A Conversation with Congressman Paul Tonko

Our guest on The Voice Podcast is Congressman Paul Tonko, a Democrat who represents New York's 20th Congressional District. 

A longtime state Assembly member who was elected to Congress in 2008, Tonko has been a fighter for his constituents, for higher education and for organized labor. 

He's come out against the war in Iran, calling it reckless and unjustified. He's also called for the abolition of U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement, citing the death and destruction the agency has caused under President Trump’s cruel immigration crackdown and the fatal shootings of two Minneapolis protesters—both U.S. citizens—by federal agents. 

As the ranking member of the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Environment, Tonko blasted the administration for its Feb. 12 decision to repeal the Environmental Protection Agency’s “endangerment finding,” a long-standing, scientifically proven conclusion that greenhouse gases are dangerous to humans and the planet.

He stood with United University Professions in our fight against the Trump administration’s drastic 2025 cuts to federal research funding. In February 2025, Tonko joined with three other New York House Democrats to criticize the National Institutes of Health for drastically reducing grant funding for indirect costs. 

In our Lookback segment, Mike Lisi remembers the tragic Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire which took place on March 25, 1911 and the quirky, nearly two-month strike of San Francisco's KMPX-FM, America's first underground rock station, which started March 18, 1968. 

In Kowal's Coda, The Voice Podcast host Fred Kowal provides commentary on the war in Iran and why the this chaotic action - which came without a declaration of war by Congress - has occurred.  

Links to music from this episode: 

Metropolitan Klesmer: "Die Fire Korbunes (The Fire's Sacrifices)" - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G6OP6GRkSNo

Ace of Cups: "Feel Good" -  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6KqPCFw-VHQ

