Wisconsin Update: Fox and the Tea Party Are No Match for Tens of Thousands of Protestors

For the last four days, crowds of tens of thousands of Wisconsin workers have flooded the state capital of Madison in attempts to halt Republican efforts to smash state workers' collective bargaining rights.

"I've been here since 10am and the crowd has been getting larger by the hour," said Milwaukee educator Thomas Orozco Saturday afternoon. "There are senior citizens, firefighters, private sector unions, folks from all races here."

Last week, Gov. Walker announced he would "fix" an $137 million budget shortfall by eliminating collective bargaining rights for public workers. Rather than going after the two-thirds of Wisconsin corporations who pay no tax in the state, Walker's plan will take away the most basic labor rights for his own employees.

Outrage against the bill quickly spread across Wisconsin. Thousands workers, students, and supporters overwhelmed the capital building in Madison chanting "Kill The Bill!"

On Thursday, Wisconsin Senate Democrats disappeared, boycotting the impending vote on the bill and leaving Republicans without the necessary quorum to bust public unions. Apparently joined by two Republicans, the Democrats refuse to return until the union-busting measure is off the table.

On Friday the Wisconsin Assembly GOP, in an unprecedented move, called Gov. Walker's bill to a vote at 4:55pm, five minutes before the 5pm start time, while Gov. Walker held a press conference to divert media attention. But Democrats got wind of the plan and Kenosha Rep. Peter Barca gave Republicans a piece of his mind, calling the body a "kangaroo court." A video of Barca's rant, which shamed Assembly Republicans into delaying the vote, can be seen in Part 4 of the Assembly Floor Session.

Saturday, Americans for Prosperity, a "grassroots" Tea Party-affliated movement funded by ultra-conservative billionaires David and Charles Koch, launched a "Stand With Walker" website and organized a counter-protest. The Koch brothers gave around $43,000 to Walker's gubernatorial campaign. They also fund the American Legislative Exhange Council, which helped Wisconsin Republicans craft anti-labor legislation and corporate tax cuts.

But in contrast to Wisconsin workers' multiple-day raucous protest, the Tea Party event began at noon and faded away around 1:20pm.

Fox news coverage of the demonstration was interrupted by a chorus of protesters chanting, "Fox Lies!". Reporter Jeff Flock is visibly shaken.

Right-wing pundits like Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck and Wisonsin's own Paul Ryan have likened the protests to unruly riots, prompting Madison's Lakeside Printing Cooperative to crank out a few hundred of these signs:

Also, demonstrators broke into a rendition of the National Anthem which shouldn't be missed.

People in the capital are reporting that some Republican lawmakers are receiving an average of 1,000 emails an hour against Gov. Walker's union-busting bill. Keep up the momentum in solidarity with Wisconsin workers. Send an email to Republican lawmakers and Tell Wisconsin: Don’t Sacrifice Employee Rights!

Photo Credit: TwitPic