The FOX "News" Guy (Who Was Punched by the Union Guy) Started It!

I've never been in a union, and have in fact had a few unpleasant run-ins with unions. So, I'm not a knee-jerk union supporter. But you know what? When FOX "News" and every tool in the right-wing shed are anti-union? It doesn't take much for me to realize where the battle lines are drawn. One tip-off is that you rarely hear the word "union" without the word "thug" closely following it, in right-wing world.

But they were proven correct the other day, when FOX "News" failed comedian journalist reporter guy Steven Crowder was slugged by a union dude. I mean, this Crowder dude was just minding his own business, milling around amongst the protestors of Michigan's rammed through anti-union law, and some thug up and punches him! For no reason! [Story continues below]


Well, not quite. The first tip-off was the abrupt edit before the punch. The second tip-off (which should really always be the first) was that this is FOX "News" we're talking about. Their stock-in-trade is running doctored videos to bolster faux outrages to stoke the anger/hatred/fear of their lowbrow watchers. Just ask Shirley Sharrod.

[Excerpt]

Steven Crowder Tent-Gate: 12/11 Was An Inside Job

Remember that awesome video of stereotypical union thug cold wailing on stereotypical Fox News douche Steven Crowder at the Michigan anti-”Right to Work” rally this week? Of course you do, it’s embedded above. Probably you watched it and were like: “I shouldn’t be laughing at this because I’m a hippy Wonketteer librul who knows violence solves nothing, but DAMN! Dude dropped Crowder like Tyson dropped Spinks. . .” 

Read more at: Wonkette

Mitt Romney: Teachers, Firefighters, Police not Americans?

Image of Mr. Interesting from
Think Progress.

When President Obama said, "The private sector is doing fine. Where we’re seeing weaknesses in our economy have to do with state and local government," the other day, it didn't even raise my eyebrows, because I knew what he meant. Every sentient human who heard it knew what he meant too, but it became a major "gaffe" anyhow. Because the news is starved for scandal, I guess. But when Mitt Romney countered with, “. . .He says we need more firemen, more policemen, more teachers. Did he not get the message of Wisconsin? The American people did. It’s time for us to cut back on government and help the American people.”

Why wasn't this considered a gaffe? First, you have his sort of anachronistically sexist "firemen" instead of "firefighters." But forget that, exactly when did cops, firefighters and teachers become the enemy? I know that teachers are often punching bags for Rush Limbaugh and his imitators, but I thought our "first responders" were sacrosanct, particularly on the right. And then there's that last part. . ."and help the American people," as though none of these people are Americans? I find his whole response very odd, and certainly worse than the President's badly constructed sentence.


[Excerpt]


Romney Says America Doesn’t Need ‘More Firemen, More Policemen, More Teachers’

The last three years are the worst on record for public sector job loss, and the 700,000 government jobs that no longer exist remain a large drag on the American economy. . . 


Read more at: Think Progress

Wisconsin's Wanker Walker Wins (And Turds Sometimes Float)

Image from source, Politico

I'm a little surprised. I mean, I figured that all of that money had a good shot of buying a winner, I just thought it would be closer. Or maybe a surprise loss. Though I don't have a lot of emotional investment in this fight, it is disheartening to see what Citizens United hath wrought. A dweebie, uncharismatic, radical rightist holds onto his job in Wisconsin of all places? This is a place where Obama still--just today--polls above Romney. Another thought: Walker gave a victory speech. In an election that was akin to an impeachment that failed. Did Bill Clinton give a victory speech? It just seems like there should be a little humility.

And so it goes. And think of this. Whenever the huge infusion of cash into Walker's coffers is brought up, people on the right shriek, "UNIONS! The unions give money to Democrats!" Yes, they do. Which is exactly why Scott Walker and his compatriots are trying to bust unions. And with this success under their belt, where are we at if money always buys the winner? Is this the real Republican Permanent Majority that Karl Rove dreamed of? I have to hope not.

