Will Katcher
masslive.com
BOSTON — A day after his Democratic vice presidential rival touted his labor movement bona fides to a convention hall of union firefighters, Ohio U.S. Sen. JD Vance insisted to the same crowd that they would fare better under a Republican administration.
Vance , the GOP nominee for vice president, appeared Thursday in Boston before the International Association of Fire Fighters. The IAFF represents nearly 350,000 firefighters and emergency medical workers across the United States and Canada.
Vance noted the decline in recent decades of national union membership, which fell to 10% last year, down from 20.1% four decades ago.
“After supporting Democrats for so long in this union, what has it gotten you?” Vance asked. He added: “The influence of unions has declined, and the wages of working people, union and non-union alike, have not kept up with the pace of inflation over the last three-and-a-half years.”
Watch Vance’s speech, starting at 11:35
On Wednesday, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz told the union members it was their time “to step up to the plate.”
Walz, the running mate to Vice President Kamala Harris, is a former teacher and union member.
The IAFF endorsed President Joe Biden in April 2019, 10 months before the Iowa Caucuses, calling him “a problem solver who cares deeply about his country.”
But the union has yet to weigh in on the 2024 race, amid what NBC News described in December as “internal divisions about whether to endorse at all” this presidential election cycle.
Before the labor crowd, Walz leaned into the importance of collective bargaining and union rights, charging that former President Donald Trump and Vance would seek to dismantle them if they win in November.
“Every single chance they’ve got, they wage a war on workers,” Walz said.
Vance sought to paint a different picture of his ticket’s intentions, listing support for legislation he said protected union members’ benefits and addressed the health threats firefighters can face.
Still, Vance entered the stage to scattered boos and told the masses “It sounds like we’ve got some fans and some haters here.”
He faced louder jeers from the crowd for describing himself and Trump as “the most pro-worker Republican ticket in history.”
“It’s just empty words, a lot of it,” said Gabe Eckert , the president of IAFF Local 710 in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. He said he had not seen Vance strongly support unionized workers seeking the right to collectively bargain.
Walz, Eckert said, was a “strong union member.”
But Andrew Herron, president of IAFF 4035 in Hoover, Alabama, was impressed with Vance’s speech. He believed the Republican ticket would do more to protect the retirement savings of union members.
“Vance did a better job addressing the issues that directly affect us,” Herron said.
Ahead of Walz’s speech in Boston, the Harris campaign touted the Democratic nominee’s work alongside Biden passing legislation to fund firefighter staffing, training, and equipment and to bolster retirement benefits.
The IAFF’s general president, Ed Kelly, said Walz “takes the time to listen. He learns about our issues and works very hard on our behalf. He’ll bring that same mindset back to Washington.”
Kelly joined the Boston Fire Department in 1997 and is a former president of the Professional Fire Fighters of Massachusetts .
Florida Congressman Carlos A. Giménez, a Republican, introduced Vance on Thursday. A former fire chief in Miami, he said that “the world is aflame today” amid regional conflicts, inflation, and concerns about a broken immigration system.
Vance told the crowd he respected the union “for inviting both sides to take the stage and make the case” to the membership.
Vance’s speech also touched on his rural upbringing, including stories of Ohio firefighters assisting his family during his mother’s addiction crisis.
With his mother now 10 years sober, Vance told the firefighters, “Believe it from a kid who’s seen it with his very own eyes, you are making a difference.”
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