Author Topic: Wisconsin Power Play  (Read 1343 times)

Benny B

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Wisconsin Power Play
« on: February 21, 2011, 12:40:40 PM »
February 20, 2011
Wisconsin Power Play
By PAUL KRUGMAN

Last week, in the face of protest demonstrations against Wisconsin’s new union-busting governor, Scott Walker — demonstrations that continued through the weekend, with huge crowds on Saturday — Representative Paul Ryan made an unintentionally apt comparison: “It’s like Cairo has moved to Madison.”

It wasn’t the smartest thing for Mr. Ryan to say, since he probably didn’t mean to compare Mr. Walker, a fellow Republican, to Hosni Mubarak. Or maybe he did — after all, quite a few prominent conservatives, including Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh and Rick Santorum, denounced the uprising in Egypt and insist that President Obama should have helped the Mubarak regime suppress it.

In any case, however, Mr. Ryan was more right than he knew. For what’s happening in Wisconsin isn’t about the state budget, despite Mr. Walker’s pretense that he’s just trying to be fiscally responsible. It is, instead, about power. What Mr. Walker and his backers are trying to do is to make Wisconsin — and eventually, America — less of a functioning democracy and more of a third-world-style oligarchy. And that’s why anyone who believes that we need some counterweight to the political power of big money should be on the demonstrators’ side.

Some background: Wisconsin is indeed facing a budget crunch, although its difficulties are less severe than those facing many other states. Revenue has fallen in the face of a weak economy, while stimulus funds, which helped close the gap in 2009 and 2010, have faded away.

In this situation, it makes sense to call for shared sacrifice, including monetary concessions from state workers. And union leaders have signaled that they are, in fact, willing to make such concessions.

But Mr. Walker isn’t interested in making a deal. Partly that’s because he doesn’t want to share the sacrifice: even as he proclaims that Wisconsin faces a terrible fiscal crisis, he has been pushing through tax cuts that make the deficit worse. Mainly, however, he has made it clear that rather than bargaining with workers, he wants to end workers’ ability to bargain.

The bill that has inspired the demonstrations would strip away collective bargaining rights for many of the state’s workers, in effect busting public-employee unions. Tellingly, some workers — namely, those who tend to be Republican-leaning — are exempted from the ban; it’s as if Mr. Walker were flaunting the political nature of his actions.


Why bust the unions? As I said, it has nothing to do with helping Wisconsin deal with its current fiscal crisis. Nor is it likely to help the state’s budget prospects even in the long run: contrary to what you may have heard, public-sector workers in Wisconsin and elsewhere are paid somewhat less than private-sector workers with comparable qualifications, so there’s not much room for further pay squeezes.

So it’s not about the budget; it’s about the power.


In principle, every American citizen has an equal say in our political process. In practice, of course, some of us are more equal than others. Billionaires can field armies of lobbyists; they can finance think tanks that put the desired spin on policy issues; they can funnel cash to politicians with sympathetic views (as the Koch brothers did in the case of Mr. Walker). On paper, we’re a one-person-one-vote nation; in reality, we’re more than a bit of an oligarchy, in which a handful of wealthy people dominate.

Given this reality, it’s important to have institutions that can act as counterweights to the power of big money. And unions are among the most important of these institutions.

You don’t have to love unions, you don’t have to believe that their policy positions are always right, to recognize that they’re among the few influential players in our political system representing the interests of middle- and working-class Americans, as opposed to the wealthy. Indeed, if America has become more oligarchic and less democratic over the last 30 years — which it has — that’s to an important extent due to the decline of private-sector unions.

And now Mr. Walker and his backers are trying to get rid of public-sector unions, too.

There’s a bitter irony here. The fiscal crisis in Wisconsin, as in other states, was largely caused by the increasing power of America’s oligarchy. After all, it was superwealthy players, not the general public, who pushed for financial deregulation and thereby set the stage for the economic crisis of 2008-9, a crisis whose aftermath is the main reason for the current budget crunch. And now the political right is trying to exploit that very crisis, using it to remove one of the few remaining checks on oligarchic influence.

