Obama Before the UAW Saturday

America needs to implement a universal health care system, support its union workers and amend its free trade agreements, U.S. Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., told an Ottawa audience Saturday morning.

But before those things can be accomplished, America needs to end its involvement in the war in Iraq, he said.

Speaking before a gathering of about 600 United Auto Workers Union members outside the UAW Hall, the Democratic presidential candidate hopeful made several references to his pre-campaign ties to organized labor, including his work as a community organizer in Chicago helping set up afterschool and job-training programs for steelworkers who were laid off after their plant closed.

"If the Democratic Party means anything, then it has to mean we value labor," Obama said. "If the Democratic Party stands for anything, then it has to stand up for your rights and your future."

Hundreds of union workers from Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin and Minnesota filled the front lawn of the UAW Hall as part of the union's regional conference. Obama arrived at 10 a.m. and began speaking 20 minutes later after being greeted by a standing ovation and a boisterous round of applause as Aretha Franklin's "Think" played over the sound system.

Dressed in khaki pants and a white dress shirt with an unfastened top button and the sleeves rolled up, Obama promised to look out for the interests of the working class.

"The UAW built the auto industry in this country, secured good-paying jobs for generations of workers, and helped create the middle class -- the backbone of the American economy," Obama said. "You deserve a president who's got your back when the going gets tough, and I want to be that president."

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