WASHINGTON — New York unions are lending muscle to Wisconsin’s recall election — sending cash, staff and other resources to help give Republican Gov. Scott Walker the boot, The Post has learned.
New York State AFL-CIO President Mario Cilento yesterday said the state’s labor leaders were throwing “everything we can” into the fight to oust the union-busting Walker on June 5 and stop the anti-union movement from spreading to other states.
“It’s not just bodies,” said Cilento. “It’s phones, it’s printing, it’s contributions — it’s everything!”
The recall effort is seen nationally as a test of whether labor and the Democratic Party can beat back such Walker tactics as reducing benefits for teachers and other unionized government workers.
Walker has forced local and state government workers to pay part of the cost of pensions and insurance, limited wage hikes and made union dues voluntary.
“What Gov. Walker has done is reprehensible, to try to silence the voice of working people,” fumed Cilento. “We have to stand up and fight back, and that’s what we are doing.”
Wisconsin union leaders gripe that they’ve received little help from President Obama, who has endorsed Democratic Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett for governor but hasn’t done much else.
While Obama likely doesn’t want to be linked too closely to Barrett, who lost to Walker in the regular 2010 election, the Republicans are staunchly behind Walker.
For example, nearly everyone on presumptive GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney’s vice-president short list has campaigned with Walker or plans to.
New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie was in Wisconsin last month, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal visited on Thursday, Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell is to go Tuesday and South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley is expected on June 1.