Senator Arlen Specter's Problem with Labor Unions

Back in April, lifelong Republican Senator Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania decided to change parties and become a Democrat because of what he says was the Republican's move to the right.

But now, Senator Specter is starting to feel some pressure from the left of the Democratic Party. There was evidence of that when he visited the union city of Pittsburgh at the Westin Hotel, where Democrats hold their meetings, this weekend when he was heckled by a retired iron worker.

"Our jobs matter too," the heckler identified as John Heinlein said, holding up a sign in front of Senator Specter.

Senator Specter responded to the heckler saying that he will be happy about his record on different union issues.

"I believe you'll be satisfied with my vote on this issue about union organizing and about first contract," Senator Specter said.

WPXI TV in Pittsburgh caught up with Heinlein later and he responded that he has to be a true Democrat if he is going to be a Democrat.

"If he wants to be a Democrat, he's got to be a true Democrat. When I'm talking about Democrats, I'm not talking about unions. I'm talking about working people," John Heinlein said to WPXI.

Many other union workers turned out for the event-WPXI estimates several hundred of them turning up.

All of the union members turned out to rally support for a controversial bill that will be voted in the Senate called the Employee Free Choice Act, otherwise known as "Card Check."

Many unions and Democrats sympathetic to unions say that this will create equity in the workforce by allowing workers to be able to unionize.

Big business and Republicans sympathetic to big business say this is nothing more than a buy off for union bosses and takes away the worker's right to hold a secret ballot.

But, in a city where the manufacturing base has been squashed and where blue collar workers feel attacked by big business, this will put Senator Specter in a conflict.

To make the conflict harder, Senator Specter is most likely going to receive a primary challenge from Congressman Joseph Sestak, who is out of the Philadelphia area. Sestak has appeared on multiple TV shows and is directly appealing to labor unions across the state, such as in Pittsburgh and Erie.

As of now, polls suggest that Senator Specter is on his way toward cruising to victory in the primary. But, Specter had suggested that he would oppose the Employee Free Choice Act before he ended up leaving the Republican Party.

With unions being a huge part of the Democratic Party in Pennsylvania, many suggest that a vote against the Employee Free Choice Act could put Specter in trouble and make a primary race more competitive. That is why some suggest he was in Pittsburgh touting pro-labor views on the first weekend in June.