The latest “special jobs session” where the Governor promised a “laser focus on jobs” which ended last night produced a total of 0.0 bills pertaining to jobs. Instead they took up such important bills as these:
* Students Test Scores can now be used to fire and discipline teachers.
* Approved a bill prohibiting the use of race in college grants.
* Passed the \"castle doctrine\" allowing people to shoot first and skip the questions. Which will now add a new twist to “trick or treating”. I wonder if the UPS drivers now qualify for combat pay?
* Dismantled the previous comprehensive sex ed bill & replaced it with mandatory abstinence only education. Which we know always works as planned! As Glenn Grothman says(and who does not want Grothman in charge of our children’s sex education?):
“We are trying to back away from the bill passed last year that we feel mandated sex ed that was too nonjudgmental, too explicit and at too young an age,” said Sen. Glenn Grothman, R-West Bend.
* Prohibited communities from placing any limits whatsoever on landlords. RIP local control!!
This is just the tip of the iceberg. The list is extensive and not a single jobs was created during these sessions. Of course the no jobs bills session was strictly done by the republicans alone as the democrats pleaded repeatedly to bring jobs bills to the floor. As Minority leader Peter Barca wrote:
On Tuesday Democrats in the Assembly and Senate unveiled a package of nine bills, focused on training workers for jobs that are immediately available to bridge the gap between open jobs and unemployed workers. Rather than agreeing to work together on job training, Republicans wrongly tried to demean and downplay these important bills that were developed with businesspeople and representatives from technical schools as a “stunt.”
During Thursday’s session, Democrats pleaded with Republicans to move forward on five jobs bills, including a bill to promote angel investments, one that would help small businesses secure capital and another that would help promote Wisconsin manufacturers. Republicans thwarted passage of these bills, despite the fact one was authored by a Republican and others were bills Gov. Walker included as part of the special session.
Let’s be fair though, it is not like the Assembly Republicans have not been doing important work. They have allowed guns on the floor of the assembly while banning cameras and signs from the gallery. The new take a picture – get arrested policy in the Capitol says all you need to know about the current batch of Wisconsin republicans.
Of course the constituents, citizens, and taxpayers who show up at the Capitol are always trying to push the limit. The “leaders” in Fitzwalkerstan have refused to back down and stand firm in their assault on the Wisconsin and US Constitution. As Mark Pocan pointed out:
“Tonight alone people have been arrested for holding pictures of an apple pie, Ronald Reagan, Jesus, the American flag, Mother Theresa, and a 12 year old little girl had her notebook taken away with flower doodles. Now I know those are all highly revolutionary, and they could cause problems, but that’s what’s happened so far tonight.” – Mark Pocan 11/4/11
* a quick aside here if the tea party, who pretends to hold our Founders on a pedestal do not say anything regarding this assault on free speech it pretty much diminishes their cause and shows their true colors.
Is there a group in this country that are more petty, ridiculous, childish, archaic and ignorant than the Wisconsin Assembly Republicans?
Welcome to the Republic of Gilead!, formerly known as Fitzwalkerstan, formerly known as The State of Wisconsin.
An Assembly member has a two year term. Recall Walker. Recall appropriate state senators. Overturn the Assembly. Please!
How many years will it take to see a moderate, even twentieth century Wisconsin again?