"This is a movement that is not going to stop," says filmmaker Michael Moore of the uprising in Madison, Wisconsin (and across the country--all 50 states held solidarity rallies this weekend). "I knew sooner or later people would say they've had enough."
Michael joins Laura in studio for part one of a two-part conversation about the war on working people in America. He notes that it started in 1981 with Reagan's attack on the air traffic controllers, and it's mostly targeted the poor, as with Clinton's welfare reform. But the attacks on middle class families have finally reached a point where people aren't going to take it anymore.
Watch out for part two tomorrow!
The Dems can’t move cause of campaign finance. Campaign finance rulings have to be challenged in court because of the unequal protection of property rights in which they result. They were put there in the 1970s to combat the Union’s ability to raise money for Dems which Republican business owners did not have. They saw all the progressive legislation of the 1960s-70s as impinging on their property rights, and they were able to make that case in Court. They got “money as speech” on the same basis. That logic is completely overturned now since Unions are 7% of the population now, and the Top 2% have all the political power. It is even more concentrated than that, with just a few like Kochs driving this reactionary 30 yrs. Many many wealthy people benefit, but they really want balance and sustainability here. They need to get behind the rights kinds of court cases to reverse the precedence that allows this unequal protection of property rights that benefits only really 1% at the expense of everybody else’s property.
What is going to happen to these poor people? What happened in Germany? They want to drive people further and further to the reactionary right-wing, and gun violence on the streets here will help them dismantle the society here.
By planckbrandt on March 1st, 2011 at 4:53 pm
Let’s get our facts straight.
The two nurses at the 4:12 mark were both from out of state and not from Wisconsin. So I will agree with Michael that the media is not accurately portraying what is going on in Madison since all of the pictures and video suggest that only Wisconsinites are protesting. In fact, many of the protesters are from out of state, which is fine…providing it is states as such…which it isn’t.
Next, at the 5:57 mark, Michael blames Ronald Reagan for beginning the war on unions by firing the air traffic controllers. If Michael would bother to check his facts, the PATCO members were striking illegally. Reagan gave them every opportunity to end their strike and return to work. Those that didn’t were fired. If Michael wants to declare this a war on unions, fine by me. The fact remains that Reagan was enforcing the law.
By matman13 on March 2nd, 2011 at 10:49 pm
Yes please, matman, let’s do get our facts straight.
So what if the nurses were from out of state branches of a nurses union? They were there to support their sister union in Wisconsin. Source please for your “fact” that most of the protesters are from out of state? The Republicans complain that teachers in Wisconsin are not going to work en masse. So which is it? Local teachers are staging a sickout, (supported by LOCAL firefighters and police unions) OR most of the protesters are from out of state? Poll after poll shows that Wisconsinites (yes, that would be LOCAL people) support the unions OVER Walker and the Republicans so maybe they’re showing up?
Yes the traffic controllers (PATCO) strike was an illegal strike and was a very bad idea. However, Reagan had made promises to PATCO – in writing in a letter – while on the campaign trail, then stabbed them in the back after they endorsed and helped elect him. Specifically, he promised to “take whatever steps are necessary to provide our air-traffic controllers with the most modern equipment available and to adjust staff levels and work days so that they are commensurate with achieving a maximum degree of public safety.” He fulfilled none of his promises. See here http://eightiesclub.tripod.com/id296.htm and http://www.huffingtonpost.com/social/
I love how Reagan supports the law on this issue, but had no problem with his own illegal activities – including arms sales to Iran for hostages, and funneling money to the Nicaraguan Contras who ran drugs and committed human rights atrocities.
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