MSNBC "The Ed Show" - Transcript
Interview
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Mr. Barca, good to have you with us. Why do you think that you can get this law over--
STATE REP. PETER BARCA (D), WISCONSIN: Good evening, Ed.
SCHULTZ: You bet. Why do you think you can get this law overturned?
BARCA: Well, Ed, clearly, they violated the open meetings laws of Wisconsin. In Wisconsin, we treat those very seriously in Wisconsin. I"ve always been so proud of our state and our reputation for clean, open, and honest government, and I think the courts are going to look very carefully at this, and I think they"re going to realize that these laws were broken.
SCHULTZ: Well, if the laws--OK, right. The legal fight is going to take sometime. When this is signed by the governor, collective bargaining is gone and the only way that you"re going to be able to turn that around is go through the recall, get the majority back, put it back on the table.
This is going to be a long process--a long, drawn out process. The only recourse you have right now is to go strike, which isn"t going to do anything other than get media attention, and the only thing you can do is strike. Do--would you advocate as the minority leader in the assembly that public workers and other workers not show up for work because of this law?
BARCA: Well, that"s not for us. That"s for workers to decide for themselves.
But our fight will continue. They"re going to continue in the courts, Ed. We"re going to continue at the ballot box. There"s an election here on April 5th where we warm up. May 3rd, the governor"s top aide, Secretary Huebsch"s (ph) seat is in play in La Crosse. We expect to have a very good chance of winning that seat, which I think will send shivers through the spines of Republicans.
And then there will be recall elections after that. It will bring the fight to legislative bodies and we will not give up. This fight has only just begun, Ed.
SCHULTZ: Mr. Barca, good to have you with us. I appreciate your time so much on THE ED SHOW.
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Source