Transcript

Unknown: 0:00

Hello. I'm Fred kowall, President of United University professions, and this is The Voice. The Voice Podcast is a production of United University professions, the nation's largest higher education union, representing more than 42,000 academic and professional faculty and retirees at state operated SUNY campuses across New York State. UUP also represents employees at SUNY system administration and SUNY public teaching hospitals in Brooklyn, Stony Brook and Syracuse. I'm Mike Lisi. Our guest today is Congressman Paul Tonko. Congressman Tonko has not been afraid to speak his mind about the chaos and cruelty of the Trump administration. Last month, Congressman Tonko called for the abolition of ice, citing the death and destruction the agency has caused. Not surprisingly, he's voted against funding for ice and the Department of Homeland services, pointing to the fatal shooting of two Minneapolis protesters, both US citizens by federal agents and the terror the agencies have caused in Minnesota and across the country, as the ranking member of the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on environment, Tonko blasted the administration for its February 12 decision to repeal the Environmental Protection Agency's endangerment finding a long standing scientifically proven conclusion that greenhouse gasses are dangerous to humans and the planet. He's also come out against the SAVE AMERICA Act, which would give the government unprecedented control over elections and disenfranchise millions of Americans, especially women and LGBTQ plus voters. Unlike so many of his Republican counterparts, Tonko has not been afraid to hold town halls and meet with his constituents face to face to hear what they have to say. A long time state assembly member who was elected to Congress in 2008 and represents New York's 20th congressional district, Tonko has also been a fighter for public higher education. In fact, as a member of the assembly in the 100 and fifth district of the assembly, that's when I got to know Paul Tonko. He was the Assemblyman who represented my home campus at Cobleskill. He was an ally and advocate for Cobleskill college, for UUP members and the work we do, and for SUNY in general, he knows and appreciates UUP as a union that represents researchers at SUNY campuses and public teaching hospitals, and for the teaching and education we provide, we appreciate Congressman Tonko staunch defense of science of education and his tenacity as he stands Up to this harsh authoritarian regime today on The Voice podcast, we couldn't be happier to have Congressman Tonko as our guest. Congressman, welcome to The Voice Thank you, Fred. It's great to be with you, and let me compliment UUP for being such a strong union, and your collective voices are needed to be heard now more than ever. This is a brutal time in government, one that disinvests in people in programs and really has caused a lot of concern, a lot of chaos, a lot of fear in the communities because of the direction in which they're moving. So we've got a lot of work ahead of us, but I think with passionate resolve, we're going to get this done. I appreciate that Congressman. And of course, it's not a surprise to hear you say that because of your long career in public service, and it is very unfortunate that we have a lot of questions that we'd like to ask. But to begin with, because of what started over the weekend, I want to give you an opportunity to speak about the war that has heated up. Because I'm not calling it the start of a war. This has been ongoing for a while, but the attacks on Iran by the United States, in the State of Israel, I would like to give you an opportunity to comment how you feel about that, how the decisions were made, how they're being carried out, and your perspective on what this country has gotten itself into. Well, it's really unfortunate that we're in a situation like this, because basically we have here a entry into war that is, in my opinion, illegal and wreck. Necklace, you know, there needs to be an involvement with Congress. The Constitution requires that. And a lot of concerns here about the why, you know, what is the goal here? What is the strategy? We can't have a strategy until we know the goal. And we heard, first of all, it was about, you know, the regime. That was a concern. So we're going to displace that regime. Then we hear about a risk to the US that we hear about nuclear weapons. Then it's long range missiles, then it's the impact on kind of freezing out China that, you know, we're attacking Iran for global economic purposes. It's like the message has been so garbled and so confusing. And when you talk to when you watch reviews by members of the Cabinet and the President's voice itself, they're all in conflict. So the team is not together as to the why, and that is the important first step. You know, going to war is the most consequential decision a nation can make. And you know, there's a there's a huge price tag to that declaration, and there are human lives that are put at risk. Our troops are at risk. I just offer condolences to those loved ones who have lost our military because their military losses that we have incurred because of this conflict, because of this war. And you know, when asked about the casualties, the president seemed to have a very cavalier attitude. Well, that's part of war. Well, tell it to the families that just lost their loved ones. So this is there's a lot of work to be done here as we pursue this issue this week in Washington, I do hope we can be successful in our war powers resolution to move to the floor, legislation that will address the involvement the approval of Congress before we continue additional work in that war on Iran. You know politics so very well. When you read the room and you read the house, do you think the votes are there for the War Powers resolution? You know, I'm hearing conflicting reports. I think there's a call by Mike caucus the Democrats in the House to be united here. I mean, this is essential. I mean, we're dealing with a president who, as a candidate, said, for his second term in office, said, I'm going to have that America First policy. Elect me, and you won't have forever wars. You will with these other candidates, and I'm going to take care of issues at home. Well, let's