Wisconsin Votes Today: What a State Supreme Court Election Means for Obama’s Re-election Chances

by John Nolte

First off, if you live in Wisconsin and haven’t yet voted to re-elect State Supreme Court Justice David Prosser, stop reading this and go vote. Secondly, if you know anyone in Wisconsin and haven’t yet called and urged them to vote for Prosser, stop reading this and go do so now. Put simply, this race is going to come down to who gets their base out and if we lose this one, we’ve not only lost hope for any kind of real reform in Wisconsin, we’ve also given Barack Obama an easier path to re-election in 2012.

Those of you under the misguided notion, that even in the event of a Prosser loss, his 4-to-3 tie-breaking swing vote in favor of judicial restraint will remain on the court long enough to validate Governor Walker’s Budget Repair Bill, had better think again. The Madison judge, Dane County Circuit Judge Maryann Sumi, who has pulled every judicial activist trick in the book to block Walker’s bill on an absurd technicality, has no doubt intentionally decided to run out the clock in the hopes liberal activist Joanne Kloppenburg succeeds in unseating Prosser. Sumi’s delayed her next ruling for nearly two months. This allows her to hold on to the case until the end of May or the beginning of June. Prosser’s term would end July 31, which make it very possible the State’s highest court won’t rule until long afterwards.

See how that works?

This isn’t an accident or coincidence. It’s by design. Delaying the enactment of a law over a technicality regarding an Open Meetings rule no serious person thinks was violated, is one thing. Throwing a wrench in the gears in order to slow down the process in the hopes a more favorable appeals court judge will win an election, is something else. The will of the people is being overturned by the worst kind of judicial overreach my former home state has seen in a long time — which brings me to the bigger picture.

This entire battle is about one thing and, believe it or not, it has nothing to do with “collective bargaining“. The unions don’t care about collective bargaining as much as they care about the money and power that comes in the form of union dues. Right now, if you’re a Wisconsin public employee, union membership is mandatory and the dues you pay — that average around $800 a year — are automatically garnished from your paycheck and funneled directly to the union. Walker’s bill puts an end to both of those obnoxious practices.

Though the bill’s dishonest opponents and their media minions have framed the debate around the concept of ”workers’ rights,” one right Walker gives public workers is the right to NOT join the union. Furthermore, instead of the state collecting dues from those who choose to join, the union will now have to collect dues all on their own. This racket  – and that’s exactly what it is — that forces workers into the union, is not only the well spring of union power in Wisconsin, it is also a central source of political power for Democrats, including Obama, in a must-win swing state. Millions of dollars in dues help to pay for the union machine’s crucial get-out-the-vote activities and their massive campaign ad blitzes.

The numbers that terrify Democrats and unions come from states where laws similar to Walker’s have passed that put an end to both compulsory public union membership and the automatic garnishment of dues:

Union officials recognize what can happen if dues payments become voluntary. Robert Chanin, who was general counsel of the National Education Association from 1968 to 2009, said in a U.S. District Court oral argument in 1978 that “it is well-recognized that if you take away the mechanism of payroll deduction, you won’t collect a penny from these people, and it has nothing to do with voluntary or involuntary. I think it has to do with the nature of the beast, and the beasts who are our teachers . . . simply don’t come up with the money regardless of the purpose.”

There is evidence to back up his fears. In 2001, Utah made the collection of payments to union political funds optional, and nearly 95% of public school teachers opted not to pay. In 2005, Indiana GOP Gov. Mitch Daniels limited collective-bargaining rights for public employees, and today only 5% of state employees pay union dues.

A mere 50% drop in union dues would be a terrible blow to Wisconsin unions and the Democrats they support. 95% will all but put their racket out of business. Furthermore, it’s very difficult to see Obama’s path to re-election victory should a powerful union machine be unable to bring Wisconsin over to his win column.

Wisconsin Democrats, with the help of the White House, are playing chess here and have been since they fled the state.

Unless we get out our vote in Wisconsin, this election could very well be checkmate.


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Posted Apr 5th 2011 at 3:43 am in Big Labor, Featured Story, State Government, State Politics, Supreme Court | 118 Comments