Free Republic

WASHINGTON — States may force public sector labor unions to get consent from workers before using their fees for political activities, the Supreme Court said Thursday. The court unanimously upheld a Washington state law that applied to public employees who choose not to join the union that represents them in contract talks with state and local governments. The workers are compelled to pay the equivalent of union dues, a portion of which the union uses for political activities. Justice Antonin Scalia, writing for the court, said the law does not violate the union's First Amendment rights. But the state's Democratic...

How could anyone possibly vote against Referendum 1A, the "Worthy Cause Tax"? Referendum 1A would extend an existing 0.05-percent sales tax for Boulder County nonprofit human service agencies, and these charities' undoubtedly promote worthy causes? But if you are tolerant of other people's values and causes they want to support, a "no" vote is the only option. This referendum is not about whether you, a single voter, want to give "a penny for a worthy cause." It's about whether you want to force, through power of law, your neighbors to support a particular set of charities instead of their own...