House backs Bush on overtime rules

[Nambe]

WASHINGTON (AP)

The House voted Thursday to let the Bush administration move ahead with proposed rules that could stop at least 644,000 white-collar workers from receiving overtime pay, heeding a White House veto threat and taking the side of business in its battle against unions.

Lawmakers voted 213-210 to reject a Democratic provision that would have derailed the regulations. Unless Congress prevents it, the proposed rules could take effect later this year.

Senate Democrats had been planning a similar effort to block the regulations. But with the outcome in the House vote, such an effort in the Senate would seem to be little more than a political statement.

The House vote was a victory for President Bush and Congress' Republican leaders. ---

Banish bush From Texas Too

[I AM SPARTACUS]

1. I guess that House rePubs are not interested in being re-elected...

maybe they know something we don't know...

[OneBlueSky]

2. major winning issue for the Dems . . .

if they'll run with it . . . given past experience, I'll believe it when I see it . . .

[Nottingham]

3. Well All the Republicans Swallow that one! They Voted them in!

I know Republicans that are LIVID with this!! I mean LIVID

I can't Wait for Bush to get attacked on this one!

:bounce:

[MaineDem]

4. 12 not voting

Including 7 Dems. Their votes may have made a difference. Are you listening Dick Gephardt?

[CWebster]

8. Gephardt?

Hope he isn't expecting Union endorsements.

[AnAmerican]

15. Kucinich voted for the workers

Bet some of the unions shy away from Gep now...towards the man who actually does his job in the House.

[NYC]

5. If this is HR 2660, here's the vote:

http://clerkweb.house.gov/cgi-bin/vote.exe?year=2003&rollnumber=353

[goobergunch]

6. I guess this is the Obey Amdt.

http://clerkweb.house.gov/cgi-bin/vote.exe?year=2003&rollnumber=351

naturally, my Repuke congressman voted "no". I'm scoring this one (:thumbsup: )

NOT VOTING:
Cramer
Gibbons
Millender-McDonald
Fletcher
Goss
Owens
Fossella
Harman
Payne
Gephardt
Houghton
Sanchez, Loretta

We may have had the votes on this one if everyone had been there...

[hedda_foil]

9. So Mr Workingman's Best Friend Gephardt ditched the vote, huh?

This isn't gonna get him the brownie points he thinks he deserves from labor. Even Jan Schakowsky says he's a really nice guy but frankly I think he's a total dipshit.

[snippy]

12. The republicans had at least 14 more votes and maybe 19

they could have used if necessary. No vote would have been allowed unless the republican leadership had the necessary votes in the bag.

[jfxgillis]

18. Yeah, that's right.

Besides, this issue works better for the Dems if it festers the way the minimum-wage debate did in 1996.

[jfxgillis]

17. Tell me again ...

Why we're supposed to be pissed off at Tom Delay screwing Hall and Stenholm out of their Texas "Democratic" seats in the House?

[The Backlash Cometh]

7. Do you remember when the House represented the working stiff?

I don't either.

[TeamsterDem]

10. Gephardt just lost my vote. Seriously.

It's a dark day for the American worker. Now that a projected 8 million people will be disallowed from earning overtime, hopefully people will begin to see what Republican leadership is doing "for" ("to" more accurately) this country.

Thanks for not voting, Gep! Boy, sure wouldn't want to "tear" you away from your precious campaign for something as 'trivial' as a vote on overtime. Oh well, now you'll have one less supporter to worry about.

Any recommendations on a strong pro-labor candidate?

[Code_Name_D]

11. Didn't Gepehardt already win a few labor indorcments?

I don't know why they did it. And things like this make me wonder why they did it.

[ikojo]

13. Sad day for working class Americans

I have done much harrassing of my friends via e mail on this issue and to see SEVEN Democrats sit this vote out REALLY ticks me off. Had they bothered to get out of their comfortable millionaire estates this vote probably would not have taken place.

Working Americans lost this vote because SEVEN people were too concerned with how they appear to the corporate contributors than what WORKERS think of them.

As far as Gephardt being a friend of the worker, that is a joke! One of his primary contributors is Anheuser Busch and trust me they don't contribute to him because they are pro union. As a matter of fact one of my friends was fired from AB for union organizing.

If this does not send the message that working Americans are taken for granted by DLC Democrats like Gephardt and LIEberman then what will? How many times must workers take it on the chin before we begin looking elsewhere for representation?

Can't wait to see how the St. Louis Post Disgrace glosses over Gephardt's no show on this vote. I will work on writing a letter to the editor about it that's for sure. I am also contacting Gephardt's office in St Louis to let them know of my unhappiness.

Union members aren't the only ones concerned about overtime pay. MOST American workers are not in a union and most do work overtime. I work in the insurance industry and work an average of six hours per week of overtime and have worked more in the past. At one job we had 30 hours a month of MANDATORY overtime and that lasted for years.

So ticked off I can't think straight.

MJ

[AnAmerican]

16. Yes, Dennis Kucinich

"People have a right to:

A job.
A safe workplace.
Decent wages and benefits.
Organize and be represented.
Grieve about working conditions.
Strike.
Fair compensation for injuries on the job.
Sue if injured by negligent employers.
Security of pension and retirement benefits.
Participate in the political process "



http://www.kucinich.us/issues/issue_rightsworkers.htm

[joeunderdog]

14. Bush bought votes with tax break and sold them with OT

Think your phantom tax break was important? This will feel a whole lot more meaningful when they can no longer afford child care. This will be a huge hit not only for those who are the average working american with families, but for the Bush fan club for whom he has designed a platform called "How can we make more money?"

This is more great PR for an administration that is looking more and more out of touch from the American voter.

[Philosophy]

19. Good. That's 644,000 new Democrats.

Was your puny tax cut worth it?