In Charleston, labor unions are displaying campaign signs for Democratic Party candidates they back in November's election. But signs for Barack Obama are missing from some of those offices, including the Communication Workers of America and the Affiliated Construction Trades Foundation.

Other unions, including the West Virginia AFL-CIO and United Mine Workers of America, each have two small Obama signs outside their buildings.

Union leaders say they are not trying to downplay support for Obama, but are having a difficult time getting yard signs and bumper stickers from the Obama-Biden campaign.

Larry Matheney, secretary-treasurer of the state AFL-CIO, said Thursday, "I can't even get a bumper sticker. I had one little yard sign left over from the primary, which is now on our property right next to the interstate exit ramp.

"Not only do we support Barack Obama," Matheney added, "but we are doing everything to let our members know he is our candidate. Many of our members are going door to door across the state."

Tom Vogel, who heads Obama's West Virginia campaign, said, "Everybody is having a hard time getting signs. My understanding is that the national campaign has only one vendor to print signs.

"That makes it very, very difficult to get signs and bumper stickers. People in Virginia, people in Ohio and people in West Virginia are all having a hard time."

Vogel said things will get better. "On Tuesday, we will have 10,000 bumper stickers. And we are raising money to print Obama- Biden signs on our own.

"It is very difficult to get the national group to put signs out everywhere. I don't think they can produce them fast enough," Vogel said.

Steve White, director of the Affiliated Construction Trades Foundation, said, "You can't get any signs. But we have been working hard on educating our members about the presidential race.

"From a construction worker's point of view, John McCain has a clear track record of voting against our issues, like the Davis- Bacon Act that protects wages for workers on government contracts."

McCain voted against giving union wages for workers - whether they are union or not - in federal disaster areas, White said.

"In 1995, McCain voted to allow federal contractors to hire permanent strike replacement workers. His solution to the health- care crisis is to squeeze more taxes out of people."

White estimates McCain's proposal to tax health-insurance benefits will take up to $1.50 an hour from the wages of West Virginia's union construction workers.

The United Mine Workers also backs Obama.

UMW President Cecil E. Roberts hosted a Charleston press conference Monday condemning efforts by a National Rifle Association film crew to get miners to distort the record of Obama on gun ownership. The film crew approached miners working at CONSOL's Blacksville No. 2 mine near Morgantown.

Roberts said the incident "marks a return of the gutter politics of the past by those of the say-anything, do-anything crowd who believe they can continue to use wedge issues to divide West Virginians."

Phil Smith, a national UMW spokesman, said Thursday, "Obama has been a very strong supporter of coal and clean-coal technology.

"I am concerned about all the attention paid to Joe Biden's off- the-cuff remark about new coal plants. John McCain supported climate- change legislation in 2003 that would have cut coal production in Appalachia by more than half and legislation in 2007 that would have cut it by 30 percent."

McCain's legislation, Smith added, would transfer more coal production to mines in Wyoming.

Matheny said all 13 area labor councils in the state AFL-CIO are working on the election.

"McCain wants to tax health-care benefits, privatize Social Security and ship jobs overseas. We want people to know Barack Obama is a friend of the working person," Matheney said.

White also criticized McCain for backing legislation to make it harder to organize unions and to weaken the Office of Safety and Health Administration and federal safety laws.

Reach Paul J. Nyden at pjnyden@wvgazette.com or 348-5164.

Originally published by Staff writer.

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