Walz Speaks to Firefighters Union

… were held across the country. More town halls are on the way. As we do everything we can to hear the voices of as many of our members as possible, there’s no other way to do it and it’s the right way to do it. Our survey told us loud and clear they’re union, us. We are duty bound to tell them which candidates are supportive of our issues and which candidates are not, which candidates get us, get our mission, get our priorities. Politics is how we identify our friends and it’s also how we spot our enemies. Our Minnesota State Association has endorsed our next speaker every single time he’s run for office and with good reason.

(01:07)
Tim Walz is a native of rural Nebraska, the son of a teacher and a homemaker. He and his wife, parents to two children. Both worked as teachers in Nebraska before moving to Minnesota. Tim worked as a teacher and as a card-carrying member of the AFT and the NEA, represented here today by our Massachusetts president, Jessica Tang. Before being sworn in as the governor of Minnesota, Tim served eight years in the United States Congress. He carved a well-earned reputation as an effective leader and was consistently rated as one of the most bipartisan members of Congress. Isn’t that refreshing? While in Congress, he served as the ranking member on the Veterans Affairs Committee. Elected as governor in 2018 and re-elected in 2022, Tim has a strong record of supporting the MPFF in the greater labor movement. He worked to secure PSOB for Minnesota firefighters who succumbed to occupational cancer.

(02:28)
This fund also provides counseling services for our members struggling from PTSD. Governor Walz is a strong supporter of adequate firefighter staffing and signed a law that removes staffing rights as managerial rights, and now provides us with a voice at the table on our staffing. Just as important, Governor Walz is in constant contact with 5th District Vice President Tom Thornberg, who was appointed to the Public Retirees board and also where’s closely with President Vadnais and the MPFF board. He takes the time to listen. He learns about our issues and works very hard on our behalf. He’ll bring that same mindset back to Washington. Please welcome Minnesota Governor and Democratic candidate for Vice President Tim Walz to our IAFF family. Governor Walz.

Well, good morning. I know you got a lot of important business to get through this week, but I do want to say how grateful I am and what a privilege it is to stand in front of this group. Thank you President Kelly. Thank you for every single day advocating for the 350,000 heroes that you know represent with passion. And to General Secretary Treasurer Lima, thank you. This is an incredible leadership team. I got to use a point of personal privilege and a shout-out to your 5th District VP from Bethel, Minnesota resident Tom Thornberg. Tom, it’s great to always see you. And every delegate in this room representing your 350,000 in your membership, look, you got busy jobs, you’ve got families, you travel here to do the important work of understanding.

(04:56)
I’ll oftentimes have people tell me, “Look, I’m really not that into politics. My response to that is, “Too damn bad politics is into you.” And if you’re not here advocating for that, if you’re not here advocating for the messages, it’s hard to get it done. So, as a card carrying member of my state teacher’s union, I feel very proud of that. I saw the other day I got attacked by the Wall Street Journal for being richer than my disclosure says because I have two defined benefit pension plans.

(05:35)
Seems like that’s a little different than Google stock that was handed to you, but that’s what we did. So, maybe a few more of us should be dues paying members, but I can promise you this. When Vice President Harris and I win this election, we’ll have your back just like you’ve had ours this entire time. And just as I’ve done as governor and just as the vice president has done, I look forward to working hand-in-hand with you to deliver for the locals back home because that’s what really matters. But if you’d bear with me, it’s a privilege to be in front of this group but I have to say it’s also personal. The Minnesotans know this and some of you in this room might know, last year we lost one of our bravest firefighting heroes and I personally lost a dear friend. Chris Parsons was fire chief, fire captain from St. Paul.

(06:25)
He worked closely with us and was president of the Minnesota Professional Firefighters. Chris was 6’7. He stood out in any crowd, but it’s hard to imagine his personality was bigger than that 6’7. He was the most generous and kind and funny individual that I had ever met. One conversation with that guy would make your entire day better. Tragically, we lost Chris in the line of duty. It’s kind of heartbreak that no family and no community should have to endure because every hero deserves to come home at the end of every shift. And know this, we see your noble courage. We’re forever grateful to you for going above and beyond to keep all of us safe, and we’re committed to building a future that you and your families deserve. As Minnesota’s governor, I was proud to bolster resources for firefighter training and education, to invest in the equipment and the facilities to keep you safe and to sign the most comprehensive fighter fighter well-being legislation in the nation.

