Union Money in Elections

Amy Payne:

This election year, millions of Americans will donate to the political candidates and initiatives of their choice at the local, state, and federal levels. But for unionized workers, union dues come out of their paychecks and go to political causes--and they aren't consulted on where that money will go.

In July, The Wall Street Journal's Tom McGinty and Brody Mullins published an eye-opening report that "Organized labor spends about four times as much on politics and lobbying as generally thought."

They broke down the unions' political spending from 2005 to 2011: $1.1 billion "supporting federal candidates through their political-action committees, which are funded with voluntary contributions, and lobbying Washington, which is a cost borne by the unions' own coffers."

Posted by Jim Zellmer at September 8, 2012 1:02 AM
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