FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
NOVEMBER 20, 2020
[TRIANGLE, VA.] United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) International President Cecil E. Roberts issued the following statement today:
“I have watched with growing concern the actions of the Trump campaign and the President himself in their effort to overthrow the will of the American people and claim some sort of victory in the face of the overwhelming vote of the American people for President-elect Biden.
“While there is nothing wrong with a candidate asking for a recount where it is appropriate and asking for legal review of the results, that has now happened in state after state and there has been little to show for it. The President’s campaign has lost in court after court.
“But now something sinister is occurring. The President and his campaign have largely given up the legal battle and are putting pressure on state elections officials and legislators to deny the verdict of the voters and overturn their democratic rights. This is a threat to our entire form of government and the American way of life.
“I, along with hundreds of thousands of other veterans, did not go off to fight our country’s wars so that the very foundation of what actually does make America great – government of, by and for the people – could be subverted. That is the path the President’s campaign is on now. It cannot stand.
“The cockamamie notion that there was some plot launched in a failed state in South America that somehow affected the count of millions of voters is just absurd. Whether you like the outcome or not, the American people have spoken, and their will must now be placed ahead of everything else.
“The UMWA did not support either candidate for President in this election. Our members voted for the candidate of their choice – some voted for President Trump, and some voted for President-elect Biden. They, like an unprecedented number of American voters, had their say. And they recognize that it is time to move on and get with the business of ending the coronavirus pandemic, bringing our economy back to life and helping those who have lost everything to get back on their feet.
“The UMWA is prepared to do what we always do: Fight for safe, healthy and family-sustaining jobs for our members, protect our retirees’ health care and pensions, and organize new members so that they can enjoy the benefits of a union contract on the job. We will work with the Biden administration where we can and we will oppose it where we must. That is the long tradition of this great union no matter who is in the White House, and we will carry it onward.”
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