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Michigan’s governor sides with right to work
The Washington Times ^ | December 9, 2012 | Andrea Billups

Posted on 12/09/2012 5:42:39 PM PST by jazusamo

He forged a reputation as a moderate, can-do businessman-politician, but Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder, a Republican, has taken a leap into the political unknown by embracing a right-to-work bill that has put him at the center of an ideological battle with the state’s powerful union movement that shows no signs of dying down in the weeks ahead.

With President Obama, who openly criticized the right-to-work drive, set to visit Detroit on Monday, opinions are sharply divided over the wisdom of the Republican push to make this longtime bastion of union strength into the nation’s 24th right-to-work state.

Unions and Democrats suffered one of their biggest legislative defeats in years as bills that would undercut a key source of labor funding sailed through both houses of the state Legislature last week. Right-to-work opponents sought this weekend for legal and procedural loopholes that ultimately might defeat any future law, including recall efforts, against lawmakers who led the right-to-work fight as well as legal challenges to tie up the law in court.

But the state’s business leaders, sensing victory, said they were buoyed by the likely passage of the bills, calling right-to-work key to accelerating the state’s economic resurgence after a long period of stagnation and decline.

If Mr. Snyder, a former high-tech executive and venture capitalist elected two years ago, faces a divisive fight by promising to sign the bill, the rhetoric-eschewing governor seems undaunted.

“When you talk about giving workers the freedom to choose, isn’t that something we should all be behind? Not being put in the position where people are forced to send them dues because they are wanting to keep jobs?” Mr. Snyder told Fox News’ Neil Cavuto on Friday, saying he was excited to get the law onto the books.

(Excerpt) Read more at washingtontimes.com ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Culture/Society; Extended News; US: Michigan
KEYWORDS: michigan; righttowork; snyder; unions
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To: cripplecreek

Oh yes, many union members vote Republican as I did years ago before retiring. Of course at that time we weren’t padding the Dems pockets with high union dues and that’s what’s so great about the right to work states now.


21 posted on 12/09/2012 6:41:49 PM PST by jazusamo ("Intellect is not wisdom" -- Thomas Sowell)
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To: quantim
There is already violence in Saline with the second assault in a week involving unions. The stories have been pretty vague but a friend in the area tells me its because of tension between union members who support RTW and members who don't.

Police: 2nd assault at Saline automotive plant results in ER visit
22 posted on 12/09/2012 6:42:39 PM PST by cripplecreek (REMEMBER THE RIVER RAISIN!)
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To: jazusamo

Unions are against the right to work.

Just think about that. It should be packaged as such into a narrative that they can be beaten over the head with.


23 posted on 12/09/2012 6:43:51 PM PST by headstamp 2 (What would Scooby do?)
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To: headstamp 2

Exactly...Unions are against the right to work unless you pay them dearly for that right.


24 posted on 12/09/2012 6:47:54 PM PST by jazusamo ("Intellect is not wisdom" -- Thomas Sowell)
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To: bog trotter

Even Funnier is that he had no interest in right-to-work, except the unions pushed the constitutional amendment, so they HAD to fight it, and when right-to-work won big, it was an obvious next move to put it into law.


25 posted on 12/09/2012 6:48:59 PM PST by CharlesWayneCT
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To: jazusamo
Right to work is the ONLY thing Unions (the money-laudering of taxpayer bailout money back to the DNC) are deathly afraid of.

Removing Unions from the Public Sector should be the Republicans' #1 goal, well before the 2016 Elections.

So long as Public Employees can vote themselves benefits, raises, and the safety net of Civil Service, the Taxpayer is screwed, and Democrats have a pipeline right from the Taxpayer, to the Fed's, to the Unions, with the kickback of Dues to the DNC.

26 posted on 12/09/2012 6:57:01 PM PST by traditional1 (Don't gotsta worry 'bout no mo'gage, don't gotsta worry 'bout no gas; Obama gonna take care o' me!)
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To: cripplecreek

More schadenfreude as the new MI-07 told the leftists to stuff it.

In spite of Ann Arbor & Ypsi and major universities, kudos to our redistricting.


27 posted on 12/09/2012 7:07:44 PM PST by quantim (Victory is not relative, it is absolute.)
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To: quantim

I really lucked out with Mike Shirkey as my state rep.

