Yesterday I blogged about the way in which a prominent Madison attorney wants to argue that a constitutional provison designed to protect the largislature's ability to function could, in fact, be used to prevent the legislature from functioning.
Today, we have claims that acting to prevent public disription of our democratically elected legislature is an assault on democracy.
I understand how public employees would want to keep collective bargaining laws as they are now. But this law does not "kill the middle class" or take away fundamental human rigts. There are all sorts of states the have similar (or more substantial) restrictions on collective bargaining. Most federal employees are sunject to similar restrictions and the overwhelming majority of private sector employees do not collectively bargain.
So this is the battlefield on which our constitutional processes should be shredded/ There is indeed shame that should be felt. But it is the protesters and their handlers; it is the lawless senators who should be ashamed of themselves.
8 comments:
"Here, here!," Prof. Esenberg. Couldn't agree more. The entire way the Democrats have acted, really since the Nov. elections (spring a convict from jail, anyone?), has been shameful. This episode has really shone a light on the way things really were run in this state and I couldn't be more pleased. My hope now is the national unions and lib orgs will see that it's over in Wisconsin and will move off to some other battle they think they might win...
The largislature is disripted. Rigts are being shred. Shame, shame!
Seen on a busy suburban street corner around 8 p.m. last night: a man standing in the cold and dark with a poster saying "November, 2012: we will remember."
to prevent public disription of our democratically elected legislature is an assault on democracy
ProTip: Deploying precisely the same hyperbole one is attempting to declaim is usually not an effective rhetorical tactic.
Rick:
Would this legislature, would this governor, have been democratically elected had they run on the agenda they have just executed?
It seems the powers that be in Fitzwalkerstan are comporting themselves in a manner more Jacobin than Burkean.
They did run on this agenda, BCB. Were you paying attention last Fall?
They did run on this agenda
Politicians who think they have a mandate do not describe rollout of their plan as "dropping a bomb" to be implemented through a 48-hour legislative blitzkrieg.
People do indeed have very short memories. They forgot what caused the recession and resulting fiscal crises in an impressive hurry.
That being said, Wisconsinites still remember pretty accurately that the Republicans ran on jobs and fiscal responsibility. What they've done so far is add $150 million in new kickbacks to the budget deficit and gin up a fake fiscal crisis to try to sneak through union busting legislation they've admitted is entirely about attacking the democratic political base.
It's blown up in their faces. The enthusiasm gap that swept them into office was destroyed by their own hands and our constitutional processes will now sweep them out in recall elections.
As for lawless senators, the brothers fitz may yet face the consequences for illegally barring access to the capitol and holding meetings without proper notice.
The Republicans did not run on busting unions. The governor did not promise to balance the budget on the backs of the poor and public workers.
The governor sent an email to state employees saying that he was going to ask everyone to sacrifice. His budget makes it clear that the sacrifice is going to be asked only of the poor and of publice employees. Why would anyone trust Gov. Walker?
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