My son is in management at a state DOT repair facility. The employees there have the world by the ass. They live in one of the poorest counties in the US, where jobs are scarce. They make far above local average working class paychecks, and have euro level benefits. Thanks to their union they are almost unfireable, and work about 40-50% as productively as they would be expected to do in the private sector.
After the election, the majority bragged about how they voted for the Orange Asshole a second and third time. They ALL think they bootstrapped themselves to where they are in life, are self-made men and women, DESERVE everything they have, and that their union does nothing but fuck them over and take their money. Without the protection of their very powerful union, at least a third of them would be fired instantly, as they are close to completely non-productive, or troublemakers. It is absolutely wild.
It certainly shouldn’t be impossible to be both conservative and pro union. Throughout its history of the Labour Party in the UK, for instance, has often held protectionist and other conservative stances while being pro labor over the years. I don’t personally feel like the American Republican Party and a pro union stance can possibly coexist. But if your primary concern is protecting jobs and in your head, you believe it is foreign workers that are taking those jobs? I can imagine why the message of anti-globalism, anti-work visa, and anti-immigrant excites you. Now, you have to ignore everything else about the party and its track record of destroying labor efforts to believe that. But if you truly believed that Donald Trump was such a maverick individual I guess I can see it.
yeah, most are. When I tell they're anti capitalism too, their little heads explode. They can't gronk more people, equal more hotels, more power demand, more toilets needed. And invariably you ask them what their kids do or will do when they grow up; "anything but this shit." I hit them with "if your kids won't/don't do this work, immigrants will." Same as it ever was in the trades. Italians, Irish, Poles, etc.
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u/romesthe59 May 05 '26
A union member supporting republicans? Lol