(07:33)
The resiliency to do this job is incredible. The physical toll it takes on your body, but the emotional toll and the time away from your family, we understand that and putting the resources into it is absolutely critical. That’s why I’m honored to be on a ticket with someone else who has long supported your essential work. As a native Californian, Vice President Harris knows explosive dangerous and unpredictable nature of wildfires in that state. She’s been to the memorials and knows the depth of sacrifice that you and your families go through. In fact, it’s a matter of family for her. The Vice President’s brother-in-law, Andy Emhoff, spent his career as a firefighter in Santa Cruz, California and retired as an IAFF member in good standing. As California Attorney General, and as Frank can attest, Kamala Harris sued the big banks for mismanaging your state’s pension fund. And when she won, she returned hundreds of millions of dollars to firefighters and other public workers and to their families. As vice president, she cast the deciding vote on the American Rescue Plan, which helped keep workers on the job.

(08:46)
And I’ll say this, it kept the public safe during the pandemic and it let local fire departments hire, train and retain more of the firefighters that we needed. Under her leadership, the administration gave much needed raises to more than 11,000 federal firefighters. When we’re in office, we’ll make sure you have all the resources and protections you need to do your jobs and your services respected and that you come home safe every night. We know exactly who built this country. It’s people like the folks in this room: firefighters, police officers, construction trades, teachers and nurses and veterans who contributed their contributions to our nations long after they got out of military service. It was you who built the middle class. And we know that when unions are strong, America’s strong.

(09:51)
Look, this is the time of year that talk is cheap, but that’s why Vice President Harris is proudly part of the most pro-labor administration in history, unafraid to walk picket lines with workers demanding better pay and conditions and that’s why she rescued pensions of more than 1 million of our union sisters and brothers, workers and retirees and insisted that prevailing wage jobs spring from federal investments.

(10:19)
Your construction brothers and sisters know that one. It’s that same spirit that animated my fight for labor in Minnesota. As governor, I signed one of the biggest packages of pro-worker policies in history into law, making it easier for workers to form unions, strengthening worker protections, and banning captive audience meetings. Today, Minnesota is one of the best states for workers in the nation. And guess what? It’s one of the best states for business. You don’t have to choose between protecting workers and protecting business. They go hand in hand. That’s Vice President’s and my vision for the entire country.

(11:06)
Donald Trump and J.D. Vance, they have something a little different in mind. The only thing these guys know about working people is how to take advantage of them, how to not pay them. Every single chance they’ve gotten, they’ve waged a war on workers and the ability to collectively bargain. When it comes to so-called right to work laws that deprive unions of funds they need, Donald Trump has said he supports right to work a hundred percent. Everybody in this room knows right to work means right to work for less, right to work more dangerously, right to work for no pensions. It doesn’t mean the ability to collectively bargain to fight with the dignity that work brings to each and every one of us.

(11:50)
Look, I’ll keep saying it. Words are cheap. Actions is all you should care about. Make sure you’re counting on what was delivered. When Donald Trump was president, he blocked overtime benefits for millions of workers. He opposed efforts to raise the minimum wage and he even proposed slashing budgets for federal fire service programs. Those are just simply facts. But look, it’s not just what they’ve done, it’s what they’re going to do. This is the big thing. One of the goals of their project 2025 is to screw the middle class, making it harder for workers to collectively bargain, allowing employers to drastically cut overtime or eliminate it, slash taxes for the ultra wealthy by imposing a national sales tax on the rest of us. Look, I’ve said this, I’m an old time football coach. If you draw up a playbook, you plan on using it. Project 2025 is a plan to reshape what America looks like moving away from the middle class and putting it right back on the oligarchs and the wealthy at the top.

(12:46)
He said he’s going to repeal the Affordable Care Act. That thing is pre-existing conditions. Those are things that make sure that my family gets healthcare. And for many of our families, and I know you don’t get to participate in it, but your families do. My mom does. Social Security and Medicare are life-saving programs for them. Instead of funding those programs, they talk about cutting them. So here, this is what I always say, if you got a billion dollars, you don’t give a damn if your Social Security check shows up. But if you’re like my mom, that’s how you pay for your food. That’s how you pay for your heat. That’s how things get done. So that check, pretty damn important to protect it.

(13:30)
Again, use their own words. This is the guy who told his friends down at Mar-a-Lago, and this is a direct quote, “Look, all of you are rich as hell. We’re going to give you a tax cut.” While telling workers that wages are too high. That says it all. And again, if you’re confused on where you’re going to go, think about what impacts you, your life and your family the most. So let me tell you exactly what Vice President Harris and I will do when we get elected. As president, then President Harris will sign the PRO Act and make it easier for unions to organize. We’ll protect SAFER Grant Program.

