Hillary Clinton gets ILA union endorsement and boost from Mayor Joe Riley "Charleston ILA president Kenny Riley said the backing for Clinton is based on her support of labor and because she recognizes the mission of protecting American trade in the world.

Hillary Clinton gets ILA union endorsement and boost from Mayor Joe Riley
"Charleston ILA president Kenny Riley said the backing for Clinton is based on her support of labor and because she recognizes the mission of protecting American trade in the world."
http://www.postandcourier.com/article/20151031/PC1603/151039866
Schuyler Kropf Email @skropf47
Oct 31 2015 12:28 pm Oct 31 6:09 pm
Charleston Mayor Joe Riley introduces Hillary Clinton, the front-runner for the Democratic nomination for president, Saturday at the International Longshoremen’s Association Hall in Charleston. PAUL ZOELLER/STAFF
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Democratic presidential front-runner Hillary Clinton accepted the national endorsement of the country’s biggest dockworkers union Saturday morning in Charleston, saying organized labor protects all facets of American workers, including those among the middle class in South Carolina.

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“You hear all the time, South Carolina doesn’t need unions,” she said, referring to the stance repeatedly pledged by Republican Gov. Nikki Haley.

“You still have a lot of poor people in South Carolina,” Clinton said.

She also thanked Mayor Joe Riley for throwing his support her way. His endorsement came after Riley’s first choice on the Democratic side, Vice President Joe Biden, opted not to run.

“If there is an undergirding characteristic of Hillary Clinton, it’s that she is a fighter,” Riley said, adding that he expected to hear the sound of the White House “glass ceiling” being shattered this time next year.

During her 45-minute address, Clinton stuck to her common themes of wage growth, protecting civil rights, gun control and bringing down health care costs.
She also made it known she would be her own brand.

“I am focused on the economy,” she said. “I am not running for my husband’s third term or Barack Obama’s third term,” she told the crowd of about 300 supporters.

The 65,000-member International Longshoremen’s Association union announced its support earlier this week but had agreed to formalize and present the endorsement during Clinton’s address Saturday at the Charleston stevedore hall. Her “concern for working Americans has been loud and clear,” ILA national president Harold Daggett said in his endorsement message.

Charleston ILA president Kenny Riley said the backing for Clinton is based on her support of labor and because she recognizes the mission of protecting American trade in the world.

“I think she understands the importance of national security and the importance of the U.S. maritime fleet,” he said.

The ILA union is the most visible on South Carolina’s coast. Local 1422 has 800 members and another 1,300 apprentice members.

South Carolina had the second lowest union membership rate in the nation in 2014, 2.2 percent of the labor force, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Reach Schuyler Kropf at (843) 937-5551.