Pension "Reformers" Confess: It's All About Politics, Attacking Unions
If there were an ounce of doubt for the real reason behind the Republican call for "pension reform," you need only look at the comments of two leading GOPers with connections to the California Foundation for Fiscal Reform, the Astroturf group leading the assault on public employee benefits.
In Ed Mendel's CalPensions blog http://http/calpensions.com/, former Schwarzenegger aide Dan Pellissier said his yet-to-be-announced ballot measure was all about labor bashing. Here's an excerpt: "Pellissier said he thinks defeating other initiatives that may be on the ballot next year (a spending limit and 'paycheck protection' making it difficult to use union dues for campaigns) could be a greater priority for unions than hot-polling pension reform. 'The unions may find that they can't wage nuclear war and spend hundreds of millions of dollars on four different initiatives. They may have to pick and choose.'"
(Note to Dan: In 2005, the last time Republicans launched an all-out attack on public employees, all of the GOP's initiatives went down in flames).
Pellessier also told CalPensions that he is "still trying to wrap up fundraising for the first phase" and talking to potential backers with