Submitted by Elaine Magliaro, Guest Blogger
I have already written three posts about Governor Scott Walker, his budget repair bill, and the protesters in Wisconsin. People have been interested in
the Wisconsin story and have left nearly 1,800 comments at my three posts. I’ve even received requests to write up another post so that we could continue the discussion on the subject. I think there are others like me who believe the Wisconsin/Walker story is not over yet.
As I did last week, I’m posting links to some articles on the subject for you—as well as excerpts from some of the articles.
Democrats immediately file suit to halt challenges (Journal Sentinel)
By Jason Stein, Don Walker, and Patrick Marley
Excerpt: Wisconsin is now among the vanguard of Midwestern states embarking on a new era with their rules for public unions. Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels, a Republican, signed an executive order in 2005 to eliminate collective bargaining for state employees. Ohio is working on a measure to rewrite its collective bargaining law with public-sector unions.
But the fight in Wisconsin isn’t over – Democrats and unions are already filing lawsuits against the proposal and recall actions against GOP senators who approved it.
“It’s just the beginning,” said Sen. Bob Jauch (D-Poplar). “This is the civil rights issue of this century.”
********************
Wisconsin’s Legacy of Labor Battles (New York Times)
By Kate Zernike
Excerpt: In her book, “Radical Unionism in the Midwest, 1900-1950,” Professor Feurer recounts how companies in the electrical industry in St. Louis started a network known as the Metal Trades Association in the first part of the 20th century to fight union organizing. The association had been alarmed by union protests that erupted violently with the Haymarket Square riot in 1886 and the demands for an eight-hour day, which started with the 1894 Pullman strike in Illinois — an early effort by Eugene V. Debs, the former Indiana legislator and future Socialist Party candidate for president.
“That left a legacy of the 1930s and ’40s for employers to form deep right-wing networks,” Professor Feurer said.
That network, she argues, was the precursor to the Midwestern groups that have now been assisting the fight against the unions in Wisconsin, Ohio and Indiana: the Bradley Foundation, based in Milwaukee, and Koch Industries, based in Wichita, Kan. David H. and Charles G. Koch, the billionaire brothers behind the energy and manufacturing conglomerate that bears their name, have been large donors to Mr. Walker in Wisconsin, as has their advocacy group, Americans for Prosperity, which first opened an office in Wisconsin in 2005.
********************
By Ryan Haggerty and Michael Muskal
Excerpt: Even as Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker on Friday signed into law a bill that sharply curbs collective bargaining for most public employees, his opponents were preparing for more demonstrations, court battles and political infighting over what has become a national test of labor’s power.
Organizers were hoping to attract tens of thousands protesters to the Capitol on Saturday for a rally featuring the return of Democratic lawmakers who fled the state on Feb. 17 in an effort to block the measure from passing. Along with the rally, Democrats are planning to ask the courts to overturn the new law and they have begun circulating petitions to recall some lawmakers. GOP supporters are circulating their own recall petitions, directed at the Democrats.
********************
Op-Ed: The GOP’s costly Wisconsin Koch binge is a wake-up call (Digital Journal)
The Big Shakedown: Wisconsin and the GOP’s Vision for America’s Future (Common Dreams)
Dane County sues state to block budget bill (The Cap Times)
Union Bill Is Law, but Debate Is Far from Over (New York Times)
My Previous Posts
Scott Walker: A Fiscally Responsible Governor or a Politician Who Is Playing Favorites?
Is the Scott Walker Story Just the Tip of the Koch Brothers’ Political Iceberg?
Wisconsin, Scott Walker, and Protesting Workers: The Story Continues
Stamford Liberal
1, March 30, 2011 at 4:09 pm
Anti,
I didn’t ask what you thought it was, brain surgeon. I asked for its specific meaning.
