RW DetNews columnist: Wisconsin governor's agenda won't work here in Michigan

[Bozita]

Howes is a real reichwinger, but take a look.

Last Updated: February 24. 2011 10:52AM
Daniel Howes
Wisconsin gov's agenda won't work here
It costs political capital that could be spent elsewhere


If you want to know why a campaign to deliver a right-to-work law in Michigan could fail miserably, take a look over in Madison.

There, "WisTeria" has descended on Wisconsin's state capitol. Senate Democrats have bolted the state lest their presence enable a vote that could strip public-sector unions of many collective bargaining rights. Gov. Scott Walker, whatever his support among a silent majority, is a media pinata, and the legacy of this ugly battle — which may or may not go the governor's way — is uncertain.

Not because the dollars and cents of Wisconsin's $3.6 billion deficit are not on Walker's side, because they mostly are (as union negotiators have acknowledged). But because the broader reach of what the governor and his fellow Republicans want to do really is an existential threat to the power and cash-flow of public-sector unions whose leaders depend on the continual flow of taxpayer dollars to fuel their operations and project their power.

Labor's response may be surprising to the vast majority of Americans who don't pay attention to such self-absorbed minutiae unless it graces their flat-screen TVs. It is not at all surprising, however, to the politicians and media hacks who do pay attention — starting with Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder, who insisted throughout his campaign that moving to rescind the collective-bargaining rights of public employees is a non-starter.

Why? Because it would enflame an already contentious budget battle in which the numbers don't lie. Because it would risk derailing a governor's ability to use a legislative majority to bring fiscal sanity and economic competitiveness to a moribund economy. Because it would take a constituency that could help get things done and make it an implacable foe for this year, the next and the one after that.

As much as Wisconsin Republicans may rationalize the need to reach beyond financial give-backs and into fundamental rights of union bargaining — by barring closed shops, dues check-off and multi-year contracts — it's not at all clear they reckoned with this completely predictable response.

A big deal? The word "huge" isn't nearly big enough to cover it.

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From The Detroit News: http://detnews.com/article/20110224/OPINION03/102240346/Howes--Wisconsin-gov’s-agenda-won’t-work-here#ixzz1Ew03W3Cp

[chollybocker]

1. They right wing is on its heels and flailing now.

Prepare for a week full of 1,500-word apologisms. Can David Frum be far behind?