Al Franken writes, "Eighteen Republican state senators broke faith with the people who elected them. They broke their word. They may have even broken the law. They wanted to bust public-sector unions - the last line of defense for the rights of teachers, police officers, firefighters, nurses, and other public servants - so badly that they were willing to cheat the system. Let's be clear: They did this in the hopes that, with the bill passed, the crowds would dissipate and we'd let this go. But they were wrong."

Portrait, Senator Al Franken, 06/01/09. (photo: Jeffrey Thompson/Getty Images)

This Isn't Over

By Sen. Al Franken, Reader Supported News

10 March 11

e were all shocked by what happened in Wisconsin Wednesday night.

Eighteen Republican state senators broke faith with the people who elected them. They broke their word. They may have even broken the law.

They wanted to bust public-sector unions - the last line of defense for the rights of teachers, police officers, firefighters, nurses, and other public servants - so badly that they were willing to cheat the system.

Let's be clear: They did this in the hopes that, with the bill passed, the crowds would dissipate and we'd let this go.

But they were wrong. We're not going to let this go. We're going to help the people of Wisconsin fight this bill - and the illegal power grab it took to pass it - every step of the way. We're going to help them hold accountable the elected officials who sold out workers and subverted democracy.

And, most of all, we're going to make sure that this is the end - not the beginning - of the right wing's attempt to destroy the middle class. It took a power-hungry, corporate-backed governor and 18 senators with no respect for the law or the struggle of working families to bring this issue to national attention. But the fight to stand up for the middle class against corporations and the politicians they own has always been a national fight.

It's up to us to make sure we win that fight for the working families whose voices - whose livelihoods - are at stake.

Thank you. And please stay tuned.

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+40 # RMDC 2016-01-13 18:45

+27 # Pikewich 2016-01-14 01:33

Perhaps we can't blame the Saudi's anymore than we can blame ourselves. But are our governments really the reflection of the wills of the peoples?

Are the Saudi people as bloodthirsty as the ruling class? Are the US citizens as blood thirsty as the ruling class? The Brits? the French? Germans? Any country?

+3 # MidwestTom 2016-01-14 07:58

The simple answer is NO they are not. Americans did not want to enter WWI, I am sure that they did not wan to send their sons and daughters to Vietnam, and I am sure that nobody wants their children killed in Syria. Jefferson warned us about enter foreign alliances, they have noe nothing but get us into wars.

+3 # ktony 2016-01-14 10:30

Quoting MidwestTom:

..... Jefferson warned us about enter foreign alliances, they have noe nothing but get us into wars.

I think that was Washington-
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Washington%27s_Farewell_Address#Alliances_with_Foreign_Nations

+2 # bigkahuna671 2016-01-14 11:37

ktony, you're absolutely correct. Jefferson didn't seem to concern himself with the problem of foreign intervention - anyone remember the Barbary Pirates and Marine Lt. Presley O'Bannon? However, MidwestTom is correct that most Americans didn't want to go into WWII or Vietnam.

+6 # Texas Aggie 2016-01-14 13:08

+4 # Tazio 2016-01-14 17:44

And when President Obama quoted him on Tuesday night you could hear the Republicans moan in disagreement.

+22 # Farafalla 2016-01-13 23:13

Notice that all the mainstream media refuse to say that the 47 people "executed" were beheaded. NPR, BBC, PBS, all of them are only saying "executed", The Saudis even tell us what we can say.

+12 # ericlipps 2016-01-14 05:25

Quoting Farafalla:

Notice that all the mainstream media refuse to say that the 47 people "executed" were beheaded. NPR, BBC, PBS, all of them are only saying "executed", The Saudis even tell us what we can say.

So do the Israelis. We let too many people do that to us.

+6 # Shades of gray matter 2016-01-14 00:39

The Brits and the French taught the desert nomads how the Grand Game is played. The students are now reminding their teachers. All 3 thoroughly deserve each other. If only we could extricate ourselves and let the Mideast countries (including Israel), Britain & France have at it. Sort things out, so to speak. If we back away, so might the Russians.

+9 # Bruce Gruber 2016-01-14 06:08

The sadistic and narcicist faux-Caesars of Neo-con and Reich-tiousness American white supremacy would have us profit AND play the "cowboys AND Indians" game. Our dream of Empire does not reflect the gene of critical thinking when it comes to our sophomoric rewrite of history.

+16 # Peace Anonymous 2016-01-14 05:41

The French, the Russians, the Brits, the Saudis!!! Isn't it time to state the obvious: There is a small group of already extremely wealthy people in our world who profit from war and they want more. In fact, they want it all. They are addicted to war. It has nothing to do with nationality. It's all about wealth. Some are Saudis. Some are Brits. Some are Americans. Some are Israeli.
The very sad part is that few of us see the truth in this and they are doing all of this "good work" with our publicly funded military and intelligence community. Think about that will you. The very wealthy who profit from war, go to war with a military you pay for it with over 50% of your tax dollars! And most of you don't care. We are accomplices in this insanity and refuse to acknowledge the deep seated truth that we are killing not for the moral high ground, but for profit - and nothing more.
And you're the only thing powerful enough to change it! I'm not optimistic!

+2 # Bruce Gruber 2016-01-14 05:58

Technology, multinational corporate mergers, internationaliz ed semi-slave labor, and climate change reduce the need for "labor". The social 'cost' of billions of unnecessary mouths to house and feed, clothe and educate could only fall to the back porch of ever more conce trated oligarchy. "WHY BOTHER?", THEY ask. "IF they can't eat cake, just help them dispose of one another! ... "Unfortunate business, this! Rather messy."

-11 # WaaDoo 2016-01-14 12:22

There is only one rule that people, who are not Muslims, and especially those in Western Civilization, need to keep in mind, the rule of Taquiya. It gives honor to those Muslims who get a way with lying to non-Muslims.

+3 # PABLO DIABLO 2016-01-15 16:30

Mr. President,
You could have been great. Instead, you tossed a few crumbs to the liberals, caved in on "single payer", let the Neocons guide you back into Iraq, continue Afghanistan, destroy Libya, won't come clean about Ukraine, and start another "undeclared" war in Syria. On top of the Nobel Peace Prize you okayed $1Trillion ($1,000,000,000 ,000 dollars) to develop new Nuclear Weapons. Those are just a few reasons I can't stand with you. I am standing with Bernie Sanders

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