RUSH: By the way, folks, I was wrong. It’s even worse than I thought. Wisconsin spent $680 million of the $701 million they got on the public sector. Governor Jim Doyle, a Democrat, they got $701 million. They spent $680 million of it, all but $21 million of it on the public sector. Not in the private sector. Now, Jesse Jackson is insane. The governor of this state all along has been trying to keep from laying off teachers. The whole point of his budget reform bill was to see to it that teachers and other public sector people did not lose their jobs. Now, you listen to Jesse Jackson and the rest of these people and you’d think Scott Walker and the Republicans want to come along and fire all of these people and go out and replace them with scabs. That’s not the case.
Desperate? Public employees desperate? They’re the wealthiest workers in the state. The public employees in Wisconsin are the wealthiest workers in Wisconsin and Governor Walker was trying to make sure that they didn’t get laid off. Look, folks, we can’t do anything about the media we’ve got. We just have to continue to battle wits with ’em and overpower them when we can because they are who they are, and their side has been chosen. They’re advocates. They’re not gonna change who they are so you just gotta win. It’s just part of the calculus here. ‘Gee, Rush, the media is not telling the story. You’re getting it right. We all know that Walker wants to keep from having to fire these people. Everybody is saying that Walker –‘ yeah, they are. They are. Be grateful there’s an alternative media here to get the truth out.
Nashville, Tennessee, Kathryn, I’m glad you called, I’m glad you waited. This is one of my all-time top ten favorite names. How are you?
CALLER: I know it must be. I am okay, but I will tell you for years I’ve said you’ve been my hero, I feel so honored, and I’ve been having my life I think on hold waiting to speak to you. Let me tell you, I’ve been an educator for almost 40 years. I’ve tried to teach writing to freshmen in college. I am still trying to do that, and overall they’ve graduated from public schools, they’re writing at what used to be a first and second grade level, yet they’re in, quote, college. Now, you are absolutely right. The teachers are smug; they’re arrogant; they’re bullies; they’ve taken their bottles and their candy and just left the scene. I wish really, like in Wisconsin and other states, they would fire them and do a Reagan and bring in retired teachers. And this is why. You know, there was a time in the seventies when technique overcame content as far as — you know, now teachers don’t have to know anything, really, to become teachers.
They can’t get fired so they don’t have to be accountable, they have untouchable cover from the unions, and I’ve spent years, I mean decades writing about this, speaking up, on a crusade. I have a couple Ph.D.s. I’m probably the only really conservative Ph.D. in education, you know, in the city. But I will tell you, I am so grateful for everything you say, because I do believe that you got that e-mail about — because they’re evil. They’re mean, they’re evil. These union bosses will do anything. And years ago I used to speak in educational conferences, and once in a while the good teachers would come up to me and quietly whisper, ‘You’re absolutely right. We do need to be accountable. We do need to be measured, but we can’t do a thing because of the union.’ I mean the unions are — it’s just insidious. To me it’s the most insidious union in the United States. They’re the highest paid workers in the United States for hours worked per year and —
RUSH: You’re talking about the NEA?
CALLER: The teachers union, yes.
RUSH: Yeah.
CALLER: Yes. But the public school teachers are spoiled brats because of that, because they know, as you said, the other side has no spokesperson except people like you, and maybe me, you know, on a local or state basis.
RUSH: Right.
CALLER: And they won’t even let me go before the legislature here in Tennessee. I mean I’ve asked over and over, even though we have a governor there that’s kind of in sympathy with Governor Walker. I sent out hundreds of e-mails to everybody I know urging them to encourage Governor Walker, you know, to send letters. But I am telling you, I think finally the people are seeing the true colors of the teachers unions, especially. And I guess I’m especially angry about that, because I am a teacher.
RUSH: Yeah.
CALLER: And I’ve been for almost 40 years.
RUSH: The teachers happen to be the focus here in Wisconsin, but it’s not just teachers.
CALLER: No, it’s not just teachers, but —
RUSH: There are all kinds of public sector —
CALLER: That’s right.
RUSH: — bureaucrat union employees and so forth. You think people are starting to see it. No question. Look who won the election in November.
CALLER: But I think the behavior of what’s going on in Wisconsin, especially with the teachers union, and again, the reason I see that, see, I was working in corporate America in the seventies and I saw what the unions did to the quality of our products, like our cars. And they’ve done the same thing. I’m not talking about students. I’m talking about the teachers. You really don’t have to know any content. And I’m in a position right now, in a situation to see the students’ papers and to see what the teachers have marked. The younger teachers have not been taught.
RUSH: Well, look, 82% of schools are failing in ‘no child left behind’. And Head Start’s about the same. I appreciate the call, Kathryn.
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RUSH: By the way, I must say, the name Kathryn, that’s in the all time top five favorite female names. Yeah. In fact, it may be the all-time favorite, period, favorite female name. Yeah, Kathryn, Katie, Kate. Yeah, they all kind of go together.