fas·cism noun \ˈfa-ˌshi-zəm also ˈfa-ˌsi-\
Definition of FASCISM
1often capitalized : a political philosophy, movement, or regime (as that of the Fascisti) that exalts nation and often race above the individual and that stands for a centralized autocratic government headed by a dictatorial leader, severe economic and social regimentation, and forcible suppression of opposition
2: a tendency toward or actual exercise of strong autocratic or dictatorial control
— fas·cist \-shist also -sist\ noun or adjective often capitalized
— fas·cis·tic \fa-ˈshis-tik also -ˈsis-\ adjective often capitalized
— fas·cis·ti·cal·ly \-ti-k(ə-)lē\ adverb often capitalized
See fascism defined for English-language learners »
Examples of FASCISM
the rise of Fascism in Europe before World War II
From the first hours of Hitler’s invasion of the Soviet Union, the propagandists on both sides of the conflict portrayed the struggle in stark, Manichaean language. The totalitarian nature of both regimes made this inevitable. On one side stood Hitler, fascism, the myth of German supremacy; on the other side stood Stalin, communism, and the international proletarian revolution. —Anne Applebaum, New York Review of Books, 25 Oct. 2007
Consider what happened during the crisis of global fascism. At first, even the truth about Hitler was inconvenient. Many in the west hoped the danger would simply go away. —Al Gore, An Inconvenient Truth, 2006
He collected stories about groups similar to his—Aryans, other Nazis, the KKK. Lately, he’d been flagging many stories from Germany and Eastern Europe, and was quite thrilled with the rise of fascism there. —John Grisham, The Chamber, 1995
Origin of FASCISM
Italian fascismo, from fascio bundle, fasces, group, from Latin fascis bundle & fasces fasces
First Known Use: 1921
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fascism
Stamford Liberal 1, March 30, 2011 at 4:41 pm
Anti,
Well, tough guy, that’s all fine and dandy but I’m talking the true definition, not what others might think.
#################################
As a member of the human condition who may or may not be educable or trainable, I can find no evidence of there ever having actually existed even one “true definition” of anything.
But then, perhaps I am not educable and am not trainable; and, in this, I am much like everyone else… ???
However, for starters–
What is the one and only “true definition” of “true definition”?
😉
I just received this email from BoldProgressives.org:
BREAKING NEWS: Wisconsin Democrats just announced that local activists submitted over 100% of the signatures needed to “recall” Republican state senator Dan Kapanke from office!
After local officials certify the signatures, a new election will be scheduled for Kapanke’s seat. Today’s news will send shockwaves throughout Wisconsin, and it gives huge momentum to efforts in other Senate districts to gather recall signatures.
I just received this email from BoldProgressives.org:
——————————————————————————–
BREAKING NEWS: Wisconsin Democrats just announced that local activists submitted over 100% of the signatures needed to “recall” Republican state senator Dan Kapanke from office!
After local officials certify the signatures, a new election will be scheduled for Kapanke’s seat. Today’s news will send shockwaves throughout Wisconsin, and it gives huge momentum to efforts in other Senate districts to gather recall signatures.
those f ers make 174,000 dollars a year as state legislators? No f ing way. What a crock of shit, that is. They need to give up s good bit of that before they start asking teachers to.
Blouise,
Now that is a job that I can handle…carrying a clipboard! We stand behind you!
role = roll Freudian slip as I enter the role of clipboard holder ready to roll
Walker has said he will comply with the Judge’s ruling.
Meanwhile, in Ohio SB5 will be signed this afternoon and then the referendum work will proceed to place the issue on the November ballot. All the organization has been done and the troops are ready to role. Clipboards in hand, we march.
Awww … poor Representative Duffy …
rotflmao
http://i.imgur.com/17jxH.jpg
GMA Takes On ‘Tea Party Darlings On The Dole’
By Mark Joyella | 8:58 am, March 31st, 2011
From Mediaite
http://www.mediaite.com/tv/gma-takes-on-tea-party-darlings-on-the-dole/
Thursday morning, ABC’s Good Morning America suggested some of the Tea Party’s leaders have a case of “Hill Hypocrisy” for attacking government spending while taking millions in government money. ABC’s senior political correspondent Jonathan Karl reported “the Tea Party movement is all about slashing federal spending, but at least five House members with Tea Party connections have themselves collected more than $100,000 each in federal farm subsidies, totalling more than $8 million since 1995.”
