AFT President Randi Weingarten and AFT-PA President Ted Kirsch on Hillary Clinton’s Pennsylvania Primary Win
“Tonight, Pennsylvanians
affirmed that Hillary Clinton is the best and most qualified candidate
to lead our party and our country forward,” said AFT President Randi
Weingarten. “Hillary won tonight because she has relentlessly focused
on issues that Pennsylvania voters care about: raising wages, cutting
college debt, rebuilding our infrastructure and boosting American
manufacturing, reining in Wall Street, tending to our children and
partnering with our teachers, protecting our seniors, and breaking down
racial, gender and LGBT barriers. Hillary will protect our right to
vote and has vowed to repeal Citizens United, restoring American
democracy. She has what it takes to deliver real change for working
people and break down the barriers holding our nation back. Tonight,
yet again, she has proven that she is the candidate who will stand with
working Americans to make our communities stronger and rebuild our
economy.
“AFT members worked tirelessly to help deliver Hillary
a resounding victory tonight and were critical in this election. The
American Federation of Teachers, AFT Pennsylvania, the Philadelphia
Federation of Teachers, the Pittsburgh Federation of Teachers and the
Scranton Federation of Teachers thank all of the members who
volunteered and helped talk to nearly 11,000 union members on the phone
or at their front doors for this primary election.”
AFT
Pennsylvania President Ted Kirsch, who is also an AFT vice president,
said, “Our members saw that one candidate is willing to take the time
and effort to understand local issues and has smart plans to strengthen
our schools and our communities. Hillary Clinton’s support of the
proposed Philadelphia soda tax shows she understands the challenges
austerity politics has left us facing and the nuanced approach needed
to make life better for everyday Pennsylvanians.”