Edwards gets endorsement of United Steelworkers, United Mine Workers

PITTSBURGH (AP) — John Edwards now has more labor endorsements than any of his Democratic rivals.

The presidential contender won over the United Steelworkers and the United Mine Workers of America. The two unions represent nearly a million members.

At a Labor Day rally and parade yesterday in downtown Pittsburgh, the former North Carolina senator told supporters, "America was not built on Wall Street. America was built by steelworkers and mine workers."

Many in the crowd wore union T-shirts and carried signs that urged an end to the war in Iraq. They booed when the head of the United Mine Workers mentioned President Bush. The union chief said Bush is reponsible for letting good-paying U.S. jobs go overseas.