A Pyrrhic Victory In Wisconsin

[babylonsister]

http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2011_03/028396.php

A PYRRHIC VICTORY IN WISCONSIN.... Over the course of 24 hours, the first phase of an intense dispute in Wisconsin appeared to come to an end. Wednesday night, Republicans in the state Senate managed to pass a union-busting bill without a quorum, and the state Assembly did the same yesterday afternoon. The measure now heads to the desk of Gov. Scott Walker (R), who intends to sign it "as soon as possible."

Unions and their Democratic allies are obviously outraged, but they're keenly aware of a silver lining -- this week's developments are more the end of the beginning, not the beginning of the end. Indeed, from a political perspective, Walker's crusade may very well prove to be a classic example of a Pyrrhic victory.

Democratic-leaning voters appeared energized by the battle over collective bargaining on a national stage. The fight has already spurred a list of potential recall elections for state lawmakers this spring. Protesters are planning more large demonstrations this weekend.

"From a policy perspective, this is terrible," said Mike Tate, the leader of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin.

"But from a political perspective, he could not have handed us a bigger gift," Mr. Tate said of the governor.

In the last 24 hours, he added, the state party had received $360,000 in contributions and volunteers have streamed into offices where signatures were being collected for recall bids.

And with due respect to the state party, the $360,000 in contributions pales in comparison to the nearly $2 million raised by progressive organizations very quickly, all of which will be invested in an aggressive pro-worker campaign in the Badger State.

When Markos Moulitsas noted yesterday that Scott Walker "is the best thing to happen to Dem activism since George W. Bush," he wasn't kidding.

—Steve Benen

[MadBadger]

1. There was nothing the Democrats really could have done to stop this

They had the votes all along. But they awoke a sleeping giant, and this sleeping giant will succeed in getting at least one Republican recalled.

[elocs]

9. We couldn't stop it here now, but we could have done more to prevent it last November:

[Jackpine Radical]

12. At least 4. Maybe 6.

Really--I'm seeing people who never gave a shit before getting all fired up over the outrages of the WI Republicans.

There is a lot of loose energy out there, and a need to channel it into productive action. The first 2 steps, to be taken simultaneously, are to elect Kloppenburg to the Supreme Court and to get thosee signatures.

[Doctor_J]

2. Passionate, and very poorly reasoned

this was a huge win for the Koch brothers, and will whet their appetite for more destruction nation-wide. the $2m raised by progressive organization can be completely overwhelmed by Koch or Scaife by one trip to the ATM this week. And by November 2012, hate radio will have found another issue to pit union members against their own interests and having them voting Repuke again.

[yellowcanine]

8. I disagree. Public employee unions have been energized nation wide.

The money will actually only be the beginning. Far more important is outpouring of actual grass roots support for teachers, firefighters, police, etc. Money can't buy that. Walker and his allies are not going to know what hit them.

[fasttense]

11. With that reasoning then the bushes should have gotten a 3rd term.

I know not really a 3rd term but another RepubliCON to carry the bushes flame. Yet, they didn't.

They didn't because liberals were all riled up and taking action. Of course Obama fed them what they wanted to hear but that is another story.

When you get the base going, the base brings along the fence sitters. When you ridicule and ignore your base, the base does the same during your election. That's why Obama, yes Obama, lost the House. Because he lost his base. He may think the middle of the roaders and fence sitters are the ones who voted him in, but he is wrong. Without his base, he can't expect to reach those middle of the roaders and fence sitters. That's why Harry Reid kept his seat. He got the Democratic base excited over NOT having crazy Sharon as their next Senator.

Big money has always been trying to destroy America since they planned the assassination and overthrow of FDR through Smedley Butler. They have always been throwing around their stolen loot in an effort to undermine democracy.

But what they don't have is votes and understanding of public opinion. The 300 or so fascist who have stolen our national wealth only have 300 votes. So, they have to con others in order to get them to vote against their own best interests. But, public opinion changes frequently. It can be conned one day but realize the con the next day. That's what happened when Obama was elected by a huge majority. The public saw the con and the base was active. TV ads, lies and manipulation only gets you so far, eventually the fascist uber rich show their hand and the public sees the con.

That's what happened in Wisconsin.

[Jackpine Radical]

13. Yes, once people figure out they're being lied to, it no longer matters

how loudly & persistently you shout the lies.

I used to say that the main difference between American media and Pravda is that the Pravda readers knew they were being lied to.

Well, the scales are falling form people's eyes. Everywhere you go in Wisconsin, you see people standing around with signs. When all this action either gets no press or gets distorted press, it's not just the protestors who notice.

