Kirk

Over 300 unemployed workers and members of labor and community organizations across Chicago united to protest recent votes of 10th District Congressman Mark Kirk on jobs and unemployment.

Led by the Chicago Jobs with Justice's Unemployed Workers Council, the activists united to demand immediate action to create jobs.  "We need jobs and until we get them of course we need unemployment benefits.  Mark Kirk is voting against both", said Carole Ramsden, an unemployed union electrician and member of the Chicago JwJ Unemployed Workers Council.

On August 10th, Kirk promised to vote to support legislation that would have prevented layoffs of teachers for local school districts facing budget shortfalls due to the ongoing economic crisis.  One day later, in Washington, Kirk reversed himself and voted against the legislation saying that the bill would have added to the deficit, even though the analysis of the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office showed that the legislation would actually reduce the deficit in the long term by a billion dollars.  Congress passed the bill without his support.

"Our kids need teachers, and our economy can't withstand more job losses.  This bill saved 6,000 jobs in Illinois.  Why on earth is Kirk voting against that? Because it adds to the deficit?  Well, then why does he support extending the Bush tax cuts for millionaires and billionaires?" asked John Kugler of the Chicago Teachers Union.