[Excerpt]


Wisconsin recall: Walker wins

A two-year saga of recall elections, public demonstrations, litigation and legislative walkouts drew to a finish Tuesday as Wisconsin voters turned out in massive numbers and voted to keep Republican Gov. Scott Walker in office.  A half-dozen states are casting ballots today in House and Senate primary elections, but it was on Wisconsin — the site of a historic Democratic campaign to oust a sitting governor — where the eyes of the political world were trained. . .

Read more: Politico

Credit Card Fraud in Scott Walker's Recall Defense?

Gov. Wanker Walker, Image from Addicting Info.

When it comes to Wisconsin politics, I make no claim to be plugged in. Though The Other Half does belong to a union, I never have. And having been raised in a Republican household, I've been told since I was a kid that, "Unions were a good idea years ago, but they've outlived their usefulness." This despite a dad in the firefighters' union! So, my take on the Scott Walker recall effort is in the larger story of the GOP 2010 freshman class of governors. They seemingly uniformly started a lurch to the hard right. This is probably because they've been spoonfed their policies by groups like ALEC.

They ran on the mantra of jobs, jobs, jobs, and then immediately started passing hundreds of anti-abortion efforts, union busting, anti-gay legislation, etc. All of it cut with an edge of meanness, from the governors to the legislators. Only Chris Christie seems to be able to pull this crap, and somehow maintain an aura of popularity. Thankfully, though my state improbably elected another Republican after our previous disaster of a governor, Nevada Gov. Sandoval hasn't blazed a trail of "screw you if you're not on my side." Which is nice.

Hey, Scott! If you get busted, please take him
with you! Image from Kingston Progressive.

Anyway, so Walker was dragged kicking and screaming into a recall election. But because his radical agenda would be so besmirched if he actually got recalled, the money has come a-rolling in. Yeah, yeah, I know the unions have been spending some jack too. But why wouldn't they? They're the ones Walker has been attacking after all. And I don't think they're matching the firepower of Karl Rove (horrible, horrible man) Reince Priebus, and the rest of the GOP cash machine.

Right now, Walker is leading. Not by insurmountable margin, but by enough that he probably isn't sweating too hard just yet. Then again, he might have different reasons to be sweating. There seems to be an unusual amount of corruption around Mr. Walker. Might the opposition (where are you, DNC?), be able to make a little hay out of this?

[Excerpt]

Scott Walkers New Fund Raising Scheme: Credit Card Fraud?

Many people have had it happen before. You go to the store, attempt to make a purchase for which you have funds in your credit/debit account and get declined. Sometimes this is a mere error. Maybe you made a few purchases that were abnormally large recently. Perhaps you took a trip and they flagged as they often do when you don’t notify them. Or sometimes, as we are now finding out, you may have a fraudulent donation to “Friends of Scott Walker. . .”

Read more at: Addicting Info

Wisconsin Gov. Walker's Aides Caught, Illegal Campaigning

Image from source, JSOnline

Soon to probably be recalled Governor Walker has all sorts of problems these days. He's sort of the walking definition of "political overreach." And now, the people who got him where he is are in trouble too. It's so terribly (chuckle) sad.

[Excerpt]


Two ex-Walker aides charged with illegal campaigning

Two staffers who worked directly for Gov. Scott Walker while he was county executive were charged Thursday with illegally doing extensive political work while being paid by taxpayers to do county jobs.

One of the two, Darlene Wink, cut a deal with prosecutors under which she has agreed to provide information in a related investigation about the destruction of digital evidence and to aid in further prosecutions. This is the first indication that the multifaceted John Doe investigation may be pursuing charges of evidence tampering. . .

Read more at: JSOnline

Ohio Set to Vote Down John Kasich's Anti-Union Law in Ohio

John Kasich, one of Ohio's least popular governors.
Image from TPM

I have no stake in the Ohio anti-union law, though I was born and raised in central Ohio. Even then--when John Kasich was a local politician--I thought Kasich was a giant douche. When he hit FOX "News," I knew I was correct in my assessment. And when he became Governor of my home state, he proved it to the nation. As I said, I have no dog in this fight, and I've never been in a union. But I'm crossing my fingers, lighting a candle and speaking in tongues, hoping that this law goes down in flames, and Kasich's legacy does too.


