AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka today made the following remarks at a rally to save health care:
Good afternoon, brothers and sisters.
I’m Rich Trumka, president of the AFL-CIO.
I am proud to be here on behalf of the American labor movement.
We oppose the Republican health care bill.
It’s bad for workers. It’s bad for unions. It’s bad for America.
It doubles down on taxing our health plans. It threatens Medicare and Medicaid. And it further tilts our economy toward the wealthiest few.
In fact, this isn’t a health care plan at all. It’s a massive transfer of wealth from workers to Wall Street.
My message to every single member of Congress is this: if you vote to destroy our health care this year, we’ll vote to elect your replacement next year.
Working people simply will not tolerate this kind of betrayal.
Now, we understand the Affordable Care Act needs to be improved.
We stand ready to make it better—to cover more people and lower costs.
But repeal is retreat.
And this replacement is even worse—it’s surrender, eliminating health care for 24 million Americans.
The labor movement has been fighting for universal health care for the last century.
We want health care for all, not the few.
Every single major country guarantees health care as a right.
Yet America—the richest country in the world at our richest time in history—is having a debate about what to cut.
No more.
We demand better.
We will fight for better.
We will march for better.
We will vote for better.
Unions are all in. Defeat this bill.
We want health care for all, and we want it now!
Thank you very much.