Clinton, Penn and Labor, Round II

Hillary continues to be dogged by her advisor's ties to anti-worker campaigns. Ari Berman has an update to the story I blogged about earlier this week. The heads of the AFL-CIO and SEIU have joined their counterparts from the Teamsters and UNITE-HERE in discussing Mark Penn's PR firm's campaign to blog union organizing drives directly with Hillary's campaign.

In response, Penn told Marc Ambinder that he will "he will cede all oversight responsibilities for his company's labor relations clients to other managers." But...

A few weeks back Penn told The Nation that he had "never personally participated in any antiunion activity." He said today, via email, that he is "sending a clear message that I have no role in this and as a matter of conscience will not."

Penn's statements raise the question: how does one recuse themselves from work they claim not to be doing?

Good question. Even recusing himself does not go far enough.

Yet some labor officials hoped Penn would go much further, taking steps toward terminating B-M's "labor relations" division or at least ending the contract with Cintas. Neither will occur, nor is Penn taking a formal leave of absence from the company. He's also not distancing himself from the money the "labor relations" wing brings in and the other controversial clients B-M represents in the defense, pharmaceutical and energy industries and the Republican lobbyists he oversees.

Penn's "recusal" must thus be seen as a classic case of PR spin; a phony gesture that fails to address the underlying problems or the reasons prominent labor leaders are upset with Clinton's campaign.

Mark Penn continues to benefit directly from union busting campaigns. He is still one of Hillary's closest advisors. Penn has never repudiated the behavior of his firm, nor taken steps to halt their anti-labor activities. This story is not going away any time soon.