ST. PAUL, Minn. - For the second week in a row, credit unions will be seeking to raise their profile and advance their interests at a political convention.
This week it's with the GOP at the Republican National Convention here. Last week, credit unions did all they could to keep awareness a mile high when Democrats met in Denver.
While the two parties hold opposing views, credit unions have played a significant role in a high-profile, bipartisan project that attracted significant press attention. In both Denver and St. Paul, credit unions have helped present a set of keys to a specially built home to an injured soldier. Credit unions raised money for the home and volunteered time to build it.
On hand for the ceremony in Denver was CUNA CEO Dan Mica, U.S. Rep. Ed Perlmutter, representatives of the Democratic Party, the National Journal, and the organizer of the home-building effort, "Homes for Our Troops." The keys were given to Staff Sergeant Travis Strong and his family. During the Democrats' convention, the public relations highlight was a video for "Homes For Our Troops" that featured credit unions and was shown just before remarks made by Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-MA) inside the Pepsi Center. It was shown live on C-SPAN, and appeared in background shots of the major news networks.
"In general, our goal is to demonstrate the positive credit union message," Ryan Donovan, VP-legislative affairs with CUNA told Credit Union Journal.
Added CUNA's political director, Trey Hawkins, "Even beyond the federal policy makers, you have to remember that all of the delegates are state or local officials or leaders in their communities. During the convention representatives of NAFCU said they have fanned out across numerous events and to date have met with House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Charles Rangel (D-NY), Sen. Tom Carper, (D-DE), Mark Pryor (D-AR), and Blanche Lincoln (D-AR). In conjunction with Lava Lamp Productions, NAFCU sponsored an event for Horton's Kids, a nonprofit organization that provides tutoring, mentoring, advocacy, enrichment and family support for children in Washington, D.C.
Two NAFCU reps were in attendance at a Blue Dog Coalition event where Rep. Dennis Moore (D-KS) spoke of the mortgage crisis and specifically mentioned that credit unions were not part of the problem. Moore serves on the House Financial Services Committee and co-chairs policy for the Blue Dog Coalition. (c) 2008 The Credit Union Journal and SourceMedia, Inc. All Rights Reserved. http://www.cujournal.com/ http://www.sourcemedia.com/