[ProSense]

3. NYT editrorial: It’s Not Over in Wisconsin

Editorial

It’s Not Over in Wisconsin

Published: March 10, 2011

Republican lawmakers in Wisconsin have reversed half-a-century’s middle-class progress in the state by erasing collective-bargaining rights for public employees. Union members, caught off guard and infuriated by the Senate vote on Wednesday and the Assembly vote on Thursday, immediately talked of legal challenges and general strikes, but the outcome was probably inevitable given the Republican success in the 2010 elections. Now union members have to make sure they do not stay away from the polls again when their rights are at stake.

The vote, pushed by Gov. Scott Walker, would have happened weeks ago if Democratic state senators had not fled to Illinois to deprive the Senate of the supermajority it needs to pass bills that are considered fiscal matters. Republicans then moved the bargaining rights from a larger budget bill to a separate bill that they could pass by proclaiming that the rights were not a fiscal issue.

And, in doing so, they reluctantly exposed the real truth behind the maneuver: stripping the unions of their rights was never about the budget, especially once the unions had agreed to significant concessions on pensions and health care. It was always about politics. Governor Walker had hoped to hide behind a cooked-up budget crisis, but the fleeing Democrats at least succeeded in pulling away that facade.

Undermining public unions — and the support they give to Democrats — has been a long-sought goal of the Republican Party and many of its corporate backers. Koch Industries, one of the party’s biggest supporters, spent $1.2 million last year to help elect Mr. Walker and other Republican governors who want to eliminate or reduce bargaining rights. On Wednesday, the State Senate’s Republican leader, Scott Fitzgerald, told Fox News that if unions lose the battle for their rights, they would have less money to help President Obama win re-election.

more

[Jackpine Radical]

4. I went to my county party meeting last night.

The whole group was bubbling over with activist plans. I found out that 60 teachers in the local district will be taking a bus 90 miles to help collect recall petition signatures in LaCrosse and an equal number are scheduled on the next Saturday to go 60 miles to do the same thing in another district with a vulnerable Senator. They are planning a sort of "teach-in" for the more uninformed and previously uninvolved teachers in their own system (they will be bringing in one of the "Wisconsin 14" to speak). There will be a huge GOTV effort for our Supreme Court race, seeking to replace a conservative. Etc. This group was pretty high for Obama in 2008, but I've never seen them as fired up as they are now.


From an Eau Claire demonstration Thurdsay morning--I think this guy gets it--

[babylonsister]

6. Thanks for the first-hand account. Great to read! nt

[yellowcanine]

7. "Hey Scott, can you spell "pyrrhic" ? This should be the battle cry of Wisconsin teachers.

It is perfect.

[elocs]

10. I signed the recall petition for Kapanke last Monday here in La Crosse.

The guy collecting the signatures had his pickup truck parked on a well-traveled street here with a sign above it stating you could sign the Kapanke recall petition there. Cars would pull over to sign and others would honk as they went past.

[ProSense]

5. Surprise, surprise, Ron Johnson defends Scott Walker.

This is via a WaPo RW blog:

<...>

I asked him about Wisconsin. Why did Gov. Scott Walker take so long to pull out the "fiscal" elements and pass the legislation without a quorum? Johnson first made clear that he and the governor believe this "is not about individual workers . . . but about rebalancing the equation" so that the taxpayers' interests are being protected. As for the long-in-coming resolution, Johnson explained that the governor wanted the collective bargaining provision and the rest of the cost-cutting measures "tied" because they were all part of the effort to close the state's budget deficit. But it became evident the Democrats weren't budging. He said that one Democratic senator even requested an absentee ballot for the spring election. At that point Walker moved forward on the bill.

But Johnson was clearly disturbed by what he characterized as "mob rule and thuggery." He said that Republicans were being accused of being undemocratic, but "what doesn't look democratic is the mob rule." He argued that the "amount of thuggery, the threats of execution" have not been sufficiently covered by the media. He recalled that a radio show host read an anonymous e-mail sent to all the Wisconsin Republican state senators "threatening to put a bullet" through their heads and asserting that the e-mailer knew where the senators and their families were. Johnson said, "That is so out of bounds."

He told me, "Our democracy is working here," pointing to the Nov. 2 election of the governor and state legislators. He added, in a tone that was more sad than angry, "It's a shame it's being handled this way by the Democrats."

As for Walker himself, Johnson related that the governor has been "resolved throughout the process." He also acknowledged that while talking tough in public, Walker was "trying to be reasonable behind the scenes."

<...>

Note the mistake in the title: "Sen. Russ Johnson denounces 'mob rule'"

[Jackpine Radical]

14. Sunspot Johnson.

Plastics manufacturer & GW denier extraordinaire.