“I’ll Win With or Without You,” Teamsters Union President Reveals Kamala Harris’s Famous Last Words

How I wonder, I've sat and watched. you in the stands at the RNC and. I and I don't think I've ever seen. anybody give a speech. at a convention, a very. well-received speech, without. endorsing the candidate. How did you convince Trump to do. that? Well, I think Trump and I have. a good relationship. We've got a mutual respect for each. other. Yeah, absolutely.

And, you know, I think he knew. the struggles that we had with. our membership. We've got 1.3. million members. So you know that membership is. made up of Republican Democrats. and independents. And, you know, we knew all along. where our membership was trending, and we had to do a lot of polling. and everything else. And we had. a lot of communication during.

the campaign leading up to the RNC. So I think he knew the spot that. we were in if we just came out and. did a straight endorsement. But we really couldn't do that. because our our. the process we interviewed every. single candidate that from, you know, the people that entered. the race early to the last. two standing, which was Trump and. Harris. And we interview them in a. roundtable with rank. and file members in our general. executive board. And we provided each each. candidate with 16 of the same.

questions. And, you know, the Trump was, you know, like all of them, they. weren't strong on some of our issues. and no fault of their own, because I. don't think deep down they. understood what our actual issues. are. But at the end of the day, I think. he knew that by us representing. speaking at the RNC, representing. the Teamsters Union, that he. was actually showing America, the American workers, that, you. know, he was for labor, he was for working people.

And my message was clear. You were there. I saw you standing. up with him. And my message didn't endorse. the Republicans, Democrats or. independents. It was clearly about. what the American worker needs from. the administration. Can I maybe let. You do. That? Yeah. You know, it's funny. I mean, it's a political convention. The whole point is to nominate this. guy. Right. But, you know, I got to tell you, this is funny. So leading up to the. RNC, we're writing our. speech and we're going through it. And, you know, we're editing it.

internally, all of us. Great team. And we submitted. to the RNC the folks I think. we submitted probably a week prior. and we submit the speech and. some of the underlings in the RNC. didn't like what we had to say. about. And so. they wanted to change it, modify it. and everything else. And we took a position. I took a position. Well, I'm not. going then. And so we reached. out to Siouxsie Wiles. and told her, look, we're not we.

are not modifying the speech. And she was like, I don't think you. should. She says, Why don't you call DJT. and tell him? So I called them on a cell phone. and I said, Listen. I said, They want us to modify the. speech. He goes, I haven't seen it. He goes, I don't give a shit what. you say. Do whatever you want, Sean. Come up. So 100%. true. Absolutely. So when we went there, I mean, obviously they're gonna say, Yeah, yeah. So he's like.

actually said, Say whatever the fuck. you want to say. That's exactly what he said. And when we went there, it was. great. It was, it was a home run. And I think, you know, part of the thought. process from the Republican. side was, look, if we get. the general president of the. biggest, strongest union in. the country, that's going to signal. to every working person that how. committed, you. know, the Republican Party is, the. opportunity the Republican Party has. to prove that they want to represent.

American workers. And listen to this just. I mean, that is. that is a window into what Trump. is actually like. I that's why I'm laughing because. it's just so perfect. And I you know, whatever you think. of that, I happen to love it. But that is never done in politics. Well, you never get a cannot say. whatever you want to. What? Yeah. Yeah. It was it was hilarious. But conversely, you. know, we asked to go to the DNC at. the same time. And, you know, and we know that. if we ever submitted that speech. to the DNC, they.

want to shed a brick, they would. have been horrified because. the people that we were talking. about, the corporate elitists. Yeah. And everybody else, those. are the people that the Democrats. have fallen in love with. Those are the people I serve instead. of the middle class the way it used. to be 50 years ago. So we know that we will have a. tremendous portion. You go. I'm sorry. I don't even know. Did you go to the. Democratic. No, we didn't. We didn't get. invited. That is that's even a bigger. story than speaking at. The RNC is not getting invited. to the DNC. Yeah, well, that was. you. Know, that was the vindictive side.

of the Democratic Party. And, you know, I'm a Democrat, but, you know, I'm I call balls and. strikes. You know, they haven't done. it for us. And when we didn't get invited, it's a funny story because. two weeks prior to us speaking. at the RNC, you know, we didn't. hide from the fact that we were. going to speak there. Listen, I tell. everybody all the time, if I get a. venue to highlight how valuable our. organization is, the Teamsters Union. to the entire country, I will take. any and all venues to do that. Good. So two weeks. prior to that, Chuck Schumer.

asked me to meet with me with them. and I meet with him. and he wants 550,000. for the super PAC for the Senate. races. No problem. And I said, look, I was speaking at. the RNC. He's like, great job. You know, that's good. You should represent your members. Day after I give that speech at the. RNC, he gets on Twitter. and starts talking shit about. my speech. Remember who fix your pensions? And I'm like, This guy's a fucking. joke. Like, why would you do this to two. weeks prior? You're telling me when you taking a.

$550,000 super PAC check, you know, that's great. It's great for your members. You know, that's good. And then you want to get on Twitter. like a tough guy and, you know, throw shadows. Call you. Well, because they don't like. confrontation. They don't want to. hear the truth. When he said, you know, we fix. your pensions. That gave me an opportunity to say. you're the same guy in the same. party that 40 years ago. embraced, endorsed and signed off on. deregulation. And the trucking industry, which we. lost 400,000 jobs.

in 1980. Ted Kennedy put the bill forward. Joe Biden signed off on it as a. senator or as a representative. And no. Senator. Yeah, Senator Right. So. They said, We fix your pension. And I said, Yeah, you did fix a. pension. And I use the scenario all. the time. I'm like, I played street. hockey in my neighborhood. 1980. I broke my mother's window. for 40 years. She's asked me to fix her window. and I finally fix it 40 years later. Should I look for accolades.

for a problem that I helped create? Yeah. And so we went back and forth. It even got to a point. He showed up in our building. prior to the election, and we had a. we had a bipartisan. meeting and the hallway. of the IBT, and it. was attended by a lot of Republican. senators, a lot of Republican. congressmen, because, look, our goal. is to work across the aisle to solve. problems. Yeah. He walks in with his you know, the. Capitol Police would do a great job, walks in and walks in late, and he.

sticks his crooked finger in my face. and he says, I fix. your pensions. I said, You should have. You broke them. And we going into a pretty hard. And, you know, he starts yelling. at me. I go, Buddy, listen, there's. only one guy that can help me. We buried him 12 years ago. I go and I go, You want to get into. this right here, right now? We'll get into it. You talk about. your dad? Yeah, I'm talking about my. dad. Right. And so Schumer's like, we fix. your pension. I'm like, Yeah, I'm. going to name the things you haven't. done for us.

When our members were on strike at. the rail, you didn't support us. You didn't put a letter of support. in there. When we were fighting with. U.P.S. in the middle of the street, you wouldn't sign off on a support. letter When we took on Amazon, which. we're taking on now, you wouldn't. support our efforts in Amazon. I said, You want me to keep going. because you can tell me what you've. done. The one thing you've done for. me and my union and my members. But I'm going to tell you all the. things you haven't done for us. And then, you know, he's like, Well, I really want this relationship. I'm like, We're done. We're done. That was it.

