Collective Soulless

Back in the middle part of the last decade, during the pitch black years of the Bush era, the GOP became infamous in certain circles for its ruthlessness when it came to pushing through legislation. The default Republican posture, given that their party controlled essentially every arm of the U.S. government, seemed to be an unimaginably audacious middle finger to anyone and everyone who dared to challenge them. This kind of thinking was best exemplified by the now-legendary brush-off that Hutt-like Wisconsin congressman Jim Sensenbrenner gave to the Democrats when they attempted to hold a hearing on the legality of the Patriot Act in 2005. Upon realizing that his political adversaries weren't going to shut the hell up and just cede the decision-making to the people ostensibly in charge, Sensenbrenner got up, took his gavel and left the room, turning the lights off on the way out the door. As Jon Stewart perfectly put it, "He literally took his gavel and went home. We're officially being governed by children."

It's because of how often we've witnessed this kind of power-for-power's-sake ethos over the last several years that it should surprise no one that the Wisconsin Republicans are now thumbing their nose at a court order aimed at stopping the implementation of their controversial union busting law in that state. First Scott Walker pulls an end run on parliamentary procedure, one which proved beyond a doubt that his desire to end collective bargaining for Wisconsin public employees had nothing at all to do with bringing his state's budget even; then the Republicans ignore a judge's order barring them from putting their ill-gotten law into place; now, after a second court ruling is issued, they're once again behaving as if the law doesn't apply to them because, well -- and stop me if you've heard this one before -- they make the laws, dammit.

But once again, as Jon Stewart said pretty well the other night, if the "law" they just passed is being held up by the courts, and they enact it anyway -- because that's how desperately they want to see their union-free Utopia come to fruition -- isn't that ironically against the law?

The Wisconsin Journal: State Will Continue Implementing Collective Bargaining Law Despite Second Judge's Order/3.30.11