Senator Baumgartner is upset (or pretending to be upset?) that Jay Inslee hasn’t made Washington a right to work state. It takes a lot in some of these metacommentary pieces to not just write “fuck you” after every paragraph, but instead try to come up with jokes and actual commentary. This may be one of those times where I just give into the urge.
State Sen. Michael Baumgartner today responded to Gov. Jay Inslee’s refusal to act on his call to begin moving Washington toward becoming a right-to-work state – a move that many believe will make Washington more attractive to employers, including Boeing.
Fuck you. No. I have to do more commentary. Fuck you and your corporate apologist shit. Fuck you and your anti-worker horse shit. If Boeing or Microsoft asked you to give them a blumpkin (yes, the entire company, don’t ask about the logistics, you pervert), you would probably not only do it but demand that Governor Inslee watch. Then write a whiny press release complaining when he didn’t.
According to media reports, the spokesperson for the governor told reporters a special session for right-to-work “is not going to happen.” Baumgartner, R-Spokane, and a member of the Senate Trade and Economic Development Committee, released this response:
Fuck you! Sorry, I really have to do more commentary here. Did you really think that Jay Inslee was just going to decide to fuck over unions because one of the biggest assholes in the Senate GOP caucus (and holy shit are there a lot of gigantic assholes) wrote a whiny bit of nonsense? And in a special session?
Also, he block quotes the rest of his response but since it’s in a press release, I’m not playing along with a double block quote.
“I am disappointed that the governor is not willing to engage in this effort to save Boeing jobs and attract other employers to our state, but frankly I am not surprised. This governor has shown a persistent lack of leadership when it comes to making Washington a more attractive state for employers to locate and create new jobs.
Fuck you. No — wait — here’s some more sarcasm. Yeah, that’s the fucking problem: that Jay Inslee was not friendly enough to Boeing. That Jay Inslee who just pushed the largest piece of corporate welfare in history through the legislature and is pushing for more in the form of a transit package for Boeing. That Jay inslee “has shown a persistent lack of leadership when it comes to making Washington a more attractive state for employers to locate and create new jobs”? And when, as day follows night, we’re inevitably ranked among the best states to do business, I’m sure governor Inslee won’t get any congratulations from Baumgartner.
“While he was willing to call the Legislature back to pass a series of incentives for Boeing, he repeatedly refused to urge union members to support the contract. On November 9, Governor Inslee met with the media after the adjournment of the legislative special session. He was once again given multiple opportunities to encourage machinists to accept the contract. One reporter specifically asked, ‘Are you saying that you’re ok if the machinists decide to reject the contract?’ The governor responded by calling the vote ‘an individual decision,’ once again refusing to show any level of true leadership to protect thousands of family-wage jobs in our state.
I don’t think the governor should be negotiating private sector contracts. Also, Boeing is trying to make them no longer family wage jobs. That’s the fucking point. That’s what unions do. Those jobs don’t become family-wage jobs out of the benevolence of gigantic corporations. They become them because those corporations are made to provide good wages by unions and by governments. Also, Fuck you.
“So now Washington must compete for these jobs and the governor is once again failing to lead. While Governor Inslee is off in China, rejecting my right-to-work proposal through a spokesperson, other governors are wasting no time courting Boeing and making the case that their business climate is superior to Washington’s. Within hours of learning of the machinists’ vote, Texas Governor Rick Perry tweeted, ‘Texas is a right-to-work state w/low taxes, smart regulations & skilled workers – perfect for @Boeing 777x manufacturing!’
Fuck you. Be more like Texas? Texas doesn’t have the skilled workers. Nobody outside the Puget Sound does, and if Boeing wants to start from scratch, they’ll have the same delays the South Carolina plant has had. Or hey, maybe Boeing can build a new plant next to another unregulated Texas fertilizer plant.
Also, the tax system here has been rigged by Boeing for decades, so Texas really can’t offer them better taxes. And for real, I love the implication that Jay Inslee is just fucking around in China. Like it isn’t a trade mission that will probably end up helping Boeing sell planes.
“Lawmakers in Utah, South Carolina and Alabama were making the case for their states, and Boeing representatives were on the ground or on the phone, in talks with these states the very next morning after the vote. Our aerospace workers are the best in the world, and they deserve to have a governor who is doing everything in his power to protect their jobs. Unfortunately that is not the case with Governor Inslee.
All of the fuck yous. Every single one. And frankly that probably isn’t enough. Also, who do you think the union that rejected Boeing’s shitty deal is made up of? Is it possible that they want good aerospace manufacturing jobs in the region more than you?
“The governor has a sign in his office that says ‘we can do hard things,’ yet he has never been willing to do the hard thing and stand up to his donors in organized labor, even if it has meant potentially costing Washingtonians jobs.
Fuck you. Maybe have a discussion about standing up to Boeing and other large corporate interests in this state for once?
“While his predecessor, Governor Gregoire, was willing to work in a bipartisan manner to achieve key reforms to unemployment insurance, he has refused to take on the unions when it comes to addressing our state’s out-of-control workers’ compensation costs. He has also failed to stand up to his friends in the environmental movement to provide a more reasonable permitting and regulatory climate for employers.
Fuck you. Governor Gregoire fucked over workers but it’s never enough is it? Always we need to do more and more and more and more to fuck over workers. And hey, why don’t we let people pollute more as long as we’re at it?
“Making Washington a right-to-work state is not a silver bullet that will solve all of our business climate concerns, but it is one of the concrete steps we can take to put Washington on a more even playing field with the twenty-four right-to-work states competing for these high-wage jobs. Perhaps just as important, it is also the right thing to do. Every individual should have a right to decide for him or herself whether or not to join a union and pay union dues.
Fuck you. Right to work makes the jobs less good. That’s literally the main point of them. That’s what makes them so attractive to business interests. Stop fucking using phrases like “high-wage jobs” when talking about them since the point of the proposed legislation is to lower wages. Also, fuck you and your scab propaganda. The right thing to do?
“This is about making Washington competitive, not about being anti-union. As the son of educators, I have a strong appreciation for the role unions play in our society. This is about competing for jobs and respecting the rights of workers. There is perhaps no state more associated with unions than Michigan, but on March 28 of this year, Michigan became a right-to-work state. Lawmakers there weren’t trying to attack unions; they were trying to revive the manufacturing base of their state.
Fuck you. You literally demanded that the governor “take on the unions” like 4 paragraphs before you said your plan is “not about being anti-union.” Pick one, or at least take the time away from snugglepupping Boeing for long enough to proof read your own goddamn press releases.
“Passing a right-to-work law here in Washington will be a challenge, but if they can do it in Michigan, we owe to our state’s workers, and those looking for work, to make the effort here. The governor claims he wants to do ‘hard things,’ well here’s his chance. It may be hard work, but we need to give Boeing, and all of our employers, an environment conducive to growth and job-creation, and making Washington a right-to-work state is the key step to reaching that goal.”
If Michiganders jumped off a bridge would you? I mean obviously, yes, if an executive from a big company asked him to.
PS Fuck you.
