61% of Americans are behind Union's Rights

[Peter Pan]

Originally Posted by MrPeabody

I was referring to Gray Davis as the one we fired. Arnold could not run because of term limits. Doesn't matter, though, Pee Wee Herman could have beaten him in an election after the damage he's done.
We just fired the Sheriff in my county, too.

The state is not broke from just Arnold, I know I am from there and the rest of my family still does oive there, oh several are state govt workers and Arnold did have the take some pay cuts, they still have jobs though and very happy with that. Seems the dems controlled the house and senate so it is a bia-partisan issue for the state of Calif is in and now the Dems have the hole issue on themselves.

[MrPeabody]

Originally Posted by Peter Pan

The state is not broke from just Arnold, I know I am from there and the rest of my family still does oive there, oh several are state govt workers and Arnold did have the take some pay cuts, they still have jobs though and very happy with that. Seems the dems controlled the house and senate so it is a bia-partisan issue for the state of Calif is in and now the Dems have the hole issue on themselves.

True, the state was in financial trouble before Arnold came on the scene. But he increased the debt by over 40 billion dollars while he was governor with bonds. (A pretty radical departure from his campaign promise to "balance the budget by cutting out the waste")
It took a two-thirds majority to pass the state budget, so Democrats have never had "control" of that. California had Republican governors for 16 years before Gray Davis, who was recalled from office before finishing one term. There's plenty of blame to go around to both political parties.

What's going to be interesting now is we just passed a ballot initiative that allows a simple majority to pass the state budget. And with a Democrat in the Governor's office, their party will own the budget for better or worse. If I was a Republican legislator in Sacramento right now, I don't even know what would be the point in showing up for work.

[Will]

California got what they deserved for voting for the joke candidate when they had a chance to elect McClintock to replace Gray Davis.

[MrPeabody]

Originally Posted by Will

California got what they deserved for voting for the joke candidate when they had a chance to elect McClintock to replace Gray Davis.

He was probably the best one in the pack. His only downfall against the Terminator was a lack of charisma. But all the charisma in the world won't balance the budget.

[Z06PDQ]

Originally Posted by Will

What is "underhanded" about it. NO violation of anyone's rights or any law.

Please explain. It will save money. It will stop abuses. It will MAINTAIN teacher salaries and benefits that are incredibly generous.

Average INDIVIDUAL salary of $50,000, or more than U.S. HOUSEHOLD income.
Average $25,000 benefits package.
Ability to retire BEFORE Social Security age with up to 100% salary.
And NOW having to pay a ~15% of their salaries to fund their own health care and retirement packages, which are plush.

This is a solid, well above average middle class lifestyle for people producing poor results compared to their private counterparts.

good try, but it's not about any of that stuff. it's about breaking the unions. all that stuff is nothing but a smoke screen. it's purely political & it's so obvious that he has made no bones about it.

[Z06PDQ]

Friday, February 25, 2011 5:09 PM
"Robert Weissman, President"
On Wisconsin and America

We are now having a major dispute about what kind of society America should be.

Right now, the flashpoint in this controversy is Wisconsin, where tens of thousands of people are demonstrating every day in an effort to block Governor Scott Walker’s plan to all but end collective bargaining rights for public employees.

But the debate is a national one. The Wisconsin showdown is only the first in a whole series of pending state conflicts. And, over the next 10 days, a corporate-friendly Republican majority in the U.S. House of Representatives may decide to shut down the federal government.

The clashes in Wisconsin and other states, and in Washington, D.C., are dressed up in the language of budget debates. But these debates have nothing to do with “fiscal responsibility.” They are about what kind of society we want.

Do we want government to provide vital services, or exacerbate inequality? Should we have strong protections for health, safety, the environment and economic stability, or should giant corporations be free to impose their rules on the rest of us? Will we protect the right of workers to join together in unions, or will we permit private and public employers to drive down wages in the interest of generating more profits or lowering taxes for corporations and the wealthy?

Corporate plutocracy or a working democracy?

The people in Wisconsin who are demonstrating to stop Governor Walker’s union-busting plans are acting not just to preserve Wisconsin’s democratic traditions, but to make the case for a better America for all of us.

The people in Wisconsin — including many Public Citizen members and friends — need our solidarity. Even more, they need us to join with them in fighting for the America we all want.

Tomorrow, people will be gathering in state capitols to do just that. Please join them. Find a rally near you.

