Wisdems leave state to avoid a vote

MADISON, Wis. -- Faced with a near-certain Republican victory that would end a half-century of collective bargaining for public workers, Wisconsin Democrats retaliated with the only weapon they had left: They fled.

Fourteen Democratic lawmakers disappeared from the Capitol on Thursday, just as the Senate was about to begin debating the measure aimed at easing the state's budget crunch.

By refusing to show up for a vote, the group hoped to pressure Republicans to the negotiating table.

"The plan is to try and slow this down because it's an extreme piece of legislation that's tearing this state apart," Democratic Sen. Jon Erpenbach said in a telephone interview.

Republican Gov. Scott Walker, who took office last month, has made the bill a top priority. He urged the group to return and called the boycott a stunt.

"It's more about theatrics than anything else," Walker said, predicting the group would come back in a day or two, after realizing "they're elected to do a job."

Walker said Democrats could still offer amendments to change the bill, but he pledged not to concede on his plan.

Republicans hold a 19-14 majority in the Senate, but they need at least one Democrat to be present before voting.

Erpenbach said the group had been in Rockford, Ill., but they dispersed by late afternoon.

Sen. Tim Cullen said he was back in Wisconsin by Thursday night, but he did not expect Democrats to return to take up the bill until Saturday. The sergeant-at-arms immediately began looking for the missing lawmakers. If authorized, he can seek police help.

The Senate planned to try again today to convene. The Assembly took no action Thursday but could take up the bill today whether the Senate does or not, said John Jagler, spokesman for Assembly Speaker Jeff Fitzgerald.

The drama unfolded in a jam-packed Capitol. Madison police and the State Department of Public Instruction estimated the crowd at 25,000 protesters, the largest number yet.

"We are all willing to come to the table. ... But you can't take A, B, C, D and everything we've worked for in one fell swoop," said teacher Rita Miller.

The proposal marks a dramatic shift for Wisconsin, which passed a comprehensive collective bargaining law in 1959 and was the birthplace of the national union representing all non-federal public employees.