Behind Michigan's "Financial Martial Law": Corporations and Right-Wing Billionaires | Mother Jones

Behind Michigan's "Financial Martial Law": Corporations and Right-Wing Billionaires | Mother Jones


"The think tank that inspired Gov. Rick Snyder's controversial bill is bankrolled by some of the same donors that funded Wisconsin's attack on unions." Wed Mar. 23, 2011 | Andy Kroll | Mother Jones

"The Mackinac Center’s is a fervent advocate of privatization—its scholars support outsourcing everything from public school districts to Amtrak to state prisons—and backs anti-union legislation for Michigan. In 2007, the center published "A Collective Bargaining Primer," advocating against mandatory unionization and automatic dues deductions for public school teachers and other public employees. Collective bargaining for teachers, the Center claims, "has become a significant deterrent to educational quality." In other words, if you outsource as much as you can and kneecap the unions, the quality of education—and presumably city services—increases.

That position is in line with the beliefs of its donors. In 2009, Amway and Wal-Mart were among the 3,100 businesses that signed a letter opposing the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA), which would've made it easier for employees to unionize; that same year, Wal-Mart spent $7.4 million on lobbying, much of it to defeat EFCA. (The law failed.) The Koch brothers, meanwhile, fund an array of organizations opposed to unions, including the advocacy group Americans for Prosperity, the Cato Institute, and the Reason Foundation. With the Mackinaw Center, it seems, their investment is paying off."

VIDEO INTERVIEW WITH ANDY KROLL
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Posted on Heartland Revolution Facebook Page by | Diane Hebert
Link to Heartland Revolution Facebook Page | Our democracy is being hijacked by anonymous money-changers seeking to further a right wing ideology designed to suppress blue-collar America while further enriching the wealthiest interests. We are committed to combating this in every corner of the country.

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