15 January 2019 — 1425 mst
Regarding the Keystone Pipeline, MT AFL-CIO leader says:
“…I don’t want to piss off the native caucus this early in the session.”
Yesterday, the Montana AFL-CIO’s political director, Adam Haight, blasted the email below to a number of labor leaders.
The AFL-CIO wants to build the Keystone Pipeline because it would provide jobs for union members. That’s not really news, as many labor organizations, especially in the construction trades, seldom encounter a jobs producing project they believe is too destructive to the environment to support.
Here, Haight opposes Sen. Frank Smith’s bill to tighten environmental safeguards on the Keystone because that could delay construction, possibly for years. But Haight doesn’t want to actively oppose the bill, which he thinks will fail in committee, because he doesn’t want to “piss off the native caucus,” whose votes he’s counting on for other bills.
Why Haight’s message was put in writing, let along so crudely, escapes me. It won’t escape the native caucus.
Here’s the full letter:
From: Adam Haight adam@mtaflcio.org
Date: January 14, 2019 at 11:05:36 AM MST
To: undisclosed-recipients:;
Subject: Keystone Pipeline Bill
Hello Labor Leaders,
I wanted to put a bill on your radar. The sponsor is Sen. Frank Smith (D) who represents the Fort Peck Reservation.
Here’s is a link to SB 97 https://leg.mt.gov/bills/2019/billpdf/SB0097.pdf
The bill would require the new Keystone Pipeline to avoid sensitive water areas, include additional shutoff and leak detection requirements, and evaluate heritage properties within an EIS.
If passed, this bill could hold up the construction of the pipeline for a number of years. However, this bill has zero chance of passing.
I am inclined to sit this out in committee because I don’t want to piss off the native caucus this early in the session. We will need their votes to pass and kill bills in the coming months. I am also confident that the bill won’t make it out of committee.
I want to make sure folks are comfortable with me taking this approach. I’m also fine if individual unions want to oppose the bill.
Please let me know if you have any thoughts.
Thanks,
Adam Haight
Adam Haight
Political Director, Montana AFL-CIO
Cell: 661-345-1056