On a recent episode of “Saturday Night Live,” comedian Michael Che mocked Joe Biden for being essentially brain-damaged. It’s rare, but every once in a while these guys are funny. Especially when they’re being accurate.
On Saturday Night Live’s “Weekend Update,” Che justified Biden’s decision to force railway workers to accept a labor agreement that does not include paid sick leave by pointing out that the president works every day despite being brain-damaged.
“President Biden signed a measure that would force railway workers to accept a deal that averts a strike but does not include paid sick leave. How do you expect Biden to care about sick leave when he shows up to work every day with full-blown CTE,” the comedian said.
Railroad workers have been threatening to strike unless certain demands are met, including a demand for more paid sick days.
But instead of continuing to negotiate a deal with the workers, the president decided to supersede the labor unions’ authority and demand that Congress use its power to unilaterally push through a deal itself to avoid a rail shutdown.
“I am calling on Congress to pass legislation immediately to adopt the tentative agreement between railroad workers and operators – without any modifications or delay – to avert a potentially crippling national rail shutdown,” Biden said last Monday.
“As a proud pro-labor President, I am reluctant to override the ratification procedures and the views of those who voted against the agreement. But in this case – where the economic impact of a shutdown would hurt millions of other working people and families – I believe Congress must use its powers to adopt this deal,” he added.
The statement sparked massive backlash because the deal in mind didn’t include enough paid sick days.
Last night, the "most pro-labor president in American history" asked Congress to intervene and impose a deal on American rail workers many have already rejected. The rhetorical gymnastics in the White House's statement really must be seen to be believed. https://t.co/eOhjl7TXL0 pic.twitter.com/C7YkirGu7b
— Luke Savage (@LukewSavage) November 29, 2022
“Joe Biden blew it. He had the opportunity to prove his labor-friendly pedigree to millions of workers by simply asking Congress for legislation to end the threat of a national strike on terms more favorable to workers,” RWU treasurer Hugh Sawyer said in a statement.
“Sadly, he could not bring himself to advocate for a lousy handful of sick days. The Democrats and Republicans are both pawns of big business and the corporations,” he added.
Watch:
CTE is an acronym for chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a degenerative brain disease usually following a history of brain trauma. Patients with CTE commonly experience symptoms such as short-term memory loss, confusion, impaired judgment and even dementia—Sound familiar?
Erica Carlin is an independent journalist, opinion writer and contributor to several news and opinion sources. She is based in Georgia.
