June 16th, 2008, Fairfax, VA—Americans for Limited Government on June 6th filed an amicus curiae brief in a critical U.S. Supreme Court case that will soon determine whether a state government may prohibit its counties, cities, and towns from subsidizing union political activities via its government payroll systems.

Ysursa v. Pocatello Education Assocation will be heard this fall by the nation’s highest court, which granted certiorari to the state of Idaho’s appeal on March 31st. The case involves an Idaho law banning the state’s counties, cities, and towns from allowing union payroll deductions to be used for the subsidization of political activities.

That law was overturned by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals on October 5th, 2007 in a decision stating that the state could not constitutionally under the First Amendment prohibit its political subdivisions from making union payroll deductions because the state did not fund and directly administer those payroll systems.

It is a decision that Americans for Limited Government President William Wilson wrote in his daily column “sets a patently absurd—not to mention unobtainable—standard.”

“What it actually means is that Idaho could constitutionally enact such a prohibition upon its [own] counties, cities, etc. only if it administered every government payroll system of the State at all levels of government,” wrote Wilson. “In short ‘freedom of speech’ is not actually the issue at all—but rather the internal relationships between the State of Idaho and its own municipalities. And that’s an area that should be far outside the federal court’s legitimate purview.”

According to the amicus curiae brief, drawn up by attorney Kevin Hall, the Ninth Circuit erred in its “use of the First Amendment as a wedge between a state government and its political subdivisions [because it] has no basis in [the Supreme] Court’s jurisprudence.”

The Ninth Circuit acknowledged in its decision that it was legitimate if Idaho prohibited state employers from allowing payroll deductions by unions to be used for political purposes, a fact that Wilson seized upon in his column. He added, “[T]o boot, [the court also ruled] that the municipalities in question could enact similar prohibitions if they so desired. So again, freedom of speech is not at issue.”

When reached for comment Wilson was confident that the state of Idaho will prevail in this upcoming case: “The Ninth Circuit went too far. The First Amendment does not require Idaho or its municipalities to devote state funds to facilitating the political speech of its workers, their preferred political organizations, or anyone else.”

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“It has come to my attention that you are crying crocodile tears over money Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez has apparently shifted into his private ‘slush fund,’” Wilson wrote, “and I want to offer you my sympathy. Herewith is a box of 120 2-ply extra-strength Kleenex.”

Wilson added, “Now, aren’t you glad the people of California had the good sense to pass the term limits law you so viciously opposed, so that you (and they) are finally rid of Mr. Nunez once and for all?”

Nunez, in his final year in the Assembly after being term-limited out, has indicated he will retain control over the $4 million shifted by the state Democratic Party to his campaign account, “Friends of Fabian Nunez,” in November of 2006. In the past, Nunez has spent tens of thousands of dollars from the account on overseas travel, wine, and luxury goods with no apparent connection to political or government business. And council members are fearful he may do so again.

But, Wilson says the union officials’ concerns are misdirected. “Why stop with crying your copious tears over just the trifling $4 million that you consider your money?” Wilson wrote in his letter to Balgenorth. “What about the billions of tax dollars he has flushed down the drain in all of the self-serving political schemes the two of you have cooked up over the past six years?”

Wilson cited as an example the controversial “golden handshake” Nunez recently pushed through the Assembly. Characterized by Assemblyman De La Torre, D-South Gate, as a going away present to employees by the lame-luck leader, the handshake would sweeten the retirement pay of 222 government employees, many of whom already qualify for pensions exceeding $100,000. The exact cost to the state treasury of the Nunez handshake is not known because the Assembly has refused to release any projections or analysis.

Wilson concluded his letter by questioning why Balgenorth and his fellow union officials are “so concerned with what Mr. Nunez does with his slush fund – when it’s not your money in the first place?”

“The truth is,” Wilson added, “if today’s union bosses spent more time working with union members on legitimate work-a-day issues – and less time hobnobbing with politicians in the plush confines of their ornate offices – you would be far less concerned about Mr. Nunez absconding with his party’s war chest and far more concerned about whether you were a good steward of your union members’ dues.”

Wilson promised Balgenorth that if the union president would “re-direct your crocodile tears to Mr. Nunez’s (and your) trashing of the good people of The Golden State … an additional boxcar of Kleenex will soon be on its way.”

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Please Note: Click here for the Americans for Limited Government letter to California Labor Federation council member Bob Balgenorth.

(Fairfax, Virginia) Tennessee Congressman Bart Gordon’s vote to impose up to $2.4 billion in additional taxes in a highly questionable move was condemned today by Americans for Limited Government (ALG). In a strongly worded statement, ALG President William Wilson called on Gordon to change his position.

At issue is an amendment to legislation designed to place regulation of all tobacco products under Food and Drug Administration control. The amendment that Gordon supported on a 16 to 12 vote would allow unelected government bureaucrats to impose the tax in order to pay for the huge drain on the government treasury that will be caused by the massive new tobacco regulation efforts. The move is controversial because it circumvents all rules on where tax measures must begin. Rules call for all tax increases to come from an entirely different committee than the one on which Gordon serves.

Worse, giving unelected bureaucrats the power to decide when and how to levy the tax violates Constitutional requirements that all revenue raising bills originate through elected Members of the House of Representatives.

“Congressman Gordon has broken faith with the people of Tennessee. His vote to impose a hidden $2.4 billion tax and doing so by ignoring the rules raises serious questions about his commitment to fair play and the best interests of his constituents,” said Wilson. “Further, the proceeds of this illegal tax hike are designated for one of the most failed and disgraced agencies in government. Only in Washington can you be rewarded for failing to do the job.”

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has come under increasing scrutiny and criticism for its high-profile failures to perform its existing duties. The more notable breakdowns include:

• The approval of a wire for a pacemaker that shocked multiple individuals and led to death.
• The approval of two harmful drugs without significant review that have placed diabetics at a much higher risk of heart attack.
• Failure to keep records of which foreign manufacturing facilities have been inspected. The most publicized result of this failure was the death of more than a dozen citizens caused by contamination of blood thinners produced in foreign facilities.

“Increasing the size and power of a government bureaucracy when it has proven it is not up to the job it already makes no sense. Doing so by raising takes at a time of economic hardship makes even less. Americans want a return to the limited government principles embodied in the Constitution and an end to the all-intrusive, all powerful State. Representative Gordon can stand with the citizens of Tennessee by changing his ill-advised position,” concluded Wilson.

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