[Excerpt]

Poll: Ohio Set To Vote Big Against Kasich’s Anti-Public Employee Union Law

A new survey from Public Policy Polling (D) shows Ohio Democrats and public employee unions likely to win a big victory on Tuesday in the referendum on Republican Gov. John Kasich’s anti-public union bill, SB-5. . .

Read more at: Talking Points Memo

Wisconsin Labor Group Bans Republicans from Labor Day Parade

Image from source, DailyKos

From the "This Makes So Much Sense" department, Republican officials have been banned from the The Wausau Labor Day Parade. Why--since the Republicans of Wisconsin (and elsewhere) are so openly hostile to  labor groups--would they even want to be included?

[Excerpt]


Wisconsin labor group bans Republican politicians from Labor Day parade 

It should come as no surprise that organizers choose not to invite elected officials who have openly attacked worker's rights or stood idly by while their political party fought to strip public workers of their right to collectively bargain. . .

Read more at: Daily Kos

Separated at Birth: Jon Lovitz as the Devil & Gov. Scott Walker

I'm sorry I couldn't find matching poses, but this image--accompanying a story about Gov. Scott Walker's ultimately successful union rights-stripping bill--looks so much like Jon Lovitz as the Devil. The Saturday Night Live character was a cackling, over-the-top demon who took delight in being evil. So the similarities are more than skin-deep.

The story: HuffingtonPost

"Small Government" Conservative Think Tank Uses Government Against Professors

Gov. Walker's Fans, Photo from TPM

This one's just a little weird. Using the government to go after professors who may have used terms like "Wisconsin," "Madison" (wow, that isn't too broad!) and oddly, "Maddow" in email correspondence. See, conservatives really don't like professors, for their book learnin' and liberal leanings. So they're trying to git 'em, but they're doing so in a way that sort of uses the very "big government" they supposedly deplore. And along the way, they're going against the "nobody watches MSNBC" meme, as well as the "what Governor Walker is doing is very popular" line.

[Excerpt]

Conservative Think Tank Seeks Michigan Profs' Emails About Wisconsin Union Battle ... And Maddow



A free enterprise think tank in Michigan -- backed by some of the biggest names in national conservative donor circles -- has made a broad public records request to at least three in-state universities with departments that specialize in the study of labor relations, seeking all their emails regarding the union battle in Wisconsin, Gov. Scott Walker (R-WI) and MSNBC's Rachel Maddow, TPM has learned. . ."
 
Read more at: Talking Points Memo

Secretive Group Behind States' Anti-Union Laws

Image from Zazzle

Wow. Remember how Republicans snickered at Hillary Clinton when she said that there was a "vast right-wing conspiracy?" Maybe they were laughing because they knew that she was right, but that nobody would believe her. The article excerpted below (which also excerpts from other sources) is must reading, if you've been following the anti-union, pro-business actions of the new batch of GOP state governors across the country.  Sure, you've heard FOX "News" and Rush Limbaugh spinning the "official" story about how these measures are needed to shore up state budgets. But read on, and tell me how that squares with this melding of the state and the corporate combining efforts in secret.

[Excerpt]

What's the source of these anti-union measures? Meet ALEC, a right-wing group that writes state laws for Republicans


If it seems that all of this state-by-state union-stripping legislation is coordinated ... that's because it is coordinated. Also pre-written, gift-wrapped and hand-delivered.


Meet ALEC, the American Legislative Exchange Council, a national right-wing group that writes "model" legislation for its members. Who are it's members? Republican state legislators and private organizations (think ExxonMobil). . .