take a look at it. We're now at war with Iran from that America first candidate, and we're failing miserably at home. All of the reducing prices, you know, cutting costs for American families, for groceries, for utilities, for housing. The reverse has happened. So he's failed at home, and he's entered into a war that many are fearful could become another Forever War. And America is exhausted. They're tired, they're frightened. There's chaos in their communities, and they want better. And I just think that there needs, necessarily to be the following of the constitutional guidelines that we are there and we need to be addressing this situation with the President and the legislative branch. Congress should not be circumvented. You hit the nail on the head when you said that going to war is the most consequential and serious matter that a nation or a government takes up, which is why, in the Constitution, it is Congress's authority to declare war, not a president to enter a war of choice. This President has a disdain for the Constitution. I don't feel like I'm going out on a limb saying that, and I would like to move to something that you've been very passionate about, and that is the utilization of ice as this rogue police force. And I hesitate to call it police, because the police that we have in our country are highly trained professionals, and would they would not be doing what ICE agents are doing. You're absolutely right. I think they disrupt the efforts by local law enforcement to be that local as a state agency or as a community agency. Law Enforcement knows their community very well, and these people come in, and I think they usurp resources, and they provide for chaos and terror in the communities and just the Twin Cities as a shining example of community spirit, they fought them off, and rightfully so. I I'm very concerned about the ice operation. I know you're opposed to to funding ice. Are you one who believes that ice should be shut? Down that the enforcement of of immigration law is all other law needs to be handled by local police, local law enforcement, state law enforcement, Border Protection is a separate issue, but in terms of what ice is doing, what is the way forward? How do we how do we get out of this, as you said, chaotic, destructive situation? Well, first, many of us believe that they are violent and they're disrupting the local community. And second of all, I have called for the abolishment of ice. I think that when you lose public trust, when you're no longer credible as a group, you can't get the work of national security, of public safety, done. I just think you've lost that trust, and it makes it impossible. And so I think there are many people recommending, myself included recommending reforms to ice. Our caucus is talking about reforms before further funding is allowed. I say abolish ice, but carry that message of reform with us. So when we go back to the days prior to 911 when all this began to get restructured, let's go back and look at the agencies that house these functions before. And let's look at the best strategy by which to reassemble, restructure the control of our borders. None of us wants criminal elements coming across the border. You know, some of this is so misrepresented by the President, but what we could do is take the reforms recommended restructure ice so that it's now got credibility back, and embrace those reforms that many have been touting, reforms like no masks for the agents of the of that institution as it's restructured body cameras required making certain that there are independent reviews shared either civil or criminal matters. No more racial targeting, no more, you know, focusing on areas of cluster, like hospitals, schools, houses of worship, polling places, making certain that there's not this aggressiveness, that there not be efforts to racially discriminate when you have a force working on quotas. Yes, that alone is a motivation for going beyond what is reasonable. And I think these quotas have driven them so that they're judging people by skin tone, by accent. And that is not that's not a civil society. And you know what was the President's expression? We're going to go off to the worst of the worst, right? And what you have here is a great majority, probably over 90% according to some of the statistics out there, of people who have been, you know, detained or deported, US citizens with no criminal record. So they have failed in their mission, you know, and they have disrupted the communities. They have, I think, disrupted the law enforcement efforts in these communities, and have killed two people that were just in a way that was totally uncalled for. You know, pinning down a person and then shooting 10 times, pulling a person over and shooting through the windshield at three times into the face. What about the tires? You're going to shot the tires? So this whole thing is just out of control, chaos and terror, and they have failed miserably, and there's just no way they're going to regain respect here. And you know, to Secretary Nome asking Americans to not believe what they saw with their very own eyes in filming that was made in the community at these incidents, is a disgrace. It is just the revolting response that you know, it just you know, again, proves that they want to misrepresent what's happened. And this group is all about lies, and we catch people in lies all the time, and that's not the way to govern. People need to come together as a nation and in the US. We sadly need healing, and this guy is not a healer. He has been a voice of division. And I thought it was just appalling that in the initial moments in the both instances of the two citizens who were murdered by ICE, what was most appalling was the immediate reaction to brand them as domestic terrorists. And then Stephen Miller goes further. He talks about elements in a democratic party as being internal enemies. You know, the kind of language that is beyond divisive to the point of putting literal. Political targets on the backs of those of us who simply are raising legitimate concerns about the exercise of power by this administration, and we're labeled as the worst of the worst. In essence, this is incredibly dangerous. And I would ask, you know, and I know it might be difficult to say, but when you talk to