So will the attack on unions succeed? I don’t know. But anyone who cares about retaining government of the people by the people should hope that it doesn’t.
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Benny B

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Re: Wisconsin Power Play
« Reply #1 on: February 21, 2011, 12:42:37 PM »
Only 5 states do not have collective bargaining for educators and have deemed it illegal. Their ranking on ACT/SAT scores:

South Carolina - 50th
North Carolina - 49th
Georgia - 48th
Texas - 47th
Virginia - 44th

Wisconsin is currently ranked 2nd. Welcome to the race to the bottom.
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Straw Man

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Re: Wisconsin Power Play
« Reply #2 on: February 21, 2011, 01:09:53 PM »
Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker: Funded by the Koch Bros.

The politician trying to eviscerate public-sector unions is in sync with one of his largest financial backers—the right's infamous billionaire brothers
By Andy Kroll | Fri Feb. 18, 2011 9:12 AM PST


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Wisconsin Republican Governor Scott Walker, whose bill to kill collective bargaining rights [1] for public-sector unions has caused an uproar [2] among state employees, might not be where he is today without the Koch brothers. Charles and David Koch are conservative titans of industry who have infamously used their vast wealth to undermine President Obama [3] and fight legislation they detest, such as the cap-and-trade climate bill, the health care reform act, and the economic stimulus package. For years, the billionaires have made extensive political donations to Republican candidates across the country and have provided millions of dollars to astroturf right-wing organizations. Koch Industries' political action committee has doled out more than $2.6 million to candidates. And one prominent beneficiary of the Koch brothers' largess is Scott Walker.

According to Wisconsin campaign finance filings, Walker's gubernatorial campaign received $43,000 from the Koch Industries PAC during the 2010 election. That donation was his campaign's second-highest, behind $43,125 in contributions from housing and realtor groups in Wisconsin. The Koch's PAC also helped Walker via a familiar and much-used politicial maneuver designed to allow donors to skirt campaign finance limits. The PAC gave [4] $1 million to the Republican Governors Association, which in turn spent $65,000 on independent expenditures to support Walker. The RGA also spent a whopping $3.4 million [5] on TV ads and mailers attacking Walker's opponent, Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett. Walker ended up beating Barrett by 5 points. The Koch money, no doubt, helped greatly.

The Kochs also assisted Walker's current GOP allies in the fight against the public-sector unions. Last year, Republicans took control of the both houses of the Wisconsin state legislature, which has made Walker's assault on these unions possible. And according to data from the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, the Koch Industries PAC spent $6,500 in support of 16 Wisconsin Republican state legislative candidates, who each won his or her election.

Walker's plan to eviscerate collective bargaining rights for public employees is right out of the Koch brothers' playbook. Koch-backed groups like Americans for Prosperity, the Cato Institute, the Competitive Enterprise Institute, and the Reason Foundation have long taken [6] a very [7] antagonistic [8] view [9] toward public-sector unions. Several of these groups have urged the eradication of these unions. The Kochs also invited (PDF [10]) Mark Mix [11], president of the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation, an anti-union outfit, to a June 2010 confab in Aspen, Colorado; Mix said [12] in a recent interview that he supports Governor Walker's collective-bargaining bill. In Wisconsin, this conservative, anti-union view is being placed into action by lawmakers in sync with the deep-pocketed donors who helped them obtain power. (Walker also opposes the state's Clean Energy Job Act, which would compel the state to increase its use of alternative energy.) At this moment—even with the Wisconsin uprising unresolved—the Koch brothers' investment in Walker appears to be paying off.
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Source URL: http://motherjones.com/mojo/2011/02/wisconsin-scott-walker-koch-brothers

Soul Crusher

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Re: Wisconsin Power Play
« Reply #3 on: February 21, 2011, 01:19:03 PM »
And obama is funded by soros, seiu, goldman sachs, acorn, jp morgan, and fannie freddy. 

What's your point.

Straw Man

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Re: Wisconsin Power Play
« Reply #4 on: February 21, 2011, 01:24:57 PM »
And obama is funded by soros, seiu, goldman sachs, acorn, jp morgan, and fannie freddy. 

What's your point.

