ALTOONA, Iowa (AP) - Union leaders at a candidates' forum in Iowa are grilling four Democrats but not front-runner Hillary Rodham Clinton, who has drawn scrutiny over her positions on trade. She has skipped the event because of a scheduling conflict.
Former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley, former Virginia Sen. Jim Webb and former Rhode Island Gov. Lincoln Chafee appeared at the event Thursday hosted by the Iowa Federation of Labor, AFL-CIO. Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders spoke via video conference.
Clinton has been non-committal on several key issues for union members. She has declined to take a firm position on the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal. O'Malley and Sanders oppose it.
Sanders and O'Malley also support raising the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour. Clinton favors an increase, but has yet to say how much.
