AFL-CIO President: “Election is Choice Between Harris's Opportunity Economy and Trump's Unhinged Betrayal of Working People"

WASHINGTON — AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler issued the following statement on tonight’s presidential debate:

“This election is a fundamental choice between the Vice President, a principled, tough fighter who’ll work to create opportunity for all of us, and Donald Trump, an unhinged serial union buster who betrays working people. Tonight, the American people heard exactly why we need Kamala Harris in the White House. She’s laser-focused on moving this country forward with working people driving our nation’s success. In stark contrast, Donald Trump offered more of the same tired lies, personal attacks and empty promises he’s spewed on the campaign trail for months and in the White House for years.

As we heard on that stage, Vice President Harris has decades of experience defending workers and holding big corporations accountable. Her entire career in public office has been focused on making sure workers have a fair shot. When it comes to our priorities—like the freedom to join a union, affordable quality health care, a secure retirement and good jobs—a Harris-Walz administration will move our nation forward, defend our freedoms, and build an economy that works for all of us.

And as tonight’s debate reminded us, a second Trump term would be a corporate CEO’s dream and a worker’s nightmare. Trump and Vance are ready to make their Project 2025 agenda a terrifying reality: eviscerating unions, slashing millions of union jobs and making it nearly impossible for workers to organize, while cutting wages and benefits and threatening health and safety on the job. They’re running a campaign based on division and fear to cover up the fact that they are in this for themselves and their rich donor friends—not the workers who make this country run.

The labor movement is mobilizing to elect Harris and Walz because the future of our country—and our unions—is on the line. We’re organized and we can mobilize like few others can. With union voters making up 20 percent of the electorate in key battleground states, workers are pivotal in this election. This election, the Blue Wall will be built by labor and the path to victory runs through America’s union halls. We know Kamala Harris and Tim Walz have working people’s backs—and in the final weeks of this campaign, we’re the boots on the ground who have theirs.”

Contact: Steve Smith, 202-637-5018