Labor-union contributions dwindle for Matheson

Upset by a free-trade vote they despise, labor unions have reduced to a trickle their usually gushing pipeline of contributions to Rep. Jim Matheson, D-Utah, new disclosure forms show.

Matheson angered unions in July when he was one of just 15 Democrats who voted for the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA), which barely passed the House on a 217-215 vote.

Matheson voted for CAFTA even though 20 national labor leaders signed a letter threatening "real and measurable" consequences for any Democrat who did. They said the treaty with six Latin American countries is unbalanced and will convert good-paying U.S. jobs into low-wage work abroad.

Matheson — one of eight Democrats whom President Bush invited to the White House to personally lobby on the issue — said the agreement would create more jobs in Utah because Latin America is a fast-growing market for Utah exports.

After that July 27 vote, Matheson has received just $5,500 from unions, coming from schoolteachers, letter carriers and air-traffic controllers, all groups that do not worry their jobs might be exported abroad.

That is a relative trickle compared to what Matheson normally receives from unions.

In the first quarter this year, he received $22,500 from them (or 19 percent of his total receipts then). In the second quarter, he received $46,000 (or 18 percent of receipts).

In the third quarter, new disclosure forms filed Friday show Matheson received just $14,000 from labor for a much-smaller-than-normal 7 percent of his total receipts — and $8,500 of that came before the vote on CAFTA.

"This is just a snapshot of three months in a long fund-raising cycle. I'm not sure if it is a slowdown or not, but I have raised more money (overall) than I did at a similar point two years ago," Matheson said.

Utah AFL-CIO President Ed Mayne said, "It's not just a cyclical thing with donations suddenly dropping off. . . . (Unions) sent a clear message that this vote would show what side you are on: exporting jobs, or trying to protect American jobs. . . . Probably a lot of these groups will not provide financial assistance to those who voted wrong."

About whether such punishment may only be temporary, Mayne said, "Will a year from now make a difference? It will with some. But right now, their positions are pretty hardened."

Historically, Matheson has received a bit more than $1 of every $7 he raises from labor unions — a total of $865,000 since his first first campaign for Congress in 2000. Labor has donated more heavily to Matheson than any other special interest or industry.

Matheson said he appreciates labor's help, but "I vote on every issue the way I think is right" and said he is beholden to no group.