The subsidies are included in a report out Thursday by the Environmental Working Group. “We need a better system,” said Rep. Stephen Fincher, a Tennessee Republican whose family farm has received more than $3 million in subsidies, with more than $100,000 going directly to the Congressman himself. Asked directly if he’d refuse to take any further subsidies, he dodged the question. Others said the farm subsidies–totalling $16 billion–need to cut if not eliminated.
**********
Check out the video at the link I posted.
And from the state of Florida:
Today, Rick Scott Will Lay Out Cuts For Developmentally Disabled And Then Attend A Special Olympics Photo-Op
Think Progress, 3/31/2011
http://thinkprogress.org/2011/03/31/scott-special-olympics/
Today, Florida Gov. Rick Scott (R) will announce deep cuts to programs that help the developmentally disabled in his state. Scott will invoke his “emergency powers” to impose a 15 percent cut to the rates charged by group home workers and case workers that help the 30,000 Floridians with cerebral palsy, autism, and Down Syndrome.
Those who provide services to the developmentally disabled are already decrying the cuts. “This would be a catastrophe,” one advocate told the Miami Herald. “The system can’t take this. Eventually, we will have to cut jobs and reduce services.”
Scott says the cuts are necessary to address a $170 million deficit in the Agency for Persons with Disabilities — but at the same time, he is also proposing $1.5 billion in corporate tax cuts and $1.4 billion more in property tax cuts.
Even more galling, today — the same day his cuts are announced — Scott is scheduled to appear at a Special Olympics Torch Run with his wife and other state officials. The run is designed to promote the upcoming Special Olympics in Florida, and raise money for developmentally disabled athletes along the way:
Funds are generated through contributions from individuals and businesses along the way and through sales of the popular Torch Run T-shirts and caps.
This event is held each year prior to Special Olympics Florida State Summer Games.
Given the deep cuts Scott has just proposed, they might need to sell a lot of t-shirts.
Breaking: Wisconsin Judge Declares Anti-Worker Law Is Not In Effect
http://thinkprogress.org/2011/03/31/walker-not-in-effect/
Think Progress: 3/31/2011 at 11:20 AM
Excerpt:
Nearly two weeks ago, Wisconsin state Judge Maryann Sumi issued a temporary restraining order (TRO) prohibiting Wisconsin’s Secretary of State from “publishing” Gov. Scott Walker’s (R) anti-union law. Because Wisconsin law requires the Secretary of State’s office to publish a law before the law may take effect, this TRO should have suspended the law for as long as Sumi’s order remains in effect. Nevertheless, the state’s Republican leadership asked a different government office to publish the law on its website, and the Walker Administration has already begun to implement the law in defiance of Sumi’s original order.
This morning, Judge Sumi issued a new order clarifying that any attempt to implement Walker’s assault on working families is lawless:
[I]t is hereby DECLARED that 2011 Wisconsin Act 10 has not been published…and is therefore not in effect.
rafflaw,
“Now if he just sticks to that stance and gets just as hard nosed on the atrocious budget cuts, I would be happier.”
I hear you. He has been eerily quiet about what the GOP is proposing and it doesn’t give me a warm and fuzzy feeling … he has been known to cave to their temper tantrums in the past …
Stamford,
Great links! Finally President Obama has taken the correct stance and told the GOP to go take a hike. Now if he just sticks to that stance and gets just as hard nosed on the atrocious budget cuts, I would be happier.
White House Threatens To Veto Key Legislation Over Union Busting Provision
Brian Beutler | March 30, 2011, 6:45PM1433
The White House has threatened to veto the big FAA authorization bill if its final version contains an anti-union provision that would make it harder for aviation and rail workers to organize.
That measure, described at length here and here, “would undermine a fundamental principle of fairness in union representation elections – that outcomes should be determined by a majority of the valid ballots cast,” according to a statement of administration policy the White House released Wednesday night. “By treating non-votes as ‘no’ votes, the provision would prohibit workers in the airline and railroad industries from voting whether to join a union on the same basis – majority rule – as most other industries.”
If the President is presented with a bill that would not safeguard the ability of railroad and airline workers to decide whether or not they would be represented by a union based upon a majority of the ballots cast in an election or that would degrade safe and efficient air traffic, his senior advisers would recommend that he veto the bill.There’s a bit of wiggle room in there. When the White House announced its opposition to the House’s six-month spending plan, for instance, it was with a direct assertion that President Obama would veto it. But it’s a strong statement nonetheless.
