Royal Workers
by digby
Here's a revealing look at how Republicans see the new post partisan environment:
During the final closed-door negotiations Thursday night, union officials were in one room while management officials were in an adjacent room.
Republicans complained that the union officials had more access to the senatorial negotiators than did management. Democrats denied that, saying that Senate Banking Committee Chairman Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., shuttled between the two rooms.
And, the Democrats said, more union input was needed because of the insistence from Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., that American carmakers bring labor costs in line with overseas-based manufacturers that operate in the U.S. Chattanooga, Tenn., where Corker was mayor before his election to the Senate, secured a new Volkswagen plant in July. Tennessee also is home to GM and Nissan vehicle assembly plants.
Democrats charged that Republicans was out to hurt the union. Corker denied such motivation, saying that the agreement imploded over three words — the date by which the unionized workers would have to achieve parity with those at foreign-owned U.S. plants.
Republicans wanted parity next year; Democrats sought a delay until 2011. Asked why he wouldn't move off the 2009 date, Corker said, "Then I'd be negotiating with myself."
Bush always said that, of course, which is an indication of what a super smart statement it is. Republicans think compromise is negotiating with themselves. And what's interesting about it is that they were also "negotiating" with Republican white house. Somehow, I suspect they will have even less desire to compromise with a Democrat.
The article goes on to explain that Republicans needed to do something that would make them feel good about themselves. It's been a couple of months since they screwed anything up, after all, and they were afraid they were losing their touch. It's also clear their constituents were all amped up (presumably from the talk radio gasbags speaking in tongues and putting curses on the auto workers.) Some of the politicians got so excited they forgot their conservative talking points and blamed the wrong people:
"People don't like rich people, and these guys are not only rich, but they screwed up," said Rep. Ray LaHood, R-Ill., speaking of the Big Three executives who came to Capitol Hill on private jets with cups in hand.
Noooo. Guys with private jets are great producers of wealth and deserve every penny they can lay their grubby hands on. It's the UAW workers who are the rich exploiters. I think this says it best:
ROMANS: Peter Morici the Senate was right to bail out on this bailout?
Peter Morici,University of Maryland School of Business: They didn't bail out. Gettlefinger bailed out. Toyota workers are paid very well, they have outstanding benefits, but that is not good enough for Ron Gettlefinger in the UAW. Instead they want a gold plated package as if they're the British aristocracy.I don't think a waitress making $30,000 a year in Indiana ought to send her tax dollars to Washington to subsidize that nonsense.
See, the unions are the nobility who are keeping workers down in this country and the conservatives are stepping up to fight with pitchforks on their behalf. To accuse the executives of wrongdoing, or say that Americans don't like rich people, is waging class warfare and that is unacceptable.
LaHood just made a mistake. He was obviously giddy with excitement that he'd just helped make the economic lives of millions of Americans far worse than they would have been and he was undoubtedly thinking ahead to future thrilling successes with long term unemployment, denial of health care and homelessness. For Republicans, happy days are here again.
This is going to be a very interesting couple of years --- if we can survive the Republican guillotine.
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