They laughed. And then I'm working out. at the building on Election Day. This is great. And look, I'm not a person that says. I told you so, or whatever. the case says. He called my phone. rings. There's only two people that call me. from a private line. Sometimes it's the commander in. chief and someone else. So phone rings and I answer. it and it's Chuck Schumer and. I. Dejected tone. It was, you know. Hi, Sean. I'm okay. How you doing? He goes, good. Chuck Schumer. I'm like, okay, what do you want?

It's like, I just want to thank you. for supporting, you know, the. superPAC. I go. That was like four months ago. And he says, yeah, I just want to. thank you. And I'm like, okay, great. It was like a dejected tone. And I was like, Get off that. I got off the stand, master, and I'm. like, This is crazy. But it is what it is. Why was he doing that, I wonder? I have no. Idea. No idea. Do you think he knew they were going. to agree? I think he knew they were getting. crushed that day. Yeah. And, you know, I don't know. how people, you know, so. astute that are on so long.

in politics couldn't see that. common. Was it obvious to you? It was very obvious to us, yes. Just by the polling we were doing. And look, the one thing that we do. and this is a gauge that I. pride our leadership on. We don't sit in our office and, you know, research all these polls, research, you know, all these. opinions. The opinions are matter to me are. the the 1.3 million members that. we represent. My general secretary and treasurer, myself are out every single day.

in workplaces talking to. members, asking them. their opinions, find out exactly. what their struggles are in the. workplace. And then you get into always into. politics, you know, the presidential. election and just a one. on one conversations where in three. different states, three times a week. and multiple industries that we. represent. And when you're talking to people, you weren't just talking to people. in blue states. We were talking to people in red. states all over the country. And we knew just from, you know, the rhetoric out there.

from our members that, you know, they weren't voting Democrat. And that's when we started designing. this, you know, real. extensive program. And that included the rank and file. members. So can you We knew that was. common. For people who don't know. Just give us an overview of the. Teamsters, 1.3 million members. What do they do? So we represent 1.3 million members. The easiest way to understand it. is we represent airline pilots to. zookeepers and everybody in between. We represent UPS is our largest. employer. We have 340,000.

members. UPS We represent the grocery. industry, warehousing. We represent airline pilots. We represent airline mechanics. We represent motion picture. We represent trade shows. We represent public sector. We represent health care. So we represent everybody from A. to Z. So the name comes from. guys who drove teams of horses? Yeah. Teams of horses. We were predominantly a truck. driving unit. Yes. Started out with horse and buggy. And through evolution and.

technology. Was truck drivers deregulation, you know, crushed the trucking. industry in the 80s? We've been able to rebuild and. organize over the last two and a. half years. But because of. deregulation, we lost 400,000. Teamster jobs. Wow. Back in the 80s. Yes. But, you know, we're real. progressive union. We we don't have all. our eggs in one basket right now. We're trying to organize Amazon, which has about 400,000. employees, both direct and.

the DSP model, that. they masquerade as not being direct. employees. It's a joint employer. or pursuing them right now. And we also are. organizing in the cannabis industry. with its 425,000. W-2 employees, the term. nationwide cannabis. The guys who trim marijuana. Well cultivate it, warehouse. it, grow it and sell it, and soon it'll be transported. So what percentage now. of your members drive?

I would probably say 45% of. our members. Really? So between UPS, I mean, UPS is our largest employer. We've got some freight. We've got DHL. Yeah, probably probably closer to. 50%. How did you get involved? I'm a fourth generation Teamster. from Boston Local 25. My dad was a rank and file member. My grandfather was a truck. driver. My great grandfather came. from Ireland. He was a Teamster as well. What did he do? Drove a truck. Our horse and buggy, I should say. Probably. Really? Yeah.

And what's your dad do? My dad worked construction. and then worked motion pictures. What was he like? What was he like? Yeah. He was crazy. Hilarious. Cartoon character, burly guy, Charlestown guy. Hard work and work. 2 or 3 jobs. You know, just a real family person. was a street guy as well. You know, he was he was a. very quiet, quiet man. But he was true blue to the union.

are always working, making certain that, you know, he. put food on the table, a. great guy, and died too young. We had a lot of fun with him. But I had a great relation with my. dad because I went right to work in. the union when I was 18, doing what. I worked in a Reagan company, Crane Company. Shaughnessy and. Ahern, one of the biggest crane. companies. Yeah, I was always. fascinated with the Teamsters. Union. You know, my dad was my best. friend and. I have an older brother and a. younger brother and they're both in. the Teamsters Union. But I was the one that always really.

liked trucks. I love tractor. trailers. I love driving them. But I loved going to the Sunday. meeting. One of them, when I was 8. or 9 years old, I would go to Local. 25 and Charlestown. My both my parents grew up there. My mother grew up in the projects. And I just remember being fascinated. by the camaraderie. of the Teamsters Union. I remember watching Billy McCarthy, who was our general president on a. local 25. Eventually I just remember him being. larger than life, and the Teamsters. Union was so prevalent. My family, I'm like, you know, I'd.

go to school with these kids. I want to be a lawyer. I want to be. a doctor. I'm like, I want to be a. truck driver for the Teamsters. Union. And I was that's everything. I want to do is just because I. learned it around the dinner table, I was so proud because everything. we had in our entire life was. because of the union and that. organization. Through the good times and the bad. times, there were a lot of bad. times. That organization never wavered on. my family, and I'm like, If I ever. get an opportunity, this is what I. want to do. And I just moved. up through the ranks. It's such an antique world. You're describing such an American.

archetype. It's like such as a kind. of a movie. I just said my 34th year. The show. But I wonder I mean, one. of the reasons I wanted to talk. to you was, you know, well, for a lot of reasons to get. your political analysis, but also. just that the life. that you grew up in. I just wonder if that still exists. It just seems so thoroughly. American, thoroughly New England. Yeah. I mean, I think we're an. anomaly now. I mean, I have friends my age, you know, that went to college. And look, I, I did very well by the.

union. I always worked. I work seven days a week, 12, 13 hours a day, got laid off, hustled whatever needed to go to. college. I went for a semester. I played football UMass for one. semester. But, you know, you I have. my friends. I went to school and. you know they graduated early. ninety's. chase the.com era. Yeah and you know they. chased a lot of money you know those. some of the more and you know. insurance whatever but they were. switching jobs every 4 or 5 years. there was no continuity and they.

made a man a little bit more money. I had a four year head start on. a lot of these people and I. bought houses and everything else. But, you. know, there were always switching. jobs. And I remember. an old timer saying to me, Stay. with the union, stay the course. It's not a. Marathon. It's not a sprint. It's a marathon. And today, like those same friends, you know, they take a snapshot of. their lives, look at the big houses, two SUVs, but they don't. have pensions. They're paying 75% towards.

a medical. Yeah, it looks great. Snapshot looks great. Serious debt. Right. And it's it's never going to. change for us. You know, like you said, it's old. school. Old school values. You learn that around the dinner. table. Don't extend all your means. in order to stay true blue. It's going to pay off at some point. in time. And I think to your point, you know, there's not there's not much of that. left anymore. We've got to kind of. switch gears and do a do a revisit. Not I mean, I'm 55. I remember that I'm never part of. that world, but I remember it really.

well, especially in New England. Absolutely. I mean. Really, Bulger was running politics. in this. You know him? Yeah. Yeah, I knew Billy Wilder. Yeah. So where it where my my. father and my mother from. Charlestown, it's a white, you know, Irish Catholic. community. Then over the bridge was. the north end. Yeah, because then you had South. Boston, which was, you know, white Irish Catholic. On the colony projects. And yeah, all colony projects. My mother grew up in the Bunker Hill. project. Yeah. So, yeah, we were familiar with that.

whole, the whole Bulger. tale because some of it's not true. But yeah, I mean, they were pretty. powerful people. Billy My father's from Boston and. when they in was a totally. legitimate or semi legitimate person. great man. But when they caught Whitey. Bulger I think in Santa Monica, an. apartment, my father who was like 78. by this point, called me on the. phone and said, fuck. They caught him saying, Pop, you're really rooting for Whitey. Bulger. Yeah. I was. like, okay.

