Submitted by Elaine Magliaro, Guest Blogger
There’s been a lot going on in Wisconsin in the past week. I hope most Americans are aware of the reason why so many Wisconsinites have converged on the state capital to hold demonstrations.
Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker, a Republican, claims that the state is in financial trouble. He’s asking teachers, plow drivers, janitors, nurses, garbage collectors, and other public sector workers to contribute more to their pensions and to pay a larger amount of their health premiums. It appears many of those workers are willing to negotiate with the governor and to consider having more money taken out of their paychecks for their pensions and health insurance. What those employees are not willing to do is relinquish their right to collective bargaining.
I can understand why Governor Walker is asking public employees to have more deductions taken from their paychecks during these fiscally difficult times. What I question is his budget-repair bill that would strip public employees of their right to collective bargaining. If the governor believes that taking away that right will help with the state budget shortfall, why isn’t he demanding that police, firefighters, and state troopers give up their right to collective bargaining too? Could it be political payback? Does that sound like a possibility to you?
Here is an excerpt from an article that Todd Richmond wrote for Bloomberg:
Walker has introduced a bill that would strip public employees across the board — from teachers to snowplow drivers — of their right to collectively bargain for sick leave, vacation, even the hours they work. But absolutely nothing would change for local police, fire departments and the State Patrol.
The bill smacks of political favoritism for public safety unions that supported Walker’s election bid last year and sets up new haves and have-nots in Wisconsin government, said Paul Secunda, a Marquette University professor who specializes in labor law.
“That’s called ‘thank you, I got your back,'” Secunda said. “There’s no surprise there. This is the worst type of favoritism there could be.”
Well, Wisconsin firefighters are showing their solidarity with their fellow public employees. There’s a post at Mother Jones about an interview that Uptake’s Oliver Dykstra had with Mahlon Mitchell, president of the Professional Firefighters of Wisconsin. (Mother Jones also posted a video of the interview.)
Here are some of the highlights of that interview—which I’ve taken from Mother Jones:
- “The reason that we are here is because it’s important that labor sticks together. There was a message from the governor’s office to conquer and divide…collective bargaining is not just for us, police and fire, it’s good for all involved. It’s a middle-class upbringing.”
- “When firefighters see an emergency, one thing we do is respond. And we see an emergency in the house of labor, so that’s why we’re here.”
- “Every day, if you notice, we lead the AFSCME employees, the SEIU employees, all the public sector employees into the building, because we are here to fight with them.”
- “Collective bargaining is not about union rights; it’s about rights of workers…We ask Gov. Walker to come back and negotiate with the people, negotiatie with the state workers’ unions, and get things worked out, as opposed to just putting out this bill and we don’t hear from him again.”
- “Us as firefighters, we have been exempted from this bill…There’s a 5.8 percent pay into the pension, there’s a 12.4 percent pay into the health care premium benefits…For the betterment of the government, for the betterment of the state, we don’t mind helping to pay for that. We don’t want to price ourselves out of a job. Ever. What we want to do is have a fair and equitable treatment among our members.”
I have great respect for the Wisconsin firefighters who are supporting their fellow public employees—even though they have nothing to gain politically or financially by doing so.
“We must, indeed, all hang together, or most assuredly we shall all hang separately.” ~Benjamin Franklin
Sources
From One Wisconsin Now
http://www.onewisconsinnow.org/press/one-wi-now-files-open-records-request-for-walker-administration-koch-lobbyist-communications.html
One Wisconsin Now Files Open Records Request for Walker Administration-Koch Lobbyist Communications
Koch’s Americans for Prosperity Running Ads Supporting Walker Scheme
Madison — One Wisconsin Now filed an open records request today for all written communications and records of scheduled meetings between Koch Industries’ top in-state lobbyist and the office of Gov. Scott Walker, his former transition office and the Wisconsin Department of Administration.
Koch Industries’ billionaire owners Charles and David Koch are the driving financial force behind Americans for Prosperity, the organization which is running hundreds and hundreds of thousands of dollars in television ads to support Gov. Walker’s effort to use the government to take away the right of 175,000 Wisconsin workers. Gov. Walker has also included in his scheme a plan to allow private companies, like Koch Industries, to purchase the state’s public power plants – in a possible no-bid scheme.
