海角大神

Two weeks into the political fight of his life, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) shows no signs of backing down. Neither do the protesters camped out at the state Capitol in Madison.

For both sides, the battle over public employee unions 鈥� particularly the right to bargain collectively 鈥� is fundamental, almost visceral.

Police officials estimated the crowd gathered Saturday to number 70,000-100,000 鈥� large numbers, even for a liberal university town that saw some of the biggest protests against the Vietnam War.

"I've been around Madison for 50 years, and I have not seen anything like it so far," Madison Police Department spokesman Joel DeSpain told the Los Angeles Times. Pro-union sympathy demonstrations were held around the country as well.

As the stand-off continued, Gov. Walker said Sunday that the only alternative to his plan to cut public employee benefits and curtail collective bargaining rights for state workers would be lay-offs.

Majority Republicans in the Wisconsin state Assembly abruptly cut off debate and passed Walker鈥檚 bill shortly after midnight Friday morning. But Senate Democrats (also in the minority) are still holed up beyond state borders, denying Republicans the quorum necessary to pass the bill.

Walker threatens layoffs

鈥淚f we do not get these changes, and the Senate Democrats don鈥檛 come back, we鈥檙e going to be forced to make up the savings in layoffs and that to me is just unacceptable,鈥� Walker said on NBC鈥檚 Meet the Press Sunday.

Walker says he鈥檚 trying to close a $3.6 billion budget gap for the next two years. That includes cutting $1 billion in payments to local governments as well as cutting the state contribution to workers鈥� health care benefits and pensions.

Union officials have agreed to that, but Walker doubts their sincerity.

鈥淥ver the past two weeks, even after they鈥檝e made those promises, we鈥檝e seen local union after local union rush to their school boards, their city councils 鈥� and rush through contracts that had no contribution to the pensions and no contribution to health care,鈥� he said on Meet the Press. 鈥淚n one case, in Janesville, they were actually pushing through a pay increase.鈥�

So far, there鈥檚 no give on either side regarding collective bargaining. (Walker鈥檚 plan would limit collective bargaining to wages, but only up to the rate of inflation.)

Potential GOP presidential candidates have been quick to use the Wisconsin political fight to beat up on President Obama, particularly as they seek to establish their tea party bona fides.

At a Tea Party Patriots rally in Phoenix Saturday, former Minnesota governor Tim Pawlenty accused Obama of 鈥渃oddling out of control public employee unions.鈥�

鈥淲isconsin does not need a lecture from someone who has never balanced a budget in his life,鈥� Pawlenty said. (It may have been a sign that Republican presidential hopefuls still haven鈥檛 decided how cozy to be with the tea party movement that the only other speaker with White House ambitions was Rep. Ron Paul.)

As a presidential candidate, Obama once said, 鈥淚f American workers are being denied their rights to organize and collectively bargain when I鈥檓 in the White House, I鈥檒l put on a comfortable pair of shoes myself, I鈥檒l walk on that picket line with you.鈥�

But aside from a brief statement when the protest in Madison began two weeks ago 鈥� describing Walker鈥檚 plan as 鈥渁n assault鈥� on unions 鈥� Obama has not been drawn into the rhetorical fight over weakening public employee unions.

"The president is one of the greatest politicians in the history of the United States, and he's quiet because he understands that most Americans know that [cutting government employee costs] has to be done," Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour said Sunday on Meet the Press.

Obama stays out of the fight

But Obama鈥檚 not speaking up more on the issue does not mean others in his administration have been muzzled.

鈥淭he fight is on,鈥� Labor Secretary Hilda Solis told the closing session of the Democratic National Committee鈥檚 winter meeting Saturday.

鈥淲e know there鈥檚 room for shared sacrifice,鈥� Solis said, referring to 鈥渙ur brothers and sisters in public employee unions.鈥�

鈥淏ut the governors of Wisconsin and Ohio aren鈥檛 just demanding that they tighten their belts, they鈥檙e demanding that they give up their uniquely American rights as workers.鈥�

While private sector unions have seen membership drop to about 6 percent in recent years, more than one-third of public employees remain unionized. Experts and analysts debate whether this relates to state budget woes, but it鈥檚 a major target for many of the 29 Republican governors.

"There may have been a time, a century ago, where public employees were mistreated and vulnerable and underpaid,鈥� Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels said on Fox News Sunday. 鈥淚f that was ever a problem, we have over-fixed it.鈥