Reply #61: Scott Walker punks workers

[L. Coyote]

Wednesday, Feb 23, 2011 16:24 ET
Scott Walker punks workers
Bragging to fat cats that "stereotypical blue-collar worker types" support his union busting shows his hypocrisy
http://www.salon.com/news/opinion/joan_walsh/politics/2011/02/23/scott_walker_punks_workers/index.html


I rarely disagree with the Washington Post's top wonk Ezra Klein, but I do today. Klein is right that the most politically "lethal" thing about Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker's 20-minute conversation with a prankster posing as right-wing moneybags David Koch is that it happened at all. But he's wrong when he says "the transcript of the conversation is unexceptional" and that "to Walker's credit, he doesn't say anything incriminating."

I think Walker's comments are hugely incriminating, maybe not legally, although the governor does seem to say yes ("That would be outstanding!") to a Koch-funded trip to California to reward his work supporting the super-rich, which could be construed as the promise of an illegal gift. But listening to Walker lay out his plans to trick Democrats into returning to Wisconsin, brag about his national popularity, compare himself to Ronald Reagan and joke about the "stereotypical blue-collar worker types" who support his union busting, I thought the conversation incriminated Walker as an enormous hypocrite: someone who pretends he's protecting state taxpayers and beleaguered private-sector employees, but is really part of a cynical fat-cat movement to pit workers against one another while insisting "it's all about gettin' our freedom back!" You really have to hear it (audio here) or read it all (transcript below) to believe it.

My favorite part is when "Koch" suggests that if Walker meets with Democrats he should "bring a baseball bat, that's what I'd do," and the governor chirps: "I have one in my office; you’d be happy with that. I have a slugger with my name on it," like he's talking to his daddy. Which makes sense, since Koch is at least Walker's political sugar daddy.

...........