Well, they caught him, but the. government knew where he was the. whole time. I'm sure that's true. There's no doubt. Doug No doubt about it. It was funny, though. It was like they didn't the. government didn't want him to be. found. I believe that it's 110%. Talk to my dad about this itself. But I mean, growing up there, it's. funny, you know, when you when you. grow up in that area, you know, you talk to people around. the country, you know, they'll. always say something. You know, obviously Whitey Bulger. or whatever was. not a good guy. Yeah. Yeah. Was not a good guy.

No one should ever idolize that guy. But, you know, the government, you. know, he's born, paid for and. you know that. here he hurt a lot of families. You know, he did. But it was more complicated than. just, you know, criminal versus. G-man. I mean, the FBI was. Involved and they were on the. Dark side. They were knee deep in it, literally. knee. Deep. I mean, you went to prison for. it. So it's kind of guess. Absolutely. And, you know, it's just funny. because growing up, you know, in the 80s and 90s, you. know, you had a you had a. front row seat, you know, to.

what was going on. Steve The Rifleman Flemmi. Yeah, yeah. Those guys, all narco. guys, you know, not good guys. And plus they told on their own, hey, it's one thing if you know. that's right. If you want to be a if. you want to be a criminal, like, hey, that's that's your thing. I wanted to go to work. All right? I want to I want to. provide for my family, so wants to. be a criminal. Give it 110%, but don't When you get caught, don't. tell on don't tell on your friends. Don't tell on your friends. And don't blame everybody else. Everything I've ever done wrong in. my life, it's because of me. Yeah, me too. I haven't blamed anybody.

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the values we learned. growing up in the industries that we. worked in, I think it's more. valuable today to have. that thought process of, you know, old school ways. with modern, modern, modern, modern society. because, you know, everybody falls. in love with anything that's. convenient, that doesn't take a. lot of effort, if that makes sense, of course, where, you know, we grew. up where you had to you got. to, you know, provide a lot. of effort to make changes.

and to actually be successful. And I think that's important. People have to understand the value. of working hard, the value of. maybe having some, you know, struggles in your life. because it's going to make you the. person you are further down the road. and they're going to actually appreciate. your things more. So no, I don't think that's a. hindrance at all. I think it's a strength, to be. honest with you. What did you do at O'Shaughnessy and. Ahern? O'Shaughnessy in Ahern? I was a rigger. I was a Stewart. What does that mean? So Rigger. As you know, dealing with cranes.

hoist and moving heavy equipment, hauling heavy equipment around and. tractor trailers every day was. different. So I always tell people, you know, what is a rigger? I'm like, Well, it's like putting, you know, 5 pounds of shit in a 2. pound bag and making it look good. And that's where we got to stuff it. It's like once, you know, for a. Sunday, we could be hoisting air. conditioners by helicopter. onto a building in Boston, and. then the next day we're moving. a piece of art with. a crane over the Museum of Fine. Arts. And the next day I might be.

hauling an oversize crane somewhere. So every day was different. You had to use your mind, you had to. use your common sense. And it was an apprenticeship program. I went through and I'm still. on the seniority list today, still. long. We hold our seniority, so. I haven't been there in 26 years. But before I retirement o'clock. in for a week just to get my six. weeks of vacation. So you like a true Teamster? Was did your father lived to see. you get into Teamsters leaders? My father my father lived to see. me take over. Local 25.

I was the youngest president to. ever take it over. I was 33 years. old and. he died in 2012. And I was running for. Eastern region vice president. and I won the election in. 2000, 11th November. I was the highest vote getter, and. he passed away suddenly. in January. And it was it was a funny. story. On how he passed away. So he was a man.

of few words. He threw compliments around like. sore caps. Right. But he's a very proud man. He was very proud of his sons and. everything else. And so he. died. And, you know, typical. We go through his pockets. We stashed all his cash, like, fooling around. And my mother went in a suit. jacket of his. And he had a. he had a ticket to go see. me get sworn in at the convention. Never told anybody was coming or. anything. So it was it was pretty. good, you know. But he was a character. He was he was.

you know, he was a type of guy, you know, grown up. You know, my mother raised three of. us, three boys. And we're all very. close in age. She raised her three younger. brothers in the projects in. Charlestown. And then she gets blessed with him. as a husband and three of us. It wasn't easy, but, you know, he was the type of guy. you could go to him and say, Hey, dad, I screwed up. He wouldn't scream and yell, Here. are all right, let's figure this. out. Like he was always. there that way where, you know, at times he would flip as led. But, you know, he.

was he was just a he was a man's. man. Like he always he always was. taught us about loyalty, always taught us about, you know, integrity. And my mother was, you know, obviously the biggest influence in. our life. So it was a great. upbringing, you know, tough at. times. I mean, a lot of tough. love, not a lot of hugs. But at the end of the day, you know, none of us ended up in jail. None of us ended up on drugs. And we've been pretty successful. and lived a good life. So they did something right. I mean, the Boston that you grew up.

in, which I remember vividly, was, you know, so well, was really it was. an Irish city. I mean, no one would. say it, but it's just a fact. It was like it was run by the Irish. and had been since like the 1850s. when they came in and took it over. from the Yankees because they were. better organizers and more intense. And politics was dominated. by a culture and a low key was. working class. Boston was Irish, right? But certainly politics of the whole. state was dominated by the Irish, right? Billy Bulger was part of. that. That's kind of gone now. Yeah. I mean, you look at, you know, take a snapshot of.

Boston politics. Ten years, ten years. ago and go back even further like 30. years and see where we are. right now. It's a completely different. landscape. Completely, completely. different. Grappling could never get elected. now. No. Ray Flynn, Tom. Menino. Marty Walsh probably. couldn't get away. You know, So, yeah, it's totally, totally different. You know, the priorities seem to. have changed. And I think what. changed in Boston, which. is part of the problem.

that you see, is that no. one from Boston. That grew up in Boston or in the. Boston area like Medford where I'm. from? Yeah. Everett Somerville. No one in Cambridge, no one. that grew up there can afford to. live there. I know. So what you have is you have all. these transients and these people. from the suburbs and out of state. that grew up in rural areas their. whole life. Now they want to be city. people. They move in here and, you know, they're paying the high. rents, they're paying the high. costs, and they're basically.

controlling the narrative. And that narrative is not consistent. with the Boston that I knew and. that I grew up with. Boston was a blue collar. city that was very proud, very patriotic, very. And now it's completely, you know, gone the other way. And there was a great deal of. attention to, like, the people who. live there. I mean, that's one thing. I noticed about Boston. It was obviously corrupt to. some extent. There are a lot of. drunk people in the state house.