Obama's top five sources funding

1. Lawyers/Law Firms ($27,689,330)

2. Retirees ($27,220,507)

3. Education ($12,222,365)

4. Securities and Investment ($10,847,652)

 
5. Business Services ($7,451,886)

Source: OpenSecrets.org

Soul Crusher

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Re: Wisconsin Power Play
« Reply #5 on: February 21, 2011, 01:25:47 PM »
Public unions should be banned.  Even FDR said public unions are dangerous to the taxpayer. 

Straw Man

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Re: Wisconsin Power Play
« Reply #6 on: February 21, 2011, 01:34:41 PM »
Public unions should be banned.  Even FDR said public unions are dangerous to the taxpayer. 

I'd like to see someone run on that platform

maybe Chris Christie will take up that cause

225for70

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Re: Wisconsin Power Play
« Reply #7 on: February 21, 2011, 01:38:14 PM »
The Coke brothers funded the kat...It doesn't surprise me..Supposedly, they are pullling the financial strings behind the Tea-party..

Straw Man

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Re: Wisconsin Power Play
« Reply #8 on: February 21, 2011, 01:44:51 PM »
The Coke brothers funded the kat...It doesn't surprise me..Supposedly, they are pullling the financial strings behind the Tea-party..

yep - that's been well documented.  I don't even think they bother to try hiding it anymore

Benny B

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Re: Wisconsin Power Play
« Reply #9 on: February 21, 2011, 04:03:45 PM »
The Coke brothers funded the kat...It doesn't surprise me..Supposedly, they are pullling the financial strings behind the Tea-party..

It's spelled "Koch", even though it is for some reason pronounced like the soft drink and not like the former mayor of New York City.  ???
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Kazan

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Re: Wisconsin Power Play
« Reply #10 on: February 21, 2011, 04:22:00 PM »
Wow Krugman shows he is an idiot as usual, the only interest the unions have is making their leadership rich.
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Benny B

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Re: Wisconsin Power Play
« Reply #11 on: February 21, 2011, 04:28:15 PM »
Wow Krugman shows he is an idiot as usual, the only interest the unions have is making their leadership rich.
Yeah, what an idiot. If only he were as smart as the world-renowned "Kazan."  ::)

Press Release
13 October 2008

The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences has decided to award The Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel 2008 to

Paul Krugman
Princeton University, NJ, USA


"for his analysis of trade patterns and location of economic activity"
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Kazan

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Re: Wisconsin Power Play
« Reply #12 on: February 21, 2011, 04:31:46 PM »
Yeah, what an idiot. If only he were as smart as the world-renowned "Kazan."  ::)

Press Release
13 October 2008

The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences has decided to award The Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel 2008 to

Paul Krugman
Princeton University, NJ, USA


"for his analysis of trade patterns and location of economic activity"


I'm sure Krugman has actually worked in a Union shop and is speaking from experience ::)
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Benny B

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Re: Wisconsin Power Play
« Reply #13 on: February 21, 2011, 04:46:29 PM »
I'm sure Krugman has actually worked in a Union shop and is speaking from experience ::)
I'm sure Krugman is 500x smarter than you and equally more respected in his profession.  ::)
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Princess L

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Re: Wisconsin Power Play
« Reply #14 on: February 21, 2011, 04:59:19 PM »
The protesters keep complaining "Walker is moving too fast" ::)

The emergency plan Walker wants the Legislature to pass would address this year's $137 million shortfall and start dealing with the $3.6 billion hole expected by mid-2013. The benefits concessions would amount to $30 million this year, but the largest savings Walker proposed comes from refinancing debt to save $165 million.

That portion must be done by Friday for bonds to be refinanced in time to realize the savings by June 30, the end of this fiscal year.


Walker said not passing the bill by Friday would make even deeper cuts necessary and possibly result in laying off 1,500 workers over the next four months.

http://www.wisn.com/politics/26944674/detail.html
:

Soul Crusher

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Re: Wisconsin Power Play
« Reply #15 on: February 21, 2011, 05:32:31 PM »
Krugman is a joke. 

