FedUpUSA

Posts Tagged ‘MI’

Today was another raucous day in Michigan’s state capitol.   Reminiscent of the uproar in Wisconsin last year, the unions in Michigan were not to be outdone.   The Twitter-sphere was filled with gems like this:

Former MI Governor Jennifer Granholm’s Tweets

‘Collective bargaining?”  Just what does this legislation have to do with collective bargaining Ms. Granholm and Mr. Obama?  Absolutely NOTHING.  In order to actually get people to protest against this legislation, first they have to lie about the legislation.

As my friend Joan Fabiano from Grassroots Michigan states, the bills here in Michigan are about choice.  No more and no less.

What is a Right to Work law? A Right to Work law guarantees that no person can be compelled, as a condition of employment, to join or not to join, nor to pay dues to a labor union. Section 14(b) of the Taft-Hartley Act affirms the right of states to enact Right to Work laws.

The Right-To-Work legislation attempts to undo something that was amoral and discriminatory to begin with: using the force of government to require all people in certain fields of work to pay union dues in order to be employed.  The government should have no role in playing favorites or in forcing some people to do the bidding of others.  In this case, unions wanted to force everyone to be members of the union and therefore pay dues, just in order to have a job in a particular field.  To give their demand more authority, power and most importantly enforcement, they got government to write a law favoring their monopolies.  These laws have been in effect now for more than 2 decades.  And where has that gotten Michigan?  Well, we have had the highest unemployment rate in the nation for nearly that long as well as the highest union membership.  What does that tell you?  I’d say it’s a nice illustration of cause and effect.

I also find it hypocritical that the same people who are distorting what the legislation really does and says, and advocating for forced unionization to endure are the same group of people who argue vehemently for a woman’s right to choose an abortion.  Why, may I ask, is the right of a woman to choose any different than a worker’s right to choose?  Some free choice is okay, such as when it ends the life of a living organism, but free choice doesn’t fly when choosing employment?  How about this: If the unions had something of value to offer, they wouldn’t have to use the force of government to get people to join.

Then of course, when all rational argument breaks down, the unions resort to precisely what they have done every single time they are backed into a corner with nothing intelligent to say for themselves:  violence.  Raw, unmitigated, unprovoked violence.  Steven Crowder of PJTV found this out the hard way while manning the Americans For Prosperity tent when the unions decided it was time to make a statement.

Unprovoked Attack On Steven Crowder — Photo Credit: John T. Greilick/Detroit News

Teamster Giving Away Pieces of AFP Tent After They Helped Rip It Down

I’ll note here that many of the members of AFP, Campaign for Liberty and other RTW supporters were legally armed and obviously for good reason.  Despite the unprovoked physical violence of union members upon RTW supporters, no one was shot.  I would say that this is a testament to the fortitude, good judgment, rationality and restraint of law-abiding gun owners.  I would definitely say that I would have feared for my life, especially in the case of Steven Crowder whose second attack came from behind!

A Michigan Education Association (MEA) member teacher who can’t seem to be able to spell our governor’s name. Pssst, it’s S-N-Y-D-E-R.

I don’t expect the union thuggery to go away.  Indeed, I expect they will try more lies and more violence, but the fact is, the final reconciled bills have now passed and Governor Snyder is expected to sign them into legislation tomorrow.  One small step for Michigan….A tiny bit of government thuggery has been removed here, but we will still have to contend with the unions’ thuggery, even if they no longer have the government doing their dirty work.

Michigan House Final Vote Tally On RTW 12-11-12 — Photo Credit Representative Marty Knollenberg

UPDATE:

Governor Snyder Signs Both Right-To-Work Bills, Making Michigan The 24th Right-To-Work State!

Gov. Rick Snyder held a news conference flanked by Lt. Gov. Brian Calley on Tuesday evening after he signed two right-to-work bills into law – Photo Credit: Dale G. Young, The Detroit News

On the morning of June 6, 2012, a small group of Michigan Republicans met in a closed-door meeting in Novi, to decide which write-in candidate to foist upon the public in the August 7^th primary election. While designed to clean up the mess left behind when Representative McCotter failed to turn in the requisite signatures to appear on August 7^th’s primary ballot, this meeting did something very different: it illustrated, in no uncertain terms, that elitism is alive and well in the 11^th District in Michigan.

Why, with a perfectly qualified candidate already on the ballot…a candidate that has run before and has been thoroughly vetted…a candidate that supports conservative, Republican values and positions…would the “higher ups” in the Republican Party of Michigan try to run a write-in candidate and attempt to garner public support for them so late in the race?

The answer is both simple and disgusting…a tight core of Republican insiders in Michigan believe they will not be able to control Mr. Bentivolio should he be elected to Congress, and fear how he will vote. These overlord-wannabees, condescending to us from on high, do not seem to realize that the entire purpose of our representative republic is to prevent small groups of oligarchs from gaining such power. We voters should remember this, and explain it to them in the next election.

Nominating petition signatures are gathered for a specific reason: for candidates to gain ballot access. This process forces the candidate and/or his/her staff to go out and actually meet with people, explain their position(s) on the issue(s) and garner their support in a one-on-one setting. When a candidate gathers and submits enough qualified signatures, it demonstrates that the public is interested enough in their candidacy that they would at least like to see them on the ballot…that the candidate has enough “will of the people” behind them to possibly even be elected. Without the signatures, candidates cannot demonstrate any quantity of public support.

Mr. McCotter failed to submit the required signatures on time, and has since dropped out of the race entirely. McCotter’s efforts in this election cycle were in fact so bad, that felonies may have been committed in the process.

Mr. Bentivolio and his team of volunteers, did all of the necessary work to acquire and submit the requisite 1,000 valid signatures on time, and is now the only Republican candidate that will appear on the ballot.

Having gathered exactly no signatures on any petition in this election cycle, Nancy Cassis can claim to have the “public support” of precisely one group: the Republican insiders that are attempting nearly dictatorial control of the election.

For a small, inner circle of Republicans to foist upon the public yet another candidate (which, prior to now, had been uninterested in running for office) is both outrageous and repulsive. It offends the sensibilities of American voters to be dictated to, and voters in the 11^th District in Michigan would do well to remember this experience on August 7^th.

Kerry Bentivolio

Kerry Bentivolio is a Michigan native and life-long Oakland County resident. He is a 27 year US Army Veteran and has served our country in three wars. With both a B.A. and Masters in Education, he was a Design Engineer for 20 years, and currently serves as a Teacher with 15 years of experience, having taught in private schools, public schools, and adult education. His background encompasses a diverse integration of military service, business, engineering, political activism, education, and consistent volunteer efforts that distinguish him as a balanced leader that implements his expansive knowledge and experience effectively and successfully. His vast education and experience are complimented by his honesty, integrity and his support for our Constitution and transparency in government.

Mr. Bentivolio has the united and enthusiastic support of the conservative grass roots in Michigan including The Republican Liberty Caucus, TEA Party groups, 912 Liberty groups, and social, defense, life and economic conservative groups. Kerry is the consummate citizen patriot seeking to represent his fellow citizens, and is the best chance for the GOP to hold this seat in the next Congress.

GOP leadership in Michigan had better think twice before strong-arming the citizenry into voting for their “hand-chosen pet” Representative…especially those that are elected into their positions. The ramifications are coming…

 ”The issue today is the same as it has been throughout all history, whether man shall be allowed to govern himself or be ruled by a small elite.” Thomas Jefferson