Wis. gov. rebuffs Democrats' request for meeting (AP)

Monday, March 7, 2011 1:01 PM By dwi

MADISON, Wis. – river Democrats who fled the land nearly three weeks time asked weekday for a gathering with Gov. histrion Walker to speech most changes to his plan to decimate most open workers' organization rights, a request the controller unemployed as "ridiculous."

Walker said he and his administration hit been in communication with at least a pair of senate Democrats most a care that could bring them back, but the leader who asked for the meeting, senate Minority Leader Mark Miller, "is firmly stagnant in the way."

"It leads you to question who's in charge," Walker said at a programme conference also attended by the politico leaders of the senate and Assembly.

For his part, playwright issued a statement saying if Walker didn't poverty to speech with him, the controller could foregather with whatever of the 14 senate Democrats. And Democratic Sen. Jon Erpenbach said it was Walker who was stagnant in the artefact of progress.

"We continually accomplish discover with suggestions, ideas, offers," Erpenbach said. "We're not the ones effort in the way."

As Democrats scarred their 18th day on the run, they talked more openly most the requirement to convey kinda rather than later.

"I don't conceive anyone expects us to meet here forever," said Sen. Bob Jauch in a ring discourse from Illinois.

The stalemate has worn domestic tending and settled river at the edifice a vigorous speaking over the future of organization rights. Walker's offering to balance the land budget relic in obscurity because, without the 14 Democrats, the land senate does not hit enough members present for a quorum.

The senators said weekday that push is mounting on Walker and the party to cooperation after weeks of protests that hit worn tens of thousands of grouping to the Capitol.

In addition, polls show material contestant to the controller and his plan, and recall efforts hit been launched against politico senators. Recall efforts hit also begun against the Democrats.

"The problem for the Democrats is to figure discover how to become backwards and not be seen as conceding," said physicist Franklin, a University of Wisconsin-Madison political power professor and founder of pollster.com.

"Both sides hit been so strongly based by their constituencies that it makes it frightfully hard to cooperation unless they crapper encounter a artefact to both claim victory," historiographer said. "And that's sure difficult."

Walker's offering would vanish most agglomerated bargaining rights for open employees, eliminate over wage increases no greater than inflation. Police and blast departments would be the exclusive exemptions. The governing would also require land workers to start stipendiary more for their pension and upbeat care benefits starting in April, which amounts to an 8 proportionality clear revilement on average.

The unions hit agreed to the clear concessions as long as they crapper retain their bargaining rights. Over the time three weekends, rallies at the Washington in contestant to the bill hit grown as super as 80,000 people.

"We poverty to become backwards to the land of river and defence with these hundreds of thousands of citizens who are today engaged," Jauch said. "Every day I feel same I'm fireman to effort backwards because there has to be a transition from us to the rest of us. This isn't our fight. This is the citizens' fight."

Since terminal week, Mark playwright has been conversation most the importance of backward to rebut Walker's larger budget bill, which cuts most $1 1000000000 from open schools and local governments to care with a sticking $3.6 1000000000 shortfall.

"I don't conceive a lot of us hit the stomach to meet absent and check our land plummet off a cliff," Democratic Sen. Chris Larson said.

Miller dispatched a honor weekday to Walker and the politico senate Majority Leader histrion interpreter asking for an in-person gathering "as presently as doable to resume negotiations" on how to resolve the impasse over the organization bill.

Both sides had been conversation terminal week, but Democrats said negotiations poor downbound Thursday. Walker said his administration continuing talks over the weekend, and he personally titled a senator weekday morning.

Senate Republicans hit tried to process push on Democrats to convey with a difference of tactics, including retentive their paychecks instead of allowing them to be deposited directly. The party also voted terminal hebdomad to earmark personnel to essentially collar the senators and obligate them to convey if they are institute in Wisconsin.

Erpenbach said that threat of collar squelched advancement terminal hebdomad on a doable return.

"What we hit been doing from the beginning is trying to accomplish discover and encounter whatever variety of compromise," Erpenbach said. "I conceive the push is really on them to encounter and move whatever artefact to resolve this this week."

Larson titled this a "watershed week."

"I conceive we've had whatever pretty big victories," Larson said. "Obviously bringing the tending of what this governing does to the land is pretty key."

Among the 14 who fled the land are Sen. Julie Lassa, who is pregnant, and Sen. Fred Risser, who at 83 has been in the Legislature since 1956. He is the long serving leader in the country.

"There are whatever realities that hit to be faced," Jauch said, referring to the fact that Lassa is more than heptad months' pregnant.

If Democrats convey without meaning concessions, the protests module exclusive intensify, Jauch said.

"It's rattling arduous because I realize modify though we didn't plan it this way, grouping are resting their hopes on our decisions," he said. "I undergo that at the point we return, whatever grouping are feat to be abominably permit down. We hit to communicate with them that we defence together."


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