“Gov. Walker is using the government to take away the rights of working families and do Koch’s bidding,” said Scot Ross, One Wisconsin Now Executive Director. “The people of Wisconsin deserve to know what the Walker administration was telling Koch’s top state lobbyist and when they were talking.”
KochPAC gave Gov. Walker’s gubernatorial campaign $43,000 and David Koch personally donated $1 million to the Republican Governors Association, which spent $5 million to elect Gov. Walker. [Center on Media and Democracy, 2/18/11; Republican Governors Association Press Release]
The Koch brothers are also the driving force behind Americans for Prosperity, which spent $70 million in 2009 and 2010 to advance Koch’s anti-working family agenda. Americans for Prosperity was founded through the donations of the brothers’ Koch Foundation.
“As we learned yesterday, Gov. Walker is more than willing to pick up the phone and gossip with ‘David Koch’ about his scheme to threaten and layoff Wisconsin workers for political reasons,” said Ross. “We have a right to know what Koch Industries’ top Wisconsin general is saying to the Governor and his staff.”
N.J. labor unions expected to rally in Trenton in support of Wisconsin public workers
Published: Friday, February 25, 2011, 6:30 AM
Star-Ledger Staff By Star-Ledger Staff
“Their objectives will be transparent. State labor leaders want to show Gov. Chris Christie a unified front against his demands for larger contributions to pension and health benefits, just like Wisconsin workers are presenting Gov. Scott Walker in his similar call for major concessions.”
http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2011/02/nj_labor_unions_expected_to_ra.html
I am watching Morning Joe at this moment and again Joe is saying how popular Christie is in our state and the discussion is they feel that walker has won and that Christie has won blah,blah blah.
As far as Christie is concerned all I can say is the truth comes out of the mouths of babes,and this took place in 2010 before Christie became a media darling,at my grandsons high school this took place and I guess they are scratching their heads now saying what is going on?
Gov. Chris Christie gets chilly reception at Montclair High School visit
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Last updated: Tuesday March 30, 2010, 3:04 PM
BY MATT FRIEDMAN AND LISA FLEISHER
State House Bureau
STATE HOUSE BUREAU
http://www.northjersey.com/news/033010_Gov_Chris_Christie_gets_chilly_reception_at_Montclair_High_School_visit.html
Students Protest Budget Cuts
Rallies Across New Jersey Organized on Facebook
Updated: Wednesday, 28 Apr 2010, 2:24 PM EDT
Published : Tuesday, 27 Apr 2010, 8:16 AM EDT
BY KATHY CARVAJAL
http://www.myfoxny.com/dpp/news/education/students-to-protest-budget-cuts-20100427
The kids knew way ahead of time what was up.
Little known factoid and possibly even true:
All Republicans holding office in Wisconsin are named “Scott”.
Where are all the German Socialists when you really need them?
Come back Victor Berger!
Come back Emil Seidel!
Come back Frank Zeidler!
Out! Out! Damned Scott!
CEJ,
No big surprise there … it’s back to the 1800’s when politicians could reward their supporters with government appointments … these people are disgusting human beings
From Daily Kos via Uppity Wisconsin,
“another reason to dislike Walker: It’s gotten no attention because of the bigger issues involved, but Gov. Walker’s so-called budget repair bill …would take 35 civil service positions and turn them into political appointees.”
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/02/24/949445/-Walkers-bill-creates-hand-picked-loyalists
Once again–Governor Gumby:
Raff-
If you go to Ripon, when you get to Hwy.23 at Fond du Lac, take the Johnson St.(Hwy.23) exit and turn right past the stop light to Schreiner’s Restaurant. Pick up a box of pecan rolls- they’re to die for! If you get there early, they serve a great breakfast- clean restrooms too. That’s your exit for Ripon anyway.
Raff-
The day after the Federal DOT announced it was cancelling the $810 million grant for the Milwaukee-Madison high speed rail project, Talgo, a Spanish rail car builder announced that it would close its Milwaukee plant in 2012. The plant was built recently on the old A.O. Smith Corp. (builder of car and truck frames) property. Talgo,which employed 125 at the Milwaukee plant was scheduled to build 2 trains for the Milwaukee-Madison route (now cancelled) in addition to orders for 2 for the existing Amtrak Chicago-Milwaukee Hiawatha and 2 more for Oregon. A “victory” for Walker and a disaster in every possible way for Wisconsin.
