In a rare occurrence, the head of one of America’s largest and oldest labor unions spoke about corporate greed at a Republican National Convention.
“The Teamsters are here to say we are not beholden to anyone or any party,” Sean O’Brien, president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, told convention delegates Monday night.
O’Brien said he was invited to speak at the convention by former President Donald Trump, who watched the entire speech, along with others, while seated in the convention hall.
“I don’t care about getting criticized. It’s an honor to be the first Teamster in our 121-year history to address the Republican National Convention,” O’Brien said.
The Teamsters have not yet endorsed a presidential candidate, though the union endorsed President Joe Biden in 2020. O’Brien has praised Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, among a few other Republican lawmakers, for what he characterized as pro-union policies.
Trump announced earlier Monday that Vance would be his running mate.
He said he wanted to build a bipartisan coalition to support American workers. He also said he sought to speak to both the Republican and Democratic conventions.
He did note that in the past the Teamsters endorsed Presidents Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, and George H.W. Bush, all Republicans.
O’Brien said his decision to speak at the GOP gathering caused “political unrest.”
“Anti-union groups demanded the president rescind his invitation,” he said. “The Left called me a traitor. This is precisely why it’s so important for me to be here today. Think about this. I must be doing something correct if the extremes in both parties think I shouldn’t be on this stage.”
O’Brien praised Vance, as well as Sens. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., and Reps. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa., and Nicole Malliotakis, R-N.Y., for what he characterized as listening to unions and standing up to corporations.
“The Teamsters and the GOP may not agree on a lot of issue, but a growing group has shown the courage to sit down and consider points of view that aren’t funded by big money think tanks,” O’Brien said.
The union leader said corporations have their own union in the form of groups such as the Chamber of Commerce and the Business Roundtable.
O’Brien said “elites have no party and no nation,” but are only loyal to their balance sheets
He called for what he characterized as more pro-worker trade policies as well as policies that prevent companies from leaving the United States to improve their bottom line.
The Teamsters president also decried what he called “economic terrorism” by companies that prevent employees from unionizing.
He called for “corporate welfare reform,” noting the amount of government subsidies massive corporations such as Amazon, Uber, and Lyft are getting.
“These companies offer no real health insurance, no retirement benefits, no paid leave, [and are] relying on underfunded public assistance,” O’Brien said. “And who foots the bill? The individual taxpayer. The biggest recipients of welfare in this country are corporations, and this is real corruption. We must put workers first.”