Sullivan issues statement on Walker’s assault on middle class families

Here’s Milwaukee County Executive candidate Jim Sullivan’s statement on Gov. Scott Walker’s proposal to punish public employees for the bad fiscal choices made by legislators in Madison:

“The working men and women of Wisconsin have the right to collectively bargain for good wages, quality health care, and decent retirement benefits. Scott Walker’s divisive attack on the people who keep our communities safe, clean, and prosperous is about politics and not good public policy.

“Working families deserve better. As County Executive, I will respect the work done by employees, both public and private, and I will never scapegoat one group to score partisan points.

“Government works best when all sides work together to build a stronger future for Wisconsin. Scott Walker struggled to learn that lesson here in Milwaukee County, and sadly he has taken those same factious policies to the governor’s mansion.”

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45 thoughts on “Sullivan issues statement on Walker’s assault on middle class families

  1. You have this wrong, it is not an assault on the middle class it is an attempt to rescue the middle class from being raped by uncaring unions. I do not work to pay for their health care or for their retirement, I work for the betterment of my family. Wisconsin is a state of hard working people and the sooner unions understand this the sooner the better.

    1. I’m solidly middle class, and I pay taxes just like anyone else. In fact, most of the state employees I know (with the exception of upper management) are middle class folks who work hard and pay their taxes.

      1. Yes, but as a state employee you are different in that you are receiving benefits from other taxpayers. Why is it so outrageous that you contribute to retirement and health, things that benefit YOU personally? Those benefits are not rights.

        1. I already contribute to both my health insurance costs and my pension. What’s more, my contributions to both have increased while my pay has decreased over the past few years.

  2. Notalib Dearest,

    “Raped by uncaring unions.” Really? Raped? Wow, what a weenie. Your anger seems to have gotten the best of you. But then again, the best of the worst is still the worst.

  3. Hey Notalib–
    Public employees are HARD-WORKING middle class people. I have a PhD (required for my job) and my base pay is less than $50,000 a year. Stop watching Fox News and get informed, please.

    1. So did you ever think of putting your PhD to better use? If you like the job you are doing great stay with it, however if you dislike your pay or benefits or what you are doing just do what many people do look for something that fits you better. Oddly I don’t watch Fox News why do you far left progressives as use that as some kind of insult, grow up, grow a pair and stop whining, it’s really beneath someone with a PhD.

        1. But he’s paid by public employees. You don’t mind forking over $ to him, but you do mind contributing money to your pension, which is money that you will get back.

            1. Yeah I get that. Do you contribute more than those in the private sector? How many people out there even get a pension?

              1. Glad you finally get it.

                I don’t know whether I contribute more than those in the private sector, because I’m sure there’s a myriad of different pension plans, depending on which private sector company we’re talking about.

  4. Hey Notalib-

    I am not a big fan of Marty Beil and the rest of the fat cat Union leadership that we are
    stuck with, but do we collectively really want to go back to the days of dealing with Management without any representation ? I understand that there are many Wisconsinites who are hurting right now. And I think that most public employees are willing to do their fair share to help out with the budget—–but really, you think that we are the bad guys in this deal ?? Do you really want Privatization in Wisconsin ? Do your research. It is cheaper, but as your grannie probably told you, you get what you pay for.

  5. No I don’t think you are the bad guys at all, but times have changed and unions need to understand that.Over the last few years we have all had to pay more for healthcare, retirement, etc. All we are saying as taxpayers is we don’t mind paying a liveable wage for your services but we really wish you would help out in the benefit side.

    My wife is a RN, I work in transportation, have been married for almost 30 years, this year because of the way insurance is done we both have to have our own insurance, neither of our companies will cover the spouse if they have available insurance through their companies. SO now we are stuck paying dbl the premiums because of this. How many of you state workers are required to do this? SO besides two healthcare premiums I also pay out of my paycheck state worker healthcare and retirement plans, I say sorry but its time you guys start feeling some of the pain we we who now fund you do.

    1. Just as you’ve had to pay more for healthcare, retirement, etc., so have I, and I’m a public employee. I pay more now for health insurance than I did last year and the year before that and the year before, and I’ve still taken a 3% pay cut for the past two years.

      The proposal by Gov. Walker would raise my health insurance premiums by 300%, and I’m sure you’d be complaining if your employer did that to you.

      And just so we’re clear, I feel the same pain you feel; I pay taxes just like you, as do all public employees – the difference I actually value the work public employees do.

      1. Zach, it’s just reality. Where else is the state going to get the money? I know that it is a bad situation, but that doesn’t mean people don’t value what state employees do. I don’t think Walker is talking about any jobs cuts, which probably needs to be done. It’s nothing personal, but I think we have to cut back some state programs. If we reduce or eliminate programs, there is no reason to employ as many people. Being a state worker is not a welfare jobs program, it only exists to effectively carry out state operations.

        It’s personal to you because you are a state employee and I get that. But times are tough in the private sector too, so why should government not reflect that even a little bit? Your peers in the private sector are outright losing their jobs and not getting new ones, and state employees complain about contributing to their own benefits!!! Good luck winning over the general public in that PR war, when they would just wish they had a job, much less a pension and a world class health plan!

