Dock workers just went on strike at the worst possible time

• Dockworkers walked off the job at East and Gulf Coast ports from Maine to Texas on Tuesday morning.
• The strike is set to disrupt major imports one month before the US election.
• The federal government could step in to mediate, but the upcoming election complicates things.

Tens of thousands of dockworkers are on strike after the International Longshoremen's Association and the US Maritime Alliance, which represents dozens of East and Gulf Coast ports, failed to reach consensus on a new labor contract.