Wisconsin State Senator Glenn Grothman joins us from the center of the Wisconsin pensions debate to explain exactly what is being proposed. He also responds to Democratic allegations of Republicans getting tough on unions while giving tax breaks to the rich and demands that unions get to negotiate how much its members contribute to pensions and health benefits. What choice comments does Grothman have for Senate Democrats who fled to Illinois? Why does he call striking teachers terrible role models for children? And why does he call Barack Obama the most divisive president of his lifetime? We discuss it all in a lively conversation with Wisconsin State Sen. Glenn Grothman.
Archives for February 18, 2011
‘Wisconsin’s Broke’
Madison, Wisconsin, is home to major political strife this week as Republicans try to trim the state’s deficit by making public sector workers contribute more to their pensions and to their health care benefits. Democrats say this is a political vendetta by the new GOP governor against the unions. What is the real financial state of Wisconsin? What might really be behind these raucous protests? What kind of shell games did the previous Democratic governor play to balance the budget? We ask former Wisconsin Republican Party Chairman and current Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus, and ask Priebus how he is dealing with his own massive deficit at the RNC.
House Defunds Planned Parenthood
On Friday, the House of Representatives voted 240-185 to defund the nation’s largest abortion providers for the remaining seven months of Fiscal Year 2011. Indiana Rep. Mike Pence tells us why he has led this charge for the past several years? Will is pass the Senate? How does he respond to Democratic contentions that taxpayer dollars fund Planned Parenthood programs other than abortions? How does he counter assertions that Republicans are coldly depriving women of a legal procedure? And what will House Republicans do if this plan gets blocked in the Senate or by President Obama? We discuss it all with Rep. Mike Pence.
Obama’s Budget Blunder
President Obama’s budget for Fiscal Year 2012 arrived with much fanfare this week, but it landed with a thud for Congressional Republicans and a surprising number of moderate and liberal commentators. So did Obama make a better case as the week progressed or did more time just show the plan is not up to the challenge of addressing our enormous debt? How should we read the protests building in several Middle East nations? How is Jay Carney doing as Obama’s new press secretary? And how should we judge the tenure of former spokesman Robert Gibbs? We discuss it all with John Gizzi of Human Events.
Three Martini Lunch 2/18/11
Greg Corombos and National Review’s Jim Geraghty cheer on Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker for taking on the unions in order to help restore fiscal sanity to his state. We also slam the Obama administration for planning to condemn Israel at the United Nations. And we try to figure out what New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg plans to accomplish by sending a truck around the United States while displaying the number of gun-related deaths in this country.