Statement of Edwin D. Hill, International President
International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers

In the October 5 debate between the vice presidential candidates, incumbent Vice President Richard Cheney noted that he had once carried a ticket in the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers. This happened during his stint on a utility line crew in Wyoming.

We suspect that the vice president likes to raise his old connection with us because he knows that the workers who have stood together as part of the IBEW and other unions have done more to raise the standard of living in this nation than any other movement in our nation's history. The card that the vice president carried was his ticket to decent wages and benefits for the fruits of his labor. Undoubtedly, the money he earned as a union worker helped him achieve his goals in life, as it has done for so many other IBEW members since 1891. It's too bad that the vice president now wants to pull up the ladder and deny that same opportunity to others. We wish we had done a better job instilling these union values and principles in the young Dick Cheney when we had the chance. Perhaps then he would not so relentlessly pursue policies that have caused catastrophic job losses and inflicted tremendous pain on countless working families.