After comments from my friend, Jeanne, the other day about the current legislation in Wisconsin, I decided to keep a better ear on things.
Wisconsin Capitol Building; Picture by Jarndt
In case you have not been paying attention, during budget debates Governor Scott Walker has made it clear he wants a whole bunch of concessions from most state unions including an end to collective bargaining.
The only issue unions would be able to use collective bargaining on would be salaries and nothing else. Not work conditions or hours or benefits and union existence would be voted on yearly.
The unions have agreed to every other concession which included pay cuts, increased pay deductions on their part for health insurance and pension. But they refuse to back down on collective bargaining.
The Governor states getting rid of collective bargaining would save hundreds of millions for the state whose debt load is 12% of the state budget. However, not every union in Wisconsin has to live with this last concession. Remember I said most unions would be held to limited bargaining. Members of the public safety union – police officers, firefighters and state troopers – are exempt from losing collective bargaining.
The problem is that this same union contributed to Walker’s campaign. It makes me wonder if the teacher union or nurses union or natural resources union donated to this man’s campaign. I am guessing they did not. Suddenly, the man who speak tea party rhetoric and profess to be a fiscal conservative looks like something else.
Picture by Sue Molyneaux
Walker may be a college drop-out and former Eagle Scout. He might think he is acting honorably, especially to those working class voters. To me he looks like the typical corrupt politician taking care of those people who gave him money to run and win his gubernatorial seat.
That, my friend, is called old school politics. Last time I looked that was not what being a maverick in politics was all about.
Thanks so much for calling out “The Imperial Walker” as we affectionately refer to our governor these days.
Someone has to do it. What he is trying to do is crap and everyone knows it, especially when the unions have conceded on everything else.
Do you think Gov Walker is bullying his way through hie term partially because he is given that EGO boost from other Party Members and he is Top Dog of the moment? I have a word for that. It is only said to myself when the behavior warrants. Walker reminds me of an attorney friend who shouts, “Screw all of ‘em. Can’t they see I am in charge.”
Will cooler heads prevail? I hope.
Barb
I hope so too Barb. But the further we get into this the more I think the man is lying bully. There is more to him than we know and I do not think it is good.
Ya know, a news reporter said something close to that. Things are not ringing true are they? In my post on this I wrote of his off the cuff remark on using baseball bats on the crowd. Arrogant, Bully, Extremist. I might be getting warm on this.
Here is what bothers me. A Chicago Sun-Times story that ran on this guy had afriend of his note Walker’s real-life frugalness by pointing out he has a 1998 Saturn with 100,000 miles. That means he drives less than 10,000 miles per year. He lives in Wauwatosa, which is about 14 miles from Downtown Milwaukee. During his stint as the chairman of Milwaukee county, I am wondering how much driving he actually did because these number do not add up. I live about 17 miles from my job and put about 200 miles on my car each week just for work. That does not count activity with the kids or errands or date night. So does that mean he had a car from the county, does his wife have a car for her use or can he use public transportation to get from his home to the county office?