|
Warren is the first of three leading candidates seeking the
Democratic Party's nomination to run against Republican
President Donald Trump in 2020 to appear this week at town halls
hosted by the 60,000-member Culinary Workers Local 226.
Her participation on Monday night, to be followed by Vermont
Senator Bernie Sanders on Tuesday and former Vice President Joe
Biden on Wednesday, shows the significance of labor's support to
candidates vying for the party's nomination just two months
before the early-voting state of Nevada picks its choice.
Unions are so crucial to Democrats' electoral success in Nevada
that early voting for the state's February nominating caucuses
will take place in union halls.
All three of the candidates are allied with labor, but touchy
questions remain for Warren and Sanders on their healthcare
proposals. Both have said their plans would lead to the
elimination of private healthcare, although Warren just days
before her last trip to Nevada made a point of saying healthcare
clinics funded under union contracts would be allowed to
continue to operate under her plan.
Like many unions, the Culinary Workers have not yet endorsed a
candidate among the 15 still vying for the party's nomination.
Its leaders have made clear to Sanders and Warren that
preserving union healthcare is key to their members, said a
source familiar with union leaders' thinking, who requested
anonymity in order to speak frankly.
"One of the reasons they're in a union is that it provides them
with healthcare," said Donna West, Democratic Party chairwoman
in Clark County, where Las Vegas is located. "They are listening
intently to these candidates and asking them about their plans
for healthcare and how it would impact their members."
Biden, who is leading in polls in Nevada and nationally, has
promised to preserve union healthcare and is not considering
eliminating private plans in his proposal to expand the
Affordable Care Act passed under former President Barack Obama.
But Biden, who served as Obama's vice president, may face tough
questions on immigration stemming from that administration's
high deportation numbers.
Culinary Workers, the state's largest union, is heavily
comprised of immigrants who work in casinos, hotels and bars.
(Reporting by Sharon Bernstein; Editing by Bill Berkrot)
[© 2019 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2019 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.
|
|