As we engage this contest for the future of America, it’s important to understand how we got into our current circumstance, and exactly what is at stake.

How Did We Get Here?

The Republican line on state and federal budgetary shortfalls, echoed by too many in the media, and by too many Democrats, is that we are spending beyond our means and “mortgaging our future.” This is not true.

States are not suddenly spending more than they were two, three of four years ago. (This is true for the federal government as well, with the caveat that there was an addition of federal stimulus spending, now winding down.) The reason states are facing acute budget crises is because revenues have declined. The reason revenues have declined is because the economy crashed. And the reason the economy crashed is because an unregulated Wall Street enabled a housing bubble, and then built a financial bubble on top of the housing bubble.

In other words, Republican governors are blaming state employees for the budget crisis, when the blame actually rests with Wall Street. Making things even more obscene, while state employees are seeing salaries and benefits slashed and jobs cut, the Wall Street titans are paying themselves outrageous bonuses. Wall Street paid out more than $20 billion in bonuses last year, while Wall Street profits totaled more than $27 billion, the second highest total on record.

This central point can’t be emphasized enough: The story of the current state and federal budget challenges is the diminished tax revenue that has followed from the Wall Street-induced recession.

Raising Revenues

OK, you might say. Maybe Wall Street deserves the blame, but what choice do governments have?

Well, the states are under an obligation to balance their budgets. The simple solution for this problem is for the federal government — which does not need to balance its budget — to give them grants. Unfortunately, that solution is not forthcoming.

Still, the states have options. Notably, they can raise taxes on corporations and the wealthy, as some are now preparing to do.

Amazingly, however, those most vociferously demanding state and federal budget cutbacks in the name of fiscal rectitude also support tax cuts for those most able to pay. In Wisconsin, Governor Walker — who took office just this January — has pushed through $127 million in tax cuts. Meanwhile, in D.C., last December’s tax deal between President Barack Obama and congressional Republicans gives about $120 billion in benefits to the wealthy over the next two years.

Would it be unreasonable to ask for a rule that anyone supporting such tax breaks for the super-rich is prohibited from claiming they care about balancing budgets?

There are, of course, other ways to raise revenues. Cracking down on corporate welfare would be a good place to start. States have given away billions in corporate welfare deals, as Good Jobs First has documented. Walmart alone is grabbing $400 million a year in state and local tax breaks. At the federal level, there are tens of billions of dollars in corporate welfare giveaways that should be eliminated or reformed, involving everything from loan guarantees to nuclear power plants to export promotion schemes for big corporations.

The federal government has other ways to raise revenues that would be worth pursuing as good policy, in addition to their revenue implications. A very small tax on Wall Street trading, for example, could raise more than $100 billion a year. It would force Wall Street to offset some of the damage it has inflicted on the rest of the country. And it would slow the dangerous churning of stocks, bonds and derivatives.

[Z06PDQ]

Dale Schultz, Senator from Wisconsin's 17th Senatorial District will not vote for Gov. Walker's Union busting Koch Bros. abomination. Not sure how many we need to stop this, but I heard a young lady say "we need two more" on the Qik feed.

Cheers were audible as the announcement was made. The people are still in the statehouse.
It's official, we need 2 more. 17th District stretches from SW Wisconsin up to Juneau.
Schultz must be a decent guy.

Daily Kos: Breaking! Dale Schultz will not vote for Walker's Union Busting Bill...

[ChasC5]

[leec4ce]

Originally Posted by Z06PDQ

Poll: Americans favor union bargaining rights
By Judy Keen and Dennis Cauchon, USA TODAY


MADISON, Wis. — Americans strongly oppose laws taking away the collective bargaining power of public employee unions, according to a new USA TODAY/Gallup Poll. The poll found 61% would oppose a law in their state similar to such a proposal in Wisconsin, compared with 33% who would favor such a law. Republican Gov. Scott Walker and Republican legislators in Wisconsin have proposed cutting union rights for most state government workers and making them pay more for benefits. Ohio, New Jersey, Indiana, Iowa and other states with Republican governors are considering similar laws.

Thousands gathered in Madison for an eighth day to protest Walker's plan. Rallies were also held in Columbus, Ohio, Des Moines and Montpelier, Vt.

"Most people ... mistakenly think worker rights come from collective bargaining," Walker told USA TODAY Tuesday. He said his plan would not remove union workers' protections from wrongful termination or inappropriate discipline or hiring. "When you alter collective bargaining, it doesn't alter workers' rights," he said.

