AP reported that Ms Hillary Clinton promised cheering United Steel Workers members that she would offer a labor friendly White House and would promote manufacturing if elected as president.

Ms Clinton the democratic senator from New York told union leaders at a conference on manufacturing sponsored by the United Steel Workers that "We are going to revitalize our manufacturing base. I do not think we can be a great nation without a manufacturing base. If we don't keep making things, we're not going to sustain our economic standard of living or our quality of life.”

Ms Clinton added that she hears people say that manufacturing cannot be revived but said she disagrees and said that “A revival could come through targeted high tech industries. We have got to be smart about that.”

Ms Clinton drew cheers with commitments to legislation making it easier for union membership drives and a promise to make union friendly appointments. But she avoided discussion of the North American Free Trade Agreement, which unions blame for the loss of jobs, but promised to make sure trade agreement provisions are kept to insure fair trade.

According to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York US has lost 5 million manufacturing jobs in three decades and the manufacturing share of the nation's work force has dipped from 20% in 1979 to 11%.