Well, whadya know. Lots of sources are reporting that Wichita's billionaire bros for all things conservative, Charles and David Koch, are partly behind Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker's current move to strip collective-bargaining rights from government workers.
Not directly, mind you. Koch Industries' involvement is shielded under the company's political umbrella, Americans for Prosperity.
Pro-labor Wisconsinites are going apeshit right now because Walker refuses to back off the provision on collective bargaining that is written into a bill that would make public employees pay more for their pensions and benefits. The unions for these government workers will agree to the increased deductions from workers' paychecks if Walker snips the ban on collective bargaining from the bill. But so far, Walker hasn't budged. Now Wisconsin's Capitol is overrun with pro-union protesters.
But maybe the Koch connection is just a big coincidence! That's what Politico's Ben Smith says, anyway:
Of course, Americans for Prosperity -- a Koch group -- is pushing theRiiight. As organically developed as this AFP's petition site, Stand With Scott Walker.bill. Of course Koch, a conservative outfit, backs Walker. But the
combined desire of AFP to take credit and of Democrats to give it to
them shouldn't be mistaken for actual causation. The Koch group is, in a
way, like the DNC: Rushing to aid -- and to seek credit for -- a
conflict that clearly developed organically.
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