Posted on 07/07/2004 6:59:41 AM PDT by sr4402
Business groups reacted tepidly to Sen. John Kerry’s choice of a running mate yesterday, citing concerns that Sen. John Edwards had consistently voted against pro-business bills in Congress and that his background as a trial attorney made him a natural adversary of business interests.
The selection of Edwards also sent a clear message that Kerry would not seek to appease business groups by adding a pro-business candidate to the ticket.
“Kerry decided not to signal accommodation to the business community,” said Michael Baroody, executive vice president of the National Association of Manufacturers, adding that earlier Democratic presidential tickets had been friendlier to business.
getty images Tom Donohue, president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce
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As of yesterday, business groups said that they did not plan any formal reaction to the announcement, although U.S. Chamber of Commerce President Tom Donohue has said his group would endorse Bush if Edwards were selected.
A spokeswoman said yesterday that the Chamber was not commenting on the Edwards announcement.
To the dismay of business interests, Kerry chose a running mate whose record on business issues is much like his own. Rarely has either candidate backed business groups on key issues.
“It is the most anti-business, ideological ticket in my lifetime,” said David Rehr, president of the National Beer Wholesalers Association. Former President Bill Clinton “was pretty good for small business, [Sen. Joe] Lieberman [D-Conn.] was very moderate and pro-business, [former Vice President Al] Gore was a big high-tech guy. … If you look at all the presidential tickets over the last 30 years, this is the worst.” Both Gore and Lieberman were New Democrats, said Baroody, “which suggested at least a sensitivity to the business community.”
Kerry, by contrast, has not sought to portray himself as sympathetic to business.
“From a business perspective, [Kerry] is not a business candidate. He hasn’t even pretend to be,” said Greg Casey, president of the Business-Industry Political Action Committee (BIPAC).
Both Kerry and Edwards received low ratings in vote tallies maintained by business groups, although at times Edwards’s ratings were above those of some of the other potential running mates Kerry considered.
According to tallies of important votes recorded by the Chamber, Kerry voted with business 35 percent of the time, while Edwards cast 40 percent of his votes in favor of business interests. Rep. Dick Gephardt (Mo.) came out with 26 percent on the same scale, while Florida Sen. Bob Graham had 42 percent.
The National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) said that in the 107th Congress, both Kerry and Edwards had voted for bills favored by the group 25 percent of the time, while Graham had done so on 13 percent of the votes and Gephardt on 4 percent.
A spokesman for the NFIB said that the group’s like or dislike of a candidate depended on his voting record. “It’s not who he is; it’s how he votes,” he said.
But other business representatives said Edwards’s background as a member of the trial bar, which typically brings suits against companies, would sway many of their members against him and cause concern that he could impede their efforts to enact an agenda of legal reform on class-action suits, asbestos litigation and medical-malpractice cases.
“Whenever you mention the term trial attorney to the business community, you cause an apoplectic reaction, a visceral reaction,” said Dirk Van Dongen, president of the National Association of Wholesaler-Distributers. “If this ticket succeeds, it will be the death knell for legal reform for so long as they occupy the White House.”
The Senate is scheduled to debate the class-action reform measure this week.
“John Edwards is a trial attorney,” Casey said. “One of our most important issues is tort reform. Now they are showing that they’ve made a decision on where they stand on that.”
Casey also expressed concerns that a Kerry administration could appoint judges sympathetic to the plaintiffs’ bar, which could thwart business groups’ efforts to rein in the number of lawsuits filed against companies.
Baroody, however, dismissed those worries. “I like to think this is a government of laws, not men. It should not be a concern.”
(Excerpt) Read more at thehill.com ...
LET'S SEE BUSINESS PUT ITS MONEY WHERE ITS MOUTH IS.
Baroody is an idiot if he really believs this. No wonder he was passed over for the top job at NAM recently.
This election is now a life-or-death one for business in this country. If they don't think the prospect of Kerry and Edwards picking dozens of judges (i.e. their campaign contributors) isn't the scariest thing ever for business, they need to get out of business.
Don't kid yourselves....there will be plenty of businessmen who will support the anti-business Kerry/Edwards ticket. Why? Because there are many business people who don't like competition. They'll be hoping for tariffs, taxes, government controls to protect THEIR markets and products. Hitler found this to be all too true, too.
Trial attorneys now influence how judges are picked in most states and at the federal level. Why, because they have the money. Their money is extracted from business, doctors & by suits of all types and is used to buy politicians.
Trial attorneys have taken over most state bar associations and now set the tone of legal practice in America. Defense attorneys and business lawyers no longer run the groups.
Judicial candidates aren't just rated by state bar associations and lawyer lobbies, they are pushed up and greased in IF THEY ARE KNOWN to be for judicial "interpretation" of laws/Constitutions and will rule for leftist causes.
By picking Edwards, Kerry is sending a message to the trial attorneys that the money window is open for contributions and influence.
If Kerry gets elected, we won't need business, anyway. There will be plenty of government jobs.
Republicans buy new homes and wonder why the cost of regulation keeps going up. Biz people can't understand why a RINO like Hatch or Snowe would torpedo them. Maybe they should get involved in social issues, not with their secretary. Clueless in Seattle./rant off
This is kind of interesting, since "labor" isn't exactly thrilled with Kerry's pick, either...as they were hoping for a Kerry/Gephardt ticket. With two rich boys at the top, the Dems may have a harder time appealing to blue-collar types.
Kerry thinks he can slap business in the face - in a capitalist society. I'm happy to see my local businesses supporting Bush, while Kerry gets money mostly from lawyers.
I always wonder how much difference it makes when some large group, like the Chamber of Commerce, makes or withholds an endorsement.
And the Nader effect is now neutralized.
BUMP
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