" And in 1906 it determined, first, to defeat
all candidates who are either hostile or indifferent to labor's
demands; second, if neither party names such candidates, then to
make independent labor nominations; third, in every instance to
support "the men who have shown themselves to be friendly to
labor."
With great astuteness, perseverance, and alertness, the
Federation has pursued this method to its uttermost
possibilities. In Washington it has met with singular success,
reaching a high-water mark in the first Wilson Administration,
with the passage of the Clayton bill and the eight-hour railroad
bill. After this action, a great New York daily lamented that
"Congress is a subordinate branch of the American Federation of
Labor...The unsleeping watchmen of organized labor know how
intrepid most Congressmen are when threatened with the 'labor
vote.' The American laborites don't have to send men to Congress
as their British brethren do to the House of Commons. From the
galleries they watch the proceedings. They are mighty in
committee rooms. They reason with the recalcitrant. They fight
opponents in their Congress districts. There are no abler or more
potent politicians than the labor leaders out of Congress. Why
should rulers like Mr. Gompers and Mr. Furuseth* go to Congress?
They are a Super-Congress."
* Andrew Furuseth, the president of the Seamen's Union and
reputed author of the Seaman's Act of 1915.
Many Congressmen have felt the retaliatory power of the
Federation.
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