your Republican colleagues behind the scenes, do they say agreed this is going too far, or have they swallowed the Kool Aid completely? I think I detect in their voice and in their just in their body language, that they're uncomfortable with some of this loyalty to the President, and I believe some of them are understanding it, but they live in fear of this individual, and others, I think, are just over the top with this. It's, you know, some people have just come, I think, into that job to disrupt what we currently have. But I have to tell you, I think that the public is going to drive them to where they ought to be on this issue, and several issues here, in moments in our history where we're hitting a very low point, it was the general populace that came out In strong numbers, took to the streets and really made their voices heard. That's what turned us around in those given moments. And I just think right now that this uncivilized aspect of what should be a civilized society. I mean, let's face it, if we saw nations treating their people like we're doing right here, we would have been in there to rescue these folks from their government. Yeah, now we're, you know, we're a an expression to the world of exact opposite. And, you know, I just think we are better than this. This is not the America we know we love. It's, it's vulgar, it's vulgar. And I think what we're going to see is an all out turnaround here, where people have had enough. And, you know, I think there's buyer's remorse by many who supported this president one time or two times, because these are many, many failed efforts that he promised he would resolve. He would resolve the high cost of living, and again, to repeat myself, those costs have only grown higher. He's doing things like a tariff, which is a hidden tax. It's a tax on the general public and the middle class working families pay an inordinate amount of that tax, and it's a regressive tax. It's hurting small businesses, their supplies, if they're coming in to country, causing them to close their business. They can't absorb that increase in price. So, you know, he's disrupted an economy. The tail end of the Biden years, brought together an economy we did terrifically well, better than any industrialized nation in the world through covid, and we had a strong economy moving towards great outcome, and then he comes in and denies climate change and and now has us trailing behind, just for many, many reasons. It's been a failed administration, in my opinion, yeah, and I think the long term impacts could be just devastating. Speaking of the the worst of the worst, and I think that's the only way to put it, it's really heartbreaking to me whenever I see victims of Jeffrey Epstein courageously speaking out and calling for justice for themselves, for their their sisters who were abused, and some who are who are dead, some who don't want to come forward and speak publicly about these nightmarish episodes in their lives. Congress passed legislation requiring the release of the Epstein files, and the way it's been handled, the way the redactions have taken place, while at the same time, there's been an exposure of victims. What can Congress do? And you know, I'm not in part of the Maga group that wanted the Epstein files out for political reasons, but to me, it's an issue of justice for the victims and for us, I believe, to expose what is, in my humble opinion, the greatest conspiracy, and I wouldn't use scandal, scandal in American history, where you have powerful, rich men who were a part of this circle of exploitation and violence against girls, literally, children. And what can you do? Because I know there are, there are Republicans who feel strongly about this as well. What's the avenue to hold the Attorney General and the Department of Justice responsible to follow the law and release everything, including those things that may very well implicate and to be honest, I don't care if they're Democrats. To Republicans, right? I want the truth out about this and to hold those responsible. Well, absolutely, you know, young women, children were abused, and you indicated we passed, Congress passed legislation, and it didn't say release. Some of them, it said release, you know, the files and the President needs to implement that law. And so I think all pursuits will be waged here. All will be embraced. It's making certain we use any constitutional authority going through the courts, whatever we have to do. And the court of public opinion, I think public opinion is growing on this issue, they know that this is a cover up. It's obvious now, and Pam Bondi, as the attorney general, is a disgrace for her to come to a hearing and share information with Congress. Instead, she had this certain sort of file cards, index cards with, you know, research on every member of Congress and tried to distract from the conversation and attacked colleagues for votes or for behavior, and it was just, it was an embarrassing show. And really, it shows us how that it symbolizes us, to us how this agency is being run. It is not the president's attorney, it's the people's attorney, and it should act that way, and we're going to continue to this truth is shared. You know, it's rather regrettable that foreign countries impacted by this entire Epstein event have gone out and and really very public with their charges on individuals, they're paying the price, and it's a sad thing that we're not again, responding to the letter and spirit of that law here in the US. So it's not over. It's far from over. Democrat and Republican administrations should have taken care of this prior to this, but this pledge to be open and sharing the all of the Epstein files is again a broken promise, and we need to get this President to understand that the work is far from from finished, and some interesting charges that are coming As a way of this President too. So we're not going to allow for a cover up again. I think the spirit of the caucus is to fight to this thing is eventually done. And let's face it, people will talk. There will be individuals who know about the files and the truth will eventually rise to the top. But we want that to be sooner rather than later. These victims deserve that sort of response Absolutely, and for the rule of law to reassert itself, to be honored once again. I