Buddha,
I guess we can dream of the day when those trains can be found here! See you tomorrow.
raff,
You are right about the ride. It is heavenly. I rode from Nagoya to Kyoto and the shinkansen’s ride was as smooth as glass.
Henman,
the trip down I-94 isn’t great, but I have always been impressed by the roads in Wisconsin whenever I travel there from Illinois. I may be in Ripon tomorrow at a wake, if the weather cooperates.
Henman,
It is amazing that Walker turned down the $800 million for high speed rail. When he did that he lost jobs almost immediately as a high speed rail company (I think it was a Spanish company) closed their Wisconsin office) This is dirty and only looking for a handout, like many of the Tea Party candidates and elected officials.
Buddha,
When I rode on a high speed train in Spain back in 2006, it was a heavenly ride from Madrid to Sevilla. If we had those kind of trains here in the states, we wouldn’t need as many short air carriers and the car traffic and pollution would also decrease. If the US really goes after the high speed rail, it would be a boost to the economy and to the environment.
Buddha-
Scott Walker’s solution to congested traffic between Milwaukee and Chicago: Build 2 more lanes on I-94.
I love going to Chicago, but I hate driving on the Illinois Tollway. It must piss off Chicagoans to spend a beautiful week in Northern Wisconsin and then have to pay to get back into Illinois.
How ’bout it, Prof. T ???
Blouise
1, February 24, 2011 at 8:47 pm
Elaine,
…. marinate
============================
don’t even want to know what you’re using as a marinade
From The Colbert Report last night:
Bust in Show
Since government workers refuse to live up to the greedy goon stereotype, the Tea Party must do it for them.
http://www.colbertnation.com/the-colbert-report-videos/375207/february-23-2011/bust-in-show?xrs=share_copy
HenMan,
Thanks for the opening. I’m a big fan of high speed rail and have been since my time in Japan. There are few places in Japan you cannot reach by rail and they can be reached by rail and taxi. I am without a doubt a car guy, but if I lived in a country with rail access like Japan? It would only leave the garage for joy riding. Building high speed modern rail and modern light rail in metro areas that do not have it would be a two-fold economic boon to this country. It would create jobs including many permanent ones and substantially reduce our dependence on foreign oil.
Bill Nye ‘The Science Guy’ Blasts US For Resisting High-Speed Rail
I’m betting Nye thinks little of Walker’s relationship with the road builders and resistance to rail too.
Elaine-
Scott Walker, as we have already seen, has no problem turning down Fed. transportation funds- unless they are for highway construction. The highway builders and their lobby are very generous to both parties at election time. Thus, we have very nice highways in Wisconsin. In Milwaukee’s inner city the streets are not so nice. A few years ago the Milw. Journal-Sentinel did a story on the disparity of street maintenance between the inner city and the more prosperous areas, with lots of pothole photos. The next day, I took 76th St.through the inner city to see my brother and saw the largest assembly of yellow DPW trucks ever- filling potholes at a record pace. Last summer, thanks to Obama’s stimulus $$$, 76th St. was replaced with a brand new 4-lane concrete street with parking and bicycle lanes. And no more tank traps to dodge!
Walker and his fellow fascists in Milwaukee go into a state of apoplexy when anyone utters the word “rail”. The brilliant talk-radio clowns in Milwaukee have been referring to rail transportation as “choo-choo trains” for the last 30 years. I suspect Walker was traumatized as a boy by seeing a black person getting off of a streetcar in his white neighborhood. (It’s so much easier to re-route busses out of your neighborhood than rail). Republican obstructionism has prevented the extension of Chicago’s Metra System from Kenosha, Wis. to Milwaukee, which would greatly benefit Milwaukee and Southeast Wisconsin as well as Waukegan and Chicago. You already know what happened to $810 million from the U.S. DOT for the Milwaukee-Madison high-speed rail project. For now, Wisconsin’s state motto is “Forward”. As I have said before, it may soon be “You’re on Your Own, Mack”.
It’s probably best you did. It was on the thread about the doctor sleeping with another doctor who saved a bit of something after a very special kiss and impregnated herself. It was the obvious joke and I resisted as long as I could, but yeah verily, the temptation of low hanging fruit got the better of me.
Bad joke monkey, bad!
Buddha,
I think I missed that “nice girls” joke.