TOM BERRY FOR CONGRESS

Action on Wisconsin and Other State Atrocities Against Labor

The Governor of Wisconsin and the Wisconsin Legislature have acted to destroy collective bargaining rights of public service employees, and set aside the results of over 50 years of collective bargaining.

This is an unjustified arbitrary capricious unconstitutional action of government. It defies what was agreed upon by contract and collective bargaining, and it is an attack on collective bargaining itself. It is a total abuse of power and coercive legislative action. It violates the inhibition of the Fifth Amendment against the deprivation of liberty and property without due process of law. It is also a denial of the right of due process and a deprivation of rights without due process under the Fourteenth Amendment, and further exemplified by the Sixteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. As the "concessions of the Magna Charta were wrung from the King on guarantees against the oppression and usurpation of his prerogative", so also the Bill of Rights carried forward, and legislative tyranny is not allowed under Federal or State Constitutions.

In a landmark Supreme Court Decision [WILSON V. NEW, 243 U.S. 332 (1917)], the Court held in deciding the constitutionality of the negotiated establishment of an eight hour standard workday and conditions related thereto that: “It is also equally true that, as the right to fix by agreement between the carrier and its employees a standard of wages to control their relations is primarily private, the establishment and giving effect to such agreed-on standard is not subject to be controlled or prevented by public authority.” (Page 243 U.S. 347).

This decision was used extensively in 1926 before Congress in the hearings leading to the passage of the Railway Labor Act to block amendments that would have otherwise unconstitutionally allowed government interference in collective bargaining and contract agreements reached resulting therefrom.

Moreover, when a government acts as an employer the same principles apply in protection of a private contract. See Missouri Supreme Court Recognizes Public Employees’ Collective Bargaining Rights: [Independence-National Education Association v. Independence School District, 223 S.W.3d 131, (Mo. banc 2007)], holding that “The right to bargain collectively extends to all classifications of public employees, including employee groups that are not covered by the current public sector labor law. R.S.Mo. §105.500, et seq.”, and that: “Agreements between public employers and employee representatives are enforceable contracts and may not unilaterally be repudiated by the public body.”

Noteworthy, while Franklin D. Roosevelt was initially opposed to public employee unions, he gave a Senate address on May 8, 1937 stipulating: “The right to bargain collectively is at the bottom of social justice for the worker, as well as the sensible conduct of business affairs. The denial or observance of this right means the difference between despotism and democracy.”

Governor Walker must wake up and recognize that his actions and those of the Wisconsin legislature are unconstitutional and despotic. He needs to take immediate action to repeal the law he just enacted, and concurrently instruct government employer entities to reach out in good faith negotiation with public employee unions. Governor Walker should also be notified that failing to do so can only result in his ultimate removal from office by arrest, impeachment, conviction, and/or being swept out of office by the Wisconsin voters. This also applies to other states taking unconstitutional actions to ban collective bargaining.

Clearly, immediate actions need to be taken in Federal District Courts to seek Restraining Orders to stop and reverse implementation of unconstitutional laws that allow government to destroy contracts and/or collective bargaining rights, pending judicial or legislative repeal of unconstitutional law.

Tom Berry

Board Member (before dissolution), Dallas Chapter ACLU

Former Labor Representative, United Transportation Union

Democratic Nominee for Congress, Illinois 6th (1994 & 2002), Texas 5th (2010) (Dallas)

Let's Put America Back to Work

The Primary Election is March 6th.
The General Election is November 6th.

We are in the midst of a Great Recession, and the odds are that 20% of working age Americans face a frightening future of being unemployed or underemployed
Our economy is in trouble and every U.S. citizen faces trouble.

Please help me to fight for the middle class and working families of our country. Please consider making the largest possible contribution you can to my campaign today. Your help is absolutely necessary to win this election.

I have no opponent in the primary, therefore we can raise funding during the primary election stage and concentrate on the November General Election.

I am eager to serve you. I need your help and our country needs your help. Our economy is in trouble and that means every citizen faces trouble. We are in the midst of a jobless recovery and the odds are that 20% of working age Americans face a frightening future of being unemployed or underemployed.

I want to change that. I’m running for Congress so that I can put people back to work. It’s my belief that people have the right to earn a living for themselves and their family. I’m committed to work for you to accomplish that goal.

We need to turn this unwholesome situation around.

For this campaign to be a success, it is essential for us to raise funds to get the message out.

With your financial help, we can run an aggressive campaign that will take us to victory in November.

Please donate $2400 (max per election), $1,500, $1,000, $500, $250, $100 or whatever is appropriate for you.