mean Well, the rejection of the Constitution, the lack of respect or regard of the Constitution, the lack of governing by rule of law, it's just something missing in this in this administration. You know, you watch how the entire cabinet reinforces this. There should be, there should be, I think, for the sake of of governing, and certainly for the by the demands of the general public, this government needs to be much more responsive. The Framers of our Constitution made certain that there'd be these checks and balances. And I find it regrettable that while this individual has this terrible track record as a president, I am even sometimes more upset with those who enable him Yes, by not serving as that check and balance, there is not a need right now for the House of Representatives in which I serve, to have its members take the knee or cower to this leader, they need to serve in their responsibilities contained in their job. They need to respond to those responsibilities by being that check and balance. And same it's true for the judicial branch. Yes, we need to make certain they're not politicians in black robes. Exactly I mentioned earlier about your strong support for higher education through your entire career. As you're well aware, the Trump administration has made higher education a target of his, going after funding, going after any kind of diversity, equity, inclusion programs, trying to blackmail major universities. It's been horrible. And then you see what's happening in some of the states, like in Texas, where Texas A and M has eliminated women's studies, all these programs, they're going over course syllabi. It's fascistic. It is to me as someone who's been involved with SUNY. I hate to admit it now, but 40 years, my entire career has been in higher education. This is these are frightening times you took a real forceful stance on the cuts in and the freeze on federal dollars. Dollars and then the cuts for research, absolutely. Why did you feel it was so important? And how do you see a way forward on this important funding? You know, I think the pioneer spirit to discover and innovate and invent is in the DNA of America. And I think that our future is so strong if we continue to invest in research. Think of it. It's hope to many people in the health arena. It's efficiency for energy research and the like. You know, we're a stronger nation. You know, representing an area that surrounds the mouth of the Erie Canal reminds me that we became a mighty power because the Erie Canal, as a project to connect the great ocean, the Atlantic with the Great Lakes, gave birth to a necklace of communities dubbed Mill Towns, that became the epicenter of invention and innovation that drove us. We influenced the quality of life in a favorable way around the world because of great manufacturing coming out of that first tech quarter that I call it, right? So, you know, why would we dumb down? You know, this, this playbook for these autocrats is, you know, tarnish the press, destroy their credibility, dumb down the public. Don't invest in education, in higher education and in research, and, you know, assume, assert power, and then have elections that are keeping you forever in office because they're controlled by that power. I'm not willing to go down that road. I think it's a disgrace when we cower to this gentleman as a higher education community, and then give him dollars as we coward. I mean, this is a crazy outcome, and luckily, the courts are now denying that effort. And you know, even corporations, some of the legal, biggest legal teams in the country, did the same thing. Stand up to the bullying. A bully only knows when you push back that that bully is not getting anywhere. And I just think that it's a disgrace that we're not investing in invention and research. To me, you know, you look at the climate change issue, we can grow so many jobs and develop so many prototypes that become products. We can make it in America, again, that's the strength of our country, that kind of creative genius that we saw in assembly lines with blue collar workers. You know, we can make for a stronger life here and around the world simply by unleashing the talent and the intellect, intellectual capacity that this nation certainly has. So it's this whole effort to discredit higher ed and destroy programs like dei that enable people to have their share of knowledge come their way so they can accomplish their goals, their dreams. And we're best when everyone has a shot at that, the soul of our country is diversity. And you know, we have honored that. We have been this formula of diverse creeds and ethnicities and races that have enabled us to be a sterling example to the world of how a diverse crowd can honor a common set of principles and a constitution and carry forth and be that beacon of hope to freedom loving people around the world. And I think this thinking of these orders, these demands, these executive orders, are in complete non compliance of those goals that we share as a nation, the way I've thought about it as well, ironically, is because you know, Trump, like so many authoritarians, poses as this strong man who's in control, who's in charge, is going to quote, unquote, make America Great Again, in fact, by limiting higher education by attacking it, by underfunding it, by eliminating the participation of those coming from other countries, international scholars. What it does is undermine our national security. You mentioned the climate crisis. Well, China is leaping past us in the development of new technologies having to do with climate in new forms of energy, and we're going to be left behind. And that is at the end of the day, a lot of what we gained in terms of our international prestige and strength in the post world war two era was because we attracted the best and the brightest from everywhere in the world that wanted to come here. And you look at, you know, the cost cutting that's inhibited by his thinking. You know, China's moving into clean energy, not because there's these passionate troubadours for fighting climate change, but they know that clean energy, green. Energy utilizing the wind, the sun, the soil, the temperature of the soil, you know, those are free fuels, yeah. And so they know that they're going to be the most affordable energy. And