On the other hand, like they. seemed to the quality of life. issues, it was safe, it was clean. You know, it worked pretty well, real services there. And that it seems to have inverted. like there are almost no working. class people in Boston that I can. see, you know. If you can on the Seaport, South. Boston. I mean, you go down the. seaport and look development's great. for an area, but it's going. to be developed with the intent that. people that are from there don't get. forced out who exactly want to live. there. The gentrification that Boston.

has seen over the last ten years. is crazy. If you went to South. Boston 25 years. ago where I used to report to work. every every day in South Boston, and you took a snapshot of the. waterfront, there was nothing. down there. Matter of fact, 1995. or 96, I was working. rank and file. We were building a. crane because. they were getting ready to build a. hotel, right. And right in the. seaport, which wasn't the seaport. It was that we know it as. And I remember saying, Well, why. they put in a hotel here? Who is actually going to come here.

To South. Boston, right? Yeah. I mean, we're back in our. cars, our vehicles to go to work, and we'd have to look to make sure. someone wasn't sleeping in the. parking lot that, you know, that's. how you know how it's. changed. But who would think. that South Boston right now? I mean, they got $4,500 a month. for a studio apartment. And it's not people our age. rent to them. It's 25, 26 year. olds that mommy and daddy are paying. for money for society. So it's changed dramatically. I mean, it's it's still a beautiful,

clean city. The politics are crazy. there. They're far left on a lot of. issues. And, you know, I think people. are more concerned with social. issues than they are the economic. issues right now. That's kind of nicely put. That's exactly what I'm trying to. describe. It got the city got a lot. richer and nicer. in some ways, but crappier in. other ways. Yeah, the social issues are. important, right? I get it. And everybody should be able to have. their own opinions on whatever. those issues are. I mean, I think you and I probably.

have the same opinions on a lot of. the social issues, but from. what we do every day. as representing working people and. people in general is. we want to make certain that people. have the economic resources to. buy a modest home, to. afford tuition so their kids. can go to school and. to plan for a very modest and. and and retirement. that's not compromised by that. And unfortunately,

the Boston politics or the. Massachusetts politics have. have taken a road down. this, you know, social justice. warrior path where, you know, when I saw concern with, you. know, the people on Main Street, we. want to make sure that we're. fighting these social justice. issues that do not put food. on the table, do not keep gas prices. normal, do not at all. compromise people when they go into. the grocery store. So a lot's changed, I. think, as a result of this election. And look, this election was a.

perfect example of it. You know, think about the Democrats. And again, I'm a Democrat. Think about the whole narrative. through this election. It was all social issues. Our members who I know intimately. and some of them don't agree with. me, some of them don't agree with. our policies. And that's the beauty of living in. America, right? You can have disagreements. You can have, you. know, difference of opinions. But by talking to our members, we. knew the concerns were the. prices at the gas pumps.

Yeah, prices at the grocery stores. and the ability to. afford a home and maintain. and keep that home. Exactly. And then you get into, you know. you know, there are the issues are. important. I get it. The social issues. But I've got to live. I got to put food on my table. And it was never so. proven in this past election. that the social issues are. important. They don't matter. What matters is, you know, people. and especially the working class, being able to make ends meet.

Well, exactly. It felt like the. whole constituency. was unhappy college. Girls and making them feel valued. I'm not against unhappy college. girls. I feel sorry for them. But you can't have an entire. political party catering to them. alone. Like what about, like, normal. people with jobs and stuff? They were just ignored. Look, you got to represent. everybody. Yeah, exactly. No matter what. And, you know, the Democratic Party, and I've been very critical of them. And I'm going to continue to be very. critical of them because I think. it's important that they listen for. once. They haven't listened in 20.

years. Because they think they own you. They think they own everybody. You know, instead of when I have a. conversation with you and I don't. agree with you. Yeah. My goal is to not. get you to agree with me. But I want you to see that because. I have a difference of opinion that. it's not going to destroy a. relationship. And there's going to be many issues. that you and I may be able to. embrace together and maybe make some. change. Right. This party, once you. go against them, they. get so vindictive.

The party, the Democrats. now are acting the way that they. used to accuse the Republicans 20. and 30 years ago. And they basically become. that Republican Party that they. despised. Intolerant. Fell in love with corporate. corporate elitists. Well, I know, right? Don't want to listen to their. constituents. They want to dictate how people. should vote and how people should. think. And that's a problem. And I'm watching all this media and. I'm done with mainstream media. I am done with it, especially. after the way it affected,

you know, us during this election. You know, you get you watch CNN, you. watch you watch. MSNBC. That narrative was so scripted. And forget whether you're a. political person or not. If you are Joe. Q Public or Jane Q. Public. Watching that. coverage during the election, it was rigged. It was scripted. And, you know, part of part. of being an American is you. have you should have the ability.

to listen to. opinions and form your own and make. your own decisions. That mainstream media has. proven one thing. They are not. relevant whatsoever. I know. And, you know, that's part. of part of the problem. I mean, we've got to do a reset. Democratic Party especially. Yeah. I mean, I think. Labor is not the only group. that is. I mean, it's not even about. politics. It's just if you're taken. for granted by your spouse or your. political party or your employer.

being taken for granted is bad, You're going to get treated like an. object after a while. And you know what I mean, 100%. And I think that there are other. groups of voters. who have reached this. And I'll get I'll give you a perfect. example. This is hilarious. And, you know, I think you you know. me by now. I call balls and strikes and. I'm going to say what's on my mind. regardless. So you're trying to the Democrats. are trying to call us to endorse. Joe Biden in January. Right. And Joe Biden has been a good. president for us. Labor has done everything we wanted.

No, absolutely not. Again, you get into we fix your. pension. Great. Thank you. Your first order of business, you. shut down oil drilling, you shut down pipelines. I got 7000 members who lost their. jobs immediately. Keystone. Right. So, you know, I started. pointing out some of that stuff to. them, which I was quiet about in the. beginning. But, you know, you're out there. jockeying for our support. and they want us to endorse Biden. in January, all of. Labor Day. And I'm like, no, we're. not. We're not doing that. We've got to talk to our members. We're going to make sure or our.

members are not. So we go through this whole. winter again, pressure. from, you know, people in the. Democratic Party and we stay the. course. No, we're not. We want to interview the candidates, which we've never done before. And we asked every single candidate. in January or December. to come in and meet with us. The first person to respond was. Donald Trump. I'll be in there, definitely, without a doubt. And all these other candidates, RFK, right away, are Asa Hutchinson. or Cornel West, All of them. They came right in.

Same format, same questioning like. we talked about earlier. And the struggle was getting Biden. here. He didn't like the fact that Trump. committed early or the Democrats. didn't like that he committed early. So long story short, we go through this whole process. and we have Biden in there. And, you know, you could just. clearly tell he was, you know, not the man he was. And it was kind of it was kind of. sad, you know, because it's sad. because you look at it and and. I think, Jan, generally, you know,

a nice old man. Yes. Older gentleman. Right. And what they were doing to them, the Democratic Party would kind of. like look like elderly abuse to me. Yes. And, you know, we knew we weren't going to go with. him. And then after the first. debate. We saw in your meeting with him, it. was obvious. Yeah, it was. So we give 16. questions two weeks in advance, the. same 16 questions to each. candidate. So, you know, RFK answered all 16 questions. and probably most of them didn't. answer them how we would like them. to answer, but they answered them.

