the article continues…
John Laughlin, political director of the 4,000 member Painters District Council 35, said his union endorsed Christopher Gabrieli in part because of questions about Patrick’s summer home.
Now that that is cleared up, one has to wonder what in earth possessed Deval to ever consider going forward with building that non-union summer home in the midst of a campaign for governor? Together we can?
“We’re not talking about repainting someone’s kitchen or rehabbing a triple decker.” said Laughlin.
“There have been issues of people in public life who advocate in favor of labor standards- healthcare and pensions- and they are put to the test when they do their own projects,” said Laughlin. “John Kerry had union workers in to rehab his home in Loiusberg Square and several years ago we took Joe Kennedy to task for painting his house in Brighton with nonunion painters.”
On a side note, one has to wonder if the summer Mansion and the Milton estate, with their combined mortgage payments of $27,000 a month ($324,000/yr) on a Governor’s salary of $135,000 a year really made common sense in tandem with a campaign for governor.
Patrick’s campaign wound not say whether the house was built with nonunion workers, and issued the following statement:
“Deval and his wife have been blessed. Their house is a place where they and their extended famaily can enjoy time together. During the construction, they did their due diligence like every other homeowner to ensure that all relevant laws were complied with.”
Well yes, I guess he’s off the hook, using non-union labor isn’t against the law, and well if Deval can do it, I guess the rest of us can start doing it? Especially after he’s Governor and he’s set the example for all to see!!!
Remember: “Together We Can” Stop Using Union Labor!!! Deval Patrick
no “buttom” but the rest of the dialog bocx is there?
but I was hoping for an “unrecommend” button on this one. Did you know that Deval is using the latest in energy efficient technology on his home? He really does walk the walk. Not only does he drive a hybrid, but he was willing to research how to make his new home as efficient as possible. I can personally speak to the difficulty in finding ANYONE who is capable of working with the latest innovations. It’s virtually impossible in this state because the expense is so high, and so few trades people have worked with the equipment. I had to go out of state for what I installed in my house.
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This is just another blatant attempt to attack Deval without knowing what you are talking about.
Was there a union contractor with experience building custom summer houses who was willing to build in Richmond?
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You don’t hire someone who builds schools to build a summer house, any more than you hire someone who builds subdivisions to renovate a house, or an expert on diesel engines to repair your Mustang.
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p> Further, if you are not going to be present every day, you need not just a capable architect, but a contractor experienced with all the exterior and interior materials that a house requires, who can listen to you and then translate that knowledge into the innummerable little decisions that must be made every day by all the craftsmen/women on the job.
Was such a person available who was also a union member?
Here’s another section out of the Sunday Boston Globe article on A26:
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I guess they are really lucky this is coming out so close to the primary…
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My take on it:
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“Together we can” do “as I say”, not as “I do”.
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Where is the outrage?
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Where are the usual suspects that defend Deval against all onslaughts?
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Inquiring minds want to know?
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Is this the type of stand we want to be standing for in November?
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How do we explain this one away?
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Where is the defense?
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That it is legal?
Instead of staring at your blogging navel, Ren Man, you really should get outside on this beautiful weekend and try to do something productive to help your candidate.
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Yes, I have spoken with building trades guys out here. I know they have been unhappy about this situation for many weeks – probably shortly after key operatives of the Carpenter’s unionLocal 108 jumped onto the Reilly bandwagon – and they don’t like the fact that there is nothing they can do about it except call attention to the fact that it could have been done differently.
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I give the guys credit for consistency – the building trades people in Berkshire County often make important points about OSHA issues, or publicize violations of the law in public contracts. Important work. They thought they saw an opportunity to make a point here about construction on a private home but – especially because I know the key instigator of this issue – I think it’s just an attempt to make a political mountain out of a non-existent molehill.
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On the other hand, another group that was made unhappy after working on the Richmond house includes the contractors and subcontractors who found that AG operatives showed up to go over their licenses and tax and payroll filings with a fine-toothed comb in the hope of finding anything amiss. It is my understanding that all paperwork was in order.
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Speaking from experience, I can safely say that labor may not be happy with elected officials 100% of the time. I just got my union card last week (thank you, United Educators of Pittsfield) but I’m not sure I would want a Governor who gives labor everything it wishes for, all the time.
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This is a situation where partisans of another candidate would like to create a problem. There is no basis to claim that the Patrick family acted insensitively or unfairly.
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Now, let’s set this aside and talk about that SEC investigation of Gabrieli. . . .
This is the key phrase from the link I tried to provide:
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I have enormous respect for the IBEW, Laborers, Operating Engineers, Painters & Allied Trades, and other representatives of working families. I often respect our local Carpenters, but not when they are up to mischief.