Posted on 04/26/2008 5:38:41 AM PDT by iowamark
U.S. Rep. Steve Chabot, R-OH, blamed labor unions and partisan politics for a U.S. House vote this week rejecting an amendment that could have kept the Delta Queen riverboat from having to phase out its overnight cruise packages.
The historic riverboat has been operating with a special Congressional exemption from the federal Safety at Sea Act since 1968, an exemption that has been renewed eight times. The safety act bans the use of wooden vessels for overnight cruises. Backers of the exemption claim the Delta Queen deserves special treatment because of its historical significance and recently upgraded fire-safety systems. With the exemption scheduled to expire this year, local Congressional delegates have been pushing for an extension for months. Last year, the house passed the exemption, but the Senate rejected it.
Some of the opposition to the exemption comes from a labor dispute involving the company that bought the Delta Queen in 2006. Majestic America Line, a subsidiary of the publicly traded Ambassadors International Inc., did not renew a collective bargaining agreement after taking over management of the Delta Queen.
This week, a House rules committee voted 9-4 against allowing the amendment to reach the House floor. All nine votes against the proposal were cast by Democrats, Chabot noted in his remarks on the floor of the House yesterday. He used a parliamentary maneuver to bring the amendment to a floor vote, but lawmakers defeated the measure by a vote of 208-195.
"I can only conclude from this that the opposition we're seeing is not so much about the Delta Queen but more about a labor dispute," Chabot said. "If this is true, why should the American people be the victims, losing access to a national landmark? Why should American jobs be lost? Why should local businesses be ruined? All because of a labor dispute? I hope that unions do not have that type of influence here in Washington."
Majestic America said it is "evaluating strategic alternatives" for the Delta Queen, which could include the sale of the boat after the current cruise season, which ends in October. In the meantime, it's still hoping for another Congressional reprieve.
"We're still asking interested parties to contact their representatives in the House," said Vanessa Bloy, director of public relations for the company.
1) A company willing to do business
2) Customers willing to buy
3) Nobody getting hurt, no social injuries, no discrimination, etc
Should be all you need in a free country.
But there’s myriad laws against wooden boats because of fires back when they were firetraps, and now you’ve got union parasites demanding blood in Washington at the same time.
So hard to see creeping socialism by degree.
Ayn Rand had a simple solution: just quit. Let the parasites fend for them damn selves.
The Delta Queen has sailed safely since 1926. The General Slocum fire was caused by lax fire safety.
The Democrat effort against the Delta Queen has nothing to do with safety. It has to do with unions.
Nothing brings out the old fashioned, cut-throat politics like granting who can and who can’t be allowed to operate a gambling establishment. The less competition the better.
The Delta Queen does not have gambling. She does 3-7 night overnight cruises.
“The Delta Queen does not have gambling. She does 3-7 night overnight cruises.”
My mistake, but isn’t there an old riverboat that does operate as a casino?
So what this all REALLY is about - the union is ticked off, so is pressuring their paid lackeys in the SENATE to shut them down.
Nice...
The President is a very handsome vessel. I have missed seeing her at the most recent Tall Stacks celebrations. Taking away the Delta Queens exemption is a crime against Americas heritage.
What's HE been smoking? RAT politicians (and probably some PUBS as well) have been bought and paid for by the union thugs for generations.
The Delta Queen has graciously been an irreplaceable part of every Derby Week celebration as long as I can remember. The rat representing Louisville did not vote for the exemption, Disgusting and STUPID!
The late, great John Hartford was a pal of mine. At least he was spared the possibility of seeing the Delta Queen going the way of so much else that is good.
If nothing else, the law in question constitutes a "taking" and the boat should have been grandfathered in automatically.
What’s wrong with a wooden vessel operating at night/overnight?
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