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21 Mar 2011 20:26

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U.S.: Absent Indiana Dems one-up absent Wisconsin Dems

Those Wisconsin pansies? Old news. Try cutting out over the GOP’s ENTIRE agenda, like Indiana House Dems did, five weeks and counting. GOP state Rep. Jeffrey Espich looks pissed. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

18 Mar 2011 12:55

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U.S.: Wisconsin union-busting bill blocked for procedural reasons

  • It seems to me the public policy behind effective enforcement of the open meeting law is so strong that it does outweigh the interest, at least at this time, which may exist in favor of sustaining the validity of the (law).
  • Judge Maryann Sumi • Explaining why she just blocked the just-passed law limiting collective-bargaining agreements in Wisconsin. Why’s that, you ask? Well, as a Democrat noted when Republicans passed the law, they violated the open meetings law to make it happen. The idea behind the law itself wasn’t blocked, though — meaning the Republicans could theoretically pass the bill again. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

15 Mar 2011 15:04

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Politics: In Wisconsin, the Democrats are told they can’t vote

  • They are free to attend hearings, listen to testimony, debate legislation, introduce amendments, and cast votes to signal their support/opposition, but those votes will not count, and will not be recorded.
  • Wisconsin’s GOP Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald • On the topic of the fourteen Democratic Senators who left Wisconsin to hold up Gov. Scott Walker’s union-busting bill. Basically, he’s saying that because the Democrats were held in contempt while they were in Illinois, that status will continue until they appear for the next legislative roll call, so they don’t get to vote. If this is allowed, the Republicans gain an obvious, if temporary strategic edge. Namely, if the Democrats want to be, you know, members of a representative body again, they’d have to attend the next roll call, which isn’t until April 5th. Therefore, in addition to the benefit of having a neutered opposition until April, the Republicans can be sure the Democrats will want to attend that particular session- meaning they can prioritize their biggest goals to that same day, ensuring the fourteen can’t go AWOL again without extending their vote-less status. A very Scott Walker April, anyone? source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

14 Mar 2011 22:34

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Politics: Wisconsin Senator leaves wife for mistress; wife supports recalling him

  • plan Some protesters in Wisconsin marched to the house of GOP State Sen. Randy Hopper, a Walker ally who will likely face a recall, to confront him about his anti-union policies.
  • surprise! Upon arrival, Hopper’s wife informed them that the Senator had left her for and was now living with his 25 year-old mistress. Perhaps unsurprisingly, she also supports his recall. source
Posted by Seth Millstein • 0 Comments • Permalink

12 Mar 2011 17:12

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U.S.: Wisconsin’s “Fabulous 14” comes back, parties with protesters

  • I’m one of the Fabulous 14 and I’m so proud. We are back to unite and fight with our supporters. We gave them hope. They gave us inspiration.
  • Democratic Wisconsin State Sen. Spencer Coggs • Discussing his return to Wisconsin after nearly three weeks of stalemate status. They were welcomed by the protesters in Madison. Republicans tried really hard to get them back – holding their paychecks, taking away staffer’s parking and access to copy machines, trying to pass even crazier crap than the collective bargaining thang – but ultimately, it was the roundabout sneak attack which finally brought the Fabulous 14 to the land of cheese and cheap beer. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

10 Mar 2011 15:50

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U.S.: Chaotic protests, dischord in Madison, Wisconsin reaching fever pitch

  • Chaos at the capitol: As a means to reduce the amount of protests and (legitimately worrisome) rage in Madison, the state GOP’s sudden vote last night hasn’t been too helpful. source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

10 Mar 2011 15:26

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U.S.: The wholly expected response to last night’s drama

  • legal complaint filed against Wisconsin GOP: This was an expected and obvious counter-move by Wisconsin’s Democratic Party, on the heels of the union stripping fracas that boiled over last night. Greg Sargent’s The Plum Line blog has a link to the full complaint, and as we don’t have any legal background we can’t speak to its strength. That said, as protests continue to rage and recent polls forecast a grim political price for the state’s Republicans, any protracted, public fight over this figures to benefit pro-union advocates. source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

09 Mar 2011 21:32

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Politics: Flashback: Scott Walker, circa three weeks ago

  • The bottom line is we are trying to balance our budget and there really is no room to negotiate on that because we’re broke.
  • Governor Scott Walker • After making this statement, he tried to negotiate, then stripped all budget-related provisions from the bill. Think about this next time Walker says, well, anything. source
Posted by Seth Millstein • 0 Comments • Permalink

09 Mar 2011 21:22

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Politics: How Wisconsin Republicans were able to pass the “budget-repair” bill

  • They removed the “budget-repair” part. The reason the Democrats left the state to begin with is because Wisconsin’s upper chamber can’t pass any fiscal bills without 3/5 of the members present, according to Senate rules. With the Democrats missing, Republicans lacked that 3/5 quorum, and couldn’t hold a vote. So, they simply stripped all fiscal provisions from the bill, eliminating the need for a 3/5 quorum, and passed it that way. What makes this extraordinarily slimy is that Governor Walker has insisted from the beginning that the bill’s purpose was to fix the state’s fiscal situation. Now, he and the Wisconsin GOP are implicitly admitting what everyone’s known all along: the bill wasn’t about fixing the budget. It was actually about busting up the unions. Good luck spinning the PR, Walker. You’ve done a bang-up job so far. source
Posted by Seth Millstein • 0 Comments • Permalink

09 Mar 2011 21:03

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Politics: Wisconsin drama: Democrat Lena Taylor evokes Ash Wednesday

  • Tonight is Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent for Christians, and in this time set aside for repentance and prayer, Republicans have turned judgment on themselves. Justice will flow down like a river on this state as Wisconsin recalls it elected officials who have betrayed the public’s trust.
  • Wisconsin Democratic State Sen. Lena Taylor • Dropping some religious talking points on the kids in the wake of tonight’s dramarama in Wisconsin. “Walker and his legislative rubberstamps achieved their goal of ending the Wisconsin values of collective bargaining and access to health care,” she said. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
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