A GOOD START. The always worthwhile Jon Cohn has a terrific article on the burgeoning Democratic consensus around card check that stumbles on one point. "Bloggers on the left," he writes, "take notice: Last week, the dreaded Democratic Leadership Council (DLC) got something right. And the only major political writer who seems to have noticed was the equally dreaded David Broder." That something was endorsing card check. As it currently stands, the path to creating a union runs through an NLRB election process so difficult and skewed that employers can essentially decide the outcome. Add in that the fines for firing organizing workers are laughably low, and organizing has become nearly impossible -- it's too dangerous for the workers involved. The alternative is card check, where if a majority of workers sign a card expressing their desire for a union, they have one. It's already the law in Canada, and progressives are seeking to import it here. This week, the DLC endorsed it. Good for them. That said, this example of the DLC getting it right is the exception that proves the rule. Card check isn't some edgy policy preference; it should be the bare minimum required for entry into polite, progressive company. I'm glad to see the DLC supporting it, but the fact that their endorsement of such a fundamental and fair policy change makes news is proof that they still have a long way to go.
--Ezra Klein
