Governor Walker's Victory Spells Doom For Public Sector Unions

Forbes ^ | 6/05/2012 @ 9:36PM | Bill Frezza

[Hunton Peck]

Public sector unions have reached their high water mark. Let the cleanup begin as the red ink recedes.

Despite a last-minute smear campaign accusing Scott Walker of fathering an illegitimate love child, the governor’s recall election victory sends a clear message that should resonate around the nation: The fiscal cancer devouring state budgets has a cure, and he has found it. The costly defeat for the entrenched union interests that tried to oust Walker in retribution for challenging their power was marked by President Obama’s refusal to lend his weight to the campaign for fear of being stained by defeat. We’ll see how well this strategy of opportunistic detachment serves in the fall as Obama reaches out to unions for support.

This fight is not without precedent. Progressive patron saint Franklin Delano Roosevelt—who more than any other president set our country on a course away from the founding principles of limited government—knew that public sector unions would be the death of the social welfare state he worked so hard to create. Hence, he consistently opposed allowing government employees to unionize. Today, Greece sets the example of what happens when public sector unions gain the upper hand. Can Big Science Bypass Congress and Help Itself to Cash? Bill Frezza Bill Frezza Contributor Prediction: Romney Crushes Obama In Presidential Election Blowout Bill Frezza Bill Frezza Contributor Marriage Laws Must Not Discriminate Against Anyone, Including The Unmarried Bill Frezza Bill Frezza Contributor Stephen King Horrified By His Low Taxes. What's Next? Bill Frezza Bill Frezza Contributor

In 1959 Wisconsin became the first state to allow collective bargaining by government employees. The projected cost of supporting Baby Boomer union retirees now threatens to bankrupt the state, as it does many others. Scott Walker ran for office promising change. The fiscal medicine he is...

[Hunton Peck]

Republicans Scott, Moulton and Petrowski have all been declared winners by the AP. I haven’t seen a call on the Wangaard race.

[muir_redwoods]

The DUmmies are begining to attack each other over whether or not the Kenyan should have campaigned for Barrett. Here's an interesting quote, cleaned up a bit:

I'm so f@&#ing tired of the anti-Obama bullshit in this f@&#ing place.

I think I'll go visit somewhere much more sane like Free Republic.

[submarinerswife]

This has been a hell of a night, hasn’t it? I would love to eventually see the country as “Right to Work”.

I went in to DU to see the heads explode ( I wasn’t disappointed) and I was randomly selected to be on their stupid little “Jury” to help decide whether a particular post was too offensive to remain in a thread. I participated in my own form of disruption. FUN FUN FUN!!

I am really a happy girl tonight!!

[Hunton Peck]

Here’s the Milwaukee paper’s latest on the Wangaard race (looks good for Wangaard):

State Senate - District 21 - Special General
June 05, 2012 - 10:53PM CT
Wisconsin - 13 of 60 Precincts Reporting - 22%
Name Party Votes Vote %
Wanggaard , Van (i) GOP 11,301 62%
Lehman , John Dem 7,033 38%

[R_Kangel]

... I bet after the final results of the WI election are in ....

....the President of the United States will start whitening his hair to appear to look like an older, wiser elder statesman to gain acceptance to his electorate!!!

..... Yup ...... Watch the color of his hair, this will be funny.....

..... it will become greyer and greyer (or grayer LOL} in the next few weeks ....

[Jean2]

Thank you.

[svcw]

You know that Seuss story about the Grinch and his heart growing two times its size, when he figured out some truth?
I had this flash of other Republican governors growing something two times their size after this whooping of public sector unions, and democrat’s shrinking.
Ok, that’s really lame.
But you get the idea.

[Fungi]

Amen.

[garjog]

On, Wisconsin! On, Wisconsin!
Plunge right through that line!
Run the ball clear ‘round Chicago.
A touchdown sure this time.
On, Wisconsin! On, Wisconsin!
Fight on for her fame
Fight! Fellows! - fight, fight, fight!
We’ll win this game.

On, Wisconsin! On, Wisconsin!
Stand up, Badgers, sing!
“Forward” is our driving spirit,
Loyal voices ring.
On, Wisconsin! On, Wisconsin!
Raise her glowing flame
Stand, Fellows, let us now
Salute her name!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zOYus1BE7jk

[Fred Hayek]

The government worker’s union is protecting the workers from their employers?

Well, the employers are the people that they are supposed to serve, the ones who pay the taxes, thus their payroll. The government unions thus protect the “workers” from being accountable to their employers, which is you and I and everyone else.
You see this in some big city police departments, especially in Wisconsin and Minnesota, where political agendas take precedence over professionalism. In such cases the unions’ mission is to advance the political agenda and enforce that the rank and file toe the line, not to negotiate a decent contract. It has been this way since the AFL-CIO removed from their bylaws the ban on Communists being officers in the organization. And Dick Trumka is a Communist.

[Hunton Peck]

For consistency’s sake, “Scott” should be “Fitzgerald” in that list.

Never could keep names straight...

[re_nortex]

I would love to eventually see the country as “Right to Work”.

I agree completely! Right to work means liberty and freedom. Take a look at the convergence in these maps. Where union thugs are in command, Obama was selected. In contrast, the liberty-loving states soundly repudiated socialism and voted for Sarah Palin (and some guy who was her running mate). Ping to onyx for the Sarah Palin reference! :-)

[bigbob]

For the last year we’ve heard the BOOM of the Unionista Drums, not it’s our turn to call the tune. Here’s a special long-distance dedication going out to you public sector unions:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kyFyAqLtHq8

DOOM, not BOOM!

[Berlin_Freeper]

They work for us. Fetch me a glass of water.

[Qbert]

"Best of all, the myth that union bosses represent their members’ interests has been exposed as a lie. Now that union dues are voluntary, tens of thousands of union members have stopped paying them.  Membership in the Wisconsin chapter of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees union (AFSCME) has dropped by half.

We've waited so long for this day to come. Thank you Gov. Walker.

[onedoug]

Were I a union thug I’d be mighty po’d at leadership.

[immadashell]

The sooner SEIU and AFSCME are gone, the better for the taxpayers AND PUBLIC EMPLOYEES.

It's time to go after the Teacher Unions (not the teaching types but the multi-layers of administration).

[The Great RJ]

The whole recall was phony..just a do over of an election the Democrats and unions lost. I am happy that the voters of Wisconsin, including obviously many Democrats, saw through the charade. This whole recall was unions behaving like mean little kids who were just going to take their ball and go home because they didn’t get their way.

[Secret Agent Man]

The corpse may be dead now, but if its not a head shot, it comes back to life between a couple minutes to a few hours. Walking dead public union.

[Islander2]

“ED SCHULTZ = POS”
When referring to Sgt. Schultz, please clarify the letter P. In his case does it mean...piece, pile, plenty or something else.