PRESS RELEASE from International Association of Fire Fighters

IAFF Endorses Obama/Biden for Re-Election

June 8, 2012 – This week, the IAFF Executive Board considered the records and positions of the candidates competing for the most powerful elected position in the world and unanimously concluded that the choice of the next president of the United States is clear because of the stark contrasts between the candidates. The IAFF has endorsed President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden.

On one hand, the current, sitting president and vice president have consistently shown their commitment with critical and increasing funding for programs that have kept thousands of fire fighters and paramedics on the job, and provided the equipment they need to protect their communities during some of the toughest economic times our country and jurisdictions across the United States have ever experienced.

On the other hand, Mitt Romney, as governor of Massachusetts, repeatedly attempted to cut local aid to communities, jeopardizing public safety. He also attempted to strip away the collective bargaining rights of fire fighters in the state and has repeatedly stated that he opposes and would zero-out the federal grant programs that provide critical funding to communities to keep fire fighters working and for life-saving equipment and apparatus.

"The simple fact is, over the past two years IAFF members have been literally assaulted – their rights attacked, their standard of living attacked, their retirement after a career serving their community attacked – and those assaults have been launched at every level by people who say the same things, promote the same policies and have similar records in public office as Mitt Romney," says IAFF General President Harold Schaitberger.

In March, the IAFF joined with the Associated Fire Fighters of Illinois (AFFI) to produce and broadcast an ad highlighting Mitt Romney’s opposition to critical public safety programs, which ran during the Illinois primary.

Over the coming weeks, the IAFF will be providing affiliates with information on the positions of the candidates on public safety and issues supporting people who work for a living.