Read more at: AmericaBlog

Weekend Protest in Madison, Wisconsin Outdraws Biggest Tea Party

And not a teabag to be found. Image from source, Think Progress

If you still believe there's a "liberal media," ask yourself this. Why can a union protest in Wisconsin have more people than any tea party ever has, and you probably didn't hear about it? Yes, I'm aware that the ongoing tragedies in Japan are taking up most of the news time. But if 100,000 tea baggers were on the White House lawn on Saturday, they would have put it on the news.

[Excerpt]

Madison Rally Bigger Than Biggest Tea Party Rally



Police estimated up to 100,000 people turned out in Madison, WI yesterday to protest Gov. Scott Walker’s (R) assault on unions, making it bigger than any protests the city has witnessed, even those during the Vietnam War. The Madison rally is part of a much larger Main Street Movement of average Americans demanding fairness in labor laws, social spending, and taxation. . .
 
Read more at: Think Progress

Michigan's GOP Passes Law That Could Cancel Whole Towns?

Yeah, I think he's trying to drop a deuce. . .

Whatever you think of politics, or where you are on the conservative/liberal spectrum, you must acknowledge that what is going on in state politics right now is unusual. Republicans were swept into both national houses of Congress, many state houses and state Governorships. I maintain that the GOP tsunami was because of a) fickle voters; b) whiny, not voting Democrats; c) low-information voters, otherwise known as FOX "News" viewers; d) the Supreme Court's Citizen United decision and the resultant flood of corporate cash into the election cycle.

There are other reasons in the mix, but the fact is that this GOP wave was allegedly driven by a bad economy that wasn't getting better, and the (misguided) belief that Republicans would focus on jobs, jobs, jobs. But they haven't. Like they usually do, they've come down like a hammer, smacking everything they don't like. Gay marriage. Abortion. Unions. You'd think they'd been out of power for decades rather than a couple of years. All the while, they're doing their corporate masters' bidding, enacting legislation that is preferred by--let's just say it--people like the Koch Brothers. Particularly the newbie GOP Governors.

We've seen what Wisconsin Scott Walker's idea of governance is. And he's one of a dozen or more trying to just crush anyone and anything that gets in their way of conservative utopia. Or rather, they call it conservatism. It certainly isn't. That trick they pulled in Wisconsin to cram through the union smashing bill? Hardly conservative.

And how about this one? In Michigan, they're giving unelected people the power to overrule elected officials. Taken to its extreme, it could lead to the dissolution of school districts and town governments. I can't imagine how freaked out conservatives would be if they heard that Democrats even fantasized about such an idea.

[Except]

Emergency financial manager bill clears state Senate


. . .it could lead to intervention or, in the worst cases, the state installing an emergency manager who could cancel employee contracts, fire administrators or declare bankruptcy.

The law would include new triggers to allow the state to step in. For example, a city or school district that misses a payday or ends a year with a deficit of 5% or more of its budget could get a financial review. . .

Read more at: Detroit Free Press

And then there is this perspective:

[Excerpt]

Michigan is under siege. Is Anybody Watching?


. . .If I had been watching anyone but Rachel Maddow last night I never would have believed what I heard. Rachel, so far, isn't given to exaggeration or hyperbole. She does her homework. She has a staff who work tirelessly to get things right. But I heard what I heard, and what I heard is that Michigan's governor is on his way to one-upping Wisconsin's Governor big time. He not only wants to kill the unions, he wants to take over whole villages and towns and give them to his own private Genghises of Nottingham. . .
 
Read more at: DagBlog

Wisconsin Legislator Admits on FOX "News" Real Goals

It's not about the budget. In Wisconsin, stamping out the unions is about making it harder for Democrats--President Obama in particular--to win elections. That this was about more than the budget has been obvious for a while, even though legislators and right-wing pundits have insisted that it was.  Well, here's one admitting what they're really up to.