Walker wants union members to pay more for their health care and pension benefits, moves he and other Republicans say would save $300 million over the next two years as the state faces a projected $3.6 billion budget shortfall.

Fourteen Democratic legislators have left the state for the past week to keep the Senate from having a quorum needed to vote on the bill. Democrats in the Indiana House of Representatives also stayed away from their Capitol on Tuesday as unions protested Republican-backed labor bills.

Almost two-thirds of those polled say their states face budget crises, but respondents oppose or are split on potential solutions, from tax hikes to spending cuts.

Key results:

— 71% oppose increasing sales, income or other taxes while 27% are in favor that approach.

— 53% oppose reducing pay or benefits for government workers while 44% are in favor.

— 48% opposed reducing or eliminating government programs while 47% were in favor of cuts.

"This underlines the difficulty of solving these problems," Jeffrey Jones of Gallup says. "It's hard to find a consensus on what to do."

Despite the opposition to tax hikes or spending cuts, those surveyed agreed overwhelmingly that their state was facing a budget crisis.

Sixty-four percent said their state was in financial crisis while only 5% said it wasn't. The rest were unsure.

The poll found people were divided on whether public employee unions were a good thing. A slight majority of 46% said unions were generally more harmful to states while 45% thought they were helpful.

Still, this mixed view did not extend to supporting changes in pay, benefits or bargaining rights.

Republicans supported limiting bargaining by a 54%-41% margin. However, only 18% of Democrats favored restrictions while 79% were opposed. Independents were against bargaining restrictions by a 31% to 62% margain.

Jones says that public support for unions has been strong for decades, although it has dropped in the last few years. Still, he says the poll shows Americans are reluctant to take away something that unions have already.
USA TODAY/Gallup Poll

Q. Would you favor or oppose a law in your state taking away some collective bargaining rights of most public unions, including the state teachers union?

Source: USA TODAY/Gallup Poll of 1,000 adults Monday. Margin of error: +/-4 percentage points
USA TODAY/Gallup Poll

Q. Do you favor or oppose these ways to reduce state budget deficits?

Source: USA TODAY/Gallup Poll of 1,000 adults Monday. Margin of error: +/-4 percentage points

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
For more information about reprints & permissions, visit our FAQ's. To report corrections and clarifications, contact Standards Editor Brent Jones. For publication consideration in the newspaper, send comments to [email protected]. Include name, phone number, city and state for verification. To view our corrections, go to corrections.usatoday.com.

"polls are like the stock market....they go up & they come down. you're welcome."

[Z06PDQ]

Originally Posted by leec4ce

"polls are like the stock market....they go up & they come down. you're welcome."

you're learning from the best.

[mrvette]

Originally Posted by Will

I'm all for paying FOR PERFORMANCE.

I'd even be in favor for LARGER salaries than these. IF WE RECEIVED COMPARABLE VALUE.

Instead we're paying for one great teacher out of 20, and 19 rabble-rousing bums using their students as props.

The same people protesting are the same scum who put getting theirs first, and damn kids to inferior education by opposing school vouchers, doing a poor job themselves, opposing home-schooling, etc.

Even in some heavily democratic areas, we have seen that charter schools have succeeded. American public education is broken, and responsible party #1 are the teachers unions, which treat the public education system as a golden goose for themselves first. Educating excellent students and future citizens is literally of no concern. Their ACTIONS show this. Their RESULTS demonstrate this.

Bingo Baby!!!!

[mrvette]

Originally Posted by Z06PDQ

Friday, February 25, 2011 5:09 PM
"Robert Weissman, President"
On Wisconsin and America

We are now having a major dispute about what kind of society America should be.

Right now, the flashpoint in this controversy is Wisconsin, where tens of thousands of people are demonstrating every day in an effort to block Governor Scott Walker’s plan to all but end collective bargaining rights for public employees.

But the debate is a national one. The Wisconsin showdown is only the first in a whole series of pending state conflicts. And, over the next 10 days, a corporate-friendly Republican majority in the U.S. House of Representatives may decide to shut down the federal government.

The clashes in Wisconsin and other states, and in Washington, D.C., are dressed up in the language of budget debates. But these debates have nothing to do with “fiscal responsibility.” They are about what kind of society we want.

Do we want government to provide vital services, or exacerbate inequality? Should we have strong protections for health, safety, the environment and economic stability, or should giant corporations be free to impose their rules on the rest of us? Will we protect the right of workers to join together in unions, or will we permit private and public employers to drive down wages in the interest of generating more profits or lowering taxes for corporations and the wealthy?