Joe Biden came in and he he. answered. He answered five of them. Donald Trump answered all 16. And then when Biden drops out of. the race but prior to Biden dropping. out of the race, he's in the race. around June or May. One of my vice presidents, a woman. named Joan Corey, out of my local. she sits on our general executive. board, was at an event. with. Vice President Harris. And, you know, they've gone through.

the line to get the picture. And Joan introduces herself to. vice president. Harris says, I'm. John Corey. I'm on the general executive board. for the Teamsters. She goes, Teamsters, you better. get on board. You better get on board. Better get on board soon. So I said to my vice president. Face. To her face. So she comes back, we. have the meeting the next day, and. she tells me they. Thought I was arrogant. That's really arrogant. So she tells me this. So I call up Marty Walsh, who wasn't. the secretary of labor, but, you.

know, he was pushing, pushing. hard for us to make the endorsement. I'm like, let me ask you a question, Marty. Excuse my French. Who does this fucking lady think. she is? Like, if I want to support. from any organization, I am. not going to point my finger. and someone's face and say, You better get on board or else. But that's the that's. the attitude of this whole. party. So fast forward, she finally agrees to come.

after we were putting pressure on. her, you know, basically because I. was doing interviews all over the. place and we haven't got invited. to the DNC. You know, we they haven't accepted. our invitation for her to come to a. roundtable. So she comes to the. roundtable. Same format, same questions. Rank and file members are asking our. questions just like they asked every. other candidate and. they were trying to negotiate with. us. She only wants to answer three. questions. Well, like the 16. questions here. So she answers.

three of them. And on the fourth question, one of her operatives or one of her. staff substantial in front. of me. This will be the last. question. And it was 20 minutes earlier than. the time that it was going to end. Come on, 100%. And so, you know, you're there. trying to get our support. And her declaration on the way out. was, I'm going to win. with you or without you. She thought that or said it out. loud. She said it out loud. That's insane. So that's crazy behavior.

Actually, if you think about it. It was insane behavior, which. at that point in time, I knew she. was going to lose me. That's just my unqualified opinion. I've got a gut instinct and I'm. like, Wow. You turned out to be. Someone this arrogant. Forget anything else. But you put your finger in someone's. face at an Emily's List event. Once you find out that with the. Teamsters and you say, you better. get on board or else. That's that's a problem. And then you come before us. You don't answer the question. You want to dictate what you're. going to answer.

And then you leave 20, 20 minutes. before it's all over. And the one difference. between all the candidates. that came was that at. the conclusion of all these. roundtables, we had media. set up. So after conclusion. of meeting with Trump, I. did a press conference down in the. lobby of my building. Well. Donald Trump did did a press. conference down in the lobby of my. building after he spoke. The same offer was extended to. both President Biden and.

Vice President Harris, and they. refused. So you're meeting with the biggest. labor organization that you want. and you can you've got an. opportunity for media to question. you about how you felt, the media, how you felt the meeting. went, and what you wanted to. achieve. And you don't want to speak. to the media. That's a problem. But Trump, to his credit and I. building an hour for you. had a press conference. So you're describing the way. like a rich person would talk to the. housekeeper, like, how dare you?

Question, Right. You work for me, right? They don't realize that. And I've said this numerous times. when I'm talking to a member. Whoever that member may be, regardless of race, religion, color, creed. I know that they give me the. opportunity to represent them and. they employ me. Yeah, right. And I've said this many times, the. Democrats can understand who they. work for. They work for the constituency that. they represent in their community. Exactly. And that's why they've lost.

sight of who their employer. is. They think that the constituency. should serve them. Exactly. And it's it's it's disgraceful. And you know what we've been saying. for a year now, everybody's. embrace and saying, well, the. Democratic Party needs a reset. Well, where were you nine months. ago? Where were you two years ago. if you were really, you know, passionate about putting up a. candidate that could actually. represent Democrats like they did. or represent. the party. Why weren't you developing a plan.

two and a half years ago? Because you thought you just had in. the bag. You thought people were. going to do what you tell them to. do. Well, clearly that didn't work. So what's the future? And they don't have an answer. It may be that that. period of history is just over. And maybe your state tells the. story. Everyone. I look at the. results from Massachusetts and it's. like the bluest state in the. nation's most liberal state. I have family there on both sides, my wife and me. I don't know a single liberal in.

Massachusetts. Not one. I don't know a single Irish person. who's liberal, maybe one. There's not one Italian in the. entire state who's liberal. None. They were all Democrats. If you're still using Verizon, AT&T. and T-Mobile, obviously our. condolences, but you're going to. want to hear this. Our cell phone company, Pure Talk, gives us the exact same service. you're currently getting from those. big companies, but for half the. cost. Not a joke. There's no reason to spend 85 or. $100 per month per person. on your wireless bill. Now you can get unlimited talk, text. and 15 gigs of data with mobile.

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I mean, back me up. You live in Massachusetts. What was that? You met a liberal. Italian guy. Well, you never. They're going to. They exist now. They're going to exist, I think. I mean, well, I mean, maybe not. exist that way, but to your point, everybody was Democrat. Yeah, right. Everybody was Democrat. Now, you talk to people and look, sometimes people will talk to you or. they'll tell you what, hey, I seen. you on the RNC. Great job. And, you know, like they've been. talking shit online because you're C. or whatever. But I think the majority of the. people are fed up.

Totally, totally fed up. But I'm just saying that whole world. of organizing, at least in your. union, like just the people in. it, you know, they were all. Democrats, but they were never. they were all kind of traditional. socially families, like they care. about pensions. They believe in this. generation. They believe in generations. Exactly right. They believe in continuity. Right. As you said at the beginning, it's not even political. It's a it's a mindset. It's a worldview. And that whole group is. like so out of step with the. Democratic Party. I'm not really. sure how that's ever fixed.

But and then, you know, you make a. great point. So through this whole. year, let's say, right, the. Republicans and we've we've worked. with a lot of great Republicans in. the Senate. Josh Hawley, he's been. great with us. Yeah, J.D., J.D. Vance has been great with us. You know, Roger Marshall has been. great. And, you know, I'll give you. Josh Hawley, for instance. Josh Hawley was you know, we. met with him. We had a conversation. Denham had a. conversation early on, and. we were talking like, look, one of. our biggest issues, national right. to work. And we explain on why the.

right to work is not good for this. country, why it's not good for his. constituency. And soon after that meeting, he come out with a statement on X. and I met with the Teamsters Union. You know, I'm supportive of working. people. And, you know, they've. basically educated. We've talked about right to work and. I don't support national right to. work. And then we have we have a strike. with a company in. his state, Graybar. He went out and walked the picket. line and that strike was settled. the next day.

And I'm not saying because he walked. a picket line, but he demonstrated. that that's what he's willing to do. because his constituency works. there. Those are the people that he. represents. Vote for him. That's right. And, you know, he's. been great on our issues. You know, and I think the. Republicans have a great opportunity. right now to. show working people that. what they were saying during the. election is going to hold true. And I think Trump proved, ah, early on when he. actually listened to us and. when we lobbied for.

Lori Chavez Dreamer. to be the labor secretary. Now, you know, I don't think it was. a popular decision from a lot of his. donors that supported. him. But, you know, I went. out and I had a frank conversation. with the president. I'm like, look, this is important to us. You know, if you were to truly want. to show that you're going to, you know, embrace working people and. work hard on their behalf, this. is an early indicator that you're. willing to do this. And he did it.

