LAST WEEK President Obama, speaking at the Pentagon, told the American people that he was going to open up a new front for the American ruling class, and that the US would become much more of an Asia Pacific power, with China and Iran very much in its sights.
The latest news from Iran that yet another of its nuclear scientists has been murdered by imperialist agents, most probably by employees of the Israeli Mossad, adds flesh to the bones of Obama’s presentation.
However, the US military and president have opened up another front, without any advance information or publicity. This is its front against the more and more restive US working class, that has taken some very heavy blows from the capitalist crisis and has seen its jobs, wages, and basic rights ripped apart. Moreover, it is now beginning to fight back with the kind of historic determination it showed in the 1930s and 1940s when it formed the big, general CIO trade unions through an avalanche of strikes and occupations.
The semblance of this class war front first emerged when President Obama addressed the US people at the start of January after just signing into law a major defence bill which included tough new sanctions against Iran, but as well allowed the US military to detain indefinitely ‘terror suspects’ accused of planning attacks on the US.
Even Obama stated that he had concerns about parts of the legislation dealing with the handling of terror suspects, and was reduced to stressing that he would not ‘authorise the indefinite military detention without trial of American citizens’.
Now the situation has further developed to allow us to see the opening up of this class war front.
The San Francisco Labor Council adopted a Resolution on January 9, 2012, by a unanimous vote to ‘Condemn Use of US Military to Escort Scab Grain Ship in Longview WA’. (see page 5)
The resolution says: ‘Whereas, EGT, a joint venture led by multinational grain giant Bunge, agreed to hire union Longshoremen when accepting millions in taxpayer funds to build a huge new grain exporting terminal at the Port of Longview WA, but once the terminal was built has tried to void its contract and refused to hire ILWU labour. With the use of brutal police and courts and 220 arrests in the 225 member ILWU Local 21, EGT has managed to get enough scab grain across picket lines into the new terminal that EGT appears poised to load a ship soon in violation of their agreement with port. . .’
It continued: ‘Whereas, according to Longshore & Shipping News, within a month, the empty grain ship will be escorted by armed US Coast Guard vessels and helicopters, from the mouth of the Columbia River to the EGT facility. The Coast Guard is an integral part of the US Armed Forces, operating under the Department of Homeland Security (except when engaged in combat operations abroad, as it did in Iraq, when it operates under the Navy).’
It adds: ‘The use of the Armed Forces against labour unions is something you expect to see in a police state. This is part of a disturbing trend where the US military, acting as enforcers for the 1%, is poised to be used against our own people, as exemplified by the new law allowing the military to imprison US citizens indefinitely without trial. . .’
The resolution adds: ‘To quote ILWU international President McEllrath: “ILWU’s labour dispute with EGT is symbolic of what is wrong in the United States today. Corporations, no matter how harmful the conduct to society, enjoy full state and federal protection while workers and the middle class get treated as criminals for trying to protect their jobs and communities.”’
The resolution continues to appeal to all trade unions and to all workers to take action to stop the military strike-breaking on behalf of the bosses.
This development brings out in the clearest possible way that the foreign policy of US imperialism to crush Iran and China is an extension of its home policy to destroy the US trade unions.
For the American ruling class, the main enemy is at home and the current crisis presents them with an opportunity to step up the class war to crush the US workers.
The American workers must reply with mass strike actions and by breaking with the Republicans and Democrats and forming a Labour Party to fight for a socialist United States.
A section of the Fourth International must now be built in the USA to lead the struggle of the working class forward to the victory of socialism.
