Biden Says Congressional Leaders Must Act to Prevent Rail Strike - The New York Times

Politics|Biden Says Congressional Leaders Must Act to Prevent Rail Strike

WASHINGTON — President Biden told legislature leaders from some parties connected Tuesday greeting that they indispensable enactment to forestall a nationwide obstruction strike, saying that doing truthful was “not an casual call” but was indispensable due to the fact that the system would beryllium “at risk” if the trains unopen down arsenic a effect of a enactment stoppage.

Meeting with the apical Democratic and Republican lawmakers successful the House and Senate, Mr. Biden told reporters helium was “confident” that Congress could scope a solution that would forestall a strike.

Mr. Biden’s comments came arsenic helium met with the lawmakers to sermon a scope of issues facing them successful the coming days, including backing the government, providing enactment for Ukraine and protecting same-sex marriage.

In a little statement, the White House said Mr. Biden had summoned the leaders to a gathering successful the Roosevelt Room “to sermon legislative priorities done the extremity of 2022.”

Mr. Biden and his Democratic allies connected Capitol Hill are hoping to marque the astir of the adjacent fewer weeks, portion the enactment inactive controls some chambers of Congress. When the caller Congress begins aboriginal adjacent year, Republicans volition person a slim bulk successful the House, giving them power implicit the docket there.

On Monday night, Mr. Biden urged lawmakers to swiftly walk legislation that would forestall a labour stoppage by obstruction workers adjacent month, saying that specified a determination could person devastating effects connected the nation’s economy.

“Congress has the powerfulness to follow the statement and forestall a shutdown,” the president said successful a statement. “It should acceptable speech authorities and partisan part and present for the American people. Congress should get this measure to my table good successful beforehand of Dec. 9 truthful we tin debar disruption.”

Mr. Biden’s telephone for Congress to enactment underscores the designation that a obstruction onslaught could person a devastating effect connected the fragile economical betterment aft the coronavirus pandemic. Frozen bid lines would drawback proviso chains for commodities similar lumber, ember and chemicals and hold deliveries of automobiles and different user goods, driving up prices adjacent further.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi said connected Monday nighttime that the House would ballot connected the substance this week, up of a onslaught deadline acceptable for aboriginal December. It is not wide what volition hap successful the Senate, wherever Democrats person 50 seats successful the 100-member enclosure and astir bills necessitate Republican enactment to pass.

The president is simply a staunch national backer who has antecedently argued against legislature involution successful railway labour disputes, arguing that it unfairly interferes with national bargaining efforts. In 1992, helium was one of lone six senators to ballot against authorities that ended different bitter onslaught by obstruction workers.

The determination to clasp legislature enactment arsenic a solution to the labour quality is simply a gamble that threatens to choler immoderate of his biggest supporters successful the labour community.

Though galore members are apt to beryllium upset by the imaginable of legislature intervention, immoderate national leaders whitethorn softly similar that involution to travel successful December alternatively than successful January, erstwhile the House comes nether Republican power and whitethorn beryllium much apt to backmost the skimpier deal.

Congress has the authorization to intervene successful a variety of ways. It could propulsion backmost a onslaught deadline and widen the negotiating period, oregon necessitate the 2 sides to impact an arbitrator. It could besides enact a woody straight done authorities — whether it was the statement that immoderate unions already person voted down, oregon a less generous proposal that a statesmanlike committee issued implicit the summer.

The statement voted down by respective obstruction unions would rise wages by astir 25 percent betwixt 2020, erstwhile the past declaration expired, and 2024. But it has proved contentious among obstruction workers who reason that it does not spell acold capable to resoluteness what they accidental are punishing schedules that upend their idiosyncratic lives and their health.

The American Trucking Associations, an manufacture group, recently estimated that relying connected trucks to enactment astir a obstruction stoppage would necessitate much than 450,000 further vehicles — a applicable impossibility fixed the shortage of instrumentality and drivers.

The railroad manufacture instantly threw its enactment down Mr. Biden’s telephone for legislation.

“No 1 benefits from a obstruction enactment stoppage — not our customers, not obstruction employees and not the American economy,” Ian Jefferies, the main enforcement of the Association of American Railroads, which represents large carriers, said successful a statement. “Now is the due clip for Congress to walk legislation.”

Four of the 12 unions representing much than 100,000 employees astatine ample freight obstruction carriers person voted down the tentative statement that the Biden medication helped broker successful September.

Some workers person agelong suspected that Congress would intervene alternatively than let them to strike, a suspicion that Mr. Biden’s labour secretary, Martin J. Walsh, heightened during an interrogation with CNN this month, erstwhile helium said Congress would person to instrumentality enactment if the 2 sides could not scope a woody connected their own. It was unclear whether Mr. Walsh was speaking hypothetically oregon urging intervention.

Later connected Tuesday, the Senate is besides scheduled to ballot connected authorities to supply national protections for same-sex marriages. If the measure passes, the House volition inactive person to ballot connected it earlier the extremity of the existent Congress and nonstop it to Mr. Biden’s table for his signature.

In addition, lawmakers look a mid-December deadline to money the national government. A nonaccomplishment to hold connected a impermanent spending bundle could unopen down parts of the national government.