How Cheeseheads Sought to Save America

An event that took place on June 5 in the state of Wisconsin may have a special place in America’s history. The U.S., as represented by a single state, has decided to live within its means. To be more specific, the voters refused to recall Scott Walker — 42-year-old son of a local minister, the enemy of labor unions and a supporter of strict budgetary austerity — from his post of governor. By supporting Walker, Cheeseheads (Wisconsin residents) by and large voted not to deceive themselves. To paraphrase Confucius, they chose not to look for money in a dark room, especially if it’s not there. Since the theme of “living within your means” may be the leitmotif of the upcoming election, it is possible that Wisconsin will affect the election’s tone and ideology.

A Trick on Valentine’s Day

The recall referendum was the finale of the event that started in February 2011, which can be called the “Wisconsin Maidan” without exaggeration. A year and a half ago on Valentine’s Day, the governor gave his people an unromantic gift. He surprised them with a mean trick: a draft budget that drastically cut social benefits, as well as limiting and in some cases abolishing public sector employees’ union rights.

To understand how hard this hit was, imagine the life of an ordinary civil servant or a teacher in the state with a long liberal tradition: a stable job, a guaranteed minimum pension and a good salary. Of course, it’s not as cushy as in Greece, where until recently the workers of the deeply unprofitable railway received 60,000 Euros per year. Yet, it’s quite decent for the American heartland. Add to this either very affordable or altogether free health insurance for the whole family, plus the right to retire early. Also add many small privileges that enrich the life of an American public servant.

And then suddenly, the rules changed — not completely, but noticeably. The guaranteed prosperity to which a large part of the society had become accustomed was suddenly called into question because the state is up to its ears in debt. And there’s only one solution: to spend less.

“Sternly turn away from their gifts!”

Walker should be given credit for warning everyone in advance, but not everyone took his warning seriously. Talk about needing to tighten the budgetary belt has been a fixture of American politics since the days of “Reaganomics.” People are used to it, like they’re used to chiming bells. It’s a nice sound, but it’s not necessary to drop to your knees when you hear it. But Walker dropped to his knees, as a minister’s son ought to do. And he did so with a flourish, without compromise or hesitation.

Last year, as part of a program to revitalize the national economy, the federal government had allocated nearly a billion dollars for construction of a new railway line in Wisconsin. You will not believe it, but the principled governor proudly returned the money to the treasury, saying: We’ll build it, get funding and create jobs, and you-know-who will get re-elected for a second term, but who will maintain the rail? It will be unprofitable. We don’t have our own money and don’t need others’ money. Similarly, he turned down at least $46 million of grants under other programs.

Blitzkrieg

In a word: doomsday. It is not surprising that the very next day after the bill was introduced, a crowd of 30,000 teachers, officials, firefighters and police officers gathered around the Wisconsin State Capitol building where the Senate meets. The Wisconsin Inquisitor had not threatened firefighters and police officers’ compensation, but they came to show their solidarity. Some attendees carried the Egyptian flag as a reference to the raging Arab Spring. Soon after, the protesters stormed the Capitol and completely occupied it, including the lobby, cafeteria and offices of local senators. Order was restored without the use of force.

The opposition took a stand. Different scenarios were considered, including a filibuster, protesters breaking into the chamber, quorum busting and so on. Afterward, even a few machine gun clips were found. Republicans received e-mail threats of physical harm. A slew of negative publicity was revealed about Walker’s relationship with local oligarchs, the Koch brothers, who (oh, horror!) allegedly planned to privatize the local boiler and refrigeration units.

However, as the Spanish Inquisition used to say (according to the popular comedy show “Monty Python”), “Our chief weapon is surprise.” On February 22, unexpectedly to the opposition, the bill was voted on, and within 15 seconds receiving the minimum majority of 51 votes. Before the Democrats could blink, a “pawn” got “crowned.”

Beware of unions!

After that, 100,000 protesters stood at the Capitol. The teaching staff of the local medical school pointedly gave them sick notes (to stop the Inquisitor from firing them for not going to work). But it was too late. The ball had already started rolling.

Then, the State Assembly voted. Then, the local Supreme Court considered the issue. This process was tense, but successful.

“Maidan” gradually died down. “Occupants” went home. But the unions were still enraged. They became the main driving force behind the referendum to recall Governor Walker from office. The referendum, which took place last Tuesday, failed miserably.

