Taking Hypocrisy to a New Low

by Jon Melegrito  |  May 06, 2011

On Monday, May 2, Ohio Gov. John Kasich (R) and Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) both issued separate proclamations declaring May 1 through 7 “Public Service Appreciation Week” and “State Employee Recognition Day” respectively.

Not surprisingly, their sudden professions of fondness and lavish praise for public service workers elicited derisions and denunciations from many quarters.

In his statement, Kasich asked his fellow Ohioans to thank public employees “for the invaluable work they do each day … In order for our society to accomplish great things, it must heed the importance of the work of public servants.”

One Ohio state official, after learning of Kasich’s tribute on Monday, was forced to check his calendar to see if it was April Fool’s Day. “Does he get the irony in this?” he wondered. “While he’s putting out statements of praise, he and his Republican cronies are working to systematically destroy public employees and teachers through SB 5.” The bill would strip public service workers of collective bargaining rights.

In Wisconsin, Walker praised the hard work of state workers and thanked them for their many “necessary” and “high quality services.” But AFSCME Council 24 Exec. Dir. Marty Beil was not amused. “We are incredulous that this governor is two-faced enough to try and pretend he is concerned about state employees and what they do. If he was really committed to public service, he would not be assaulting your rights every day; and he would not be constantly attacking the unions that represent these public employees.” Walker signed a union-busting bill in March.

Fittingly, a group of state employees assailed the Wisconsin governor as a “hypocrite” and issued their own “State Employee Depreciation Day” proclamation at a rally yesterday outside the Capitol in Madison. They pledged “to end business-as-usual in our state and undertake creative resistance to the rule of Capital in order to bring justice to working people.”