DNC Chair Ken Martin Statement on Labor Day Arrow

On Labor Day, Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin released the following statement:

"This Labor Day, I'm calling on the entire Democratic Party to double down on the fight for working people - and that means standing shoulder to shoulder with workers, who built this country and the middle class.

"This fight is personal to me. I come from a union family, carried a union card myself, and for 14 years, I led the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party - the only party of its kind in America. The very first thing I did when I became DNC Chair was to meet with labor leaders in Pittsburgh - because I know that winning back the working class starts with listening to labor unions and the people they represent.

"Donald Trump and Congressional Republicans are no friend to working people. Since his first day in office, Trump has sold out working people to his billionaire donors and friends. He has filled the government with ultrawealthy cronies hostile to labor, undone key protections and regulations, reduced the minimum wage for federal contractors, and stripped collective bargaining rights from more than a million unionized federal employees - what experts called 'the largest single action of union-busting in American history.' The truth of the matter is that Trump and his lackeys would like nothing more than to eliminate labor unions everywhere to ensure his billionaire buddies get even richer off the backs of working Americans.

"As Trump attacks working people, he's harming all American families. His reckless economic policies are jacking up prices, slowing hiring, and putting working families on the chopping block as fears of a recession take hold. His big budget betrayal kicks 17 million Americans off their health care and is expected to eliminate millions of jobs across the country. This isn't just a betrayal, it's an all-out assault on all working people to give massive tax handouts to the wealthy and well-connected.

"Democrats are fighting for a better future for all working people and to make sure they are heard. Our Party will always champion workers' rights to organize and bargain for higher pay, better benefits, and safer workplaces. And we're fighting to make life better for working families - with affordable health care, affordable homes, and strong schools - so that every working family has the chance to get ahead and pursue the American dream. That's the future we want for working people, and we will continue to stand with labor unions in that fight - because the Democratic Party is the party for working people and their families."