so that's why they're pursuing that route. And here we have brutalized clean energy. He's underpinning coal, which is the most expensive form of energy being entered into the grid. And he's doing that because they're his buddies, right? They had billion dollar contributions that were encouraged. So now he's underpinning this costliest and dirtiest power and taking us down the wrong trail. This is regrettable. And meanwhile, they're growing clean energy China, they're producing very affordable electric vehicles. You know, we are on that path. We had incentives with the build back better agenda, with the efforts by the the Biden administration, right all out the window, taking those dollars and again, being reduced the Department of Energy, so that the oversight division that would look at the how those dollars are spent, if they're being implemented in terms of legislative intent, all that team is gone. Yeah. So talk. They wanted a greater efficiency. With goer, with Elon Musk, yeah, that created less efficiency, and their actions are not toward efficiency. So we've got this scrambled mess that needs to be fixed. It's going to be very difficult for the next administration to repair what's been damaged here. I agree, and I know we're a bit up against the clock, but I wanted to ask a kind of a personal question. We've been talking it's kind of been bleak in this conversation, but I've heard hope in your voice, in some of what you've said, and You Your career is incredible in public service. What do you say to a person like me who feels at times, very hopeless and it looks bleak. You stay with the fight. I saw you at the rally against ice. I was there and you were standing out there without hat on, and it was wind chill. Was about 30 below zero and the passion, how do you maintain the hope, the passion, the commitment? So go ahead, I think, at our most challenging times, in these different examples in our history, in our relatively short 250 years compared to others, we have been at our best when we were challenged and pushed against the wall, and it was the general public, it was the populace. It was the public sentiment that drove change, and it was a forcefulness. People had had enough, and they stormed back. Now more than ever. We need that public sentiment. We need the voices raised. We need to come into the streets. We need to continue these efforts with no kings rallies, and just let people know that we're watching, that we're not in agreement, and that we're standing for change. And I think that that's a forceful element that is still the driving force in a democracy, and we need to fight for this democracy. Too many died for this democracy, and too many have worked hard to build programs that have been a success agent for people to rise and climb the ladder of economic opportunity. So I am hopeful, and I feel it. I go into these town halls. You know, we just had a recent town hall in Boston spa. I can feel the public sentiment for change, and we just have to keep building upon that, and the people will win. There's no better way to close this program than those words, Congressman, thank you very much. Yeah, for taking the time for for sharing your insights and for all of your work that you do, it's been an honor and a privilege to know you all these years and looking forward to many more to come well, to all of the UUP members who make great things happen in higher ed for all the great work done in the in the labs and in the classrooms, you know you're stirring, stirring the curiosity. You're stirring the prowess, the economic prowess, that is so powerful for this country. So you're building that workforce that will really produce change. So congrats to all of you. My hats off to you up and let's do it again. Excellent. Thanks very much, Congressman. Okay, take care. Take care. You. Matt, welcome to labor. Look back where we take a look back at labor storied past, from strikes and uprisings to dynamic union lead. And huge union wins, we'll cover it all. Here's a look back at labor history from the month of March. You Morris Whitey pass off. Couldn't believe his eyes, and he couldn't turn away. The 15 year old copy boy for the New York World newspaper watched in horror as young women and teenage girls in groups of twos and threes climbed out the windows of the Triangle Shirtwaist company and onto the thin ledges outside the upper floors of the blazing ash building. Then they jumped. Some held hands as they leaped, their long dresses flapping and tresses whipped by the wind before thudding the pavement below. They fell eight, 910, stories, choosing instant death over dying in the inferno that killed 146 workers, many of them female, Jewish and Italian immigrants on a sunny Saturday afternoon March 25 1911 UUP retiree Judy Lisi has shared that story with uups membership magazine, the voice for 2011 article marking the 100th anniversary of the tragic triangle fire pass off. Her father told her the story. He said that watching girls jump was quote, like watching angels dropping. UNQUOTE unions have never forgotten these fallen workers whose deaths spurred sweeping workplace reforms and a huge boost for the fledgling labor movement. The triangle Blaze sparked a sudden upsurge in union membership. Workers flocked to join the international ladies garment workers union and its fight for worker safety reforms and better conditions for factory laborers. Meanwhile, an outraged public demanded action to improve unsafe workplace conditions in June 1911 New York created the factory investigating commission. Union leader Samuel Gompers was a commissioner, and Francis Perkins, who later became US Secretary of Labor, served on the panel. Scores of new workplace safety laws came from the committee, including mandating factory reforms such as the installation of automatic sprinklers, lighted exit signs, firewalls, fire extinguishers and fire alarms, search reforms were a pipe dream for immigrant workers in sweatshops like the Triangle Shirtwaist company, where employees toiled 12 hours a day, six days a week and were paid between $3 and $20 weekly, depending upon expertise and experience as for how The fire ignited. No one really knows for sure. The fire marshal blamed a lit cigarette tossed in a scrap fabric bin under a cutters table as the cause. It was around

