Railroad union accused of funneling dues to Democratic causes, report says

FIRST ON FOX — A major railroad union is under fire after a watchdog report alleges its leaders funneled money to support Democratic causes opposing the Trump administration, thereby undermining many of its own MAGA members while also spending millions on questionable expenses.

Leaders of the Road Maintenance Brotherhood Employees Division (BMWED-IBT), one of the nation’s largest railroad unions representing 37,000 members, are accused of using union resources to support Democratic priorities through their spending, according to a report by the American Accountability Foundation (AAF).

“The leadership’s progressive alignment is a stunning betrayal of the large segments of working class members who support the MAGA agenda and President Trump’s leadership,” the report said.

“BMWE’s one-sided partisanship is evidenced by its attacks on the Trump agenda and broad support for Democratic causes.”

According to Watchdog’s report, the country’s two largest teachers unions transferred approximately $50 million to left-wing groups.

The report described the union’s leadership as “left-leaning”, citing attacks against it during Trump’s first term; They included claims that Trump was “dismantling Obama’s legacy” and that deregulation efforts were “dangerous.”

Additionally, the report found that the union supports left-leaning causes such as Black Lives Matter, abortion and universal healthcare, opposes Trump’s “Big, Beautiful Bill,” and opposes Democratic organizations and Rep. Jesús “Chuy” García, D-Ill. and revealed that he maintains ties to prominent Democrats, including Dina Titus, D-Nev.

The report said union leaders displayed a “staggering betrayal” and abandoned the “will” of the broad MAGA membership base, underscoring a growing disconnect between organized labor leadership and many “rank-and-file” union members.

“While industry union members’ broad support for the Trump-Vance agenda has been widely reported, news of this nearly decade-old realignment has apparently yet to reach the leadership of the Maintenance Brotherhood and Road Workers Division (BMWE) union, whose dues-paying members have repeatedly voted for President Trump,” the report said.

Beyond the union’s political orientation, the report also examined BMWED-IBT’s spending practices.

THE LARGEST PUBLIC SECTOR UNIONS SPENT AMOUNTS RESPECTFUL ON LEFT POLITICS — 86 PERCENT FINANCED FROM MEMBERS’ MONEY

A large-scale commercial inland cargo container and rail yard is seen in Cincinnati, Ohio. (iStock)

The report alleges that the union sent more than $441,098 to “leftist” organizations, including the Center for American Progress, a leading progressive think tank, and more than $100,000 to the National Democratic Club and the National Teamsters Hispanic Caucus over several years.

The report stated that both the National Democratic Club and the National Teamsters Hispanic Caucus are known for their stance against the Trump administration’s immigration policies.

The report also examines the Teamsters Democratic, Republican, Independent Voter Education (DRIVE) PAC, which BMWED-IBT joined after its political action committee merged with the PAC in 2004, and says the PAC has largely supported Democrats in its political spending, donating about $13.76 million to Democratic Party committees, compared to about $729,846 to Republican committees.

Recent polls show that labor unions like BMWED-IBT consist of large numbers of workers who support Trump; these include the Teamsters poll, which showed a 60/40 split in favor of Trump, and the exit poll from the 2024 election, which showed working-class voters without college degrees voting 56% for Trump and 42% for Harris.

The report not only pointed to the union’s Democratic affiliations, but also noted what it described as “tremendous wasteful spending” and claimed that roughly two-thirds of headquarters employees will earn six-figure salaries in 2024, while the average BMWED-IBT member earns $61,692.

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Cardwell earned $233,492 that year, and Secretary-Treasurer Dale Bogart earned $206,709, the report said, adding that members of BMWED-IBT Local Lodge 1020, a local union, paid about $100 a month in dues that “went to subsidize the salaries of union leaders.”

Additionally, the report claims that BMWED-IBT spent more than $18 million from 2017 to 2024; This includes $7.25 million for hotels and conferences, $5.44 million for legal fees, $2.71 million for promotional products and merchandise, and $2.11 million for travel.

According to the report, which claims that the expenses show that the leadership’s priorities are not in the right place, it is claimed that the union spent $2.33 million in the same period on casinos and resorts alone, including a $522,281 payment to Caesars Entertainment in 2023.

“Hard-working rank-and-file members of the Brotherhood of Maintenance and Road Workers Division Union pat themselves on the back by earning an average of $60,000 a year, while waking up their union bosses and living like kings, spending millions of their union dues on progressive activism, hotel stays and casino trips,” AAF President Tom Jones told Fox News Digital.

“The BMWE Union is completely out of touch with its members and is actively betraying the Trump-supporting workers it claims to support.”

A Black Lives Matter flag is displayed during a demonstration in Los Angeles. (Stanton Sharpe/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

The union strongly opposed the report in a statement to Fox News Digital.

“Our union has been operating with a budget surplus since assuming leadership of BMWED-IBT in 2022,” said BMWED-IBT President Tony D. Cardwell. “In fact, being fiscally responsible and diligent stewards of members’ money was one of our top priorities. We are achieving that goal.”

Cardwell noted that the union’s work “on Capitol Hill or any government building across the country” is focused on “delivering the best policy and protection” for members, and that the union donates to lawmakers from both parties who support railroad workers because “Party affiliation is not a determining factor for our political branch; the only thing that matters is the support of working railroad workers.”

“No dues are allocated to political lobbying activities,” Cardwell said. “The only money donated to politicians comes from our Teamster PAC, which is and has always been voluntarily funded. It is vital that we have a voice in the political arena, and this is how we achieve this with impartiality and the goal of getting the best possible policies and legislation for our members.”

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Despite the union’s ties to Democrats, BMWED-IBT is backed by Sen. Sen. who recently introduced the Safe Rails Act, which would require rail companies to use both manned and automated track inspections. Josh Hawley, R-Mo. He collaborated with Republicans on major railroad safety legislation, including

Cardwell said the union “has garnered more Republican support on the Hill than in the past” and that its relationship with President Donald Trump has “grown stronger,” noting that Vice President J.D. Vance also supported rail safety legislation while serving in the U.S. Senate representing Ohio.

A review of BMWED-IBT’s social media accounts by Fox News Digital shows that the union reposted and applauded Trump and Vance’s push for the Railroad Safety Act, which the union fought for after the Norfolk Southern freight train derailment that caused a massive chemical spill in East Palestine, Ohio, three years ago.

Earlier this year, the American Accountability Foundation (AAF) released a similar report involving the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainers (BLET), one of the nation’s oldest labor unions, claiming that the organization is run by leaders who endorse and support Democratic policies and candidates, despite a membership base that data suggests largely supports the president.