The House version of the legislation in question, which would reauthorize FAA programs, contains the anti-union provision. The Senate’s version does not. Several House Republicans support stripping the measure from their bill. But House leadership, in concert with Delta Airlines and other anti-union advocates, have been pressing their members to toe party line and leave the language in place.
If they do, it would either have to be removed when the House and Senate resolve their differences in a conference committee, or face a veto.
Needless to say, union advocates are thrilled by the development.
http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/03/white-house-threatens-to-veto-key-legislation-over-union-busting-provision.php?ref=tn
Aww … poor Representative Duffy. I guess he never thought to keep his pants zipped or his wife never thought to use birth control …
“GOPers Demand Sean Duffy Salary Tape Be Pulled From The Internet (VIDEO)
Evan McMorris-Santoro | March 30, 2011, 4:28PM9740
First the Republican Party in Polk County, Wisconsin, pulled the tape of Rep. Sean Duffy (R-WI) fretting about making ends meet on his $174,000 a year salary from its own website. Now they want it gone from the whole Internet.
For a couple hours, the local county GOP was successful. But we’ve put an excerpt of the video back up.
A day after TPM posted the video we obtained of Duffy talking about his salary at a Polk County town hall meeting earlier this year, the Polk County GOP contacted the video provider we used to host the video, Blip.tv, and demanded the video be taken down.
The tape caused a stir for Duffy, a first-term conservative best known for his past as a reality TV show star on MTV’s The Real World. Democrats flagged the comments about his taxpayer-funded salary (which is nearly three times the median income in Wisconsin) and criticisms began to flow Duffy’s way.
In the clip, Duffy is asked whether he’d support cutting his own salary. Duffy says he would, but only as part of a plan where all public employees’ salaries would be cut. He then said that the $174,000 in salary (not including benefits) he receives is a squeeze for his family of seven to live on:
I can guarantee you, or most of you, I guarantee that I have more debt than all of you. With 6 kids, I still pay off my student loans. I still pay my mortgage. I drive a used minivan. If you think I’m living high on the hog, I’ve got one paycheck. So I struggle to meet my bills right now. Would it be easier for me if I get more paychecks? Maybe, but at this point I’m not living high on the hog.Duffy’s office said any Democratic criticism of his response was “a misleading attack.”
The county GOP took down the video from its blog after the Washington Post posted a short clip of it yesterday morning.
An official with the Polk County GOP, which posted many other clips of the town hall on its YouTube channel, told TPM yesterday that the video was taken down because it was “was being republished without our consent.”
Kirk Anderson, who manages the county GOP website filed the complaint with Blip.tv, claiming that posting the video was a copyright infringement and demanding that the video be taken down. You can view that request here.
County party Chair Sandy Fretwell did not respond to a request for comment. Duffy’s office did not respond to a request either.
Here’s a one-minute clip, excerpted from roughly 45 minutes of video of the public Duffy townhall, that the Polk County GOP doesn’t want anyone to see:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cOGAziUrbkw&w=640&h=390]
http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/03/gopers-demand-sean-duffy-salary-tape-be-pulled-from-the-internet.php?ref=tn
OS,
Great link and great news. It looks like the judge is dotting her “i’s” in anticipation of putting those thieves behind bars! I hope she doesn’t fine them because they will just pull it out of state funds!
It gets juicier by the day. This morning, our friend PDNC writes:
Linkeee thingee: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/03/31/961919/-Breaking-News:-Judge-Says-Anti-Union-Law-NOT-in-Effect
Here is a PDF of the Amended Order:
http://thewheelerreport.com/releases/March11/0331/0331sumi.pdf
Walker’s Office: We’re Still Enforcing Anti-Union Law — Court Order Doesn’t Apply To Us
Eric Kleefeld | March 31, 2011, 10:07AM59
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Gov. Scott Walker’s (R) administration isn’t letting one court order stop them from implementing the new law curtailing public employee unions — nor do they seem concerned by a second court order, and threats of sanctions, after they had sidestepped the first.
