Bricklayers Back Clinton for President

Democratic Presidential candidate Sen. Hillary Clinton D-NY., gestures during a fundraiser in Charlottesville, Va., Sunday, Sept. 23, 2007. (AP Photo/Steve Helber) (Steve Helber - AP)

"The demands the union is fighting for _ job security, the health benefits they were promised _ are things that all workers should expect and that UAW members deserve," Obama said in a statement. "General Motors owes it to the UAW to come back to the bargaining table so that union members can go back to work."

At a Capitol Hill news conference, Clinton said the Bush administration has neglected the needs of the auto industry. "There is a role for presidential leadership," she said, adding that the leaders of the Big Three automakers had for years sought a meeting with the White House.

"They were rebuffed repeatedly. Finally there was a meeting that occurred with no follow-up," said Clinton.

Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards also blamed the White House for the problems that led to the strike. "Sadly, the issues on the bargaining table between General Motors and the United Auto Workers are not unique to Detroit _ they represent the larger failures of Washington and public policies that have weakened unions and the middle class," Edwards said.

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On the Net:

Bricklayers union: http://www.bacweb.org/

Corrections officers union: http://www.cobanyc.org/