Last month, the political action committee (PAC) of the Teamsters labor union made its first donation to the Republican National Committee’s convention fund in 20 years. They reportedly made the donation the same day they met with GOP frontrunner Donald Trump, which was the second time they sat down to talk to him in January.
Federal records have revealed that the Teamsters gave the RNC a $45,000 donation. The union gave $135,000 to the Democratic National Committee in December 2022 and $15,000 in March 2023, making the move to donate to the RNC a slap in the face to the Democrats–at least in the eyes of a Washington Post reporter, who described it as “a significant departure for a powerful organized labor group that has more recently supported Democrats” and noted that President Joe Biden has made a point of prioritizing labor issues in his administrative agenda.
According to a Teamsters spokesperson, the last time the union participated in a GOP convention was in 2000 for George W. Bush’s acceptance of the nomination. Federal election records indicate that the last time it donated to the RNC was in 2004, contributing just $15,000.
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The International Brotherhood of Teamsters, which boasts 1.3 million members across the US and Canada, represents both blue- and white-collar workers in private and public sectors alike. It has a focus on transportation workers such as UPS deliverers, who recently won a historic contract allowing them to bargain for higher salaries.
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Unlike the other major unions, it has not yet made an endorsement for the 2024 presidential race.
Trump had a meeting at the Teamsters’ headquarters in Washington, DC on January 31st. At the time, Trump said he had a “good shot” at eventually receiving their endorsement. On the other hand, Chief of Teamsters Sean O’Brien said Biden had been “great for unions” that same day, and said there were still “some more questions that need to be asked to both candidates.”
Some Teamsters members are angry at the decision to donate, calling it “disgusting,” “disheartening,” and “playing footsie” according to NBC News. In January, one Teamster board member who refused to attend the meeting called Trump a “known union buster, scab and insurrectionist.”
The $45,000 donation was made to the RNC per the advice of O’Brien as well as Teamsters’ Secretary-Treasurer Fred Zuckerman.
Shane Devine is a writer covering politics, economics, and culture for Valuetainment. Follow Shane on X (Twitter).
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