Guest: John Nichols, Nina Turner, Larry Hanley, Jack Reall, Betty Sutton,
Jim Dean, Tim Ryan, Jon Bauman
ED SCHULTZ, MSNBC HOST: Good evening, Americans. And welcome to THE
ED SHOW tonight live from Columbus, Ohio.
Enthusiasm is high in this late hour, in a landslide -- Issue Number
2 has been defeated. The union busting Senate Bill 5 will not become law
in the state of Ohio. This is a huge victory for the middle class in the
state and in America.
What do you think about it, guys? You OK with that?
(CHEERS)
SCHULTZ: If the Republicans want to call it class warfare, that`s
fine. The first battle has been won by the middle class.
This is THE ED SHOW -- let`s get to work.
(MUSIC)
SCHULTZ: More than 2.5 million votes have been counted. With 86
percent reporting, the vote is 39 percent for Issue 2, 61 percent against
it. It is a clear message that has been sent from the middle class from
the state of Ohio. The people of this state would not let a Republican
politician and his partisan operatives take away the basic rights of
workers.
John Kasich, Governor --
(BOOS)
SCHULTZ: -- this law bans collective bargaining for public worker
benefits. It eliminated automatic pay increases. It made it illegal to
strike and it did away with arbitration.
Here`s the governor of Ohio accepting defeat tonight.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. JOHN KASICH (R), OHIO: It`s clear that the people have spoken.
And, you know, my view is when people speak in a campaign like this, in a
referendum, you have to listen when you`re a public servant. There isn`t
any question about that.
I`ve heard their voices. I understand their decision. And frankly,
I respect what people have to say in an effort like this.
And as a result of that, it requires me to take a deep breath, you
know, and to spend some time reflecting on what happened here. You know,
you have a campaign like this, you give it your best. If you don`t win and
the people speak in a loud voice, you pay attention to what they have to
say. And you think about it.
And so people ask what will you do if this doesn`t fail? I can tell
you, now it`s a chance for me to catch my breath and try to gather my
thoughts together as to what we do next.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: A very conciliatory John Kasich, governor of Ohio, tonight.
Admitting that he has been on the wrong side of the issue with the people
and is now stepping forward saying that he wants to work with the people
and as he said, take a deep breath.
(BOOS)
SCHULTZ: All of that remains to be seen, because a lot of work still
needs to be done across this country. To get rid of the massive income
disparity and unfair burden that`s been put on the working class in this
country.
But today, we witnessed a giant step in the correct direction with a
23-point victory for workers` rights in America.
Joining me tonight, John Nichols, Washington correspondent for "The
Nation" magazine.
Eighty-eight counties, John, in the state of Ohio, 78 counties went
for a no vote to repeal Senate Bill 5. As we take a look at the map of
Ohio, there it is -- the most dominant color against Issue 2. There were
only pockets of the state that were in favor of Issue 2. And we still have
some portions of the state that have not reported but clearly a massive
victory against Issue 2.
What does this mean? First of all, your response to John Kasich`s
reaction to the vote tonight.
JOHN NICHOLS, WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT, "THE NATION": Ed, I`ve
covered politics for a long time, and I have rarely seen a governor that
chasten, where he was actually kind of rambling about he`s going to have to
rethink. And I think people should recognize that it`s rare in American
politics that you take somebody as powerful as John Kasich and reduce him
to saying -- I`ve got to rethink. I`ve got to go back over this.
SCHULTZ: This is a governor that won with only 49 percent of the
vote. He came in with a very heavy-handed attitude saying he wanted to get
the unions out of the classroom. He said negotiations were over. He had a
real distinct strong attitude against workers, and over time it somewhat
softened, even after the bill was passed.
But there were a number of Republicans who didn`t vote for it. Has
Governor Kasich in your o opinion done a 180? Do you think that the people
of Ohio could trust him?
NICHOLS: I wouldn`t begin to suggest that. Remember, John Kasich is
a point man for a national agenda to take down organized labor. He will --
I don`t believe for a second he`s going to abandon all this. But he`s
certainly going to have to rethink.
And other Republican governors across the country are going to look
at this message from Ohio and be a hell of a lot more cautious taking on
organized labor.
SCHULTZ: This is not only a message not only to Governor Kasich, but
to other governors who have -- I mean, what we`ve seen tonight is a
political overreach. I mean, there are limits when you want to take it out
on the folks that make $40,000, $50,000 a year. And you want to go after
their health care, you want to go after their pension, you want to limit
their right to speak in a workplace.
I mean, you`re going to pay a price for it. I mean, does this draw a
line in the sand for radical Republicans?
NICHOLS: It ought to, Ed, because, look, you had a situation where
in John Boehner`s home state, you had a test -- you had a test of whether
you should balance the budget on the backs of working people and the people
of John Boehner`s home state said, no way. We don`t want that. We want to
have a fair balancing of our budget that puts the burden on the wealthy
people that ought to pay their fair share.
(CHEERS)
SCHULTZ: John Nichols, great work. Always a pleasure. Good to have
you with us.
Now, let`s turn to my colleague Rachel Maddow, host of "THE RACHEL
MADDOW SHOW" here on MSNBC.
Rachel, your impressions of what has happened tonight across the
country. We have seen the governor, a Democrat in Kentucky, win by 21
points. We see the state of Maine tonight has voted to restore same-day
registration.
