Senator Jim DeMint held a conference call to discuss Card Check with bloggers, and he called it the most important subject — because it’s mostly flown under the radar.  DeMint feels that the push for bailouts and nationalization has us moving towards socialization, which is one of the aims of the union movement, historically speaking.  DeMint does not oppose union representation, but he opposes forced membership and especially government-imposed solutions like Card Check.

DeMint noted that the states doing poorly are mostly those with closed-shop rules and heavy unionization.  It makes them less competitive and less attractive for investment.  Even so, union membership has declined to the point where labor has now been forced to organize illegal workers, and that’s why they need Card Check.  Without the intimidation factor, American workers will not vote to organize in most workplaces.

The lack of a secret ballot is not the only problem in the EFCA, either.  DeMint pointed out the requirement for government-imposed binding arbitration, which will allow the unions to rely on the NRLB to impose requirements on private enterprise.  That leads to months-long standoffs that will reduce the abiity of organized industries to retain enough flexibility to remain competitive in the marketplace.

Bad news: DeMint believes that Arlen Specter will not back a filibuster against Card Check.  That means that Republicans can afford no other defectors on that issue and that Norm Coleman has to hold his seat in Minnesota.

Questions:

• Me – Is this a deliberate attempt to socialize the US, or is this and the bailouts more of a Keystone Kops drill that stumbles into it? — He thinks the unions are acting deliberately to have the government nationalize industries like the automakers so that union contracts don’t get rewritten.
• Amanda Carpenter – Do you think that the automaker meltdown and the SEIU involvement in the Blagojevich scandal will help make the case against Card Check? — DeMint says it shows that power corrupts, and leaving that kind of power in the hands of unions and “car czars” will produce even more endemic corruption.
• Philip Klein – Do you think that the push for nationalized health care falls into this same category, and does Obama’s appointment of Tom Daschle signals socialization of American health care? — We have to push alternate policies and point out the failures of socialized medicine around the world, but DeMint agrees we’re in real trouble here.  Again, he doesn’t believe that Republicans can sustain a filibuster against it.
• Rob Bluey – Are you confident that Republicans can resist the auto bailout?  — No, not really.  Reid won’t allow Republicans to amend the House bill, so they’ll have to go all or nothing on that bill.  He believes that they have a chance, but a filibuster is not a sure thing.

Time to contact the squishes!  Call your Senators at 202-224–3121, or use the direct listings here (add 202-22 to the numbers listed).