Corporate plutocracy or a working democracy?

The people in Wisconsin who are demonstrating to stop Governor Walker’s union-busting plans are acting not just to preserve Wisconsin’s democratic traditions, but to make the case for a better America for all of us.

The people in Wisconsin — including many Public Citizen members and friends — need our solidarity. Even more, they need us to join with them in fighting for the America we all want.

Tomorrow, people will be gathering in state capitols to do just that. Please join them. Find a rally near you.

As we engage this contest for the future of America, it’s important to understand how we got into our current circumstance, and exactly what is at stake.

How Did We Get Here?

The Republican line on state and federal budgetary shortfalls, echoed by too many in the media, and by too many Democrats, is that we are spending beyond our means and “mortgaging our future.” This is not true.

States are not suddenly spending more than they were two, three of four years ago. (This is true for the federal government as well, with the caveat that there was an addition of federal stimulus spending, now winding down.) The reason states are facing acute budget crises is because revenues have declined. The reason revenues have declined is because the economy crashed. And the reason the economy crashed is because an unregulated Wall Street enabled a housing bubble, and then built a financial bubble on top of the housing bubble.

In other words, Republican governors are blaming state employees for the budget crisis, when the blame actually rests with Wall Street. Making things even more obscene, while state employees are seeing salaries and benefits slashed and jobs cut, the Wall Street titans are paying themselves outrageous bonuses. Wall Street paid out more than $20 billion in bonuses last year, while Wall Street profits totaled more than $27 billion, the second highest total on record.

This central point can’t be emphasized enough: The story of the current state and federal budget challenges is the diminished tax revenue that has followed from the Wall Street-induced recession.

Raising Revenues

OK, you might say. Maybe Wall Street deserves the blame, but what choice do governments have?

Well, the states are under an obligation to balance their budgets. The simple solution for this problem is for the federal government — which does not need to balance its budget — to give them grants. Unfortunately, that solution is not forthcoming.

Still, the states have options. Notably, they can raise taxes on corporations and the wealthy, as some are now preparing to do.

Amazingly, however, those most vociferously demanding state and federal budget cutbacks in the name of fiscal rectitude also support tax cuts for those most able to pay. In Wisconsin, Governor Walker — who took office just this January — has pushed through $127 million in tax cuts. Meanwhile, in D.C., last December’s tax deal between President Barack Obama and congressional Republicans gives about $120 billion in benefits to the wealthy over the next two years.

Would it be unreasonable to ask for a rule that anyone supporting such tax breaks for the super-rich is prohibited from claiming they care about balancing budgets?

There are, of course, other ways to raise revenues. Cracking down on corporate welfare would be a good place to start. States have given away billions in corporate welfare deals, as Good Jobs First has documented. Walmart alone is grabbing $400 million a year in state and local tax breaks. At the federal level, there are tens of billions of dollars in corporate welfare giveaways that should be eliminated or reformed, involving everything from loan guarantees to nuclear power plants to export promotion schemes for big corporations.

The federal government has other ways to raise revenues that would be worth pursuing as good policy, in addition to their revenue implications. A very small tax on Wall Street trading, for example, could raise more than $100 billion a year. It would force Wall Street to offset some of the damage it has inflicted on the rest of the country. And it would slow the dangerous churning of stocks, bonds and derivatives.

NOT ONE accurate FACT in your post......such ignorance is just astounding....

[Exotix]

Originally Posted by Will

I'm all for paying FOR PERFORMANCE.

I'd even be in favor for LARGER salaries than these. IF WE RECEIVED COMPARABLE VALUE.

Instead we're paying for one great teacher out of 20, and 19 rabble-rousing bums using their students as props.

The same people protesting are the same scum who put getting theirs first, and damn kids to inferior education by opposing school vouchers, doing a poor job themselves, opposing home-schooling, etc.

Even in some heavily democratic areas, we have seen that charter schools have succeeded. American public education is broken, and responsible party #1 are the teachers unions, which treat the public education system as a golden goose for themselves first.

Educating excellent students and future citizens is literally of no concern. Their ACTIONS show this.

Their RESULTS demonstrate this.

Originally Posted by mrvette

Bingo Baby!!!!

Let me guess .. Palins' extensive education is so extensive and impressive that even Congressional (R)/ Tea Partiers with doctorates are behind her all the way ...