(14:08)
It’s good to see you say this. If you have to spend any time thinking if you want to support the PRO Act, that pretty much tells you where you’re at because that’s a pretty easy one. Same thing with the SAFER Grant Program. We know it’s essential to helping serve and protect communities, especially as we are starting to see intensive heat waves. We’ll keep fighting to protect your retirement benefits, lowering taxes for working families, and finally making corporations just pay their fair share. They’re doing fine. They’re doing fine. They can pay their fair share. And again, things like Social Security, things like the GI Bill, programs that make a difference, paid family and medical leave, affordable childcare so you can go do your job. That just makes sure that families aren’t just surviving and getting by, but they’re thriving and getting ahead.

(14:57)
I talked about that idea of defined benefit pension plans. They complained that I had two defined benefit pension plans. In 1960 or in 1980, 60% of people had defined benefit pension plans. The middle class was strong. Today, 4% have it and they’re trying to take those away from us. You change the middle class by investing in the middle class. We’re proud of the plan that we put forward. Again, Donald Trump trying to hide from that Project 2025 plan. They’re going to use it. They’re going to use it. It’s written out. They know what’s there. And look, they’re not going to wait a few years to do it, they’re going to get an opportunity to do it. So, we know what it is. Donald Trump doesn’t want to tell you what’s in there. You can look for yourself. You can see what they’re trying to do. They go on TV, they deny it, they say that he’s not being treated fairly. These are their words. They put it on paper. They’re telling you what they’re going to do.

(15:49)
She’s ready to hold him accountable on the debate stage. Tell me you’re not looking forward to that. Look, I know you’re busy. You’re going to be watching Monday Night Football or something, but it’s going to be good. It’s going to be good because again, as I said this, this is going to impact you. The things that are set on that debate stage are going to impact your retirement. They’re going to impact your kids’ education. They’re going to impact infrastructure. These are things that matter to us. So, look, some of you in here, and I’m going to say this because I know we’re bipartisan. Some of the gray hairs in here, I know what you’re thinking and I remember it too because it’s my family.

(16:21)
When Republicans used to talk about freedom, they meant it. They meant it. Not anymore. These guys over there, they want government to have the freedom to invade every corner of your life. From our union halls, to our kids’ schools, even our doctor’s office. Vice President and I, we’ve got a little bit different vision of this. We believe that you, not politicians, should be made free to make your own healthcare choices. We believe that workers deserve to collectively bargain for fair wages, safe working conditions, good healthcare and secure retirement. No interference from government.

(17:07)
As a union member, our union halls are the first form of democracy. The opportunity to speak your mind, elect leadership, speak what you want on your platform and then go advocate for it. That’s how democracy is supposed to work. These are folks that want to make it difficult to do that. Little things. We should be able to make sure that government is there to make sure that corporations have to keep our air and water clean. You can make money and still protect water and protect air. We believe that people should be free to get a good education that puts them into the middle class, not crippling debt for a lifetime. And we believe that our kids should be free to go to school without worrying about being shot dead in their halls. Now, I want to say something about this.

(17:57)
I want to say something about this. I know guns. I’m a 24-year veteran. I’m a hunter. I was one of the best shots in Congress and I got the trophies to prove it. I could out-shoot them every year. But I’m not going to stand by and let someone say that this is about the Second Amendment when our first responsibility is protection of our kids. It is not a false choice. We can have and protect the Second Amendment and keep guns out of our schools that are killing our kids and do things right. That stuff’s common sense. Vice President Harris brings that to the White House. That’s a future we can build together. We don’t have to go to every damn family gathering and fight about things that we mostly agree on. We don’t have to find ways to divide us and we can have legitimate policy discussions that differ on issues, but come to common goals. And on issues of labor rights, of middle-class rights, of paying your fair share, of cutting taxes for the middle class, we’re going to need you with us to win that fight.

(19:04)
So I’d ask all of you, I am a former football coach and I give halftime speeches all the time, but I do have to admit this. I know I’m in Red Sox country. Go Twins. So, I’m going to try a baseball analogy, people, so bear with me. Game seven of the World Series, we’re down a couple runs, but we got the rally hats on. We got runners on base and our heavy hitters are on deck. We got the hometown going wild, sisters and brothers in labor. It’s time for you to step up to the plate. We’ve got 69 days to win this thing. 69 days to protect labor rights. 69 days to do things that we know people who have laid their life on the line like Chris Parsons, to protect this as a public service and are simply asking to be treated fairly, that’s what we get to do. On that 70th day we wake up and know that the policies that positively impact you are going to become law. That’s what we have to believe. So I’ll tell you what, our hitters are coming up. It’s you.

(20:06)
This is a vision about the possibility of America. This is the vision about a positive America. This is a vision about what we can do together. And the reason that I feel so good is knowing that the heavy hitters in this room are coming up next because you know how to fight. That’s all you know how to do. That’s all you’ve had to do every step of the way to improve this profession and to bring people into it. So as the next President of the United States always says, “When we fight, we win.” Thank you all.