 billion dollars. Insurance Companies have not received the assurance of a continuation of this arrangement.

The one fix that objectively and factually makes the most sense would be a “Single Payer” or a “Medicare for All” arrangement. We are the only advanced country that does not provide such an arrangement. And we pay two to three times more for healthcare than those other countries and have healthcare outcomes that are not as good, and we have millions without any coverage at all.

This might just be my way of thinking, but it seems our legislative system has become dysfunctional. One only needs to look at the escalating drug costs and the inability of Medicare to negotiate drug prices and the failure of Congress to do anything about it. In my opinion, the unlimited flow of money to politicians and the influence of lobbyists supported by this money, gerrymandering of congressional districts and the lack of a fairness doctrine in the corporate media, have contributed to this problem.

Think about it. If we didn’t already have the interstate highway system, Social Security, Medicare and so many other important legislative accomplishments, would we be able to get them passed through Congress today?

Bill Gibbons, PACE Representative

Steelworkers Are Stronger with SOAR

www.usw.org/soar