AFT's Weingarten: Walker Will Say and Do Anything to Attack Workers
WASHINGTON—Statement from American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten on Gov. Scott Walker's signing of the so-called right-to-work bill in Wisconsin:
"During his campaign for governor, Scott Walker promised not to amp up his attacks on workers. But when he decided to run for president, he kicked that commitment to the curb. In the last two weeks, he has compared working people to ISIS, has celebrated President Reagan's bust of the air traffic controller strike as a 'significant foreign policy decision,' and now has signed into law a bill that will drive down wages, destroy good jobs and break the backs of unions. By his actions and statements, Walker has revealed that his plan to win the Republican nomination is a willingness to say and do anything to attack and tear down workers. It's cynical and sad, and will ultimately fail.
"Scott Walker fails the test of common decency and common sense. If you want good jobs, then you also must stand up for the workers who hold them. If you want a strong middle class, then you can't take out the unions that built it. If you want higher wages, then workers need a voice.
"Governors of our nation, you have a decision to make. You can take your state the way of Wisconsin, where Gov. Walker's attacks on workers and tax cuts for the wealthy have landed the state, which is ranked 32nd for business and 27th in economic climate, with a $2 billion deficit. Or you can look over to Minnesota, where Gov. Mark Dayton has stood with workers and raised taxes on the wealthy few. Minnesota has a $1 billion surplus and is ranked in the top 10 in the nation for business and economic climate.
"The workers of Wisconsin are resilient. They will continue to fight back and wait until they have a governor who will work with them, not work to break them."
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- See more at: http://www.aft.org/press-release/afts-weingarten-walker-will-say-and-do-anything-attack-workers#sthash.dCwh1rYT.dpufhttp://twitter.com/rweingarten
