Showing posts with label Citizen United. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Citizen United. Show all posts

Friday, September 28, 2012

Unions and Citizens United: What Romney Doesn't Want You to Know

by Nomad

I

n a desperate attempt to find some issue that he can talk about- apart from foreign policy, Medicare,  gay marriage, social security, health care, tax reform or any of the other subjects he considers "political landmines"-  candidate Mitt Romney has selected an easy punching bag- teacher unions. 

Last week, Romney recently made clear his contempt for both teachers and for free speech at a roundtable discussion. He began to lecture the attendees with his opinions on teachers unions and the voucher system. When one member of the group offered her opinions on the subject, he silenced her with the imperious statement “‘I didn’t ask you a question." 
This was a monologue, not a dialogue. This conversation went one way only.

Yesterday while attempting to take another shot at teachers unions he, sadly, revealed his complete ignorance (or his hypocrisy) on one of the most important and damaging court decisions of our times.
(CBS News) Republican nominee Mitt Romney said Tuesday that Democratic politicians have a conflict of interest in dealing with teacher unions because the unions contribute so heavily to their campaigns. He suggested that money should somehow be diverted or cut off, although he did not offer details.

The bigger problem, Romney said, is that "the person sitting across the table from them should not have received the largest campaign contribution from the teachers union themselves ... [It's] an extraordinary conflict of interest and something that should be addressed."

He later added that "we simply can't have" elected officials who have received large contributions from teachers sitting across from them at the bargaining table "supposedly" to represent the interests of children. "I think it's a mistake," Romney said. "I think we have to get the money out of the teachers unions going into campaigns. It's the wrong way for us to go. We've got to separate that."
There’s a very good reason why Romney should feel embarrassed to have such a remark. He appears uneducated to the full scope of the 2010 Citizens United decision.