Recall that the U.S. has 50 states. American democracy is 236 years old. And yet, this is only the third ever attempt to recall the current governor from office. At one time, Walker was elected with 52 percent of the vote. He remained in power with 53 percent. For Wisconsin, further budget cuts loomed on the horizon.

To reach the oasis

In fact, this whole saga (which, I believe, has the potential to become a very good plot for a Hollywood tragicomedy) has become an indicator of several national trends. First, America has severe problems, which will inevitably affect the lives of every American in the coming decades. Second, America has the inner strength to solve these problems.

It turns out that despite our tendency to generalize about “the West,” America is not Europe. It is hard to imagine that voters from France or Germany, countries where the power of union leaders is like the irresistible force of gravity, would so publicly slap the unions in the face. In Europe, every aspect of relationships between employers, employees and the government is regulated. The status quo often rests on a fragile balance of opposite-minded political forces. The plus balances out the minus and often results in a zero.

Although it’s ambiguous, Scott Walker gave hope. He showed that America could move forward. Even in the best of democracies, sometimes there is only one way: over the knee. Walker, in essence, broke unions over his knee. Along with the unions, he broke his political opponents with honest and dishonest methods. Whether this tactic is justified will be apparent in a couple of years, when, according to Walker’s promises, Wisconsin transforms from a subsidized state into an economically thriving oasis.

This raises a third question: Where was the American Constitution’s guarantor while all this fuss was shaking one of his key states? Obama has practically remained on the sidelines. He claimed to be busy, thereby making enemies among the unions. But he retained support among independent voters.

However, the situation shows that his strategists David Axelrod and Jim Messina should be given credit for apparently foreseeing that “treason doth never prosper.”

Will November 6 be a repeat of Wisconsin?

Republicans are trying to present Wisconsin as a crushing blow to the incumbent president. But although it was perhaps a blow, it was not crushing. Based on the exit polls from the day of the recall referendum, Wisconsin is still going to vote for Obama during the national election on November 6.

This dissonance is easily explained: The American voter extremely reluctantly loses confidence in elected politicians. He or she needs a reason. Romney should become that reason, as a person and as an alternative action plan. He has not done so yet.

However, I must admit that the situation is unfolding in a positive direction for the Republican candidate. If a couple of months ago I would have estimated the probability of Obama’s re-election to be 70 percent, now I would probably estimate it at 60 percent.

The economic engine of the nation once again began to sputter. In May, unemployment once again crept up. Obama’s colleagues, including Democratic Party icon Bill Clinton, started to severely criticize him.

Optimism in the country is not growing. Even the long-awaited release of the Facebook stock turned into a slight embarrassment. As some suggested, Facebook became the next bubble to burst in front of American workers’ eyes.

It is clear that everything is relative. When 28-year-old Mark Zuckerberg received his hard-earned $14 billion, his sarcastic reply to the question of what he’d do with the money was, “I’m considering buying Greece.” But, more was expected. There was an expectation that he would theoretically have sufficient money for another couple of euro-zone countries, and that a new sense of growth would be felt at the national level. This did not happen.

Obama still retains a slight advantage on the national level. More importantly, he keeps the lead in the states where votes determine the victory in the election. Recall that the winner is whoever gets 270 votes from the Electoral College. According to a popular resource called Real Clear Politics, today Obama has 221 definite or probable votes. Romney has 170. 147 votes belonging to swing states are still in the middle. This includes such giants as Florida (29 votes), Ohio (18) and Virginia (13).

Some of them are quietly turning away from Obama. In recent weeks, it became likely that he will lose Florida, South Carolina, Michigan and Iowa… If Pennsylvania and Virginia slip away from him, he will face serious difficulties.

Yet, no matter how this political intrigue fascinates us, the main issue is not who will become the president. It is whether the next president will have options for solutions. I would not rule out that, if elected, Obama would prescribe the “Walker’s diet” for the U.S., at least in part. However, this too will be a risk; something that works at the state level may not work at the national level.

Recently, Zuckerberg’s Harvard professor and one of the brightest economic minds of our time, Larry Summers, published an article in the Washington Post under the eloquent title “It is time to print new money.” Against the backdrop of a $16.4 trillion national debt and after two massive injections of money into financial markets within the last three years, the brightest mind of our time cannot find another idea than to continue to do the same thing and hope for the best… Then perhaps there is really no other choice.

However, Scott Walker and the people of Wisconsin probably would not agree with this. They believe in their country, and will fight to the end.