Massive RW assault underway on public sector unions

[Tanuki]

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/aug/30/rightwing-alliance-unions-defund-defang

"Rightwing activists across the US have launched a nationwide campaign to undermine progressive politicians by depriving them of a major source of support and funding – public sector unions.

A network of conservative thinktanks with outposts in all 50 states has embarked on a “breakthrough” campaign designed to strike a “mortal blow” against the American left. The aim is to “defund and defang” unions representing government employees as the first step towards ensuring the permanent collapse of progressive politics.
.....

The new assault is being spearheaded by the State Policy Network (SPN), an alliance of 66 state-based thinktanks, or “ideas factories” as it calls them, with a combined annual budget of $80m. As suggested by its slogan – “State solutions. National impact” – the group outlines an aim to construct a rightwing hegemony throughout the US, working from the bottom up.

To do that it first has to sweep aside the public sector unions and their historic ties to Democratic and progressive politicians. In a 10-page fundraising letter, part of a set of documents obtained by the Center for Media and Democracy and published by the Guardian today for the first time, SPN sets out its mission in frank language that does not disguise its partisan ambitions.
......


Sharp pitches the battle against unions as the start of a war on progressive politics, with the ultimate goal of winning elections for rightwing candidates. “Big government unions are the biggest sources of funding and political muscle for the left – and a major obstacle to the ability of voters to reclaim control of American government. To win the battle for freedom, we must take the fight to the unions, state by state.”.....(more)

[Ilsa]

1. These asses abuse the word "freedom."

They want freedom to abuse workers for profit. Screw them.

[RKP5637]

2. Oh, but they mask themselves as patriots, defenders of freedom and USA Exceptionalism.

Sick bunch of abusers!

[Starry Messenger]

3. K&R

[Maraya1969]

4. We should get all their names, addresses and phone numbers and spread it around

virally.

Let them have zero peace when they try to ruin our country. Harasses them sick

[Tanuki]

7. More about Tracie Sharp, who wrote the letter disclosed in the OP,

and the Koch/ALEC links to the organization:

http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Tracie_Sharp

[Tanuki]

8. The SPN is meeting right now in San Antonio

https://spn.org/meeting/25th-spn-annual-meeting/

[Maraya1969]

5. Interesting. All their names can be found here, along with their offices

https://spn.org/directory/

[Hugin]

6. Isn't it a shame we learn of things like this via "The Guardian"?

God bless them... But, we have no US based media anymore.

It's all at best pulp fiction and worst outright right wing propaganda.

I know... I know... The WaPo and NYTs are trying to break through. They need to start covering these assaults.

[Lee-Lee]

9. Sadly they banned all public sector unions in NC in the 1950's

And the one single biggest failure of Democrats in NC over the last 30+ years was the failure to overturn that law. I'm convinced it's one reason Democrats lost power here and are unlikely to get it back anytime soon.

There can be "unions", but they are toothless because there can by law be no collective bargain agreement between any level of state, county, city or other local government. So a union is little more than a professional organization that you can choose to join or not. Without collective bargaining and mandatory membership unions are virtually powerless politically.

As late as 2010 we had the majority in both houses of the legislature and held the govership. That law could have been changed then and any year for decades before. But state level Democrats for whatever reason never did. The NC Leauge of Municipalities was against it- even though they were solidly dominated by Democrats- and they hold way too much influence in this state.

And now we are paying the price. I am convinced that had we had that law changed in 2000 or so the state would be a lot bluer than it is now with both the organizing power of unions, the financial power of unions and just the number of people whose lives would be better with unions seeing it. Public sector unions are the easiest to organize and get in place and can then help spread the power outside the public sector. We have zero of that here.

Every other state should watch how NC Democrats are suffering from this as a lesson. They could have changed that law long ago but didn't and now we are paying the price.

[Proud Liberal Dem]

10. First they came for the private-sector unions

now they're coming for the public sector unions as well. It was only a matter of time.


State employees here in Indiana lost their collective bargaining agreement in 2005 when Mitch Daniels came in. It was one of the first things he did.

[Orrex]

11. The local Republican fuckstick here in western PA is crying about a teacher strike

He's a state representative, and he's a complete asshole. I haven't heard a single comment from him on anything that couldn't equally have come from an animated MAGA cap.

The union is the problem, he dutifully recites. The union is what's hurting the schools. Not catastrophic under-funding and an idiotic regressive tax policy forced through at the state level by the Republican-controlled legislature. No, it's the unions.

This ass-hat also lobbied hard to prevent the state's sale of state-owned property to an educational foundation because the foundation is identified as Islamic. Of course, it wasn't because of bigotry, no sir.


What kills me isn't the Republican fuckheads in government who are doing this, because it's what their owners pay them to do. What kills me is the Republican voters who fall into idiot lockstep with whatever pronouncement comes down from on high, even when it directly harms the voters themselves.