| | | | |  | | By Alex Daugherty | | | | | — As talks continue, UAW says more strikes could come while automakers begin to lay off non-striking workers. — DOT Secretary Pete Buttigieg will be grilled by lawmakers this week. — FAA extends slot exemptions in New York due to low air traffic controller staffing levels. IT’S MONDAY: You’re reading Morning Transportation, your Washington policy guide to everything that moves. You can reach Alex, Oriana, Tanya and Hannah at adaugherty@politico.com, opawlyk@politico.com, tsnyder@politico.com and hpinski@politico.com, respectively. Find us all on the platform formerly known as Twitter @alextdaugherty, @TSnyderDC, @oriana0214 and @HannahPinski. “If prayer will bring us union love/I'll pray and pray and pray some more/I'll pray all day from door to door/And fall at night to pray some more”
| | | | A message from Capital Access Alliance: Strengthening access to DCA will benefit Americans across the country, including students who visit every year. The perimeter rule has restricted competition at DCA, resulting in D.C. having the highest ticket prices in the nation and putting trips out of reach for too many young people. Learn more. | | | | | KNOCK-ON EFFECTS: After 12,700 UAW members went on strike starting Friday, Ford was the first Big Three automaker to announce temporary layoffs of 600 workers not on the picket line due to “knock-on effects,” Tanya reports. And this week brings more uncertainty after GM said a Kansas factory is likely to shutter today or tomorrow due to a lack of parts from a striking plant in Missouri. Expect both sides to use workers as points of leverage in the coming days, as talks continue. UAW President Shawn Fain continued to hint at more strikes if talks drag on, though he wouldn’t say which plants specifically could see workers leave their jobs. So far, the three striking plants (one each at Ford, GM and Stellantis) aren’t large enough to essentially grind the auto industry to a halt. But more strikes would bring more uncertainty to the U.S. economy. “We’re going to amp this thing up even more,” Fain said on CBS’ Face the Nation on Sunday, without providing details. For now, many elected Democrats spent the weekend at picket lines or demonstrations across the Midwest, while the White House continues a wait-and-see approach. In public remarks on Friday, President Joe Biden said that while "no one wants a strike,” he supports collective bargaining and understands “the workers’ frustration.” Biden stopped short of backing the walkout and argued that the companies have made significant offers. But Fain has privately expressed frustration with the White House, who dispatched acting Labor Secretary Julie Su and White House economic adviser Gene Sperling to Detroit to support both sides. Holly Otterbein, Adam Cancryn and Adam Wren have more. This week will be key for both sides, as public attention remains high in the strike’s early days. And environmental groups are backing the UAW, Ben Lefebvre reports, saying that unionized factory workers must be included in the transition to a green economy powered by electric vehicles. Republicans are also keeping tabs on how the strike could out politically in Michigan, Myah Ward and Ally Mutnick report. MUSK AND BIDEN’S TUG OF WAR: The CEO of the United States’ largest electric vehicle manufacturer is watching three of his budding competitors sidelined as the UAW shuts down Ford, GM and Stellantis plants — giving Tesla, with its non-union workforce, a chance to gobble even more market share, James Bikales reports. “Tesla’s competitive advantage over the Detroit Three is going to widen,” Garrett Nelson, vice president of equity research at investment advisory firm CFRA Research. The White House’s tone toward Tesla has turned friendlier over the last few months. Musk secured wins for his company with federal funds going to Tesla chargers and a White House endorsement of his effort to establish Tesla’s charging technology as an industry standard. The strike will likely drive the pro-labor White House even closer with Tesla, despite its vocally anti-union leader.
| | | | JOIN US ON 9/20 FOR A TALK ON TRANSFORMING HEALTHCARE BILLING: Bipartisan legislation in the House and Senate would align costs for services across hospitals and doctors’ offices and reduce out-of-pocket spending that could potentially save the federal government billions of dollars. Can this legislation survive a polarized Congress? Join POLITICO on Sept. 20 to explore this and whether site-neutral payments and billing transparency policies could help ease health care costs. REGISTER HERE. | | | | | Want to receive this newsletter every weekday? Subscribe to POLITICO Pro. You’ll also receive daily policy news and other intelligence you need to act on the day’s biggest stories.
