If you’re a political junkie like myself, getting to attend the California Labor Federation’s annual Legislative Conference is akin to a football fan scoring Superbowl tickets. It’s that big.
A group of IBEW 1245 members joined hundreds of other union members and leaders from across the state at the two-day conference, where we got to hear from our elected policymakers, and then meet those very policymakers on their home turf — the State Capitol — to lobby them on an issue that directly affects our members.
All of our state’s movers and shakers were there, from the Governor on down. On our first morning, we were treated to speeches from California’s two top legislators, Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de Leon and Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon. Speaker Rendon made a persuasive argument that some politicians over-complicate the matter when the right and moral answer is staring them directly in the face. Then he made a startling yet profound statement regarding voting for issues concerning working people.
“It’s not complicated,” he said. “You just vote for what’s right.”
IBEW 1245 Organizing Steward Kevin Krummes with Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom
After digesting Mr. Rendon’s remarks, we got to hear Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom speak passionately about the future of state, and how to get there using 21st century technologies. That afternoon, we attended various briefings, including workshops that encompassed such subjects as legislative strategies, opportunities on the 2016 ballot, and the intersection of climate change and the Labor Movement. All were extremely interesting and thought-provoking, and guaranteed to get the attendees’ political and organizing blood boiling.
Day one was capped off when we heard from Governor Jerry Brown. He expanded on the “higher moral ground” argument that Speaker Rendon had referred to earlier in the day, in addition to jokingly declaring that California would need to build a wall around itself if a certain reality TV star wins the White House.
The second day of the conference was all about lobbying. After being tutored by Local 1245 Business Rep and resident political guru Hunter Stern, the 1245 group branched out and met with Assemblymembers and Senators from their own areas. Our message was simple- keep the Diablo Canyon Power Plant open. With a handful of single-issue groups in our state attempting to pressure the state Lands Commission to not renew Diablo Canyon’s lease, it’s imperative that we are able to tell the working people’s side of this story. And that story is this — if the power plant is closed, thousands of good union jobs would disappear, the economy of the San Luis Obispo area would take a huge hit, and California’s number one generator of greenhouse-gas-free power would be gone. To quote Speaker Rendon, it’s not that complicated.
As we told our story throughout the day, it was clear that this message resonated with the labor-friendly politicians we helped elect. Though there is much work to be done, it was a good start. Now we just need to keep our message simple and clear. When working people stand together, we are a force of unstoppable momentum.
2016 Legislative Conference Attendees:
- Kevin Krummes
- Kristen Rasmussen
- Nicole Gross
- Gerald Williams
- Rachel Ramirez-Hill
- Stan Zamora
- Pete Sandoval
- Mike Jessen
- Carl Olguin
- Jammi Juarez
- Hunter Stern
- Eleanor Brown
- Oni Brown
Kevin Krummes is an IBEW 1245 Organizing Steward.