Democracy Subverted by Wisconsin's GOP

Image via Wikipedia

Wisconsin Republicans effectively striped public-sector unions of the right to collectively bargain, but I wonder what price they'll pay.

Chris Cilliza, The Fix blog of the Washington Post, explains the night time maneuver:

"In essence, the Senate Republicans pared down Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker's controversial budget bill to include only measures -- including the collective bargaining provision -- that spend no money. Those provisions are able to be passed without a quorum of legislators present. That's exactly what the Senate Republicans did."

Initially, Walker said the ability to balance the budget relied on his exclusion of the collective bargaining provision.  After the unions agreed to make large monetary concessions to help balance the budget, Walker refused to give up his efforts to kill collective bargaining for Wisconsin's public sector employees.

It will be interesting to see if Republicans get away with this back door game plan to subvert the democratic process.  Shame on you Walker and company!

Related articles

• Wisconsin Republicans cut collective bargaining - The Guardian (news.google.com)
• Wisconsin Senate Goes With Nuclear Option -- Will Vote On Collective Bargaining Denial Without Democrats (blogs.forbes.com)
• Wis. GOP Bypasses Democrats On Collective Bargaining (promoteliberty.wordpress.com)
• Scott Walker's triumph? (politico.com)