Democrats flee Madison to avoid vote on Walker budget.

Aside from teachers going AWOL from their classrooms in order to go protest (for the kids? wink wink...) in Madison, seems that Democratic senators have decided to flee the state in an effort to stall the vote on Governor Scott Walker's budget.  Unbelievable tactics?  You bet.  Just imagine if when Obamacare was being debated, Republican Senators boarded a bus to get out of Dodge to avoid being present at voting time (although, in the case of Obamacare, it didn't matter as the voting methods used to pass that garbage of a bill were shady to begin with....)

Read the entire story on the spineless State Senate Democrats right here:

"Senate Democrats boycott Thursday vote on Walker budget plan"  from the Milwaukee Journal/Sentinel, February 17, 2011.  Story by Jason Stein, Patrick Marley, and Steve Schultze of the J/S staff.

A few brief excerpts:

-"Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald (R-Juneau) said that Democrats were "not showing up for work" and that police were searching for them to bring them to the floor."That's not democracy. That's not what this chamber is about," Fitzgerald said of the boycott to reporters."

-"Speculation in the Capitol pointed to Illinois as the state where Democrats had headed."

- "(Sen. Tim) Cullen (D-Janesville)  said Democrats hope delaying the bill will give more time for union demonstrators to win over any possible wavering Republicans. He said the decision was made by other Democrats at a meeting at which he was not present. 

-"The tactic wasn't winning over Sen. Rob Cowles (R-Green Bay), a moderate whom unions had been trying to court to vote against the bill. Cowles called the blockage of the Senate vote an attempt to "shut down democracy." 

No kidding!  Yet another prime example of adults behaving badly.  In a way it's almost funny, if so much wasn't at stake.  (Did the Dems drive away in a fleet of Prius's - or use mass transit?)    As a potential upside, maybe the Democrats who ran away won't come back for a few years - that would really help our state!!!  Let them all hang out in Illinois...

And remember, all Walker is asking is that state union employees pay a very small portion of their benefits cost - 5.8% to help fund their own pension plans and 12.6% for their health care (half of the national average).  No jobs lost.  Yet, the union whiners and thugs are complaining that the sky is falling and public education and other public works are going to go down the toilet if such legislation is enacted!!!   That's a big fat lie and we all know it.

Stand firm, Republicans!  The time is at hand when our state can begin to return to an era of fiscal responsibility and get the out-of-control spending common to the Doyle years, under control.  The steps may be painful, but worth it in the long run.  And everyone should do their fair share!