By Octopus
Who is Sean Duffy, you ask? He is a GOP representative from Polk County, Wisconsin, who cannot make ends meet on his meager salary of $174,000 per year. Yet, he supports cutting salaries and benefits of public service employees along the lines of what his governor, Scott Walker, has proposed (story here).
What do public service employees earn in the cheapskate state of Wisconsin? According to this source, an average teacher earns $48,743, which ranks 24th in the nation. How do teacher salaries compare in other states?
Indiana - $46,640 (national rank 25)
Michigan $52,300 (rank 12)
Missouri - $42,750 (rank 43)
New Jersey - $61,830 (rank 4)
Ohio - $51,343 (rank 14)
So Sean Duffy cannot make ends meet on $174,000; but wants to cut salaries and benefits of employees earning LESS THAN A THIRD of what he earns. Astonishing! Now you know why Sean Duffy and the GOP are trying to suppress this video:
And the Republicans are playing hardball. The GOP contacted this website hosting service, Blip.TV, claiming copyright infringement. You can see page 1 of the complaint here and page 2 here - the usual intimidation tactics. A spokesperson for Duffy called Democratic criticism of this videotape “a misleading attack.” I call it "newsworthy" in the public interest.
More than an embarrassment, the GOP does not want you to know what hypocritical scoundrels they are, and the best way to annoy Sean Duffy is to post copies of this video on the Internet. So please feel free to steal the video along with my commentary and go viral. It will annoy the hell out of them. My closing thought for today:
Suppression = Oppression.
Thanks for this (O)CT(O). It's up over at Progressive Eruptions and on my fb page.
ReplyDeleteWe need to keep up the pressure on exposing these hypocrites.
okee Doke... I added this to my FB page.... hopefully all five of my friends will see it! :)
ReplyDeleteMy wife and I were both State employees, we were under constant assault. If the public had it's way government employees would earn minimum wage. The GOP constantly tries to compare public worker salaries and benefits with the "general public", waitresses, gas station attendants, etc. Most public service jobs require a college degree, others require advanced degrees (caseworkers, engineers, etc.) When comparing LIKE jobs between public and private sectors, the public employees always come out less. What's next? Well, now the conservatives want to go after our retirement.
ReplyDeleteBut I sleep well at night knowing that the top 2% of the people who OWN this country remain untouched, their incomes secure.
Shared on FB. Wish you'd cross-post more often here. : )
ReplyDeleteA brief recap: So Sean Duffy earns $174,000 but can’t make ends meet; the median household income for Wisconsin was $52,103 in 2008. He wants to balance the state budget and have people earning less than a third of his income make the sacrifice. Does he practice what he preaches? From TPM, here is a rundown of Duffy’s finances:
ReplyDeleteFrom the 2009 disclosure form he had to file with the government: his family of 7 (wife plus six kids) is carrying between $250,000 and $500,000 in mortgage debt; between $50,000-$100,000 in student loans; between $15,000-$50,000 in credit card debt; and between $100,000-$250,000 in debt related to the family vacation home, a cabin not too far from his primary residence in Wisconsin.
Jeebus! The sucker is overextended. As a ratio of income to money owed, Duffy is carrying 3 times more debt than the Federal government (note: US debt is 93% of GDP). Perhaps he should cut up those credit cards and privatize the wife and kids.
Just found this hilarious follow-up.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/2011/03/oh_man_of_man_like.php?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Talking-Points-Memo+%28Talking+Points+Memo%3A+by+Joshua+Micah+Marshall%29
Poor Duffy, perhaps he could hold a bake sale to raise funds.
ReplyDeleteVisited the Polk County Republicans website and found more Duffy videos on the site's blog. When you click on the headline to access the video, below the video it invites you to share the video via Facebook, Digg etc. Sort of undermines the videographer's copyright claim. The videos are not only posted publicly but issue a general invitation to anyone viewing them to share them with others. It appears that the video from March 29 has been taken down from the website.
Followed tnlib's link (definitely a hilarious follow-up)and it lead me to this link that features the entire video clip that TPM initially posted. It seems that Duffy's staff has said that the one minute excerpt is edited to make him come across unfavorably. CNN's Joe Johns reported on the maligning of Duffy's character as fact. I think Joe has issues.
ReplyDeletehttp://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/03/cnn-accuses-tpm-of-selectively-editing-duffy-tape-video.php?ref=fpa
Apology to Octo. I first read this on Progressive Eruptions and didn't pay attention to who had written it, just assumed it was by Shaw. Thus my comment about cross-posting here!
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteJust a quick note from Wisconsin.... petitions for recall of two State Republican Senators have successfully completed,,, with six more to go and, with 45 days left to complete the petitions, well within reach. What is important to remember.... only 8 of 19 republican Senators were eligible for recall. Without boring anyone here with a lot of math....if all recall campaigns get the gathered signatures.... it would represent 25% of signatures needed to recall the Governor in JAN. 2012. This in districts now controlled by REPUBLICANS!! It does not consider the population heavy districts of Madison and Milwaukee.... usually heavy Democratic strongholds. So... where ever you are, whomever the douche is in your district.... keep on blogging, marching, petitioning.... The Truth Goes Marching On!!
ReplyDeleteWait, let me get out my minature violin so I can play, "My Heart Bleeds For You." He thinks HE can't make ends meet!?! He needs to visit our local Crisis Ministry where you can find folks who have no food, can't pay the electric and are living in the most dismal of ramshackle housing. They are choosing between paying the rent or buying their medicine. Ever listen to a poor diabetic talking about trying to stretch out their insulin by cutting their doses?
ReplyDeleteWhat a jerk!
When I was young and Reagan was helping the economy by making elimination of full time work the standard business practice, I had to supplement my $4 an hour job at Sears with roofing, remodeling and simple plumbing jobs. Maybe the Mr. Duffy could replace toilets and haul shingles up ladders like I did to make ends meet.
ReplyDelete