Donate online or send check or money order to:
Citizens for Tom Berry
P.O. Box 180037
Dallas TX 75218-0037

Your support in early 2010 will help us meet and exceed the challenges of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC). You can send an early signal that this campaign has strong backing. This will empower us to build a winning 2010 campaign.

Thank you in advance for your consideration and support. I look forward to working with you to Keep Texas in the Union and Put America Back to Work.
　

Tom Berry
Your Fifth District Congressional Candidate, and Advocate

"We've Got the Best Congress Money Can Buy"
said Tom Berry (Jan18,2010), in response to the press release from Common Cause and Public Campain(Jan15).[see below] Tom supports The Fair Elections Now Act (S. 752, H.R. 1826) to end Congress' reliance on big money. And when elected, Tom has advised he will work with others to indroduce and pass legislation to instruct the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to require the media (which is 80 percent owned by six people) to provide sufficient free air time for all federal candidates to air their views, This will be a mandated public service, recognizing that the airways are free. The intent is to reduce or eliminate the need to raise money for a federal election, This will have our representatives both more answerable and better able to serve the people who elected them.

Rep. Hensarling sides with Wall Street after receiving more than $1 million in campaign cash from the industry.
(read full article)

IN THE NEWS:

Article: Berry to make bid for 5th District Seat
Source: athensreview.com
Democrat Tom Berry of Dallas knows how hard it is to unseat a U.S. House Incumbent, but the retired railroad man is making a bid to take the 5th District Seat from Jeb Hensarling. (full article)

ON EDITORIAL PREJUDGEMENT
On September 28th you wrote: “Tom Berry, 69, has been in Texas barely two years and offers little more than slogans, vague concepts and contradictory policies. For example, the retired railroad employee believes a shorter workweek is the way to find economic growth”. (continued)

News Release March 13 Response to Congressman Hensarling’s Remarks Upon Being Appointed to the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility
Yesterday Congressman Jeb Hensarling announced his appointment by the Republican Leader John Boehner to the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility set up by President Obama by Executive Order on February18th. (continued)

News Release March 10 High Speed Rail, Chicago to Dallas, Dallas to Houston, Dallas to San Antonio
There is no reason why we can't move on High Speed Rail into the Dallas Transportation Hub, Chicago to Dallas, Dallas to San Antonio, Dallas to Houston, connecting all to Love Field and DFW Airport. Frequent service, (even hourly), is viable if high speed trains handle selective high revenue express cargo, where one car load of express cargo will pay for the train and the crew, and the rest is gravy. The ticket can then be priced to fill the train.

We can introduce a combination High Speed Passenger and High Revenue Express Cargo Freight Service to outweigh any lack of density problems, and make Dallas the High Speed Rail Passenger and High Revenue Express Cargo Hub of the South Western United States.

News Release Feb 19
Economic Health Care Commission
Let's face it, our healthcare system is run by large corporations. It's the most expensive in the world, but ranks 37th in quality. Close to 50 million Americans can't afford any care at all. It's a bad system on the whole for citizens, but corporations make enormous profits.
Congress needs to establish an Economic Health Care Commission to protect the public interest from profit gouging by insurance companies, pharmaceuticals, and the for-profit portion of our health care system. These entities need to be regulated to earn a maximum of a reasonable rate of return, which generally should not exceed the cost of capital. This has to be done to protect the public interest. Health Care should not be profit driven! Health Care represents genuine human needs and necessary public service. To continue to allow profit to be squeezed out of people's misery is only to completely hand over our country to the corporations.

News Release Feb 9 Healthcare For All - Get it Done
Today in America, too many Americans are left in the dust outside the walls of corporations. Millions of Americans have been sold out for jobs overseas for the unrestrained greed of corporations. A huge number of hard working U.S. Citizens have lost their jobs, their homes, and their healthcare. Today in America fear reigns in the hearts of our senior citizens, our poor, our unemployed, and our underemployed, because they cannot afford the high cost of decent healthcare. Today in America, we have the best Congress money can buy..(read full article)

Regarding Social Security benefits, Tom Berry said today (2/3/10): "My opponent, Jeb Hensarling, is on record to 're-engineer Social Security', which means he wants to privatize it for future generations. He is selling greed, betting on the come, rolling dice on the wall, scaring the voting public, setting a stage for a feeding frenzy in lockstep with Wall Street, and adding fuel to the next financial collapse. Social Security is not the problem. The problem is what my opponent, Jeb Hensarling, wants to do to tear down Social Security, instead of working to build it up."
See video clip: www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036697/#35188221

A Six-Hour-Day, Thirty-Hour-Workweek,
May Solve Our Economic Problems
(read full article)

“We need stability, sustained growth and good high paying jobs.
We don’t need downsizing. profit taking, and being left in the dust" - Tom Berry

bio - contact