After reading about current actions by leading Republican legislators in Wisconsin, I have to wonder if the implications of a million Recall signatures have finally started to sink in. Based on recent legislative events, the message seems to be "so little time...so much to pass"!
Is it a coincidence that SB-373, a bill introduced last week by Glen "A Bunch of Slobs" Grothman and Scott “Constitutional Crisis” Fitzgerald, is on the fast track? The State Senate Judiciary Committee, with 24 hours notice, has scheduled a hearing on Thursday, Jan. 19, for a bill that will retroactively overturn a 2005 Wisconsin Supreme Court decision. That 4-2 decision allowed those suffering damages from lead paint exposure to sue paint manufacturers who negligently continued producing lead paint when they knew it was hazardous especially to young children. Of course, this ruling was challenged; and SB-373 was introduced one day after a hearing before the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago, a hearing that is reported to have NOT gone "well" for manufacturing interests. If SB-373 passes in its current form, the lawsuits (some originating in 2006) seeking damages for 173 victims will end because of the retroactive language included in the bill.
The U.S Constitution prohibits the passage of ex post facto laws, one of the few examples of Constitutional limits to the power of both state and federal governments. There is a basic principle of fairness inherent in the restriction; it is one that the framers of the Constitution clearly understood given their recent history: retroactive laws are tyrannical and an abuse of governmental power based on the whims of those in power.
Such a scenario is being played out in Wisconsin. How tyrannical is it to pass a law that retroactively takes away the right to sue corporations for damages? And just like the elimination of public employee collective bargaining, the implications of SB-373 will have potential implications for the citizens of every state. The last year has clearly shown that Wisconsin is a "test market" for A.L.E.C.'s corporatist vision based on it's "model legislation."
Once again, the same question has to be asked..."Is Republican haste to pass legislation for the benefit of Wisconsin's citizens or an attempt to meet the calling in of political markers?"
To read further: http://uppitywis.org/...