        1. If this were just about the money, then why the need to take away the ability for unions to collectively bargain anything but pay? Why the need to force unions to recertify every year?

          This was about breaking the unions and public employees, plain and simple.

        2. “Where else is the state going to get the money?”

          Maybe they should have kept some of the revenue they gave away last month?

          1. Wait….you mean they should have done the responsible thing and not decrease the state’s revenue at a time when the state is facing a multi-billion dollar budget deficit?

            You ask too much!

            1. No wonder union members are in the trouble they are in…you guys really just don’t get it. Yes the rail would have brought a few hundred jobs to the state but the state would have had to subsidized the line to keep it running. Why do you union members think money just grows on trees…..oh wait because they get health insurance and retirement from the working people of Wisocnsin they have never had to be responsible for themselves.

              1. I’m referring to the revenue the Republicans gave away in the form of tax breaks for big business.

                As for your comment that we get health insurance and retirement from the working people of Wisconsin without having to be responsible ourselves, I’ll just note a few facts:

                1. I’m a taxpayer the same as anyone else. I pay my fair share of taxes, contrary to what you want to believe.
                2. I don’t “get” health insurance and retirement; I pay for both. In fact, I already pay the 5.8% Gov. Walker wants the rest of public employees to pay.
                3. I know plenty about responsibility, but clearly you still haven’t been able to get past the talking points.
                1. Difference is voter id benefits the whole state and stops the voter fraud of the state DNC while the train benefits a small corner of the state and still cost the whole state millions of dollars to operate.

                  1. Yes! We must stop the epidemio of voter fraud in WI now!

                    An entire, whopping, count-them-on-one handful of people have been charged by AG J.B Van Hollen after an exhaustive two year investigation.

                    http://www.jsonline.com/blogs/news/86917797.html

                    We must spare no expense in rooting out this large scale, massive, count-them-on-one-handful conspiracy to subvert our precious democracy.

                    If we have to crush the public employee unions and throw Wisconsin’s children off of BadgerCare to pay for this investigation, we will.

                    We will track down and prosecute every single count-them-on-one-handful voter fraud conspiracy in the state!

                    We wil not rest, we will not sleep, and we will not tarry in our relentless effort to hunt down, investigate, question, manufacture pointless political busy work, prosecute and ultimately root our every single count-them-on-one handful voter fraud plot in Wisconsin.

                    Sleep well, Badger State, for I cannot. Not as long as there is a single, nefarious, ACORN led count-them-on-one handful voter fraud conspiracy left untouched.

  6. Notalib,

    Then get behind the ” Enhanced Medicare for All” effort, help us kick the health insurance industry out from between us and our healthcare providers, and quit being a mouthpiece for the very corporations that are putting the screws to you and your wife, your relatives, your friends and your neighbors.

  7. If “Enhanced Medicare for All” means government run healthcare no thank you want no part of it. I am happy with my insurance, when my wife had cancer they paid the majority of the bills, when I had a heart attack last year they paid for the majority of the bills.

    1. I work in a Prison with drug dealers and rapists every day. If what we have looks that good, check out the Department of Corrections website. There are going to be plenty of jobs for all of those fine folks who think that what we have is fantastic. We have gone for decades with small or no pay raises. We were OK with this because we knew we had good benefits. So now that the economy is in the crapper, we should ante up our pound of flesh. You want my Job, you can have it. The inmates are always happy to meet new kids on the block.

      1. Don’t think I said anywhere that the job you have is not difficult. You are falling into the union trap making everything us vs them, this is not about your job, it is about paying your fair share, something progressives are always harping about, except when it comes to them.

      2. With a 9% unemployment rate, I think you might have some takers. Mike, if you give up your job, where are you going to work? With that said, I appreciate what you do as being a terribly tough job. But times are tough. There is no money.

        1. I already turned in my paperwork. Many others are doing the same. If Mr. Walker gets what he wants, how long do you think it will be before Prisons, etc. are privatized? I don’t think that Unions are perfect or wonderful, but I am sad to see a future where many
          people think that life without them is greatly preferable. So what happens when the economy does finally turn around. We will have basically said, ” Hey, whatever you want to give/pay me is OK’. Remember Hortonville?

          1. Turned in your paperwork? Do you have another job lined up? Or retirement? Or collecting unemployment?

  8. For those of you in the corrections industry, what are some of the advantages and disadvantages of private prisons? I think Mike C. is right that we will probably see Walker will shoot for that in the near future, so what kind of arguments will we see him marshal?

    1. Government should privitize almost everything that the private sector is capable of doing. Provide the oversight but let it figure out the details. Government should not be in the business of providing services.

  9. The reason public employees have a pension is that most of them don’t pay into social security, thus their pensions are their retirement. Public employees typically make less than their private sector counterparts in salary. Their benefits are usually pretty good which helps to increase their overall package, but private industry still offers more typically.

    1. Historically that was the case – but I believe it no longer is. There are some federal employee exemptions, but I believe all states have what’s called a 218 Agreement that enables them to participate in social security.

      Any state employees wanna look at their paychecks & with holdings and answer for sure whether they are or aren’t?

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