Why We'll Never Get to Stop Talking About Wisconsin
The thousands of people who gathered for weeks in Madison to protest an anti-union bill have gone home. The legislators who fled the state to prevent the bill from passing have come home. The bill has passed, though a judge has blocked its implementation. But even though the frenzy has passed, Wisconsin appears set to stay with us for a while. Why? Because President Obama will have a hard time getting reelected if he doesn't win the state.
Tuesday's election there--for a state Supreme Court judge and Milwaukee County executive--would have gone without notice if it hadn't been for Gov. Scott Walker's push to curb public service workers' ability to collectively bargain. The vote is now seen as a referendum on Walker and GOP momentum. "The total number of votes cast may be small, but the impact could be huge," Salon's Andrew Leonard writes. He continues:
Whoever wins will receive a jolt of energy, and potentially influence the national conversation. If [the liberal Joanne] Kloppenburg triumphs, the possibility of a successful recall of Republican state