| | BEGGING FOR ACTION: House Speaker Kevin McCarthy urged members of his own party to avoid a government shutdown on Sunday, as this week brings potential challenges to his speaker’s gavel and uncertainty about what will happen ahead of the Sept. 30 government funding deadline. McCarthy said in a Sunday interview on Fox News “when you shut down, you give all your power to the administration.” BUTTIGIEG BASH: DOT Secretary Pete Buttigieg will testify before House T&I Committee on Wednesday, and expect plenty of questions on the administration’s EV policies, the FAA, the UAW strike and freight rail regulations. While some lawmakers on the GOP side will undoubtedly have tough questions, we expect more substance and less circus based on his previous back-and-forth confabs with lawmakers. MORE RAIL TALKS: The House Energy and Commerce Committee announced it will hold a field hearing in East Palestine, Ohio on Friday (if lawmakers aren’t forced to stay in Washington) with Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw and East Palestine Mayor Trent Conway set to testify. It’s notable that the GOP-controlled House hasn’t yet moved on legislation in response to the high-profile derailment, despite the Senate marking up a bipartisan rail safety bill that’s currently a couple GOP votes short of 60 needed to pass. House T&I Chair Sam Graves (R-Mo.) has said he wants to wait until the NTSB completes its probe, which won’t happen until early 2024 at the earliest, before deciding whether or not legislation is warranted. E&C Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.) and Rep. Bill Johnson (R-Ohio), who represents East Palestine, will lead the field hearing.
| | | | A message from Capital Access Alliance:   | | | | | NO SLOT END IN SIGHT: The FAA said Friday it will continue to allow airlines to operate with fewer flights at New York City area airports through October of 2024, Oriana reports, the latest sign that air traffic controller staffing levels continue to present challenges. Carriers who need the extended reduction have to identify their slot operating times by Oct. 13 for the winter 2023 season and by Dec. 15 for the summer 2024 season, the FAA said. Carriers can also request relief for flights at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, but “only for flights impacted by operations to or from the New York/New Jersey Airports.” ANOTHER WAGE FIGHT: Airport service workers are planning demonstrations this week to demand federal wage and benefit standards as part of this year’s FAA reauthorization, another effort from organized labor, this time the SEIU, to push corporations. The House-passed FAA bill, H.R. 3935 (118), didn’t include the language that Democrats have offered that would essentially require airports to pay federal prevailing wage and benefits to airport workers. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has called for the airport worker language to be in the FAA bill, and at a POLITICO event last week a group of travel industry representatives said a lack of protections for airport workers is hurting airline service.
| | | | GO INSIDE THE CAPITOL DOME: From the outset, POLITICO has been your eyes and ears on Capitol Hill, providing the most thorough Congress coverage — from political characters and emerging leaders to leadership squabbles and policy nuggets during committee markups and hearings. We're stepping up our game to ensure you’re fully informed on every key detail inside the Capitol Dome, all day, every day. Start your day with Playbook AM, refuel at midday with our Playbook PM halftime report and enrich your evening discussions with Huddle. Plus, stay updated with real-time buzz all day through our brand new Inside Congress Live feature. Learn more and subscribe here. | | | | | | | | | — “In praise of the airport shower.” Washington Post. — “Ship size, limited routes deepen Panama drought crisis.” Law360. — “AUVSI launches partnership for drone competitiveness.” AUVSI. — “Private bus company failures cause new headache for NJ Transit.” POLITICO. — “Flying taxis need FAA approval. An industry exec could be its next leader.” Washington Post. — “What if public transit was like Uber? A small city ended its bus service to find out.” Associated Press. — “'Union Joe' gets plenty of chances to prove his labor cred.” POLITICO.
| | | | A message from Capital Access Alliance: Students of all backgrounds should be able to experience their nation’s capital affordably, which is why modernizing the perimeter rule and adding more flights at DCA is so important.
As the Senate considers its version of the FAA Reauthorization bill, we urge them to include this bipartisan proposal in the legislation and make air travel more affordable for our future leaders and all Americans. Learn more. | | | | | | | Follow us on Twitter | | | | Follow us | | | | |
Comments
Post a Comment