So, you know, people that are saying. Trump's anti-labor is anti-worker, I mean, look, he he started off on a. great, great footing. I mean, he named the secretary. Of state who voted for him. I mean, look at who voted for him. You go to rural America, you know, where there are no people. who aren't, quote, workers. I mean, you know, most children go. to college. They work. They have back problems by the age. of 40 because they work with their. bodies. They all vote. Trump is not I mean. I have I've got back problems. from the last eight months of the. knife wounds from that to the far.

left in the Democratic Party. I've got back problems from sitting. in an anchor chair my whole life. That's a very tough job, Sean. Sit up straight. But you know it. Here's one. Okay, So obviously, the Republican. Party is in the middle of this total. change. It saw itself as the party of big. business. It's clearly not. Its voters aren't and. it's donors aren't increasingly. But I think there are a lot of. Republicans, especially in the. Senate, like Mitch McConnell,

who just have not. Well, Mitch McConnell is really bad. person, but so he's a specific case. But there are like decent people who. just haven't sort of made the mental. change that they're not the party. that they thought they were. Well, I think part of the problem is. we haven't had the conversations. with those folks, though we agree. because there's been such a line. drawn in the sand where. if you are on one side or the other, especially in our own labor, if you're if you're a Democrat, you shouldn't be talking to the. Republicans. Mike. That's bullshit. I agree. How are we going to get.

stuff done in this country? Forget anything else. It's like, you know, if you're looking to truly. collaborate and actually. make things happen, you've. got to talk to people that normally. wouldn't. You've got to express. your ideals, your opinions, and there's got to be common ground. I mean, I deal with probably the. worst employers in the world. I deal with corporate greed, white. collar crime syndicates like Costco, United Airlines, and there's a list. of them. And, you know, I could go on and on for days.

And, you know, a lot of. the times you get problem solved by. having discussions and finding. out, you know, where you can work. together. I mean, who would think. that, you know, McWane and I. almost fought twice in the middle of. the Senate floor. Pretty scrappy dude for. boss. A man I don't sweat asked about. anybody and but. him and I have had a conversation. We've actually had many. conversations. And, you know, we agree to disagree. on what we can't agree on. But at the end of the day, there's. going to be a lot of things that we. can work together on on behalf of.

his constituency, my members, you know, because I don't agree with. you on one issue. Should I draw a line in the sand and. not talk to you again? I mean, there'll be 100% divorce. rate in this country. It's always a key, right? No, it's true. No, but here's the mind shift that. I think would be I would. like to see. So labor's an ancient institution. in the United States. and, you know, pivotal one in the. economic and political history of. the country. But I do think people. are caught in this.

sort of 1930s thinking where it's, you know, workers versus some. manufacturing company and the power. shift has been so complete. And I don't know if we've it's it's. like even Amazon. is not as powerful as the financial. institutions. And I personally think. just as an observer, I'm not labor. or management. we're. Going to convert you with some. point, though. Yeah. Well, I've been a member of a union. most of my life, but it's. particularly should a union. sag. But anyway, here's the point.

It's some point. I would like to see somebody with. power ask questions of the banks, because if you want to know what. hurts working people, its debt and. its credit card debt specifically. 22% and nobody says. a word about it. And I think the fastest way to. improve the lives of. middle class, working class people. is to address that in some. way or at least have to begin the. conversation like it's bad to hook. people on 22%. interest.

Yeah, it's bad to hook people. who depend upon keeping their. electricity and the utilities. on when they have to pay with a. credit card at 2%. Because again, the corporate greed, a lot of these CEOs at these banks, there's such a you know, there's. such a disparity between. the people that are their. customers and what the banks are. making. that should be there should be a. a platform to regulate. these banks and make certain that. everybody is playing, you know,

have a level playing field like. these credit card companies. Like you made a point earlier off. the record, you said there should be. a union for credit card. people that have credit cards, right? Yeah. And that. what we do as a labor organization, we're not being treated fairly. like Amazon or anybody else When. our members are not being treated. fairly, what do we do? We withhold our labor. Well, imagine if we, to your. point earlier, withheld our. payments as a country. Yes. To these credit card. companies and these banks that.

obviously support these credit. cards. What's that? A pretty strong fucking message. Well, I I've raised this before. and been treated as like the. Unabomber. Like, that's too crazy. I'm not radical or I'm totally. moderate person in the sense that in. the end. I'll carry that flag I like as well. So I. Like it. I think, look, I'm. not I think you probably want banks. in your country. I don't think banks. are the root of all evil. But I do think banks. hurt a lot of people and they seem. immune from criticism. You can attack anybody.

No one ever attacks the banks. Well, think about it. The. Not in 100 years. Why is. That? Well, we talk about what is so. powerful, right? We talk about, you know, the. old school values of growing up in a. neighborhood and growing up, you. know, with. with with simple things. Just remember the neighborhood banks. that we dealt with early. on. They actually cared about the. people. There, knew them. And lived in. And they knew them in. your neighborhood. They know no one, no TD Bank, no one knows Bank of America. There's no personal connection. there. No, it's all about bottom.

line, how much money they're going. to make. Yeah. And, you know, that's what's missing. as well. Maybe selling your debt to somebody. you don't never even know. How many times have you got a. mortgage and you know the bank. you go through, sell it to someone. else, they're making money. So if. We had a financial crisis over this, Yeah. I think it was 2008, 2009. Yes, I think I think there's a movie. about that. Right. But it's But credit cards. especially. And the payday loan people have. taken a lot of deserved, well-deserved abuse. I mean, clearly that's predatory. But I just I remember when. I was a kid, my father's reporter. covered the mafia.

And they I remember very well. hearing from him that they put. people in prison for loan sharking, you know, all the time, put the. mafia in prison for. loan sharking. I don't think they were loaning at. 22%. They probably had better rates than. the credit cards. Definitely. And by the way, they paid out on the. lotto in full, unlike. the state governments, which pay you. like a percentage of it. They're more crooked than the mafia. and no one says a word. It's disgusting. It is disgusting. It's actually criminal. Yes, I. Liked Josh Hawley.

Had a nice. Senate hearing where, you know, he he brought them to task. He brought the credit card companies. to task. And, you know, it. seems like you get punished for. being, you know, the misfortunes. you may endure in life. So the credit cards to the other. thing I don't like about them is, you know, if you if you got a good. credit rating and your you know, you've been fortunate enough to have. a good job, you get a lesser rate. Right? If I have bad credit. and I've got a lot of debt, I'm. getting that higher rate. So they're preying on the weak,

of course. And that's that's that's. got to stop. That's got to stop. At the very least, we should say. it's wrong. And by the way, it's prohibited by. every religion. I mean, people have thought this was. wrong for thousands of years. Right. We're in this weird hiatus. where I mean, Judaism, Christianity and Islam all have. a lot to say about usury, and. they're very explicit about it, but. we've sort of forgotten that. or something. I don't really get it. Yeah, it's funny when when problems. don't affect certain people, they. don't want to hear about them on and. want to do anything about them.

Yeah. I don't think it's radical to. raise it at all. No, I don't think so. I mean, I. basically, you know, I don't think. it's radical at all. I mean, it's a disgrace when people. have to pay their bills on their. credit card and, you know, they're. never going to catch up. Never. Never. And by the way, if I can just. make this not a partizan point, but. it's just true. Joe Biden did that. He made bankruptcy not. I mean, credit card debt, not. dischargeable in bankruptcy. He did that in the in the bankruptcy. bill because he's from Delaware. and they paid for his house. Pretty corrupt.