As the Wisconsin State Journal reports, Secretary of Administration Mike Huebsch has announced that the state will continue implementing the law, holding it to still be in effect:
Department of Administration Secretary Mike Huebsch said Wednesday he has a legal obligation to implement all laws passed by the Legislature, signed by Gov. Scott Walker and published into law. Huebsch said the Department of Justice and his own legal counsel, a team of DOA attorneys, agree the measure has met those requirements “and is now effective law.”
“It is my duty to administer that law,” he said.Huebsch’s statement also questioned whether Dane County (Madison) Judge Maryann Sumi’s order could be binding upon him, as his department was not a defendant in the lawsuit against the bill: “It is unclear how she can issue an order binding non-parties to a case who have not had their day in court.”
The lawsuit had targeted Democratic Secretary of State Doug La Follette, in his official capacity to publish bills before they take effect — to which the Republicans responded by publishing it within a different agency, and claiming that it was now law.
Here is Huebsch’s full statement, via WisPolitics:
“I have a legal obligation to execute all laws pertaining to my department that have been passed by both houses of the legislature, signed by the Governor, and published into law. The Department of Justice has concluded that 2011 Wisconsin Act 10 has met those requirements and is now effective law. My legal counsel agrees with the Department of Justice’s legal reasoning and conclusions. Accordingly, it is my duty to administer that law.
“On the other hand, Judge Sumi made clear in comments from the bench yesterday that she intended to prevent further implementation of Act 10 by anyone including, apparently, non-parties such as myself and the Department of Administration. Yet, the TRO she issued fails to state that Act 10 is not in effect. In fact, Judge Sumi declined a request to declare that Act 10 was not lawfully published. It is unclear how she can issue an order binding non-parties to a case who have not had their day in court.
“Because of the questions this TRO raises, its legal effect on my implementation of Act 10 is also unclear. DOA will continue to monitor court proceedings and work with legal counsel and the Department of Justice to determine an appropriate course of action.”Two Fridays ago, Judge Sumi blocked the law on procedural grounds, issuing a temporary restraining order on the grounds the plaintiff, the Dane County District Attorney, had a likelihood of success in his complaint that a key conference committee used to advance the bill — and to get around the state Senate Dems’ walkout from the state — had violated the state open-meetings law by failing to give proper 24-hours notice. The judge’s order “restrain[ed] and enjoin[ed] the further implementation” of the law, including the prevention of Secretary of State Doug La Follette (D) from publishing the act in the Wisconsin State Journal. The State Journal acts as the state’s official newspaper for the purpose of giving the public official notice of new laws — the final step for the law to take effect. That decision is now going through an appeals process, which remains up in the air.
This past Friday, however, state Republicans had the bill published by a different state agency — the Legislative Reference Bureau, which handles drafting and research for the legislature — according to the LRB’s statutory requirement to publish legislation within ten days of enactment. Notably, the LRB itself has said that this publication does not constitute action that would put the law into effect. But state Republican leaders, including Walker’s office and the state Attorney General, say that the law is now in effect.
And Monday, Huebsch announced that he was now carrying out the law, with government employees’ paychecks starting on April 21 to contain deductions for contributions to their health care and pensions — and to no longer deduct union dues.
Then on Tuesday, Sumi issued another order to block the law — and Assistant Attorney General Steven Means, who worked for Republican Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen, said the law would still hold:
“Apparently that language was either misunderstood or ignored, but what I said was the further implementation of Act 10 was enjoined. That is what I now want to make crystal clear,” she said.
But minutes later, outside the court room, Assistant Attorney General Steven Means said the legislation “absolutely” is still in effect.Correction: This post has been edited in order to clarify the nature of Judge Maryann Sumi’s order blocking the bill.
http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/03/walkers-office-were-still-enforcing-anti-union-law—-court-order-doesnt-apply-to-us.php?ref=dcblt
Of course not! Laws don’t apply to the GOP and teabaggers.
raff, if you or I were the judge they would be, but no telling what Judge Sumi will do. She comes across as very patient and has a terrific judicial demeanor. But no matter how patient she is, I am sure there is a limit beyond which she cannot be pushed. Let’s hope so anyway. Those guys deserve a stay at the Crowbar Hotel and a stiff fine for being scofflaws and contemptuous of the court.