00:00If you ask me, it's time for us to demand that Washington cut the bullshit and stop selling out our
00:06workers.
00:08It really is my honor to join all of you today.
00:11I want to start by conveying just how grateful I am for the work that all of you do at
00:17RWDSU.
00:19You are helping grow your membership, of course. You're keeping members informed.
00:24You're doing everything possible to elect leaders across this country who are going to put the needs of working people
00:32first.
00:33That's how we build a great country.
00:34The work that you do is and always will be essential.
00:39You keep our entire supply chain connected. You do.
00:44In warehouses, in food processing plants, in retail stores, in so many other places.
00:50You're the reason why families have food on their tables, why they have furniture in their homes, clothes in their
00:56closets.
00:57Without you, our economy would screech to a halt.
01:01And that's why, as governor, I have always made sure that workers have a seat at the table in my
01:07administration, and you always will.
01:11Nearly, yeah.
01:15So, nearly eight years ago, I ran against an anti-union, right-to-work Republican governor of Illinois.
01:23And I beat him. I beat him by almost 16 points.
01:31And I did it with your help.
01:33And when I took office, I made a plan for Illinois' future with workers leading the way.
01:38And we've gotten big things done.
01:41When we nearly doubled the minimum wage in our state and established universal guaranteed paid leave for workers, unions were
01:50there.
01:51When we banned right-to-work in my state, unions were there.
01:55When we required at least one day of rest per week and mandatory meal breaks for long shifts, unions were
02:04there.
02:04When I defended workplace safety standards from corporate greed that has infected the Trump administration, unions were there.
02:15Now, unions were there also, right there alongside me, fighting, when we did something that no other state has done.
02:31But, we amended our state constitution to outlaw right-to-work and guarantee your right to organize a union and
02:39bargain for a better wage and a safer workplace.
02:47And let me be clear about what I believe.
02:50When workers organize and have a seat at the table, all workers benefit.
02:54All families benefit.
02:56Our economy benefits.
02:58Over these last seven and a half years I've been in office, that's been the story of Illinois.
03:04And working together, we're going to make sure that that's America's story.
03:08But here we are in 2026 with a federal government allowing corporate greed to reign supreme.
03:17With corruption in Washington running rampant and at a time of massive technological change and uncertainty for our workers.
03:27It's on all of us, together, to stand up and fight back.
03:31And that's why I'm working alongside union leaders and union members in Illinois to make sure that Jeff Bezos and
03:39Elon Musk don't get to single-handedly design our economic future.
03:49And with Washington failing our workers right now, we need to work together on a national level to take back
03:56our country for working families.
03:58The Trump administration has sent costs skyrocketing while empowering wealthy corporations to treat your members like garbage.
04:07And where has the Congress been?
04:10Where has the Congress been?
04:12Asleep at the wheel as usual.
04:14They're letting the White House trample your rights by day and then they're rubbing elbows at cocktail parties with oligarchs
04:20by night.
04:22So if you ask me, it's time for us to demand that Washington cut the bullshit.
04:27And stop selling out our workers.
04:34It's time for them to start standing up for workers' rights.
04:37We should demand that they pass a workers' rights amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
04:47And we need to stop them from taking corporate money from corporations that are trying to destroy unions, endanger workers,
04:55and reduce wages.
04:57We're at a moment right now when it feels like the social contract between workers and their employers, between the
05:05people and our government, is up for renegotiation.
05:10Megacorporations like Amazon are doing everything that they can to make sure that working people don't have a say.
05:17That the wealth that's created by technological advancements makes it only into their pockets and their pockets alone.
05:25They want workers in this country divided, fighting for scraps.
05:31But it doesn't have to be like that because a nation cannot get ahead when we leave workers behind.
05:38Our nation's history, our history, shows us that it is possible when workers stand together, when we elect leaders to
05:48stand with our workers, that's when our country gets ahead.
05:52Unions created the middle class in this country.
05:56You made workplaces safe.
05:59You made the American dream real for so many.
06:02Workers have always been the reason, always been the reason, that so many of us grew up as Democrats.
06:10We're supposed to be the party that stands up for working people.
06:13We need to do that once again.
06:20You are our conscience.
06:23You are our direction.
06:25You are our reason for being.
06:27We can restore the American dream.
06:29We really can when we elect a new Congress full of pro-labor Democrats this fall.
06:40But, folks, it's going to be a real battle.
06:42They're not going to hand it over to us.
06:44We've got to win it ourselves.
06:45So I've got to ask you, are you ready for the fight?
06:48Yes!
06:49Are you ready for the fight?
06:51Yes!
06:51Let's go get them, RWDSU.
06:53Thank you all very much.
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