So let me ask you about I. This is going to have a. transformative effect, everybody. says on labor. What effect will I have. On is going to have an effect on. everything. I mean, it needs. to be regulated. It needs to not be a weapon. against working people. Technology's, you know, coming. fast and furious, especially in many. of the industries that we represent. But again, these are conversations. that need to be had before. A.I. is implemented and or.

dispersed into the workplace. There's a lot of jobs that can be. created as a result of technology. as a result of implementation. of A.I.. And again, it's, you know, people. drawing a line in the sand not want. to have these conversations. The general public or the general. perception of the world is. they want convenience, They want. less labor. But it's not good for the country. It's not good for working people. And automation is going to be just. as.

debilitating to working people. than just like A.I.. And what we've done is. we've negotiated contracts where. automation has to be negotiated. and the industries we work, if. they're going to make a. technological change or they're. going to automate something, they've. got to maintain the job levels and. create jobs moving forward. as a result of this technology. You take grocery warehouses where. they have robots pick orders. while we've been able to negotiate. contracts where we create.

jobs, we maintain the robots, we. program the robots. You know, we fix the robots, we build the robots. And some of these cases. So there's always opportunity. United Parcel Service, 340,000. members. Technology plays a big. role in the forwarding of packages. and envelopes. And, you know, obviously. it's efficient, but there are jobs. created as a result of it. And that's what the beauty about. being in a union is. But I think people underestimate. how how technology.

is going to destroy this country if. we don't regulate it, if we don't. get in front of it and we don't. create jobs as a result of it. I mean, we're dumbing down this. society so much. It's it's you know, you're college. students not doing research papers. They use an AI. How is that good? How is that good for your mind? Right. You got people out. there like you mentioned, your union. SAG screen actors or screenwriters, you know, they're going to be out of. jobs if I comes in. So, I mean, we've got to take a hard. look at where I will be valuable.

to this country and where we'll be. detrimental. And I don't think we've. taken a good look at it. I don't think we've taken a look at. it at all. And, you know, the state of. California is betting everything. in its budget. Like, I'll tell you, that guy. A ridiculous person. But why shouldn't. If there's like electricity. or any emergent technology or. electricity shows up 100 years ago, it's fair to ask. You know, clearly it provides light. and, you know, powers, machines. But is there a downside? I don't know for any technology, nuclear technology and. AI is as transformative as any.

technology. So why is there no conversation. about harnessing it for good rather. than evil? Well, think. About how we started Teamsters. Horse and buggy. Yeah. Then they came up with. engines. Then they came on trucks. That was technology evolving. But we always protected the jobs, right? We always made sure that. those jobs were protected. And that was technology back. then. Right. Gavin Newsom in California. is should be the poster child for. bad behavior when it comes to. protecting against A.I. and technology.

He's the same guy that. working people through. the recall election. Saved him. Right. But he's the same guy that when you. work a bipartisan bill. to protect against technology, AI and also mandate. autonomous vehicles to have a human. operator, which is bipartisan. Gets on his desk first order of. business as he vetoes it. Yeah. If he does it, you know why? Because he's looking for his next. best opportunity. What? The captors.

he fell in love with. Technology, tech companies, Google, you know, Uber, whatever else. Lyft, all those. companies he's bought and paid for. He doesn't care about how that. affects people's job. He doesn't care about how it affects. the community. He's looking for his next payday. And that's a disgrace. I couldn't agree more. Do you think that in this. administration, the eye czar. is a guy called David Sachs? Have you talked to him?

No, I haven't. But the one. encouraging thing that I've. seen last. week, you know, the longshoreman. Yes. So they had a strike, two day strike, and it was. over wages. Two issues, wages. and automation, which is I. And they used the ports. in China to demonstrate. how efficient it is by using. robots and artificial intelligence. The one good thing was that. President Trump met with.

the longshoremen because they've got. a cooling off period till January. 15th, and then they'll go back into. negotiations to negotiate that. The. AI and the automation, which I think. they're going to be successful on, you know, maintaining their jobs. But President Trump came out and. said, I've been studying automation. I've been studying A.I. for a long time. I don't believe. anybody should be losing their jobs. over that. So that's encouraging. So I think to your point, I haven't. had a conversation with that man. I'd love to.

just to express how important it is. to have conversations. with people that actually perform. jobs that could be replaced by. technology or A.I., because. that may give a different. perspective where we can collaborate. and actually create more jobs as. a result of it. Yeah. Do you want a stable, happy. country? That's that's the question. that has to remain in mind always. I think everybody does. I'm not sure that's true. I think there are people who believe. as a matter of religion. Everybody in my world. Me, too. And that's what I want. But there are people who believe, as.

a matter of faith, that you can't. stop technology. It's evolution, that it's like it's. like, God, you worship is a God and, you know, you obey its commands. They think that, Yeah. And look, people are entitled their. opinion, but those are the people. that, you know, probably less. affected by it. Well, yeah, when you get people, people don't engage in any type of. fight or protest unless. unfortunately, it affects them. personally. I know that my members and I know. that working class people around.

the country, that they're scared. They're scared. They're frightened. Yeah. Technology. So they're willing to fight for it. And these people that aren't. affected by it can have all the. options. While it's common, there's. nothing we can do about it. Well, your son and daughter may. be affected by this or your neighbor. or a relative. You should get engaged and protect. the integrity of this country. Not just go along to get along, because that's where we're going. wrong in this country. You know, the attitude is, they can. just do it or why? Why can they do it?

Why can't we stop it? Why can't we modify it? Why can't we collaborate to create. more jobs? Why do we have to dummy down. everything we do in this in this. country? So I think there's an opportunity. there, but we have to have these. conversations. Maybe the biggest lie about abortion. is that it's just not the big deal. That's not true. And studies show it a year. after having an abortion. Women overall had a 50%. higher chance of needing psychiatric. treatment and an 87%. higher likelihood of personality. and behavioral disorders.

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baby or visit preborn.com/tucker. We are proud to get behind this all. tax year tax all gifts are tax. deductible and preborn has a four. star charity rating because they do. not waste money. They're totally sincere. What happened to Jimmy Hoffa? I don't know, man. Honestly, I don't know. Again, that's you know, it's a. tragedy what happened. Look, there's no love lost between. his son, my predecessor. and me. Don't like the man.

Never cracked an egg. He was born on third base. Thinks he hit a triple. To get there was bad for our. organization. However, his father was a great. Teamster, a great American, and a sad part of society right now. is that man was murdered. Yeah, he was murdered. In 1975 or so different. A family lost their father. Regardless how I feel about. the family lost their father. And unfortunately, it's like. anything else in society. It's a joke, right? It's a joke. Where is your. What happened? Blah, blah, blah,

blah, blah. Look, the guy was an icon. He created this union. I brought it to where it is. But, you know, that's what's wrong. with society. What do you. Think killed him? I don't know. I met a guy once. He told me that there's. All kinds of there's all kinds of. theories as all kinds. Of. But you think he was murdered? Yeah. I don't think he ran away. Nor put in witness protection. Yeah, that would have been public. They want him in public. Yeah. You know, 50 years later. Yeah. But there's no. When you took over, you didn't hit. the archives to find the truth. The archive doesn't really say much.

about it other than, you know, it's. a mystery. Right? And it went to lunch. And there's all kinds of theories, and there's a lot of times I want to. go to lunch and I'll come back, but. that's for other reasons. But, you know, that's what's wrong. with what the media today. You know, I mean, I don't know. I think it's like he was an icon. He should be viewed as that. And it is what it is. It's an unfortunate unsolved. mystery. What are you trying to do with. Amazon? I'm going to put them on their. knees. I don't like Jeff Bezos. I don't either. He also owns the most personal he.