[Z06PDQ]

Originally Posted by mrvette

NOT ONE accurate FACT in your post......such ignorance is just astounding....

"ignorance" is making a piss poor statement like that & thinking you are actually engaging in "debate." you aren't. just more jibberish. disprove the artricle or go back & play in Grumpy's shithole.

[ChasC5]

Originally Posted by Z06PDQ

"ignorance" is making a piss poor statement like that & thinking you are actually engaging in "debate." you aren't. just more jibberish. disprove the artricle or go back & play in Grumpy's shithole.

1. First NeoCon move; Denial
2. Second NeoCon move; rage
3. Third NeoCon move; violence

Once you've read the book, the story never changes.

The we just sit back and laugh at the silliness.

[Peter Pan]

Originally Posted by Z06PDQ

Dale Schultz, Senator from Wisconsin's 17th Senatorial District will not vote for Gov. Walker's Union busting Koch Bros. abomination. Not sure how many we need to stop this, but I heard a young lady say "we need two more" on the Qik feed.

Cheers were audible as the announcement was made. The people are still in the statehouse.
It's official, we need 2 more. 17th District stretches from SW Wisconsin up to Juneau.
Schultz must be a decent guy.

Daily Kos: Breaking! Dale Schultz will not vote for Walker's Union Busting Bill...

Not what is really going on, he is looking for compromise, and tomorrow is the day of voting or layoffs

[ChasC5]

Originally Posted by Peter Pan

Not what is really going on, he is looking for compromise, and tomorrow is the day of voting or layoffs

Compromise is something Adults do.

They should have a class for the GOP.

[Will]

Originally Posted by Z06PDQ

good try, but it's not about any of that stuff. it's about breaking the unions. all that stuff is nothing but a smoke screen. it's purely political & it's so obvious that he has made no bones about it.

Actually it's demonstrably NOT about breaking unions. NO actions being taken with regard to private unions. NO actions being taken with regard to some key public sector workers like police and firefighters. And as for the teachers' union itself specifically, NO action to de-certify it, break it, or deny ANYONE's rights in ANY way.

The governor, given his extensive PERSONAL experience concerning the matter, has decided that it is in the state's and taxpayers' best financial interests to simply stipulate certain terms of employment for certain STATE jobs, rather then bargaining for them. Teachers union members only have the same rights as everyone else, they have NO right to forcibly coerce the state and the taxpayers who voted in the current leadership to engage in negotiation they do not wish to engage in.

And frankly, the public sector unions probably should be broken, given they have scammed the taxpayers for years by being present on BOTH sides of the "negotiation" table. What a racket. The public sector unions on one side, and the political party who THEY FUND WITH TAXPAYER MONEY on the other. That's not a negotiation. That's a set-up. With NO ONE actually representing the taxpayers and the people of Wisconsin as a whole.

[Z06PDQ]

Originally Posted by Will

Actually it's demonstrably NOT about breaking unions.

how the hell would you know? because Beck or Limbaugh told you so? it's no secret that you people hate unions & you will find any backdoor attempt at crushing them. you have shit in your hats, this time. unions are rallying like never before. you did us a favor. we are experiencing world wide solidarity against this blatant movement & it has unified the workforce.

[Exotix]

Capitol is cleared of demonstrators for 1st time in 17 nights after judge orders building closed during non-business hours

Today

Return or workers will be axed, Wis. Dems told - U.S. news - Life - msnbc.com



MADISON, Wis. — Thousands of Wisconsin state workers were bracing for layoff notices Friday as Republican Gov. Scott Walker and absent Democrats remained in a standoff over a budget balancing bill that would also strip public workers of their collective bargaining rights.



Walker said he would issue 1,500 layoff notices Friday if at least one of the 14 Senate Democrats doesn't return from Illinois to give the Republican majority the quorum it needs to vote. Senate Republicans voted Thursday to hold the missing Democrats in contempt and force police to bring them back to the Capitol.



The legislation has led to nearly three weeks of protests — some attended by tens of thousands of union supporters — in and around the state Capitol, which was cleared of demonstrators late Thursday for the first time in 17 nights after a judge ordered the building closed during non-business hours.

The final 50 or so protesters left peacefully about two hours after the judge's order, which also said the state unconstitutionally limited access to the building since Monday and ordered the state to grant greater access to the public by next Monday.

