You may have heard on the news that it’s pretty exciting times here in Wisconsin’s capital city. Chances are, however, that what’s on the news isn’t the full story, or (if you’re watching Fox) it might be outright lies. So here, from my perspective, is what’s happening. Full disclosure: I’m an employee of UW Madison and an elected official in the City of Madison. I did not vote for Scott Walker.
1. What’s all the fuss about?
Gov. Scott Walker has been quite busy since getting elected. First, he said “No Thanks” to $810 Million from the Federal Government for High Speed Rail. He also returned $23 Million that would have brought broadband service to rural schools and libraries. Even before he was sworn in, he managed to stop the legislature from ratifying collective bargaining contracts that had been fully negotiated. Then came the barrage of legislation from Gov. Walker and the Republican legislative majority: rolling back wetlands legislation as a favor to a campaign contributor. “lawsuit reform” that guts consumer protections. Tax cuts for businesses. Privatizing the Dept. of Commerce. A “Voter ID” bill that will disenfranchise voters. Repealing regional transit authorities. And the latest: A “Budget Repair” bill that is questionable in its necessity (there’s significant debate about how bad the budget really is) and contains all sorts of policy unrelated to the budget, including removing more wetlands protections, making departmental spokes people, legislative liaisons and lawyers political appointees, selling state power plants without out requiring bids, giving political appointees the ability to significantly change the state’s Medicaid programs without legislative oversight, and of course, effectively ending collective bargaining, not just for the state but for all local governments in Wisconsin as well. All this has happened since the beginning of January, so there’s been little to no time for input or public debate. In fact, the Joint Finance Committee closed their hearing on the “budget repair” bill before everyone who wanted to testify could.
2. But isn’t Wisconsin’s budget really in trouble?
Yes, it is. Not as badly as Gov. Walker says, and not as little as some of his opponents say. Regardless, this bill goes way beyond “fixing” the budget. In fact, many of the state worker unions affected have already accepted pay cuts, and are willing to accept more in order to help close whatever budget gap there is. But Gov. Walker continues to say he will not negotiate.
3. Is it really “Chaos in the Capitol”?
No. This is the most amazing demonstration of 1st Amendment rights I’ve ever seen. Tens of thousands of people – families, high school students, teachers, grandparents, grad students, firefighters, police, people from almost every walk of life – have gathered in and around the Capitol building. They are singing, chanting, drumming, smiling, sharing food, cleaning up after themselves, and generally being the polite and nice Wisconsinites that they are. You can watch for yourself here and here and here . Or just ask the Madison Police Department . The most amazing thing: This is has been going on since Monday 2/14, more or less 24 hours a day. Even at the slowest times, there are hundreds of people in the Capitol building (overnight! Pillows and sleeping bags!). So far the largest crowd was over 80,000.
4. What about those State Senators?
Fourteen Democratic State Senators have left the state, breaking quorum and preventing the Senate from meeting and voting on the bill. Unless several Republicans vote against, it will most certainly pass the Senate and is even more likely to pass the Assembly. The Senators who left are simply asking for the Governor to meet and negotiate. Show them some love for their courage if you can.
5. The bigger picture:
In my opinion, this is one battle in a national war. To quote Joshua Holland:
“The Right has made great political progress getting Americans to ask the question: "How come that guy’s getting what I don’t have?" It’s the crux of the politics of grievance. Progressives need to get Americans to ask a different question: "What’s keeping me from getting what that guy has?" At least part of the answer is the Right’s decades-long assault on private sector workers’ ability to organize, and the latest battle is being waged in Wisconsin.”
Rick Unger at Forbes makes the same point, drawing the connection between the Koch brothers and Walker. And then, of course, there's
Krugman .
I think they thought, because of the election results, that it would be easy to take out collective bargaining in Wisconsin. They were wrong. I’m cautiously hopeful that the resolution to this situation will be positive, if only in the consciousness-raising and organizing that is happening. But keep your eyes open in your state too – we’re already seeing similar moves in Ohio. Are you next?
6. What can you do?
In Madison:
Get thee to the Capitol. History is being made, and you don’t want to miss it.
Tell Governor Walker (govgeneral@Wisconsin.gov or (608) 266-1212) what you think. Tell your legislators (http://legis.wisconsin.gov/...) what you think. Be sure to use your full name and address.
Volunteer: Here or here
Support these businesses .
In Wisconsin:
Get thee to Madison. See here for schedules and bus info.
If you can’t:
Organize or attend a rally or vigil in your city. See WEAC for a list.
See above about contacting the Governor and legislature.
Send the folks occupying the Capitol some love. It’s been almost a week. Defend Wisconsin has a paypal link. There's been a lot of coverage about Ian's Pizza, and they are awesome for what they've done, but I think the folks up there might be sick of pizza now.
Put your money where your politics are .
Think about the long term. Do any of your state legislators need support or need to be recalled ?
Anywhere else:
Organize or attend a “we support Wisconsin Workers” rally in your city. See here .
Let your Governor and Legislature know you won’t stand for any Walker-like shenanigans in your state.
Tell Gov. Walker the world is watching.
See the list above about how to support the folks in the Capitol and what businesses you should avoid.
Rumor has it that SEIU and others are phone banking into Wisconsin.
EVERYONE:
Decisions are made by those who show up. Register. Vote. Watch what’s happening in government and let your elected representatives know what you think about it. Run for office. Work on a campaign. Donate money to your favorite candidates. Be involved; stay involved.