wisconsin and has decimated the unions in just one year, exactly as republicans hoped it would, exactly as they hope it will around the nation, exactly in presidential victories, even this year, even in states like wisconsin. and yes, the world is watching the top of the ticket. for clues about what will happen at top of the ticket in november between president obama and mitt romney. but the vote tomorrow in wisconsin is every bit as much about dale schultz, the last independent-minded republican standing. it s every bit as much about the fitzgerald brothers and whether they get to stay in charge, and it s every bit as much about the lieutenant governor with the poison global warming breath and these turkeys necking violently in the snow. on wisconsin, just one day to go, the most amazing story in american politics in a long, long time. joining us now is political science professor at the university of wisconsin. professor lee, it s nice to have you back on the show. thank you for bein
the vote efforts? i think, indeed, if the law were to stay in effect, it s exactly the way you described it, they would get knocked out as political players. but the people who were union members last year are still very much involved, and the ground game is as good as i ve ever seen. the democratic party, the barrett campaign, labor unions, the obama campaign have run a really well, integrated, get out the vote effort. it s almost as if the get out the vote effort doesn t involve the kind of spending that scott walker has because this is about people and politics. i think they re really matched pretty evenly for what happens tomorrow. if the democrats do win a seat tomorrow and they do take clear control of the state senate, do you see any hope for that body maybe being a means for the parties reconciling? do you think you see anything changing in terms of the overall dynamics in the state? what do you think would happen if the democrats win the senate tomorrow? i think when tom
to get absolutely everything back. in fact, what i think he would do is he would call a special session of the legislature to divide what was called act 10 and a half, that public employees like me have to give more but they give their collective bargaining rights back. so that would be a compromise that moderate republicans could vote for. so the question would be not only passing it in the state senate, but i liked how you talked about the state assembly. are there just enough moderate republicans in the state assembly who would be willing, in a sense, to accept the verdict of the people and vote for that kind of compromise? i think that would end the civil war. mordecai lee, professor of political science at the university of wisconsin, every time i talk to you, i always feel like you bring not just insight but a lot of clarity to the issues we ask you about, so thank you for being here. i appreciate it. thank you. i m honored. tonight, a rachel maddow show first. we heard bac
party i did vied, the lone senator to vote against the bill. imagine the kind of will it must have taken to be that guy at that moment in that state. when republicans forced through the union stripping legislation, wisconsin held a first round of recalls last summer. they held them on both sides, on the democratic side three senate seats that were held by democrats got put up for a vote. democrats held onto all of those seats. on the republican side, there were six republican senators who got put up for a vote. of those six, two of the republicans lost their seats. and so it came to pass ultimately that the republicans in wisconsin in the midst of this crazy fight, they lost their majority in the state senate. the majority that they had won in the blood red election of 2010. after a resignation earlier this year and after those recalls, the democrats and the republicans are in a tie in the wisconsin senate. and on union rights, one of the republicans is senator dale schultz, who you ju
metaphor cal political equivalent of a civil war, there was dale schultz astride the party divide, the lone senator to vote against the bill. imagine the kind of will it must have taken to be that guy at that moment in that state. when republicans forced through the union stripping legislation, wisconsin held a first round of recalls last summer. they held them on both sides, on the democratic side three senate seats that were held by democrats got put up for a vote. democrats held onto all of those seats. on the republican side, there were six republican senators who got put up for a vote. of those six, two of the republicans lost their seats. and so it came to pass ultimately that the republicans in wisconsin in the midst of this crazy fight, they lost their majority in the state senate. the majority that they had won in the blood red election of 2010. after a resignation earlier this year and after those recalls, the democrats and the republicans are in a tie in the wisconsin senate