CWA Activists Across the Nation Rally to Oppose Fast Track, TPP

CWA Activists joined with allies and other labor organizations to continue the campaign against Fast Track for bad trade deals, including for the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership that the U.S. is negotiating with 11 Pacific Rim nations such as Malaysia, Singapore and Vietnam.

CWAers are leaving no stone unturned in their efforts to defeat Fast Track. They have generated 14,405 handwritten letters and 12,965 calls to targeted House members and Senators so far. They are also continuing their letter-writing, e-mailing and phone calls and visiting Congressional members' offices, as well as holding town hall meetings and rallies.

Making Sure You're Seen and Heard

When your protest is drowned out by some of the other voices out there, you may have to do a little bit more to get your issue noticed. Pres. Barack Obama was at Nike Headquarters in Beaverton, OR, last week, pushing trade. CWA activists, including Local 7901 Retiree Mary Clisby and Active CTL member Rose Secrest Sarver, came to protest Fast Track. They did such good job the Oregonian newspaper noticed and put them in a slide show headlined: How to stand out at an Obama protest in Portland? Build a bus.

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CWA Local 3808

Members of CWA Local 3808 in Nashville, T – joined by labor allies from the AFL-CIO and other unions – rallied against Fast Track in front of the office of Rep. Jim Cooper (D-TN 5th District).

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Hoyer Stop Fast Track Action

Fast Track opponents dropped off shoes in front of Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer's (D-MD) 5th District office last Thursday. The activists asked Hoyer, a TPP supporter, to say "no" to Fast Track and "to not walk away from Maryland Jobs."

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Rep. Blum Gets a Visit

Americans for Democratic Action, CWA and UAW members urged Rep. Rod Blum (R-IA) to say "no" to Fast Track.

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Claire McCaskill Hears from Missourians

CWAers protest outside of Sen. Claire McCaskill's St. Louis, MO and Kansas City, MO, offices.

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Special Delivery for Rep. Don Beyer

Rep. Beyer's (D-VA 8th District) constituents, including CWA Local 2222 members, came to his Washington, DC, office to deliver letters from thousands of constituents who wrote telling him to reject Fast Track and say "no" to the TPP.

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Above and Beyond...

CWA Local 1103 members phone banked the constituents of Rep. Lee Zeldin, a Republican whose New York district is at least 100 miles away from the local. Why? Because of their hard work, they had already locked down commitments from Hudson Valley members of Congress to oppose Fast Track and the TPP. Those members of Congress are actually now helping educate their House colleagues as well as the public about the dangers of bad trade deals.

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Elected Leaders Speaking out against Fast Track, TPP

Several members of the Illinois delegation held a news conference to talk about bad trade deals like the TPP and their determination to defeat Fast Track.
From left: CWA Local 4250 Vice President Sylvia Chapman; Rep. Robin Kelly (D-IL 2nd District); staff member for Rep. Danny Davis (D-IL 7th District) and Grace Catania, TNG-CWA Local 34071.

Kelly said, "I'm here as a public servant to Illinois and in all due respect to this Administration, to say that we must engage in broader and deeper discussions about trade. The U.S. cannot afford another trade agreement that replicates the mistakes of the past. We can and must do better."

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Senator Pat Toomey Gets Trade Lesson

CWAers visited Senator Pat Toomey's Philadelphia office to tell him to stop Fast Track and the job-killing TPP trade deal.

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Gratitude from Constituents

Meanwhile, Rep. André Carson (D-IN 7th District) read letters thanking him for his opposition to Fast Track and the TPP.

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Wasserman-Schultz Urged to Oppose Fast Track

DNC chair Rep. Debbie Wasserman-Schultz (D-FL 23rd District) heard from CWAers opposed to Fast Track for the TPP.

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Sen. Rob Portman Shut Ears to Constituents

In rallies, including this one in Cincinnati last week, and town hall meetings and office visits, activists have told Senator Portman they don't support Fast Track or the TPP, but Portman is not listening. Maybe, he'll hear them one election day soon.