Wow.
So the Indiana Republican Party issues a strong statement against Jill Long-Thompson last week because the SEIU (Service Employees International Union) has already given JLT $900,000, and it says it will "do whatever it takes" for her to win. That, my friends, is a HUGE chunk of cash from one interest group. Objectively, I can say that this attack works on about everybody who isn't from a labor union household.
But what does the Governor do the week thereafter? He accepts $750,000 from the Republican Governor's Association. Wow. Am I missing something, or is this is staggering hypocrisy?
At least with JLT, we KNOW where the money came from. If you are against collective bargaining for state employees, we can be pretty sure JLT is NOT your candidate. You KNOW what she's going to do, and you can vote accordingly.
Daniels always talks about how he reports his contributions on his website. He doesn't wait until the financing deadline! No. He wants you to know who's supporting him now. But here's my question. Where did the Republican Governor's Association get ITS money? From the RNC and AFLAC? From the RNC and Altria? WE DON'T KNOW! And, more importantly, HOW did the Republican Governor's Association get its money? What did it say to its donors to get national PACs to want to put money into little old Indiana?
Stay tuned...
15 comments:
Mitch is just jealous because he still hasn't figured out who's paying for all those "Ditch Mitch" and "Not my Man" bumper stickers.
I think JLT should simplify her campaign to: "I'm not him!" Then start every campaign event with, "What time is it in this County?"
And where does the SEIU get its money?
From the sweat of people who are FORCED to join the union and FORCED to contribute to liberals and democrats.
Oh...sorry...I forgot...whatever a democrat does is OK as long as it helps them.
Let's look at your contention that SEIU members are toiling away in disgust while the Union supports pro-union Democrats and liberals.
Who is FORCED to join the SEIU?
Uhh ... nobody.
Since nobody in the world is ENTITLED to a job, folks that obtain employment in SEIU union positions are more than happy to "join" the Union. In exchange, they get protection from an otherwise hostile "at-will" employment status through the contractual rights they obtain via collective bargaining. Interestingly enough, not one dime of those dues are paid through taxes, so maybe you need not be too CONCERNED about all those poor SEIU union members that must be outraged that their union supports politicians that actually support THEIR interests.
Now the fact that Republicans and conservatives are openly hostile to collective bargaining and contractual employment rights surely has nothing to do with the fact that the SEIU supports Democrats, does it?
And the fact that there is no groundswell of SEIU members calling for an end to political support for Democrats is because they're simply a "silent majority" that's too afraid to complain, right?
Yes, we know exactly where SEIU money comes from: the hard-working SEIU members that lack the individual ability to make contributions to affect political races, but collectively, and quite voluntarily, pool their resources to get a seat at the table.
So who's ponying up for the Republican Governor's Association?
The significant thing here is that the Daniels camp is finally paying attention to Jill. I guess the millions that he's so far to only get poor polling numbers return is concerning them. JLT hasn't run an ad yet for the General Election and has been largely absent from media coverage. No one but the bloggers were really there media-wise at the opening of her downtown office. It has to concern him.
Sounds like Joe and Jane Public are seeing through his own distortions of his record and looking beyond his ridiculous rhetoric in his snappy ads. Jill had better start hitting back, though.
This race reminds me a lot of the 2007 Mayoral race in Indianapolis. A bunch of money was spent early on to get on TV by Mayor Peterson's campaign, but the polls never showed him pulling away. When he did get to 50 percent in the polls the response was "we're still at 50 percent even though all of this craziness is going on with property taxes, the COIT, etc."
We all know what happened! Mr. Accidental, Greg Ballard, who ran a couple poorly done ads in the last week of the campaign then upset the apple cart and led a Republican takeover of the City-County Building's biggest prizes.
I, for one, hope Mitch continues to do what he's doing because Jill Long Thompson is a brawler who WILL go hard negative on him. He didn't face that four years ago. JLT needs to highlight WHO christened him "My Man Mitch" and the close connection between the two.
Wouldn't the SEIU contribution have more meaning if the members had a choice of where their dues went. The true test would be how many individual members donate to her. I am not taling about dollars and cents but meaning.
True Conservative, you are either a poor reader or not paying attention. By law, dues money cannot be used for political purposes. The PAC money comes from voluntary contributions of members. NO DUES MONEY IS USED FOR POLITICAL ACTION......understand?
