经济学人下载:幻想的终结

Wisconsin’s recall vote
威斯康星州的罢免

End of a fantasy
幻想的终结

A backlash against the state’s feisty conservatives fizzles out
对本州暴躁保守派的反抗终于失败

Aug 13th 2011 | FOND DU LAC, WISCONSIN | from the print edition

IN A neighbourhood of double garages and tightly cropped lawns, a woman stops her car in the middle of the road and leaps out to tell Randy Hopper, her state senator, how strongly she supports the reforms he and other Republicans legislators have championed in Wisconsin. There were not enough such voters to save Mr Hopper, who was turfed out of office in the middle of his term in a recall election this week. But there were enough of them to deny Democrats the majority they were seeking in the state Senate, and to dampen hopes on the left that aggrieved public-sector workers could restore their electoral fortunes nationwide next year.

在有两个车库、草坪修剪非常整齐的街区，一位妇女将车停在马路中间，从车中走出来，告诉州参议员Randy Hopper，她是多么坚定地支持他和其他共和党立法人拥护的威斯康星州的改革方案。像这样挽救Randy Hopper的选民并不多，本周的罢免选举中，Randy Hopper在任期内被扫地出门。但是否决民主党的选民到处都是，民主党是州参议院寻求的大多数，而且抑制左派希望，权利受损的公共部门的员工可以帮助民主党明年在全国范围重获多数选民支持。

In February the Republicans who control the state legislature had tried to push through a “budget repair” bill which aimed to reduce spending in part by severely restricting collective bargaining for the public sector. Government employees were to be stripped of any say in their benefits, while their pay, in future, would rise no faster than the consumer price index. The Democratic minority in the Senate, lacking the votes to block the bill, instead fled the state, depriving the chamber of a quorum. It was only after the Republicans worked out a parliamentary manoeuvre to get around the quorum requirement and pass the collective-bargaining reforms, three weeks later, that they returned, vowing to use every means at their disposal to avenge the Republican assault on labour.

二月，控制州立法机构的共和党试图促成一项“预算修复”的法案，该法案是通过严格限制公共部门集体协商工资达到减少开支的目的。政府公务员将被剥夺对福利的任何要求，而将来工资增长速度将没有消费者物价指数增长的快。参议院的民主党少数派缺乏阻止该法案的投票人数，反而离开了该州，使投票不能达到法定人数。三周后共和党采用议会策略绕过法定人数的要求，并且通过了集体协商工资改革。直到这时民主党才回来，发誓将使用一切手段报复共和党对劳工的剥削。