"We decided it would be best for our image to leave tonight peacefully and come back tomorrow," said Matt Rowe, 21, of Madison, carrying an armful of blankets after he left the building.

The protesters' dramatic departure capped a day full of developments, including Walker's threat of massive layoffs he said would be needed to make up for savings not being realized in the stalled bill.



Walker says the bill is needed to ease a deficit that is projected to hit $137 million by July and $3.6 billion by mid-2013.

His proposal comes up with the money for this year in part by forcing state employees to pay for half the cost of their pensions and twice their current health care premiums — concessions equivalent to an 8 percent pay cut.

With the labor bill stalled, Walker said he has to issue layoff notices starting Friday so the state can start to realize the $30 million savings he had assumed would come from the concessions.

The layoffs wouldn't be effective for 31 days, and Walker said he could rescind them if the bill passed in the meantime.

All state workers, except those at prisons, state hospitals and other facilities open around the clock, would be potential layoff targets, he said.

"I pushed it off as long as I could because I do not want to have layoffs," Walker said.

While Walker said he is actively working with some of the Democrats in hopes of striking a deal, he told The Associated Press in an interview Thursday that he won't compromise on the collective bargaining issue or anything that saves the state money.

"I can't take any of that off the table," he said.
"We cannot tear apart this budget.
We cannot put this burden on local governments.
But if there are other ways they are willing to work with us to find a pathway back, I think that's what people want."

Democratic Senate Minority Leader Mark Miller confirmed there were talks with Walker, but he did not think they were close to reaching a deal.

The statewide teachers union and state workers unions have said they would agree to the benefit concessions — as long as they retain collective bargaining rights.

But Walker argues that move is necessary to deal with $1 billion in cuts to school districts and local governments that he proposed separately as part of his budget plan for the next two years.
He says schools and local governments would have a tough time making the necessary cuts if they have to negotiate with unions.



'We're sticking together'

The Republican leader of the state Senate signed orders Thursday finding the 14 missing Democrats in contempt and allowing the chamber's sergeant at arms to use police force to detain them if necessary.

Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald says his orders are binding only if the senators return to Wisconsin.

Sen. Chris Larson said they hadn't done anything illegal and couldn't be arrested.

"There are so many police supporting us, they might have a hard time finding one to bring us back," said Miller, one of the AWOL Democrats.

"If the senators have decided to hold someone in contempt, I would think they would hold themselves and our governor, I wish we could, in contempt for failing to listen to a half million people who have come to Madison," Sen. Lena Taylor, who is also a lawyer, told Milwaukee's WTMJ.

The station interviewed several of the missing Democrats at a gas station in northern Illinois, close to the state's border with Wisconsin.

Asked if he would return, Sen. Spencer Coggs of Milwaukee said he would not. "We're sticking together," he told the station of the decision to stay across state lines made by he and his colleagues.

"We want them to come to us with a realistic offer that we can accept for the working families of Wisconsin and then we can all go home,” Coggs told WTMJ.

The Wisconsin Professional Police Association, a union representing 11,000 law enforcement officials from across the state, released a statement from its director, Jim Palmer, slamming the resolution to go after the Democrats.

"The thought of using law enforcement officers to exercise force in order to achieve a political objective is insanely wrong and Wisconsin sorely needs reasonable solutions and not potentially dangerous political theatrics," Palmer said.

A memo provided by private attorney Jim Troupis, who was hired by the Senate Republicans and often works with the GOP, said the state Constitution gives them authority to act to compel attendance under its rules.

Once the senators do return, Fitzgerald said they could face reprimand, censure or even expulsion.




Story: Wis. governor: Ax $900 million from education


Wis. governor: Ax $900 million from education - U.S. news - Life - msnbc.com

MADISON, Wis. — After focusing for weeks on his proposal to strip public employees of collective bargaining rights, Gov. Scott Walker on Tuesday presented his full budget proposal — a plan that cuts $1.5 billion in aid to public schools and government but avoids any tax or fee increases, furloughs or widespread layoffs.

Walker said the cuts could be paid for in large part by forcing government employees to pay more for their pension and health care benefits.

But his proposal to do that — and to eliminate most collective bargaining — remains in limbo after Senate Democrats fled the state to prevent a vote.


(Read continues in Link)




Wisconsin Minority Leader Peter Barca, D-Kensoha, celebrates with other lawmakers and protesters Thursday outside of the state Capitol in Madison after a judge ordered the Department of Administration to open the Capitol to normal business hours starting Monday.