AFL-CIO Union Chief Pledges 12 Million Workers to Van Jones Progressive Tea Party

BREAK OUT THE SHORT BUSSES!!!

AFL-CIO Union Chief Pledges 12 Million Workers to Van Jones Progressive Tea Party
Tiffany Gabbay

Well, according to AFL-CIO president Rich Trumka, only the American “labor movement” is all about the “real” American Dream. I guess that means the rest of us haven’t got a clue.

Opening with Van Jones’ “American Dream” mantra, Trumka announced his pledge of 12 million union laborers and their families to support Van Jones’ “Rebuild the Dream” movement.

Trumka then goes on to explain that the real American Dream is not about a few of us having a lot, but about all of us having a “fair portion.”

“The American Dream is not that a few of us will get to be rich, but that all of us will have a fair portion of the good things in life.”

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Trumka’s announcement coincides with the launch of a Van Jones co-sponsored MoveOn.org campaign titled “Rebuild the Dream.” The Blaze recently reported on the campaign and its new catch-phrase already catching on among leftists like Howard Dean. The movement, which accuses the “slash and burn” GOP of “killing the American dream,” has positioned itself as the left’s answer to the Tea Party.

During Rebuild the Dream’s launch event Thursday, Jones exclaimed to a crowd of followers that “America is not broke” — even encouraging the audience to chant the phrase in unison — and claimed those who suggest otherwise, are “lying.” He also accused people — presumably Tea Party members – who “hate on America’s government“ and ”wreck America’s infrastructure” — of being unpatriotic.

Of course Jones also didn’t fail to misrepresent a GOP platform when he suggested conservatives lie to the American public and lead them to believe that “asking the super-rich to pay taxes hurts America’s economy.” This statement is disingenuous of course, as it implies conservatives suggest high-income earners shouldn’t pay taxes at all. In addition, Jones seems to deceive by omission when he fails to specify who his “super-rich” actually are — then appears to lump small business owners, large corporations, and the individually wealthy into the same category.

But perhaps the best, most ironic moment of the evening came when Jones, aiming to sound like Newt Gingrich, announced his “Contract for the American Dream,” which will come to fruition in mid-July. The “contract,” Jones claims, will be an aggregated list of ideas and suggestions he receives from people across the country, on how to “rebuild the American dream.”

With the help of friends like MoveOn, SEIU, Campaign for America’s Future and AFL-CIO, Jones plans to “build a movement that stands for liberty and justice for all.”

The video below features highlights of Van Jones’ Rebuild the Dream launch event:

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So first we had “hope and change” and “yes we can,” and now it’s “rebuild the American dream.” Platitudes and catch-phrases seem to come easily to the left, but what about substance?