Kazan

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Re: Wisconsin Power Play
« Reply #16 on: February 22, 2011, 08:52:02 AM »
I'm sure Krugman is 500x smarter than you and equally more respected in his profession.  ::)

Wow, does he want a cookie? You simply don't posses the cognitive ability to do anything other than regurgitate whatever the talking head of the days says. You are the reason America is in the mess it is, I find insulting that they give people like you, with the brain power of an ameoba the right to vote.
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Soul Crusher

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Re: Wisconsin Power Play
« Reply #17 on: February 22, 2011, 06:58:30 PM »
By Timothy P. Carney
Created Feb 21 2011 - 4:34pm
Paul Krugman epitomizes the current liberal divorce from reality



One reason liberals get so excited about the protests and teacher strikes in Wisconsin is that they see this as a battle to preserve the power of the working man -- a noble cause and one many liberals take very seriously.

If you squint just right, you can see it their way: Republicans are fighting to take away collective bargaining rights from unions, who are responding with protest and solidarity. Of course, this blurs the crucial distinction between private-sector unions and government-sector unions. When it comes to stubbornly blurring economic reality so as to demonize your political rivals, you can often count on Paul Krugman.

In his column today, Krugman describes the unions as a "counterweight to the political power of big money."

But the unions are big money. Five of the top ten contributors to congressional and presidential campaigns since 1989 are labor unions according to the Center for Responsive Politics. In the last election, 10 of the top 20 PACs were union PACs.

More importantly, it's not as if Big Labor is balancing out the rest of "big money." Does Krugman know that all of the top ten industries contributing to the 2010 elections gave more money to Democrats than to Republicans? That's right: Lawyers, Health Professionals, Securities & Investment, Real Estate, Insurance, Lobbyists, Pharma, Government Unions, Entertainment, and Electric Utilities all favored Democrats in 2010.
.Beltway Confidential

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Source URL: http://washingtonexaminer.com/blogs/beltway-confidential/2011/02/paul-krugman-epitomizes-current-liberal-divorce-reality



240 is Back

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Re: Wisconsin Power Play
« Reply #18 on: February 22, 2011, 07:03:14 PM »
see, the collective bargaining thing is what bothered me.  fire their asses if they strike, that's cool.

But.... to say they shouldn't be allowed to collectively bargain... nope. 

Also, I didn't know Wisc was #2 in ACT scores, nice....



South Carolina - 50th
North Carolina - 49th
Georgia - 48th
Texas - 47th
Virginia - 44th

Wisconsin is currently ranked 2nd. Welcome to the race to the bottom.

Soul Crusher

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Re: Wisconsin Power Play
« Reply #19 on: February 22, 2011, 07:08:18 PM »
 ::)

You never miss a chance to repeat a lib talking point. 

240 is Back

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Re: Wisconsin Power Play
« Reply #20 on: February 22, 2011, 07:11:09 PM »
::)

You never miss a chance to repeat a lib talking point. 

Do you feel collective bargaining should be illegal for all people in all 50 states, 333386?

(cue eye rollie when you can't answer..........)

Soul Crusher

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Re: Wisconsin Power Play
« Reply #21 on: February 22, 2011, 07:14:47 PM »
Do you feel collective bargaining should be illegal for all people in all 50 states, 333386?

(cue eye rollie when you can't answer..........)

For all public employees like FDR said ?   Yes.  Public unions exist solely to fleece the taxpayer and create greater and greater benes for public employees who are crippling the nation. 

240 is Back

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Re: Wisconsin Power Play
« Reply #22 on: February 22, 2011, 07:21:12 PM »
For all public employees like FDR said ?   Yes.  Public unions exist solely to fleece the taxpayer and create greater and greater benes for public employees who are crippling the nation. 

Okay.  Repubs should enter a bill for a total ban on Collective Bargaining - FEDERALLY.  Why punish just wisconsin?  Cause they went broke first?



See, I'm in agreement with you on them being bags of shit who should be fired for striking.  But if you wanna say 6 states can't CB, but 44 can?  Huh????

Soul Crusher

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Re: Wisconsin Power Play
« Reply #23 on: February 22, 2011, 07:25:04 PM »
 ::)

oh lord 240  WTF? 

This is a state by state issue.  What part of BROKE do you libs not grasp?

240 is Back

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Re: Wisconsin Power Play
« Reply #24 on: February 22, 2011, 07:26:48 PM »
::)

oh lord 240  WTF? 

This is a state by state issue.  What part of BROKE do you libs not grasp?




it's a state by state issue?

But you agree with a president who wanted to away with them in 50 state?


ummmm