Rachel Maddow Plays Surreal Video of Wisconsin Anti-Union Bill Conference Committee
Wednesday evening, the Wisconsin state legislature was the scene of parliamentary maneuvers that would make Bootsy Collins fall off the stage, as Wisconsin Republicans tore the roof off the sucker, and passed Gov. Scott Walker‘s (R-WI) union-stripping measures as a standalone bill. The move is being challenged by Democrats, who say it was illegal. On her show tonight, Rachel Maddow played some surreal video of the hastily-convened conference committee, including a defiant Dem assemblyman who gets steamrolled by his GOP colleagues.
This is probably the best video clip ever to come out of the Wisconsin legislature, and a compelling example of politics in action in its own right. From The Rachel Maddow Show on MSNBC:
I don’t know whether the Republicans’ action is illegal, but if not, it looks like the Wisconsin 14 are about to get Admiral Ackbar-ed. State Sen. Chris Larson (D-WI) told Lawrence O’Donnell, earlier tonight, that state Sen. Mark Miller plans to return to Wisconsin to challenge the bill’s passage. All I have to say to that is, “It’s a trap!”
Once Miller returns, there’s nothing to prevent the Republicans from simply passing the original “budget repair” bill, as far as I can tell, since they only need one Democrat to attain a quorum.
Whatever happens, tonight is a pivotal moment in American politics. If Walker’s bill stands, it could galvanize pro-worker sentiment around the country, or it could be a crushing blow to unions if public outrage peters out. There’s been a lot of outrage over maneuvers on both sides, with Republicans casting the Wisconsin 14 as “cowardly” or “wimpy,” and outraged Democrats calling tonight’s action a breach of basic fairness, but let’s face it, if the situations were reversed, so, too, would the outrage be reversed. The essential question is this: Who’s right, and how right are they?
Public opinion has been overwhelmingly on the side of the unions, but is it strong enough to form a groundswell that will sweep overreaching Republicans out of office? Or will other Republican governors follow Walker’s example, taking short-term political damage in exchange for crippling unions, the most effective levers of Democratic electoral power? A lot of this will be determined by the public’s attention span for this story, which has been surprisingly steady, so far.
No matter how this thing shakes out, I’m afraid I have to blame Rachel Maddow for tonight’s debacle in Wisconsin. Maybe it’s because she’s from Massachusetts, and probably roots for the Cheatriots, but any good Jets fan could have told her that you never, ever, evernay start to celebrate while there’s still time on the clock. From Tuesday night:
This is an opinion piece. The views expressed in this article are those of just the author.
