(WCIV) — U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham urged President Joe Biden Wednesday to intervene in a dockworker’s strike that shut down ports from Maine to Texas. Dockworkers walked off the job on Tuesday morning, joining the picket line in a strike over wages and automation that could reignite inflation and cause shortages of goods if it goes on more than a few weeks.The contract between the ports and about 45,000 members of the International Longshoremen’s Association expired at midnight on Oct. 1, and even though progress was reported in talks on Monday by The Associated Press, the workers went on strike. “I can’t emphasize [this enough:] The strike needs to end sooner rather than later,” Graham said during a briefing Wednesday afternoon. “I cannot tell you how seriously this will jeopardize our recovery [from Hurricane Helene] in South Carolina and North Carolina. This is going to jeopardize public health. It’s going to jeopardize public safety.” Graham(R, S.C.) becomes the latest lawmaker from South Carolina to push for the strike to end. Junior U.S. Sen. Tim Scott (R) echoed a similar message to Graham earlier in the week, calling on the dockworkers union to withhold striking to ensure supplies reach those devastated by Hurricane Helene. “At least 100 Americans have died, millions have been without power, and flooding continues to devastate homes and communities in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene,” Scott said in a statement on Monday. “I urge the members of the International Longshoremen’s Association to temporarily continue working under their current contract until the suffering from the storm has eased.” Republican Gov. Henry McMaster also joined the two conservative South Carolina senators in calling for an end to the strike, asking Biden to invoke the Taft-Hartley Act. The move would allow the president to force an 80-day cooling-off period to end the strike. “The longer it lasts, the worse it’ll get,” McMaster said. “That’s why we asked President Biden today to consider, under the Taft-Hartley Act, that says that if a strike is a threat to the health or safety of the nation, it can be enjoined for a period. So that’s what we’re hoping that he will do that if it’s not settled, not settled immediately.” Currently, the strike is affecting 36 ports. It is the first by the union since 1977. Over 700 longshoremen in the Lowcountry left the job at midnight Tuesday, signaling their frustration and determination for change. “We can’t continue to work in a pandemic and not be recognized or paid for that, which we didn’t waiver,” said Marquette Mapp, a longshoreman with ILA Local 1422. “A lot of my union members lost loved ones. They themselves contracted the COVID virus and took it home, making other members of their family sick.”   State Rep. Wendell Gilliard and with Congressman Ro Khanna, standing along side the ILA, as the strike continues. Hear from them and more tonight! #ILA #chs #working4you @ABCNews4 pic.twitter.com/OigM4SXu3o — JarridABC4 (@JarridABC4) October 3, 2024 Thus far, Biden has not indicated he will intervene in the strike. During an exchange with reporters on Sunday, Biden, who has worked to court union votes for Democrats, said “no” when asked if he planned to intervene in the potential work stoppage, according to the AP. Graham wants to see different. “[The Port of Charleston] is an essential outlet to the world for South Carolina,” Graham said. “So President Biden I am urging you, I am telling you, I am begging you [to] end this strike sooner rather than later because you’re adding misery to pain.” Categories: News, Politics