Union members kicked out of Kansas House gallery during vote

[deminks]

http://www2.ljworld.com/news/2011/feb/24/statehouse-live-union-members-kicked-out-house-gal/

Topeka — More than 50 union members shouting "vote no" were kicked out of the House gallery on Thursday as Republicans pushed through a bill that workers said would limit their ability to participate in political campaigns.

House Speaker Mike O'Neal, R-Hutchinson, called the demonstration the most disrespectful display he had seen in his 27 years in the Legislature. "Please exit the gallery," he said. A worker shouted that approval of the legislation was disrespectful as the group was escorted out by state troopers.

House Bill 2130 would ban unions from making paycheck deductions for political activities and prohibit public employee unions from endorsing candidates. It was approved 75-46, with only Republican support, and now goes to the Senate for consideration.

edited to add:

more info here:

Kansas House shows it’s no friend of unions

Read more: http://www.kansascity.com/2011/02/24/2680837/kansas-house-shows-its-no-friend.html#ixzz1EyZvkEIo


The Republican union-busting campaign spread to Kansas this week like a disease, with state lawmakers approving a bill that would gut the free-speech rights of union members.

Now that may not be the most even-handed way of explaining what happened in the Kansas House. However, it is the truth. The kind of truth that you only hear when, say, the governor of Wisconsin thinks he’s talking privately to one of his fat-cat donors.

But as there’s no shortage of analysis on Gov. Scott Walker’s frank admissions over the phone to a blogger pretending to be billionaire David Koch, let’s focus, instead, on what political allies of the real Koch brothers have been up to in their home state.

Kansas House Bill 2130 got final approval in that chamber Thursday and now goes to the Senate. It is a transparent attempt to strip already weakened unions of what little political power they have left.

The bill’s supporters — among them the Koch-backed Americans for Prosperity — pretend that the legislation is aimed at protecting workers’ rights.

(end snips)

Kansas is already a right-to-work-for-less state. With this bill, unions cannot have members voluntarily have automatic payroll deductions taken out of their paychecks for PAC donations, or cannot endorse candidates. But, since Citizens United, any other business can do this very same thing. Just not unions. I thought Citizens United allowed personhood for unions as well?????

[snappyturtle]

1. How timely of Kansas! I believe this is very important. While the

nation and DU, for the matter, is focused on WI, other states, e.g. Kansas, Indiana are stripping unions of power. Collectively they may cause enormous damage....what happened in WI last night, happened in IN on Wednesday, in their case, limiting teachers' voices in the workplace. All of these actions are eroding the influence and voice of the unions. imho

We need to focus on the BIG picture!

The Indiana story here:



http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=439x489123

I hope deminks your OP goes further than mine did....even when I put it in replies, it gets no response. We must wake up!!!

[NYC Liberal]

2. Republicans are okay with disrespect when it comes to

one of their reps yelling "You lie" at the president during a State of the Union address.

Member of Congress heckling the president = good
Citizens protesting their elected officials = bad

[hobbit709]

3. this quote

"House Speaker Mike O'Neal, R-Hutchinson, called the demonstration the most disrespectful display he had seen in his 27 years in the Legislature"

I guess this the first time he's heard the voice of the people instead of the voice of his corporate masters.

[proud2BlibKansan]

5. Mike O'Neal is an ass.

I say that with all due respect to other asses I have known. :)

[proud2BlibKansan]

4. Just saw this on local news! WTF!?!?

Think I know one of the guys chanting 'UNION' as they walked out.

This bill is just horrible. I really despise the Koch repukes in this state.

[Frustratedlady]

7. Well, look at the damage the Koch bros. have done to this country...

And, that's just what we know about.

[proud2BlibKansan]

8. No need to fill me in. I'm a Kansan.

The Kochs are HORRIBLE!!!!!

[Name removed]

6. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[bdamomma]

9. damn, can't this be stopped by the Senate and don't lawyers

have a way to stop this?

[snappyturtle]

10. Kick! nt

[Ikonoklast]

11. This will go to th USSC, where it will fail.

Unions and corporations have the same rights under Citizens United.

[leftynyc]

13. You're going to have to explain

that very convoluted logic. The issue is collective bargaining, not speech.

[leftynyc]

12. Disrespectful?

Did this guy sleep through the teabaggers interrupting every town hall meeting they went to. Hypocrisy, thy name is republican.

[deminks]

14. KOSE Executive Director Jane Carter Responds to the Paycheck Deception Vote in the Kansas House

http://www.kansasfreepress.com/2011/02/kose-executive-director-jane-carter-responds-to-the-paycheck-deception-vote-in-the-kansas-house-of-r.html

The House Puts Government into Our Paychecks

"The recent vote in the House should have never happened; HB 2130, the "Paycheck Deception Bill" is nothing more than discrimination against union members and their political institutions. This bill restricts the use of funds collected, in part, through the state government's payroll system as a result of paycheck deductions affirmatively authorized by a state employee for a non-partisan political action committee. This bill does nothing for average union members but tell them how and what they can use their paychecks for.

"For public employee organizations - that is, for KOSE- HB 2130 includes a variation on the anti-union ruse misleadingly called "paycheck protection" by its proponents. Proponents of this ruse speak with high-minded fervor of the need to protect the rights of individual union members and other workers to be free of the compulsion to pay for speech with which they disagree. But, paycheck protection is disfavored by union members. Only business groups like the Chamber of Commerce are in support and for them it is retaliation against working families and their unions for opposing corporate and anti-worker agendas.

"This morning, Rep. Loganbill (D-Wichita) asked a rhetorical question of the proponents of this bill as to whether they thought union members were too stupid to know how to spend their own paychecks. A good question considering that these so-called "small government" legislators have no problem with government meddling in the rights of workers and telling union members how to spend their hard earned paychecks.

(end snip)