Madison, WI – Republicans in the Wisconsin Senate voted Wednesday night to strip nearly all collective bargaining rights from public workers after discovering a way to bypass the chamber’s missing Democrats.
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All 14 Senate Democrats fled to Illinois nearly three weeks ago, preventing the chamber from having enough members present to consider Gov. Scott Walker’s so-called “budget repair bill” — a proposal introduced to plug a $137 million budget shortfall.
The Senate requires a quorum to take up any measures that spend money. But Republicans on Wednesday split from the legislation the proposal to curtail union rights, which spends no money, and a special conference committee of state lawmakers approved the bill a short time later.
The lone Democrat present on the conference committee, Rep. Tony Barca, shouted that the surprise meeting was a violation of the state’s open meetings law but Republicans voted over his objections. The Senate then convened within minutes and passed it without discussion or debate.
Spectators in the gallery screamed “You are cowards.”
Before the sudden votes, Democratic Sens. Bob Jauch said if Republicans “chose to ram this bill through in this fashion, it will be to their political peril. They’re changing the rules. They will inflame a very frustrated public.”
Go Governor Walker! Unions Busted!!!!
Go job Walker. Now time for other states to follow.
Yay for America!
YAY!!!!! Lchaim!!!! Bring out the mashkeh. May this be the start of the end of all union mafia’s.
Be careful what you wish for. Unions did a lot for workers in the US over the decades. Yes, there have been, and are, abuses but on both sides: unions and management.
Are you forgetting how hard our people worked to obtain the right to unionize at the turn of the century? This month is the 100th anniversary of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire. Please read up on our history!
I guess the liberals are the only ones allowed to ram bills thru legislative houses?
As they say “turnabout is fair play!”
Pardon me while I stand up and applaud!!
Not that I ever worked in a coal mine but through my work I am experienced with the results of unethical , greedy , conservative not liberal mine operators. Insufficient ventilation system which did not remove the coal dust and miners suffering from silicosis or black lung disease, accumulation of methane gas and the results are devastating explosions, faulty rescure system and miners trapped. Yes in some instances the government may be the problem but a higher instuitute of learning in New Jersey is functioning due to liberal programs so decried and maligned by all those chachomim. The fact if these leftist, liberal , socialistic program would be removed which they should some or quite a few of your conservatives relatives would be flat on their gluteal, hypocrites
The problem with eliminating the so called “liberal leftist socialist ” program that they have these adjectives when they apply not to our kind and suddenly they become mehadrin min hamehadrin when the yeshive velt is the recipient. Maybe what is needed a clearer and more erliche definition of the adjectives
Have any of you ever worked for the government? I have. I made half the salary of the private sector. In return, there was a small pension plan, though no 401k and not enough left over after bills to do any saving on my own. We had no union, and no redress for our complaints. No one got rich. Do you know any teachers, or police or firemen? Are they getting rich? If you actually look at facts, you will see that the states which have a history of not having public employee unions (not to mention any unions) are economically crippled as compared to the union states. Are you thinking that Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas are creating jobs? What about Texas, whose educational and health systems are among the worst in the country and whose deficit is much greater than Wisconsin’s?