[Excerpt]

WI Senate GOP Leader Admits On-Air That His Goal Is To Defund Labor Unions, Hurt Obama’s Reelection Chances




. . .State Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald (R-WI), one of Walker’s closest allies in the legislature, confirmed the true political motive of Walker’s anti-union push. Fitzgerald explained that “this battle” is about eliminating unions so that “the money is not there” for the labor movement. . .
 
Read more at: Think Progress

Wisconsin GOP Pulls a Fast One on Unions

"No, really, am I coming off mean?"

I can't pretend to be an expert on all that is going on in Wisconsin. I'm not from there, I'm not in a union and never have been. But the trend in this country to try to plug budget deficits by going after working people, rather than Wall Street and the banks. . .well, it stinks. The investment bankers and their lot wrecked the economy, and pulled off the biggest heist in history. They didn't go to jail. We the tax payers bailed them out. And right now, they're doing fine. Better than fine, they're better than ever. 

Meanwhile, we the workers are still hurting. No relief for us. But hey, the country's still broke! Let's give tax breaks and subsidies to the rich, to the corporations, to the freaking oil companies. But let's stick it to workers again. Whatever you think about unions in general, I hope this is still starting to rub you at least a little the wrong way.

On top of all this, right when it looked like Wisconsin's Gov. Walker was going to lose this particular battle, the state GOP legislators pulled a rabbit out of their hat (or elsewhere), and just pushed through what they wanted. It was possibly against the law, and it is certainly unpopular. So, Walker will be a right-wing hero who is despised by everyone else. Maybe that's what he's going for.

[Excerpt]

Wisconsin GOP Strips Public Workers' Bargaining Rights

The Wisconsin Senate succeeded in voting Wednesday to strip nearly all collective bargaining rights from public workers, after Republicans outmaneuvered the chamber's missing Democrats and approved an explosive proposal that has rocked the state and unions nationwide. . .

Read more at: AOL

Daily Show: FOX "News" Defending Wall Street, Accusing Unions

Since this whole battle between Republicans and unions started up for this round a couple of weeks ago, I've felt a building anger. It's been an anger I was having a difficult time articulating.  It boils down to: whatever bad thing is going on in the country, there seems to be slack cut to big business and rich people, and blame placed on working people and the poor. We've seen this in Wisconsin. Gov. Walker gave a massive tax cut to business, and then he brought a hammer down on union workers. For all the "jobs, jobs, jobs" chanting from the right, there sure is the implication that if you work for a union or for government, you don't have a "real job." Which is strange, given that many of the people saying this are in government.

I've never been in a union, and have in fact had run-ins with them in the past. The Other Half on the other hand is in a union, and yet we almost got into a fight the other day over this issue, mostly because I wasn't articulating my frustration very well (and TOH may have unwittingly internalized a little too much right-wing rhetoric). I was practically yelling, "Yes, the government is in economic trouble, but WHY is the first solution always to stomp on workers and poor people?" TOH started in on property taxes, and long retirement pensions, and whatnot. And there may be areas on that end that need revision and reform. But you can't deny that this big, huge economic crisis was caused mostly by politicians, lack of regulation and enforcement, and greedy Wall Street and banking fat cats.

This was fraud on a massive scale. We already baled them out. None of them went to jail. Corporations continue to get billions in subsidies, practically zero taxes, they're sitting on trillions of dollars, and partisan jackasses like Walker want to clamp down on working people. Nice. Well, I still haven't articulated this very well, but you know who did? Jon Stewart. Take it away, Jon.

The Daily Show
Tags: Daily Show Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,The Daily Show on Facebook

The Daily Show
Tags: Daily Show Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,The Daily Show on Facebook

FOX "News" Shows Fake Footage for Wisconsin Protests

Palm trees. In Wisconsin.

Pro-Labor Political Ad in Wisconsin: Republican War on Workers

Gov. Daniels (R-IN) to Slash Spending, Even if it Costs Jobs

"Missed it by that much."
from ThinkProgress

Do you think we will ever learn? For whatever reason--the reason doesn't matter really--the political pendulum swings from left to right. The Republicans win a big election. And then, they become political bulldozers, charging full-steam ahead with their pet agendas, regardless of what their actual "mandate" was.