For those of you who are unfamilar with how this works, the Democratic Governor's Assn. (DGA) and Republican Governor's Assn. (RGA) get their money from the same unions, businesses, and individuals who typically support each party. These donors don't deliver cash in small, unmarked bills in brown paper bags, they don't wear groucho masks and speak in obscure Eastern European dialects, and they require neither a secret handshake nor a password.
Given that this is the most high profile governor's race in the 2008, it won't be very long before the DGA starts to pony up a lot of money for Jill. And the DGA donations won't be any more suspect than those of the RGA.
What troubles me about the SEIU is its claim that it will spend "whatever it takes" to make Jill a winner in November (or so reports Brian Howey). That sounds like a statement from someone convinced that the election can be purchased. It makes the SEIU sounds like a willing buyer and Jill appears to be a willing seller. But I guess thats how we determine the fair market price of something.
anoymous
I can read you say they can get a job elsewhere show me where in this post or in the law that dues are not used for poltics. In fact if you read the first anonymous, if that was you , you should note that it says "Yes, we know exactly where SEIU money comes from: the hard-working SEIU members that lack the individual ability to make contributions to affect political races" so if you could read it says they do not individually make these decisions. You or another anonymous talk about contractual rights and hostile at will employment. I have been an at will employee since I was 10 years old or over 40years and never found it hostile in fact the only people I have thought found it hostile are the ones who don't want to work, worry about when their next break or paid day off comes. Good employees always have a job. There was once a need for unions but the unions years ago outlived their usefullness. The need or unions have now been replaced by fedral law and regulations making them obsolete orgainzations that are only for the benefit of the new masters the union bosses.
"I can read you say they can get a job elsewhere show me where in this post or in the law that dues are not used for poltics."
It's too bad that True Conservative hasn't quite mastered the whole punctuation thing. To be fair, maybe he's working off a Blackberry and his thumbs are sore.
No, true conservative simply lacks the fundamental understanding of unions and how they operate. His grammatical failings are standard for true conservatives.
Most republicans bemoan the poor union members who don't "choose" to support democrats. The interesting thing is that I've never run into ONE union member that complains about what his or her union is doing when it comes to politics.
Republicans cry wolf about unions because unions tend to level the playing field against corporations, with the added bonus of having millions of willing foot soldiers to back up the money. Corporations can spend money, but if that money fails to mobilize the mindless millions of couch potatoes that vote based upon who airs the most ads, it's money down the drain.
Mitch is in real trouble before the fight has even begun, and you'll see many true conservatives blaming it on a lot of things other than Mitch's MANY failings....
I have been forced to join unions when I was younger. I was not asked if my dues could go to x or y candidate. When I was more independent and was told if I wanted to keep a casual job at a truck dock I was told I had to pay dues to the Teamsters or I would not be called back. I told them I would make it easy on them and my last day would be that day. Petty comments on punctuation it shows the level of your position. You obviously only talk to people who hold your own positoin as I have talked to plenty of union members who are not happy with how their dues are spent. Also, it appears that you position has been refined. First you argued that I could not read and that union members dues were not taken for politics. Now you argument is they want their dues taken for politics.
You may been employed in a closed shop and have to join to work......but FEDERAL LAW prohibits the use of union dues for political purposes. Why is that so hard for you to understand??? True Conservative....please read slowly!!
When SEIU voted to endorse in the primary, it was from the bottom up. Those union members know exactly where there money is going, to someone who will stand up for their rights and make sure this state doesn't become right to work like Mitch wants it to be.
Jill is union herself, they know she'll step up to the plate for all unions.
Mitch is getting money from karl rove....shouldn't that tell you who he is standing up for.
I would be more than happy to admit I was wrong if you have a code cite that says so? The original attack on me was I could not read. The only thing I saw was the dues do not come from taxes.
Good employees always have a job.
You must either be VERY young, or VERY senile.
When your employer goes out of business, you lose your job. If you're trying to find another when you're 55 years old, or when your health is compromised because of the working conditions at your old job, or when you have a disabled wife or kid who would be expensive to cover for insurance, there aren't any jobs to be had, no matter how smart, loyal and industrious you've proven yourself to be.
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