by Bruce Ludwig

Coverage of the 2008 presidential election starts in this edition of Public Employee Advocate.

If you are wondering why the AFT is starting to prepare for November 2008 so early, the answer is simple: The people we elect to public office enact budgets and set spending levels that determine the resources available for you to do your job-and compensate you for that work. And as the nation's chief executive, the president of the United States sets policy that not only trickles down to every level of government, but also affects the communities we live in.

The AFT considers it a priority to elect a new president who recognizes and values the role of government-and the workforce behind it; a president who understands that a strong middle class makes the nation prosperous; a president who embraces the need for reforms to make healthcare universal, accessible and affordable; a president who wants to reinforce social insurance programs like Social Security, Medicare and workers' compensation; a president who believes that the right to join a union is a fundamental human right; a president who will work to strengthen workers' rights; and a president who finds it unacceptable for employers in both the private and public sectors to walk away from the benefits they promised workers.

All candidates will be invited to meet with the AFT executive council, and asked to fill out questionnaires about their positions on issues that are important to our members.

In order for the union to make an informed decision about whom we endorse, we need to know what issues are important to you. To that end, the AFT has created a "You Decide 2008 " section on its Web site with information on the candidates as well as an online survey. You can access the survey directly at www.aft.org/youdecide/ or you can visit the AFT home page at www.aft.org and click on the "You Decide 2008" link.

Nearly 1,000 members have already registered their responses to the question: "What are the three most important issues to you in this upcoming presidential election and why?" A new question will be posted every month, so be sure to visit the site again over the coming months.

The AFT is a diverse union of publicly employed professionals who are joined by the desire to serve the public and the common good. Member responses to the survey have touched on a number of issues, including healthcare, the war in Iraq, the economy, jobs and poverty, and fiscal responsibility.

A member in New Jersey responded: "As a mother of two adult children who don't have health insurance, and as someone who has seen too many people choose between food and medicine because their budget couldn't stretch far enough for both, I know we need to make universal healthcare a priority."

A member in Indiana wrote: "Fair Trade not free trade. [The United States] is losing jobs to China on a daily basis and this type of business needs to end. Bring good paying jobs back to the U.S.; stop rewarding companies who move out with a huge tax incentive."

A member in New York commented: "We must keep the public sector PUBLIC. ... The trend toward privatizing all that is public is hurting this country more than any other phenomenon and threatens our democracy at its deepest levels."

A retired member in Oregon sums up what is at stake in the 2008 presidential election. She wrote: "It's hard to prioritize the issues. I see many retirees barely scraping by but I also see my granddaughter saddled with huge debt from college loans and my older brother, a victim of a healthcare system that ate up everything during his wife's illness. We must support a candidate [who] sees the importance of taking care of everyone."

What do you think? Let us know.

Bruce Ludwig is business manager of the Alaska Public Employees Association and chair of the AFT Public Employees program and policy council.