FIGHTING FOR THE SOUL OF AMERICA

Rochester, N.Y.--  Cutting spending on government is not the same thing as cutting government spending -- it can even be the opposite.  Plus, tax cuts really end up costing us more when it is all said and done despite what the GOP says.

Ezra Klein

And this from Ezra Klein:  Let's be clear: Whatever fiscal problems Wisconsin is -- or is not -- facing at the moment, they're not caused by labor unions. That's also true for New Jersey, for Ohio and for the other states. There was no sharp rise in collective bargaining in 2006 and 2007, no major reforms of the country's labor laws, no dramatic change in how unions organize. And yet, state budgets collapsed. Revenues plummeted. Taxes had to go up, and spending had to go down, all across the country.

Blame the banks. Blame global capital flows. Blame lax regulation of Wall Street. Blame home buyers, or home sellers. But don't blame the unions. Not for this recession.

Just yesterday, 30,000 people  rallied at the state capital in Wisconsin for the second day in a row in solidarity with union workers and for the good-paying middle class jobs they protect.

They're standing up because Wisconsin's Republican Governor Scott Walker is on the attack. His proposed state budget attempts to strangle workers' rights by eliminating the right for library clerks, cops, firefighters, teachers, or any other government employee to let their union negotiate their pay and benefits through collective bargaining.

To make it clear he's serious, Gov. Walker has even threatened to call out the National Guard on protesting marchers in an attempt to squash debate and demonize the hard-working Americans standing united in front of the state capital right now.

This is only the beginning of the Republican attack on unions and middle class families. Similar attacks on unions are expected by Republican Governors in Ohio and New Jersey very soon with other states to follow.  Unions in New York State, like CSEA and AFSCME are also gearing up efforts to fight these unrealistic proposed budget cuts.  Also, CSEA is working on solutions to minimize the pain for working families and to make sure a more equitable and fair budget process is followed. 

It's time for us to stand up -- all of us -- across America -- in solidarity with union workers and the good-paying middle class jobs they protect. Today we must all join in a nationwide effort to fight for the soul of America.  We must spread the message that we all stand together and that we will not be the scapegoats for anti-labor forces and the GOP puppets who are carrying out their agenda.

The GOP never expected American workers would stand united to defeat them, now they're seeing it first hand. If we keep the pressure up and keep growing the number of Americans standing together, we can win this and protect vital middle class jobs-- right here in Monroe County and New York State too. 

Unions built the middle class and we'll be damned if we are going to let political hacks destroy our American families.  This isn't just about union strength and the employed. This is about the very nature of how we define ourselves as a society and the America we want to live in.