What a union 'take out' looks like

When the Teamsters' James Hoffa says he wants to "take out" the Tea Party, what exactly does he mean? A 2003 labor settlement offers some clues

Washington is suddenly debating whether James Hoffa Jr., leader of the powerful Teamsters union, crossed a line in his Labor Day comments — comments that preceded a speech by President Obama himself.

"We got to keep an eye on the battle that we face," Hoffa said in a fiery speech in Detroit on Monday. "The war on workers. And you see it everywhere, it is the Tea Party. And you know, there is only one way to beat and win that war. The one thing about working people is we like a good fight. And you know what? They've got a war, they got a war with us, and there's only going to be one winner. It's going to be the workers of Michigan, and America. We're going to win that war."

Hoffa continued:

"President Obama, this is your army. We are ready to march. And President Obama, we want one thing: Jobs. Jobs. Jobs. Jobs. Jobs. Jobs. Jobs. Jobs. That's what we're going to tell him. He's going to be — and when he sees what we're doing here he will be inspired. But he needs help, and you know what?  Everybody here's got to vote. If we go back and keep the eye on the prize, let's take these sons of bitches out and give America back to an America where we belong!"

If James Hoffa were to say that he intended to take me out, I'd up my insurance coverage.

Did these words rise to the level of incitement, as Tea Party activists complain? Or were they merely democracy in action, as some Democrats insist?

Maybe a little context will help.

The Teamsters have a reputation as one of America's less delicate unions. Some say that reputation is outdated — an artifact of a ruder time. Then you come across something like the following: A 2003 National Labor Relations Board settlement between the Teamsters union and a picketed employer.

Here's the first full page of the text, unedited. Just imagine the events that might have led to such a statement.

"We [the Teamsters local] will not engage in mass picketing or otherwise impede the ingress or egress of COMPANY employees or employees of any other employer to or from any COMPANY service center or any facility of any neutral person doing business with COMPANY or patrol or walk across the entrance of any COMPANY service center or a facility of any neutral person doing business with COMPANY in such a manner as to impede or delay the ingress or egress of any individual.

"We will not batter, assault, spit on, blow whistles loudly near a person's ear, throw any liquid or solid object at, or attempt to assault any non-striking employee of COMPANY or any member of his or her family or any employee of a neutral employee doing business with COMPANY, or any security guard or supervisor or manager of a neutral empoyee doing business with COMPANY in the presence of employees.