Games in Indianapolis, Madison expose lawmakers who favor special interests over taxpayers
Today, only two Democratic lawmakers in the Indiana state House showed up for work.
The rest are fleeing to Illinois or Kentucky, according to the Indianapolis Star, mimicking tactics employed by lawmakers in Wisconsin to deprive taxpayers of a quorum necessary to conduct the public’s business.
It’s a dirty political game that exposes lawmakers who put the special interests of their state’s labor unions over the welfare of all residents.
The recent development in Indiana is in response to a bill that would free employees from paying for union representation they never asked for. The “right to work” legislation would mean more money and influence for struggling workers, but less cash in union coffers. It’s a similar situation in Wisconsin, where Gov. Scott Walker is making good on his pledge to reel in the state’s labor costs by limiting Big Labor’s collective bargaining power.
That doesn’t sit well with Democrats in Indianapolis and Madison, who depend on the union’s vast political influence and financial support to get elected.
The self-centered, cowardly approach taken by politicians in both states not only blocks legislative changes needed to rebound from the current economic recession, but also blocks the will of the vast majority of residents who voted for these changes last November. We call on leaders in both states to take every measure available to force these AWOL politicians back to work, or recuse them of the duties they were hired to perform.
While lawmakers hide out, pressing budget and educational issues in both states remain unresolved.
In Wisconsin, Democrats-in-hiding may soon force Walker to lay off thousands of state workers to balance the budget, something he’s said could be accomplished through collective bargaining reform without anyone losing their job.
The stall tactics in Indiana put bills designed to improve the state’s school system – and other important public business – on the back burner indefinitely.
This Legislative Cowards Convention is only slowing lawmakers who are truly committed to resolving the budget problems Big Labor has imposed on these states for decades. We encourage these wayward lawmakers to return home, and address the very real labor issues with a true sense of solidarity for ALL of the taxpayers they were elected to represent.