owns, not the company. He personally. owns the most liberal newspaper in. the United States, most left wing. for the People newspaper. So I'm a little surprised to learn. that he's not welcoming you guys. Yeah, no, he lost his balls during. the election. I can tell that. Well, that's for sure. He's pulling in, Justin. I think for a guy that, you know, he. did a little growth hormone, went back in the gym, did some. testosterone. You know, he's he's he's he's the. man. But look, this. guy does not treat his. work as fairly as 150%. turnover ratio.

in his company with direct. employees. He hides behind a. joint employer scam. where you explain that? I'm not sure. I guess so. Joint employer as. he hires third party to. move his freight right to deliver. the packages. So you get a company like U.P.S.. UPS has all direct employees. Drivers, low disorders, part. timers, whatever it is, they're all. direct employees. There are two employees. Jeff. Bezos, inside workers,

Amazon inside workers, which are. going to be our members shortly. Direct and direct employees. Right. They make far less. than our members the UPS. But the delivery drivers are working. for a third party, a. third party that has to follow the. policies and procedures of Amazon. has to buy the vehicles from Amazon. We actually got a decision in. California that. stated they actually are the. employer of. these third party leasing.

arrangements. So we have made a demand. nationally to. And we've got 22 locations that. have organized under this model. a demand for bargaining. And he's refused to do it. And so we've given an ultimatum. that if he didn't respond by. December 15th, that we would take. appropriate action. Now, when that happens, that's. up to him. So, yeah, we're going to get him. We're going to got him. How? He's not just a threat to the postal. industry. He's a threat to every working,

working job in this country. I mean, they've got grocery. warehouses. And look, he should embrace. sit down and negotiate. Think about what he does every day. If you don't. concede to his demands for. him to carry our product. And so what does he do? He blackballed you, right? He basically strikes good. companies from distributing the. products if they don't agree to his. low terms and cost. Well, he should be. savvy enough to say that. Well, I have an obligation to.

negotiate with the Teamsters because. I negotiate every single day with. these people. And when I don't get. what I want, I strike them. right, basically. He strikes them, doesn't allow them. in his system. And he's trying to do the same over. here by not allowing us in his. system. So what's going to happen to. him? At some point he's going to get. struck. And, you. know, sometimes his $2. trillion value of. Amazon or him or whoever, but he doesn't really want to reward. the people that have made him truly. a success. Well, they offload their personnel. costs onto the taxpayer through.

social services. Wal-Mart does the same. They absolutely do. So what percentage of their. employ I mean, that's I think. should be illegal. It is illegal. And unfortunately, this is a system. under this is where under. this new administration with Trump, we have an opportunity to expose. Amazon for what they are. and how bad the vendor. And again, you get back to, you. know, we have all these politicians. with rhetoric, right, about Amazon. or Amazon, especially the Democrats, but you couldn't get what. Kind of rhetoric anti Amazon. anti Amazon like well, we want to be.

out there for the Amazon workers and. we want to we want to help them. organize. And all this rhetoric, you know, Chuck Schumer's of the. world wouldn't sign on to a letter. and then later find out his daughter. works for Amazon as a lobbyist, actually actually a lobbyist for. Amazon. So that's a. Schumer's daughter is a lobbyist for. Amazon. Yes, it is. Yes. Yes. It's absolutely. Well, it's the system is so corrupt. Yeah. I can't stand. It's crazy. So this is what you're. dealing with. So, yeah, we. are. We're going to we're going to. organize them.

We're going to make Jeff Bezos. respect his workers. We're going to make Jeff Bezos an. example of bad behavior from an. employer. How hard is that to organize? It's going to be tough. I mean, it's. not going to happen overnight. We've put together a program. that's going to be a 4 to 5 year. program. But every single. day we are building momentum. We're building worker power. And, you know, he has to understand. that he's not dealing with. an organization that's going to go. away. We might not have the money we that. he has, but we definitely have one. thing. We've got the workers on our.

side and we got intestinal fortitude. and courage and conviction to take. on the fight. So do you have any idea what. percentage of Amazon workers. use federal social. services to supplement their. I would say the majority. A majority of my I don't have that. statistic. But, you know, you know, the part timers I know that I've. talked to, especially in the New. York, New York area, they're all. in subsidized housing. Some of them are in shelters. You know, some of them are on the. state health plans. You know, and people don't realize. when they hit that send button,

they're actually paying double for. the services because they're. actually paying for for. for, you know, social. social services. Yeah. For the safety where. Where an organization like mine. would demand like we do with U.P.S., like we do a DHL, like we do with. every other employer, that they only. pay a respectful wage, but they also give them free health. care. They give them a retirement. They give them a career path through. to a to a retirement. You know, and people that hit that. send button don't realize that not. only are they paying for the.

delivery of the product, they're. also paying for, you know, Jeff. Bezos, white collar crime syndicate. of tax evasion and evading his. obligation. Well, I agree completely. I think one of the reasons I'm. sympathetic to the Teamsters. is because they have competent. employees. I do think that's part of. the deal. You know, you demand benefits and. higher wages. You know, you've got to do a good. job. And I think U.P.S. drivers do a good job. They're the cream of the crop. Think about during the pandemic. And this is where the Teamsters and. I've spent two and a half years.

highlighting how valuable we are. to this country. And I mean it with all sincerity. Pandemic was part of the worst thing. that anybody's got. We've witnessed in a long time, Right. Where there was so much. uncertainty. But the one thing that. was certain, whether you were, you. know, delivering packages or sorting. and loading packages on a truck, whether you're in a grocery. warehouse, whether you were working. for a health care company. Our members went out every single. day providing goods and services. to this country. Yeah. Total disregard for their.

safety, the safety of their. families. Some of our members lost. their lives, and we. were deemed as heroes. because we provided these goods and. services and. we were heroes. Everybody was. talking about us. Everybody saying, the American worker, the Teamsters, they're heroes. Well, when these companies are. making record profits during the. pandemic and it comes time. to reward our members, their. employees, all of a sudden we're. zeros. So women reminding. corporate America how important.

the Teamsters union are, but more. important, the American worker, especially through a crisis. Because, you know, like you said. earlier, you know, you. talk about Irish and Italians. You know, I think corporate America. has what they call Irish. Alzheimer's. You know, they forget the people. that providing the most, but they. never forget when they get fucked by. on a dollar. Right. So, you know, I think, you know, the. Teamsters and yeah, we do have the. best workforce in the country, well-trained. We're safety conscious. But, you know, we fight hard for our.

members. Are the I don't want to be vulgar or. anything like that but is it true. what they say about U.P.S. drivers being like the most desired. men in the world. Men and women? Right. Because they have pensions. They got big pensions? No, but I mean, like. You know what I mean? Is that true? I don't know. I mean, you hear. stories. I mean, everybody likes. stories. Everybody likes a person in. uniform. I never worked for UPS. Yeah, I couldn't tell you, so. I. Couldn't resist asking that. I mean, I've got a face for radio, so I don't know. You know.

I sure appreciate your. You're doing this. I appreciate it deeply. Well, listen, I got to venture that. I'm going into I want to I want to. be like you and other people. I created a podcast. and I want to be launching early. 2025. You'll like it. It's going to be. called A Better Bad Idea. by Sean O'Brien. I think it's good we're going to. have real conversations. with real people about real. issues that affect America. Are you really going do that 100%? You should invite me on. I'll come. I definitely well done.

Can't wait. Thank you. Thank you, sir.