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voted in this election and voted for thecandidate who was talking about jobcreation in a real, tangible way. Thisis exactly what the bus tour and theIUPAT’s 2010 political campaignwere aimed at getting candidates todo.“I hear from just as many memberswho are Republican as I do who areDemocrat,” said IUPAT GeneralPresident James Williams. “My job,and the job of the IUPAT GovernmentAffairs staff, is to speak up for theinterests of our members to those whoare elected to represent them - period.We do not check to see whether theyhave a donkey or an elephant pin ontheir lapel before we talk to them.”But before we can talk to pro-workingfamily candidates on Capitol Hill,we have to get them to Capitol Hill,and General President Williamslaunched an unprecedented get-outthevote effort to make that happen.In addition to the 19-day, nearly6,000-mile bus tour that connectedunion members and pro-working familycandidates on the campaign trailacross the country, IUPAT leadershipauthorized the hiring of 1,500 unemployedand retired IUPAT members towork Election Day and early votingactivities.“It was a win-win situation for us,”said IUPAT General Vice PresidentRay Price. “Not only did we rally asmall army to put feet on the streetand get out the vote for the candidateswe support, but, more importantly,we were able to put some ofour unemployed members to workand earn some badly neededmoney.”On Election Day, the IUPAT Armyof Black and Gold took to the streetslike never before. Over 3,500 membersand staff across the country werecampaigning for the candidates wesupport. It is estimated that this wasthe strongest showing of any BuildingTrades union and ranks with manyother international unions that are 10times larger than the IUPAT.Although the outcome of ElectionDay left labor with more losers thanwinners, the IUPAT still won an importantvictory. “We came, we foughtand we don't have anything to beashamed of,” said IUPAT GeneralVice President Bill Candelori. “Boththe candidates who won, and thoseI U P A T 2 0 1 0 B YT H E N U M B E R S3,500 Election Day workersOver 150 Jobs rallies orevents with 2010 candidates175,000 leaflets/fliersprinted out off of theWorking Families Toolkitand passed outGEB Members attendedlabor walks or labor2010 events in 25 stateswho lost, saw our strength and ourcommitment to our members. We’llnow focus that same strength andcommitment on forging new allianceswith those now in office, and find thecommon ground we need to makecertain the voices of our members areheard.”In a post-election radio interview,General President Williams had amessage for those new leaders comingto Washington: “Congratulationsto all those who won yesterday. Theball is now in your court. You wonand now you must take ownership ofthe economy. Be ready to work withme and the AFL-CIO to put the unemployedback to work.”Clearly our priority on Capitol Hillcan be summed up in one word -JOBS. The IUPAT Government Affairsteam will be working every day withthe incoming members of Congress tomake certain all campaign promisesare fulfilled when it comes to puttingAmerica back to work.“I look forward to working with the members ofthe Painters Union to fight for the priorities ofworking families in Congress. My campaign forCongress was about bringing back economicstability and fighting for meaningful jobs,and I look forward to going to Washingtonto do just that.”Congressman-electPat Meehan, R-PennsylvaniaO C T O B E R - D E C E M B E R2 0 1 0 • J O U R N A L29