closing time, 4: 38:10

45pm, when the horror began. That's when worker Eva Harris screamed to factory manager Samuel Bernstein and pointed to smoke in a corner of the eighth floor. Bernstein tried to turn a hose on the flames, but it wouldn't work. Workers doused the fire with buckets of water, but by then, the blaze was already raging. An eighth floor bookkeeper who telephoned 10th floor employees about the fire couldn't reach the ninth floor, which lacked fire alarms. What if two exits on that floor was bolted shut? Management would lock workers in so they wouldn't steal dozens of employees were able to scramble out the second exit, which led onto the roof, but fire blocked that exit. Minutes later, terrified workers jammed into two freight elevators, which only had room for 12 people. The elevator operators saved dozens of lives before the fire and the bodies of workers who jumped down the shafts in a desperate attempt to escape ground those elevators to a halt, the building's flimsy fire escape twisted and snapped by the searing heat and the crush of workers clinging to it, sending victims spiraling to a concrete courtyard more than 100 feet below. The fire department's ladder trucks were useless. They only reached the sixth floor. It was all over in 30 minutes. Nearly 150 workers had perished. Of those, 54, died by jumping. Their bodies lay in piles on the street as firefighters worked to extinguish the blaze. Ironically, the building itself was fire proof. God. Boy, I really like it because it makes me feel so good. There it was in black and white and an ad taken out in the San Francisco. Express times, a short lived counterculture newspaper that covered radical politics, arts and music and the hippie culture of the Bay Area in the late 1960s kmpx on strike. The ad read in huge bold type below and an even larger font was the word notice followed by a statement that the staff of k, m, p, x, f, M, America's first underground rock station was set to walk off the job at 3am on Monday, March 18, 1968 and walk off the job they did their 11 demands included a share of the station's profits, raises for full time announcers making $125 or less and much more artistic freedom than they were getting from their station's owner, Crosby Pacific Broadcasting. Keep in mind that kmpx was a wildly popular Bay Area station and one of the few playing music by the Grateful Dead and other counter culture acts showcased in free form radio shows created by the DJs themselves, according to the global non violent action database, but ownership unsatisfied with the station's success, began limiting what DJs could say, do and play on the air. Graveyard shift DJ Larry Miller, who pioneered the station's freeform format, was fired, followed shortly by program manager Tom Donahue, who was canned on March 11, five days later, KMP xers met and came up with a list of demands for management and created their own union, the American Federation of International FM workers of the world. North Beach local number one, according to a 2018 story that appeared in The Washington Post written by UUP Brockport chapter member Michael Kramer, two days later, the staff would strike at 3am on March 18. Kmpx, Chief Engineer volko surprised a crowd of over 500 listeners partying outside the station by announcing that kmpx staff was officially on strike in the crowd LSD pioneer osley Stanley and members of the Grateful Dead and 1960s acid rock band blew cheer Credence. Clearwater Revival played live on the back of a flatbed truck until police shut them down shortly after the music started, that according to the San Francisco Chronicle and a lost live dead blog, and there was high profile support. The Rolling Stones sent a letter backing the strikers the dead and other groups performed benefits, including a march 20 Avalon ballroom gig with blue cheer credence and the all female rock act, ace of cups, whose music is playing in the background. There was also an April 3 winterland ballroom show featuring the dead the electric flag, Moby grape and the Young Bloods, meanwhile, Bay Area locals of nabit, the National Association of broadcast engineers and technicians, the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists and the International Labor Workers Union came out in support of the kmpx strikers. Still station owner Leon Crosby refused to negotiate. Kramer notes that DJ Larry Miller's decision to cross the picket line slowed the momentum of the strike, which ended may 13, when Donahue persuaded the staff to follow him to a new station, the corporate controlled outlet, k, s, a, n. Kramer saw the kmpx strike is more than just a failure. Why did it fail? Well, none of the strikers demands were met, for starters and staffers now members of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers found themselves working for a corporation and becoming part of the very system that they set out to oppose, even though their union activism was on their own quirky hippie terms, but the strike also foreshadowed a shift in the labor movement in the 1970s that saw more professionals, including our union, UUP, organize, and the strike is a prime example of how the counterculture. Was more about finding personal satisfaction civic value and decent wages and benefits than merely about stoned hedonists. UNQUOTE Kramer said, for UUP, look back. I'm Mike Lisi, and now here's Fred with Coles coda. I'd like to talk today about the situation that developed over the weekend in Iran, and at the same time, have a few comments about another situation that very few Americans are talking about or even paying attention to, or, for that matter, are aware of. And that is what's happening in Cuba, first, with regard to the United States and the State of Israel attacking Iran. Make no mistake about it, this is a war of choice. Donald Trump made the decision to take this nation to war. He made the decision unilaterally, not consult Congress. Did not inform the American people prior to did not make a case for war, whatever you might think about the war in Iraq that was instigated by the George W Bush administration. They did make a case. It was flawed, but at the end of the day, as everyone agrees, whatever you might think of W he made the ultimate decision based on what the head of the CIA told him, that yes, there were weapons of mass destruction and that they needed to go to war. So he did consult at the end of the day, there were no weapons of mass destruction, and we ended up in a long, brutal war that cost this nation millions and billions and billions of dollars, and more importantly, 1000s of American lives and hundreds of 1000s of Iraqi lives. And still, chaos exists in that region of the world, and here we go again. Was the