"America" Today

Obama met with union leaders and MoveOn.org(?) today at the White House.
Evidently, Obama felt it was important to include the radical leftist group at the meeting.

AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka (2nd L) talks to reporters, beside Executive Director of MoveOn.org Justin Ruben (L), SEIU President Mary Kay Henry (2nd R) and AFSCME President Lee Saunders. (Reuters)

Labor union leaders emerged from talks with President Barack Obama on Tuesday vowing a side-by-side battle against Republicans to bring about higher taxes on the wealthy as part of an effort to avoid the so-called fiscal cliff.

“It was a very, very positive meeting,” AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka told reporters in the White House driveway after the meeting.

“The president, like we are, [is] committed to preserving the tax breaks for the middle class and making sure that rich people pay their fair share. He’s very, very committed to that, we are committed to that,” Trumka continued. “We are very, very committed to making sure that the middle class and workers don’t end up paying the tab for a party that we didn’t get to go to. And the president is committed to that as well.”

The meeting, which included top Obama economic advisers like Gene Sperling and White House chief of staff Jack Lew, came a day before the president was to hold similar talks with CEOs from major companies including American Express, General Electric, Ford Motor and PepsiCo. One participant described Obama as being in “listening mode” and said the president’s final negotiating position would depend in part on what he hears from the executives. The president meets Friday with top Republican and Democratic leaders.

At issue is the best way to handle the looming fiscal cliff—an economically toxic blend of tax hikes, spending cuts and end of long-term unemployment benefits.