Prop 32 in California

[Geiseric]

Dude this shit is fucked! It's basically saying that unions can't contribute to political efforts by taking money from their members. It leaves the capitalists the right to donate with straight up bribes, like they do now.

First off I don't support unions giving money to democratic candidates. However they do give money to actual transitional, pro working class legislation, such as progressive tax motions, sometimes at least.

However, this is worse, because if the unions ever break with the democrats, they will be shit out of luck in forming a new party if this law's in place.

[Jimmie Higgins]

Yeah, while I'm totally for unions NOT giving money to the Democrats, this proposal is just anit-union.

[Mr. Natural]

Well, capitalism is a systemic process that can no longer manufacture the relentlessly accelerating profit necessary to its existence, and it is turning to an ultimately futile super-exploitation of humanity and nature as a consequence. The Citizen's United US Supreme Court decision is a more dramatic example of this than Prop 32. Capitalism is now global and cannot expand much externally, and so its attention turns to increasing "internal" exploitation--that's us.

We had better do something about this, and soon. My red-green best.

[Blackbird123]

The bourgeoisie state will do what is in favor of the bourgeoisie.

[A Revolutionary Tool]

If unions can't contribute money to elections how are unions going to try and pressure politics? What do they have left?

[Die Neue Zeit]

Was there an earlier Proposition that banned corporations from contributing to political efforts? :confused:

Anyways, the historical German worker-class movement grew just fine without monetary contributions from unions. As Broody the Labourite mentioned above, they should be allowed to give campaign money to ballot initiatives.

[blake 3:17]

@BG -- in future would you please provide a bit of information about what you're talking about? Most of here just aren't going to know about this legislation. It's an area I'm interested in so bothered to google it, but we can't keep track of everything everywhere.

From the LA Times:

Prop. 32's real purpose is to cripple labor unions politically
CAPITOL JOURNAL
Backers say Prop. 32 would stop special-interest money from influencing politicians, but the measure actually would tilt the playing field unfairly to the right.
October 17, 2012|George Skelton | Capitol Journal
SACRAMENTO — Proposition 32 is stark proof that often you can tell a ballot initiative by its cover.

Its promoters call their measure "The Stop Special Interest Money Now Act."

To pilfer an old Lily Tomlin line: No matter how cynical I get, I can't keep up.

VOTER GUIDE: 2012 California Propositions


Any ballot measure with a handle like that has to be automatically suspect.

Even a cursory look at Prop. 32 shows that it's about a covey of special interests from the right attacking a rival interest on the left, organized labor.

If backers had turned their initiative into an honest debate about curtailing labor muscle — specifically the influence of public employee unions — they would have deserved more serious consideration.

But by deciding to phony it up — crafting what they perceived to be the best marketing pitch based on public opinion surveys — they've created a laugher and an insult to the voters' intelligence.

Promising to stop special-interest money is akin to pledging to halt the Santa Ana winds.

Let's put it this way: Prop. 32 would prohibit unions and corporations from contributing money to political candidates. OK, that has been the law in congressional campaigns for many decades.

Is there anyone who believes that special-interest money does not influence Washington?

There is no complete cure in a democracy for special-interest influence. Nor should there be.

We're all special interests, whether PTA members or individual taxpayers or tobacco peddlers. We want our elected representatives to reflect our views. And we try to influence them, whether merely by voting or also by plying them with campaign dollars.

The ultimate solution to quashing special-interest money influence on politicians is public financing of campaigns. If the public doesn't buy the politicians, as I've often written, the special interests will. And do. But voters seem dead set against spending tax dollars on politicians and their campaign ads and consultants.

Anyway, the U.S. Supreme Court has made public financing unrealistic.

And so-called campaign finance reforms — let's be honest — aren't working, at least in Sacramento.

Politicians, as I've also written, are like insects. Some bugs can adapt to a new pesticide and become tougher and smarter. Same with politicians and "reform." In political Darwinism, the fittest learn to survive in loopholes and outwit each new attempt to sanitize a Capitol.

Perhaps we should allow each candidate to raise whatever amount he or she can from any source, but require the contribution to be immediately reported to the public online. Fast, full disclosure. Shine a light on the special interest — or the billionaire benefactor — and hold the politician accountable.

But back to Prop. 32. It moves in the opposite direction of reform by attempting to tilt the playing field unfairly to the right.

It's the third time around for this type of attempted union maiming. Earlier measures failed in 2005 and 1998.

Prop. 32's real purpose is to cripple labor unions politically. It would do this by prohibiting unions from using payroll deductions for political purposes, with or without a worker's permission.

Corporations — and this is particularly deceptive — also would be covered by the ban. But they generally don't raise political money with payroll deductions. They do it either by dipping into their corporate treasuries or by putting the squeeze on highly paid executives.

The unions' sole source of political money, however, is payroll deductions.

"We're strongly in favor of wiping out special-interest influence in politics," says Derek Cressman, regional director of California Common Cause, a reform group that opposes Prop. 32.

http://articles.latimes.com/2012/oct/17/local/la-me-cap-prop32-20121018

[Prometeo liberado]

This ballot measure has come up before in Cali. The worst part about it is to hear my fellow workers complaining how all these unions are corrupt and therefore get what they deserve. The right knows how to divide and conquer.
The bourgeois has to accumulate not only capital, but political power in an even more concentrated form. I guess you can look at this as just another salvo in the war of austerity being used to soften up organized labor. Regardless of who wins the next election the working class will take a huge hit as far as collective bargaining rights, organizing and any benefits, unemployment or otherwise. By taking organized labor and its cash out of the picture you take the center-left voice out of the picture.

[Blackbird123]

Did any body actually read the whole proposal instead of just talking out of their ass?
http://vig.cdn.sos.ca.gov/2012/general/pdf/text-proposed-laws-v2.pdf#nameddest=prop32

[Comrade Samuel]

Yeah, while I'm totally for unions NOT giving money to the Democrats, this proposal is just anit-union.

Meanwhile over here in Michigan the republicans want to shoot down prop 2 that grants us collective bargaining rights. Guess which side is spending more?

It hardly matters though, there's so much crap tagged onto every piece of legislation its a miricle we haven't collapsed from the weight of all this bullshit.

[Ele'ill]

If unions can't contribute money to elections how are unions going to try and pressure politics? What do they have left?

i really hope this is sarcasm not sure entirely (hoping)

[Mr. Natural]

American unions? Comrades may recall that 38% of union households voted for Scott Walker and against collective bargaining rights in Wisconsin recently.

I doubt many comrades realize just how conservative America has become. Well, it shouldn't be a surprise that those who exist in the belly of the beast and have become beastly.

This Obama versus Romney, Democrats versus Republicans shit is getting me down, though, and the "left," too, has become conservative as hell. Nothing good is developing. Damn, damn, damn ...

As for Prop 32, the moneyed interests have discovered that the American people will go along with just about any issue that is accompanied by wads of cash, no matter how falsely the issue is presented. Indeed, paraphrasing H.L. Mencken, no one is going to currently go broke underestimating the political intelligence of the American people. I am surrounded by old folks eager to have the Republicans and many Democrats hand their (and my) Social Security over to Wall Street.

Damn, damn, damn ...