Jo Ann Emerson is back in the news today as one of nine members of the U.S. House of Representatives sponsoring H.R. 3936, a $165 billion union pension bailout bill. But why?
It could be that the seven-term Republican elected in the 8th Congressional District of Southeast Missouri simply loves bailouts. After all, she did vote for the Troubled Assets Relief Program (TARP) and “Cash for Clunkers”. But I don’t think her love for bailouts is the main reason why she is behind the bill.
Instead, I think her sponsorship of the union bailout bill stems from the fact that she is married to Ron Gladney.
In a May 3 post, I pointed out that her second husband is both a Democrat and an labor union attorney for St. Louis-based Bartley Goffstein LLC and that, according to Federal Election Commission records, she has received campaign contributions from a variety of union entities, including the AFL-CIO and the Service Employees International Union (SEIU). And that’s not all!
In a post one week later, I highlighted the fact that her husband represents 12 powerful labor unions, including the International Association of Bridge, Structural, Ornamental and Reinforcing Iron Workers for whom he serves as general counsel.
Furthermore, I mentioned she backed funding for costly projects in her district — including the $170 million Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge and the $62 million Rush H. Limbaugh Federal Building — from which her husband’s union friends likely received great benefit.
So, the answer to the question is simple. Congressman Emerson believes in bringing home the bacon — err, uh, pork — and putting it straight into her own husband’s skillet.
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