AFL-CIO leaders condemn actions by Trump supporters on the US Capitol

AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka speaks in an interview with Reuters on December 19, 2019 in Washington about his role in safeguarding occupational safety in the USMCA trade agreement.

Joshua Roberts | Reuters

AFL-CIO union leader Richard Trumka publicly condemned President Donald Trump’s supporters for storming the US Capitol, calling it “one of the biggest attacks on our democracy since the civil war”.

Trumka, who has worked with the Trump administration for the past four years, largely accused the president of instigating the actions.

“Today’s attempted coup took years, as @RealDonaldTrump repeatedly spits out poison, conspiracies, hatred and lies to his supporters,” he tweeted on Wednesday afternoon. “You are granting his wishes, and far too many Republican lawmakers have made this violent threat to our republic possible and even encouraged.”

Trumka, whose federal union represents 12.5 million Americans, said the protesters’ actions “violate the constitutional rights of every law-abiding American and the labor movement.”

Trumka has been named a member of the White House’s Great American Economic Revival Industry Groups, which were formed last year as part of the president’s efforts to reopen parts of the U.S. economy during the coronavirus pandemic. He also worked with the administration to replace the North American Free Trade Agreement now known as the US-Mexico-Canada Accord.