war necessary? No, not on national security grounds. Iran does not have ICBM missiles. I see that's redundant intercontinental ballistic missiles. They don't have that capability. The intelligence community in the United States just released a report that said that Iran was decades away from developing missiles that could strike the United States in terms of their nuclear potential. I thought that was obliterated last year, according to the President. So why? Because their leaders are brutal. Well, if that was the reason, then, why not attack Sudan, which has been engaged in a brutal, ugly civil war between a brutal government and elements of the military who are just as bad. Or, how about Myanmar or Burma, or, for that matter, Putin in Russia or North Korea, there's a long list. So why, if it's not for no national security? Is it well, to carry out a threat? Maybe the Iranians wouldn't have come to negotiate, and we sometimes hear Yeah, and we'll stop if they want to negotiate, so that then we can have an agreement to eliminate their nuclear potential need. I remind you we had an agreement that was working with international observers, but because it was signed by President Obama, Trump tore it up in his first administration, and the problem with the arrogance of going to war without any consultation, begs the question, then, what is the outcome that is being sought? What's the end game? There is no coherent end game. But as Donald Trump becomes more and more enamored of using the military, whether it was in Venezuela or now in Iran. Do you really think he won't go back to talking about seizing Greenland, or, for that matter, Canada? We have to consider this. And more importantly, aside from the nightmares that could come about because of this invasion, the ramifications for American security, Americans around the world. When we went to war in Afghanistan and then into Iraq, there were ramifications in terms of our safety. That's all I will say. But this also needs to be addressed. As the United States pours more and more military into the Middle East and hardware and the cost continues to rise, you don't think for a moment that China will see our eventual weakness because of how much. Which we are expending, and maybe then China makes a move on Taiwan. Or do you think Russia will feel that they have more latitude either in the war against the people of Ukraine or some of the other nations that they meaning? Putin covet like Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia. So this is not a reality show. This is war. American soldiers have died. We know that hundreds of girls at a school in Iran were killed, casualties, as the President said, happen in a war. It's too bad that President bonespur Never saw war directly, that his father engineered the means by which he could dodge the Vietnam War. And by the way, I feel the same way about Bill Clinton dodging that draft. My brother had to go to war, and I feel like anyone who could have been drafted should have been, but Trump dodged it. Clinton did too. But here we have a president who feels like using military force is almost as much fun as building a ballroom attached to the White House. This is frightening. This is concerning. This is the worst possible situation that we could be in, and it is because we have a president who could care less about the Constitution, and we have a congress who apparently doesn't want to exercise its CO equal role in the government. They need to pass a war powers resolution. They need to override Trump's veto when it passes. They need to insist that the article one of the Constitution holds only Congress declares war and if there isn't the reason for the war, then the military should be withdrawn, and then there's Cuba. Very little attention is being paid to what's happening there. Trump has instituted a block aid, basically not allowing anything, not oil, especially not oil to come into that country. The economy is collapsing. The people are suffering all in the hope that there will be a rebellion and overthrow the communist regime there. Well, let's remember again, during the Obama administration, there were openings, there was trade, there was the ability for families to visit. There was a loosening of restrictions in Cuba, but now there's going to be further and further tightening. And let's remember the last time there was a crisis of this magnitude in Cuba, you got to go back to the 1970s what Castro did then was open the floodgates and allow Cubans to flee to the United States. It's only 90 miles away. We need to be aware of the potential for a humanitarian crisis in Cuba, bringing about a huge out migration. And in Iran, similarly, as that country falls apart, as it most likely will you've got 90 million people living there. Where will they go? Where will they flee? Many of them are armed, and the potential for separatism is there. Chaos could only grow worse. This is not what a superpower is supposed to do. A superpower is intended to keep the world stable, because that's how a superpower maintains its power. It doesn't squander it, as we are doing now, apparently, at the behest of the disgraced Prime Minister of Israel, Netanyahu, who has dreamed of eliminating the Iranian regime for decades. He's been upfront about it. If that's why we're at war, then American security has been given up for individual pride, narcissism, however you want to put it, but it's not in the interests of this nation, nor is it in the long term interests of the world. The more chaos, the more violence that exists, the greater the possibility for worsening international events, and I dare say, the potential use of nuclear weapons. This is a dark time. We've got a no kings series of protests coming up on March 28 now, more than ever, the American people need to be in the streets, demanding the end. To what we know from polls is a deeply unpopular war that will only make us weaker and will bring more and more suffering to the people of the Middle East. And unfortunately, here, I agree with Trump, casualties for the US military. It's a dark day, folks. I urge you to stay engaged and informed, but also to have your voices heard, hopefully we can find a way forward. Good night and good luck. The Voice Podcast is a production of United University professions. You can find UUP on Facebook, Instagram, X and blue sky at UUP info. UUP is on the web@uupinfo.org This episode was produced by Mike Lisi, communications director for UUP UUP director of administration, Lynn Alderman is associate producer. The host of the voice is UUP president, Fred kowall. You can download the voice podcast theme for free by going to United University, professions.bandcamp.com, thanks for listening. You. Interesting? You.