Alaska’s working families call on Murkowski to reject Kavanaugh

As working Alaskans celebrated Labor Day, we had more on our minds than picnics and barbecues. We were proudly standing with our union brothers and sisters across the country, demanding the fairer economy and more just society that we deserve.

A wave of collective action is sweeping America as working people refuse to accept a broken economic and political system that has been rigged against us. We are fighting for real change that will strengthen our voices and preserve our dignity on the job.

That means filling the halls of power with genuine advocates of hardworking families. For too long, the politicians populating those back rooms have been nothing more than corporate mouthpieces.

That sinister brand of corporate influence has even taken hold of the highest court in the land. In his first year on the bench, Neil Gorsuch has already proven how dangerous a corporate judge can be. From undermining our rights at work to blocking our access to the ballot box, the Supreme Court handed corporations a 90 percent win rate during its most recent term. More than ever, the whispers of a few CEOs have more sway over our institutions than the voices of working people.

The current Supreme Court vacancy is an opportunity to change course. A nominee committed to equality and justice under the law would restore some semblance of legitimacy to this revered institution. Instead, President Donald Trump nominated Brett Kavanaugh, a judicial extremist by even the most right-wing standards.

The White House has tried to muddy that reality, blocking 96 percent of documents establishing Kavanaugh's record from public scrutiny. But even the sharpest Washington operatives can't hide a career spent proudly advancing the interests of the wealthy and well-connected at the expense of working people.

Just look at his decisions from the bench, and you'll see that Kavanaugh has never been shy about where his loyalties lie. Always at the beck and call of his corporate patrons, he even sided with a Trump casino's shameless union-busting effort.

When he ruled on another case dealing with a death on the job, he argued that the worker should have known what she was getting into. In yet another ruling, he insisted that undocumented workers have no legal rights on the job at all. Time and again, he has used his power to hurt working people, ruling to make our workplaces more dangerous, deny us health care and undermine our unions.

Speaking at Yale Law School, Kavanaugh's alma mater, AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka made clear what we're facing: "The threat to the rights of working people posed by the nomination of Judge Kavanaugh cannot be overstated … (He) would return workplace law to the 19th century."

Working Alaskans cannot afford our public institutions to fall even further into the hands of corporate interests. We won't allow our rights and freedoms to be put up for sale, and we expect our elected officials to have our back in this fight.

Sen. Lisa Murkowski has long argued that she is an independent, reasonable voice on Capitol Hill, even voting to save the same health care law that Kavanaugh would be quick to decimate.

At this pivotal moment, she has an opportunity to live up to that reputation. There's no margin for error, and her decision will have momentous consequences for this state.

If Sen. Murkowski truly weighs the needs of hardworking Alaskans over partisan pressures, she will reject Kavanaugh's nomination and demand a justice befitting this office. If she instead hands her vote over to deep-pocketed corporate interests, there will be no question that her words ring hollow — and she should expect a cold reception when she returns home to ask for our vote.

Vince Beltrami is the president of the Alaska AFL-CIO, the state's largest labor organization.

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