Another quick thought on that WSJ article about Rahm's comments to business leaders yesterday. These portions of the Journal piece stood out for me:
He was asked his views on the push by labor unions to allow workplaces to be organized with the signing of cards attesting to union support rather than a secret ballot. Mr. Emanuel declined to say whether the White House would support the legislation, but he said the unions are addressing the concerns of a middle class that has seen U.S. median income slide over the past eight years, while health care, energy and education costs have soared.
He said business leaders should help find solutions to the middle-class squeeze or face a revolt. "We need a strategy as a country to make sure they have an opportunity to move up that ladder," he said. ...
He stressed that the new administration would "throw long and deep," taking advantage of the economic crisis to push wholesale changes in health care, taxes, financial re-regulation and energy. "The American people in two successive elections have voted for change, and change cannot be allowed to die on the doorsteps of Washington," Mr. Emanuel said.
Is it possible that Rahm's essentially saying to corporate America: Look, we have to help middle-class workers. We have a number of ways we'd like to do that--health care reform, tax cuts, green-energy investments, other infrastructure projects, education, on down to card check. But we also understand that card check is absolutely anathema to you. So work with us on our other priorities and maybe we can make card check go away for a while.
Am I over-reading here?
--Noam Scheiber