By ERIC PIANIN
Source: The Fiscal Times
May 30, 2012Last year, irate union members and Democrats stormed the Wisconsin state Capitalin Madison to protest newly installed Republican Gov. Scott Walker’s bills to strip public employees of many of their collective bargaining rights. Walker claimed his plan imposed higher health care and pension co-pays in order to help balance the state’s budget. Others thought he wanted to break the unions.
A subsequent recall petition collected more than 900,000 signatures, and a seemingly galvanized labor movement and Democratic activists dreamed of toppling Walker and riding the recall to an even bigger victory in the November elections for president, Congress and the state legislature.
But 14 months later, that dream has faded. Now, an energized Walker – backed by a massive campaign war chest and Republican and conservative PAC advertising –appears on the verge of vanquishing his Democratic challenger, Mayor Tom Barrett of Milwaukee, in next Tuesday’s closely watched recall election. Walker defeated Barrett in the 2010 governor’s race by a margin of 50-45, and the latest polls show Walker still commanding a similar lead, with only a handful of undecided voters.
Moreover, he drew a huge Republican turnout for last month’s GOP recall primary, although he was virtually unchallenged. “That turnout really suggests that Walker is on to something,” said Arnold Shober, an assistant professor of government at Lawrence University in Appleton, Wis. “There is a substantial amount of energy on his side of the ticket that he can really count on. His tenure has been divisive, but he hasn’t lost support among those people who find that he did the right thing.”
There are a number of explanations for this dramatic turnabout – one that could pose a humiliating setback for organized labor and their Democratic allies, according to interviews and media reports:
Money – Walker’s campaign has outspent Barrett’s organization by nearly 8 to 1, and Republican political action committees have pummeled Barrett with negative advertising portraying him an ineffective mayor. Walker has raised about $31 million since he took office 17 months ago, including $5.9 million in the last five weeks, according to a new report on Tuesday.
Barrett, who was bound to fundraising limits of no more than $10,000 from any one donor, reported $3.4 million over the past five weeks. He raised about $4.2 million since joining the race at the end of March and had $1.5 million cash on hand.
Organization – The Wisconsin Republican Party and the Republican National Committee have been outhustling the Wisconsin Democratic Party, the Democratic Governors Association and the Democratic National Committee in orchestrating grass roots events and identifying and mobilizing Republican voters. The Wisconsin Republican Party and the Republican National Committee have teamed up to make more than 2.5 million calls identifying voters, according to the Washington Post.
RNC Chairman Reince Priebus, a former Wisconsin Republican chairman, said the party “has done more work in this state than in any state in the country.” The Democratic National Committee is fundraising directly for the Democratic Party of Wisconsin in an effort to help the turnout, while AFSCME Council 24 Executive Director Mary Beil pledged to mount a grassroots campaign “to counter Walker’s millions from out-of-state billionaires.”
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