I voted for him with no clue about him other than the fact that he’s a republican and he has been great. He said last year that he would introduce right to work legislation as soon as he felt that the time was right and apparently it was.


28 posted on 12/09/2012 7:12:05 PM PST by cripplecreek (REMEMBER THE RIVER RAISIN!)
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To: jazusamo

I’m not getting too worked up about this - as soon as Snyder signs it, a kenyan-appointed judge will just unilaterally overturn it.


29 posted on 12/09/2012 7:13:32 PM PST by VoiceOfBruck (Goat ropers need love too)
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To: traditional1
Couldn't agree more...Public sector unions have to go, Civil Service already protects their rights and these unions members are just ripping off their employer (taxpayers).
30 posted on 12/09/2012 7:13:35 PM PST by jazusamo ("Intellect is not wisdom" -- Thomas Sowell)
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To: jazusamo

Mike Shirkey (who sponsored the bill) gives a great floor speech on RTW.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=CbBLnQBlqRw#!


31 posted on 12/09/2012 7:15:57 PM PST by cripplecreek (REMEMBER THE RIVER RAISIN!)
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To: cripplecreek

I am glad Michigan is coming around. The South is picking up many companies from the old “Waterway” states and I would like to see a balance. The folks tend to bring FDR with them and we can do without that.


32 posted on 12/09/2012 7:17:39 PM PST by eyedigress ((zOld storm chaser from the west)/?)
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To: cripplecreek

Excellent speech by Mike Shirkey, thanks for linking.


33 posted on 12/09/2012 7:21:47 PM PST by jazusamo ("Intellect is not wisdom" -- Thomas Sowell)
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To: jazusamo

My cousin, visiting from Michigan and looking for a congressional intern job, received a call this evening from the Obama Campaign. Return to Lansing as soon as possible for protest against right-to-work. We will pay all expenses. I didn’t know he was one of them. Another paid protest brought to you by the DNC.


34 posted on 12/09/2012 7:26:14 PM PST by satan (Plumbing new depths of worthlessness on a daily basis.)
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To: cripplecreek; jazusamo; All

Thanks for the ping; post. GRRRRREAT news...b..bb...but...these parasites never go away...

http://washingtonexaminer.com/micro-unions-washingtons-newest-threat-to-business/article/2508986

Fmu


35 posted on 12/09/2012 7:28:37 PM PST by PGalt
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To: jazusamo

I was a short-time member of the Teamsters, and one time we were in a (forced) meeting for our local, I had a couple of conversations while outside on a smoke break. Funny, that everyone outside smoking confessed they were NRA and GOP members. You’ll ALWAYS know who the GOP members are when they never wear those stupid union jackets and shirts.


36 posted on 12/09/2012 7:34:42 PM PST by max americana (Make the world a better place by punching a liberal in the face)
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To: headstamp 2
Unions are against the right to work.
Just think about that. It should be packaged as such into a narrative that they can be beaten over the head with.

Their stock response to that is that the name of the bill is misleading.

37 posted on 12/09/2012 7:41:33 PM PST by Teacher317 ('Tis time to fear when tyrants seem to kiss.)
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To: quantim

“I think it was smart to exclude all cops, not so much ‘firefighters’ but that’s another day.”

Maybe so, so as not to provoke a confrontation with these two union groups right now. But as I mentioned to cripplecreek yesterday, these two groups collectively eat up something on the order of 75% or more of any city’s budget, or at least that’s how it is here in California. Just take a look at the numbers for the cities (i.e. Stockton and San Bernardino) here that are in bankruptcy and you will see this is the case. Vallejo just came out of bankruptcy and didn’t really resolve their issues with the cops and the firefighters, and I am guessing that they will have to go bust another time because their numbers are not sustainable over the long-term. And with the economy in the dumper they are not getting the tax revenues that they expected and upon which their bankruptcy was predicated.


38 posted on 12/09/2012 7:42:17 PM PST by vette6387
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To: satan

That’s really disgusting, the Rats have a huge political machine in large part because of these thug union leaders.


39 posted on 12/09/2012 7:58:53 PM PST by jazusamo ("Intellect is not wisdom" -- Thomas Sowell)
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To: headstamp 2

As Heck states above, how about “Unions Against Choice” that ought to get some smoke coming from their stack!


40 posted on 12/09/2012 8:30:35 PM PST by Lake Living
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