Submitted for your reading pleasure — the New York Times today has side-by-side feature articles looking at two states, Wisconsin and Massachusetts Connecticut.
In Wisconsin, the Republican governor and legislature are cranking out right-wing legislation at lighting speed, in case the upcoming recall elections gives the Senate to a Democratic majority. Of course, as a safety measure, they have also enacted laws that may stop a lot of people from voting.
In just the last few weeks, Gov. Scott Walker, a Republican, has signed legislation to require voters to show photo identification cards at the polls and to deregulate elements of the telecommunications industry. And the Republican-dominated Legislature is now in the midst of advancing provisions to expand school vouchers, to allow people to carry concealed weapons, to cut financing for Planned Parenthood and to bar illegal immigrants from paying in-state tuition at Wisconsin’s universities.
In Connecticut, Democrats control the state government and have gotten more progressive —
Lawmakers over the last several weeks have enacted the largest tax increase in Connecticut history and approved the nation’s first law to mandate paid sick leave for some workers. They voted to extend protections for transgender people, to charge in-state college tuition rates to illegal immigrants, to extend an early-release program for prisoners and to decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana.
Connecticut didn’t just raise taxes; it also cut spending and got some concessions from public employee unions that have yet to be approved. Apparently they are trying to balance the budget without cutting education and other needed services. I just hope the people of Connecticut don’t have a meltdown over tax increases.
Hopefully the people of WI will be able to rectify this situation.
And I’m hoping that OUR new Governor, Cuomo, is paying attention to CT.
Right now, he’s sort of governing like Carl Paladino Lite.
Like with Mike Wallace, you want to ask Mario Cuome, “How sure are you that someone didn’t switch babies on you at the hospital?”
That should be “Cuomo.”
Cuome sounds like something a drunk politician doesn’t want a reporter to do:
“Doh… Doh… Dohn cuome!”
We’re doing all we can, but we can’t change things fast enough. We will have to also wait until there’s a dem legislature and governor to overturn all of the garbage, which may be sooner than people think.
Maha,
The 1st sentence mentioned Massachusetts. Is that part of the story behind firewall at the NYT?
Maha said:
I just hope the people of Connecticut don’t have a meltdown over tax increases.
I might be wrong, but I predict the Rethugs will have a field day with the Dems granting in-state tuition to illegal aliens. Yes, I understand the issue is clouded because some of these illegals have been living in Connecticut since age 3 and have been paying taxes all these years. However, if a legal resident of New York is having to pay out-of-state tuition while a citizen of Mexico is granted in-state tuition, well – that is a hot-button issue if there ever was one. Now combine that with a tax increase which will partially subsidize the in-state tuition for illegals – for the Rethugs, that is a gift that will keep on giving right up to election day.
The Dems need to be careful. A few mistakes, and we’ll be seeing another right-wing coup even if Connecticut is liberal.
OT, but you gotta read this! It is like the 1600’s all over again!
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/jun/08/us-universities-africa-land-grab