Scott Walker—Two Percent and Desperate

Hang in Scott—Ride tall on the Harley

Scott Walker, the energized-I'll-fight-anyone Scott Walker must be doing some serious praying to the political gods.

A new Washington Post/ABC News poll today has Walker at two percent.

So Walker is targeting the working class and unions in a grand, bold and staggering gesture—with brave, historic passion and determination.

Josh Marshall offers an explanation why Walker appears more and more as a cartoon figure:

[Thirteen] to 2% since July. That's about the best example of a full-blown collapse of a campaign as I've ever seen.

So now, in an effort to regain his footing, he's promising to 'wreak havoc' when he gets to Washington and end unions in the federal government. Good luck with that. The labor movement, particularly in the public sector, is reeling in the face of a new court case which the Supreme Court seems likely to use to get union funding. But as a political matter, I don't see this helping Walker at all - mostly it serves to underline, drive home, and highlight the level of Walker's desperation and panic.

Desperation and panic. That's our governor.

Scott Walker's War on Unions at Odds with Reagan's Support of Solidarity Union, Walesa

Ronald Reagan Radio Address to the Nation on Solidarity and United States Relations With Poland
- October 9, 1982

"Ever since martial law was brutally imposed last December, Polish authorities have been assuring the world that they’re interested in a genuine reconciliation with the Polish people. But the Polish regime’s action yesterday reveals the hollowness of its promises. By outlawing Solidarity, a free trade organization to which an overwhelming majority of Polish workers and farmers belong, they have made it clear that they never had any intention of restoring one of the most elemental human rights—the right to belong to a free trade union."

At Wednesday's CNN presidential debate, someone should ask Scott Walker how he squares his war on unions and workers with Ronald Reagan's address, supporting Lech Walesa and the Solidarity union fighting Communism and government suppression of unionism.

Judge blocks anti-union, anti-collective bargaining law with restraining order

Update: For a transcript of the opinion, see WisPolitics. Judge Sumi was appointed by Republican Gov. Tommy Thompson in 1998.

Democracy just scored a touchdown.

It's a high judicial standard to convince a judge to issue a temporary restraining order halting a law from taking effect.

But the underhanded, anti-democratic efforts of the Wisconsin Republican Party in ignoring Wisconsin Open Meeting requirements in passing the anti-union bill have managed to become the object of an emergency judicial remedy that is granted only in exceptional circumstances.

The order and opinion should become available online at the Dane County Clerk of Courts webpage. [Go about halfway down the page to: Dane County Circuit Court Case Number 2011CV001175 - Ismael R Ozanne vs. Jeff Fitzgerald et al.]

The Wisconsin State Journal reports:

A Dane County judge Friday issued a temporary order blocking implementation of Gov. Scott Walker's controversial measure limiting collective bargaining for public employees, saying a legislative committee likely violated the state Open Meetings Law when it rushed passage of the bill earlier this month.

[T]he ... decision was made soon after hearing arguments from Dane County District Attorney Ismael Ozanne and Assistant Attorney General Maria Lazar. There was no witness testimony. Sumi also denied a motion by Lazar to stay the restraining order pending an appeal.

Sumi ruled that a March 9 meeting of a joint Assembly-Senate conference committee violated Wisconsin's Open Meetings Law and went on to emphasize the importance of open government in remarks during her ruling.

'This was something that would and did catch the public unaware,' Sumi said, 'what ended up being a closed session of a body in propelling legislation forward.'

Patrick Marley, Don Walker and Jason Stein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel quote from Judge Sumi's order, reading in part: ""It seems to me the public policy behind effective enforcement of the open meeting law is so strong that it does outweigh the interest, at least at this time, which may exist in favor of sustaining the validity of the (law) ... ."

Score one for the democratic, open meeting good guy: Wisconsin democracy.

The order and opinion should become available online at the Dane County Clerk of Courts webpage.