If anyone had reason to doubt the Madness of King Scott Walker before now, his recent statement should make it clear that he is certifiably and dangerously insane. Comparing labor unions to the terrorist organization known as the “Islamic State” (ISIS), Walker said, “If I can take on 100,000 protesters, I can do the same across the world.”
Apparently, Walker believes that workers demanding a livable wage and safe working conditions belong in the same category with a fringe group of violent religious fanatics determined to re-establish a medieval theocratic state – and should be treated as such. His right-wing rhetoric, accusing labor unions of intimation and corruption, echoes that of another infamous Wisconinite, Senator Joe McCarthy – best remembered for his role in driving the “Red Scare” of the late 1940s and 1950s.
Like McCarthy, Walker attempts to whip up public hysteria against an artificially-created “enemy.” He even goes so far as to accuse “union thugs” of personal death threats, vandalism of his property, and even physical attacks (none of these allegations have ever been proven). Ironically, Walker is demonstrably guilty of virtually everything he attributes to organized labor – and in addition, is a pathological liar.
Walker, who spoke at a meeting of his pimps at the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) gloated over his jack-booted “victory” over “violent union thugs.” Speaking to his handlers at the meeting, he said:
I understand you had a few protesters yesterday…that’s nothing. We got 100,000…There were amazing things they did to try to intimidate us. The good news is we didn’t back down. We remembered the reason we were elected was not to serve the few in our state capitol, but to serve the masses.
Apparently, hundreds of thousands of citizens demanding fair treatment and a voice in the workplace do not qualify as “the masses.” Nonetheless, such Orwellian language holds strong appeal for low-information voters. What makes Walker dangerous is his use of such rhetoric, including gross exaggeration and outright lies, in order to deceive the electorate into voting against its own interests and side with the very forces out to destroy them.
Scott Walker is doing enough damage to his own state. As President, such a demagogue who compares organized labor to terrorism is a mortal threat not only to American democracy, but to world peace.
