Wisconsin budget standoff and protests continue

Wisconsin budget standoff and protests continue

Gov. Scott Walker accuses Democrats of 'hiding out' in Illinois, and a Republican lawmaker threatens to convene without them.

Associated Press
February 21, 2011
Madison, Wis.

— Wisconsin Republicans on Sunday increased the pressure on Democrats to return home and vote on an anti-union bill, with the governor calling them obstructionists and a GOP lawmaker threatening to convene without them.
Gov. Scott Walker said the 14 minority Democrats who fled to Illinois on Thursday were failing to do their jobs by "hiding out" in another state. And state Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald said his chamber would meet Tuesday to act on non-spending bills and confirm some of the governor's appointees even if the Democrats don't show up — a scenario that could outrage their constituents.
Senate Democrats acknowledged that the 19 Republicans could pass any item that doesn't spend state money in their absence. The budget bill they have been blocking requires a quorum of 20 senators to pass, while other measures require only a simple majority of the chamber's 33 members.
Nonetheless, Democrats said they were standing firm in their opposition to the budget bill, which would take away the right of most public employees to collectively bargain for their benefits and working conditions. Hundreds of protesters filled the Capitol for a sixth straight day, noisily calling on Walker to drop the plan they consider an assault on workers' rights.
Mary Bell, the president of Wisconsin's powerful teachers' union, called on teachers to return to work as scheduled Monday rather than continue their protests, which have shut down public schools across the state. But the Madison district said it would still cancel Monday's classes.
Bell said unions agreed to cuts in healthcare and retirement benefits that could reduce take-home pay for many workers by about 8%, and it was time for the Republican governor to compromise.
But in a Sunday morning interview from Madison with Fox News, Walker said he did not believe that union leaders were interested in giving up their benefits and that cities, school districts and counties would need weakened unions to cut spending for years to come. Walker said he would not compromise and predicted Wisconsin would pave the way for other states, much as it did with welfare changes and school vouchers in the 1990s.
"We're willing to take this as long as it takes, because in the end we're doing the right thing," Walker said.
The sweeping measure led to massive protests that started Tuesday and have only gained steam, with an estimated 68,000 people turning out Saturday inside and around the Capitol. Most opposed the bill, but for the first time a significant contingent of Walker supporters showed up to counter-protest.
Sunday's crowd was much smaller, as snow and freezing rain moved the protest inside the Capitol. But the crowd swelled throughout the day, and protesters chanted for hours in opposition to the bill. Another large protest was expected Monday, when many state workers are being furloughed to save money.
The bill would require government workers to contribute more to their healthcare and pension costs and limit collective bargaining on pay increases to no more than the Consumer Price Index unless voters approve. Workers could not negotiate benefits and working conditions. Unions could not force their workers to pay dues and would face a vote every year to remain certified.
Walker denied the bill was an attempt at "union busting" and said the measure was needed to deal with the state's projected $3.6-billion budget shortfall for the two-year period that ends June 30, 2013. He told Fox News he hoped the senators would return to work early this week.
Speaking from "an undisclosed location in northern Illinois," state Sen. Minority Leader Mark Miller said he and others would not come back until Walker was ready to negotiate. He said Fitzgerald's threats to pass non-spending measures would not sway them, saying they had the votes to pass even if the Democrats were present.
"The big issue we're dealing with is whether or not we should strip workers' rights, and everything else is just a diversion," he said.