This time, the pendulum swung faster than it really should have. No political party, no matter how masterful, could have put the economy back together in less than two years. Republicans really won because of a) some of the public is fickle, b) some of the public is uninformed, c) some Democrats are big babies, and sat out the election because of their own pet issues, and d) Republicans promised to focus on jobs, jobs, jobs.

So, the Republicans won a big election for a variety of reasons. And then, once they got in, they've done what they always do: overreached. Plus, they claim that everything they're doing: trying to regulate abortion into oblivion, trying to stomp on gay people, trying to bust unions, cutting taxes for the rich. . .is what "the people" voted for. Oh, and let's not forget that any cutting of taxes and services will nearly always benefit the rich and hurt the working people. Cut Social Security! Medicare! Pensions! But oh no, the petroleum companies must get multi-billion dollar subsidies! Bank of America musn't pay taxes! Bush tax cuts for the rich are essential! See what I'm getting at? 

I sort of predicted this, though it doesn't take a genius. And the hard right pendulum swing in 2010 is likely going to careen back to the left if the Republicans keep this up. Which is probably part of the reason for the Citizens United ruling, Karl Rove's young but powerful PAC groups, the Koch Brothers' muscle flexing, and the new united front of Republican Governors trying to squash the remaining unions. With all of that, Republicans will have far more money to spend on election advertising. Hopefully, that will be an overreach as well, and the all-GOP-all-the-time nasty political ads will just turn people off.

[Excerpt]

Gov. Daniels Says Governments Should Slash Spending ‘Even If They End Up Seriously Costing A Lot Of Jobs’



When asked earlier this month about the job loss that would occur if the continuing resolution passed by House Republicans were actually implemented, Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) replied “so be it.” “We’re broke. It’s time for us to get serious about how we’re spending the nation’s money,” he said. . .
 
Read more at: Think Progress

"Anonymous" Targets the Koch Brothers

Image found at The Green Market

The Koch Brothers--billionaire tycoons who fund many and sundry conservative movements, including the Tea Party--have had a spotlight shone on them of late, as their hand in the Wisconsin labor protests has come to light. Especially after a Buffalo blogger totally punked Governor Scott Walker, posing as David Koch in a twenty minute phone call. The minor ripples this has made in mainstream news coverage is most perplexing. Were the political parties and policies on the other political foot, FOX "News" would have blown this up into the new, new Black Panther Party at least, in the amount of squawking they'd do about it.

The punk'ing wiggled its way into Meet the Press with David Gregory's interview with Walker on Sunday morning, but Walker shrugged it off, and Gregory is not known for tenaciously forcing an issue. Once, twice, still not gonna answer? We're going to have to leave it there. . . But not everyone is ready to let the Koch Brothers lurch off back into the shadows where they'd rather be. The entity known as "Anonymous"--which I'll confess I only heard of about since about a week or two ago--is now focusing in on the Kochs. Good.

[Excerpt]

‘Anonymous’ targets the brothers Koch, claiming attempts ‘to usurp American Democracy’



The decentralized protest group "Anonymous" has a new target: no, it's not a middle eastern dictator, a major bank or even a bit player in the military-industrial complex.



It's none other than tea party financiers Charles and David Koch, who were being targeted, an open letter stated, for their attempts "to usurp American Democracy. . ."

Read more at: Raw Story

Pro-Union Group Runs Anti-Gov. Walker Ad (Fake Koch Brother Phone Call)

Good for them. If this were a "Democrat punk'd by a prank call" situation, with a public outcry, and a liberal billionaire like George Soros, this story would not be flying under the radar. Instead, you've got a situation where a conservative billionaire helped get a conservative governor elected in Wisconsin, and then got the billionaire's pet issue--crushing unions--to be the governor's first major issue. I ain't sayin' that Democrats have never manipulated politicians or mislead the public. But a Republican is doing it here, and people should know it.