What am I talking about? It's the so-called "Paycheck Protection Act," soon to come to a state legislature or referendum near you. It's also getting a full showing on Capitol Hill.

This is a full court press by big business to shut unions and working men and women out of politics for good. The real name should be the Paycheck Destruction Act--because that's what workers will get when they no longer have a voice in making the laws of this country.

Each version differs in detail, but the basic intent is to force unions to ask members each year for permission to spend any of their dues money on political activities. Sounds okay, right? After all, we all like to control how our money is spent.

But let's be realistic. First, in general, we're not talking about giving money to candidates. That money comes from the Maintenance of Way Political League, which is money donated freely by BMWE members and not dues money, a different matter altogether. Instead, we're talking about the money spent to educate members on legislative issues, to lobby our government and to get members involved in politics. Under these proposals, we couldn't fight for stronger safety laws, go on Capitol Hill to protect railroad retirement or the employers' liability system for when we get hurt on the job or even conduct get-out-the-vote campaigns.

Still, you may ask, what's the big deal about getting permission? The big deal is the time and expense it would take to accomplish that task. Think about it. It's like asking each taxpayer to approve every budget detail. That's why we elect legislators--and why you elect the officers of this union. Because you trust their judgment and leadership. And, if you disagree, you boot them out of office. It's called democracy. It works in this country and it works in this union.

Congress would be out of session and we would have very little money left to work with by the time we went through the permission process.

Of course, that is the idea--tire them out before they even take the court. It's working right now. When the labor movement should be building on the momentum from the 1996 elections and working to win back the House for a pro-worker majority in 1998, instead we must take our energy and resources to fight this latest attack. Even if we beat it back, big business knows it has eroded our efforts in the 1998 elections. I guess it's a win-win strategy for big business.

We all know that corporate America has never been out there fighting for the working guys. Why would it start now? Don't be fooled--see the frog and send it back to the corporate swamp where it belongs.