And I think it pointed out that in the state of Arizona, Russell
Pearce, who wrote the anti-immigration law, is trailing in his recall.
Rachel, how do you call it? it`s a pretty interesting stuff happening out
there tonight.
RACHEL MADDOW, "THE RACHEL MADDOW SHOW" HOST: It is for liberals and
Democratic-minded Americans and for the rest of the Americans, for people I
think who would put themselves more toward the center of American politics
than rather to the right where Republican Party has really staked a flag
this year, this is going to be a night of good cheer.
The Mississippi personhood amendment, it should also be noted, was
defeated. A lot of people thought that anything that could be branded,
even remotely antiabortion in Mississippi, would pass in a walk.
Mississippi voters voted that down. And it should be noted that this is
the thing that would have not just banned abortion outright, it would have
also banned birth control, and IVF fertility treatments.
Mitt Romney, the Republican front-runner for president, said he was
in favor of that thing. And Mississippi voters voted it down.
As you said, Russell Pearce in Arizona, the state senate president,
the sponsor of SB-1070, having a rough night tonight. It looks night he
maybe being on his way to being recalled.
Obviously, the vote tonight in Maine to reinstate voting rights that
Republicans had done away with and in Ohio, all eyes on Ohio right now. As
this definitive vote tonight, just a huge, huge margin by which it was
defeated -- I did not believe it would be this big a margin, even if Issue
2 did lose. And it`s just -- it could not be a more definitive statement
tonight, Ed.
SCHULTZ: Rachel, I think we have seen the template now clearly
developed to fight back on Citizens United, the Supreme Court ruling. We
have seen here in Ohio an unbelievable effort on the ground.
Is this the model? What do you think?
MADDOW: I think that the thing we talked about earlier, Ed, about
the difference between the Democratic base and what the Democrats have
thought they could rely on to win elections moving forward, is a
distinction I think can no longer be lost on national Democrats. You
actually have to give people something to go vote for. You got to give
people something to stand up for. You got to give people something to
fight for.
If you do it and stand with people on issues of fundamental American
rights, the people will stand with you. And to see the kind of turnout
that Ohio saw tonight is a template for Democratic victories I think
heading into the 2012 election and beyond.
It`s the kind of victory that put a senator like Sherrod Brown from
Ohio in the Senate, frankly. He didn`t run as a third way triangulating
Democrat. He ran as somebody who`s going to stand up for the middle class.
We spoke with him earlier tonight. And I think this is a Sherrod Brown
kind of night in Ohio.
SCHULTZ: And, you know, Rachel, we have seen the approval ratings of
the Congress just plummet to all-time lows. It`s pretty clear, at least
the way I see it, that if you stand with workers in 2012, you stand a real
good chance of being chosen by the people to go represent them and not the
corporations.
What do you think this says, if anything, about 2012 and also the 99
percenters who have captured the attention of the country? Ridiculed early
on, still in the streets this night. Still across this country saying that
income disparity and corporate greed is really what it`s all about. There
was a greed grab here on workers` rights in Ohio and it was turned back.
There`s got to be some kind of connection here.
What do you think?
MADDOW: Ed, you know, you and I talk about on our shows so much
about how things have changed over the past generation, about how things
have gone so well for the 1 percent while for the rest of the country
they`ve really tanked. And all of those things have happened without the
American people being asked to give an overt yes or no on whether or not
that ought to happen.
It`s been all this subtle stuff. It`s been changes to the tax code
that were supposedly going to benefit everybody by benefiting rich people.
It`s been changes to rights and changes to access to resources for the
middle class that were supposedly going to be good for the economy but
really just helped rich people.
What we saw happen this year is that Republicans in the states
decided to just do this raw -- to just do it without calling it anything
else. Union rights, we`re taking them away. And they decided to be blunt
about it.
And when you`re going to be blunt about it, it`s going to be a blunt
fight and somebody else taking the other side of the fight. And in the
case of Ohio, it`s going to be the vast majority of the state.
SCHULTZ: Rachel, good to have you with us tonight. Thanks so much.
I`ll see you at the top of the hour.
Now, I`m joined by Ohio State Senator Tina Turner.
Senator Turner, congratulations. I know you worked awfully hard on
this.
Your thoughts on victory row tonight.
(CHEERS)
ST. SEN. TINA TURNER (D), OHIO: -- the entire nation, and when we
stand up for working class men and women in this state, they stand up back.
The heat was on in Ohio. And we turned it up as citizens and the citizens
stood for working class men and women.
SCHULTZ: We heard Governor Kasich earlier. Here`s another sound
bite from the governor`s comments tonight after the election was called.
Here it is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OHIO: The people have spoken clearly. You don`t ignore the public.
You know, look, and I also have an obligation to lead. I`ve been leading
since the day I took this office. And I`ll continue to do that. But part
of leading is listening to what, and hearing what people have to say to
you.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: He says he wants to listen to the people. Why wasn`t he
listening before? What do you expect out of the governor now?
TURNER: Well, I`m glad to hear the governor say that now. I wish he
would have done that months and months ago before we put all the citizens
in this state, especially our working class citizens, through this, the
unknown about whether or not they were going to be able to support their
families and live out their American Dream. It`s unfortunate it has come
to this.
But to hear the governor said he is listening, we will see going
forward. It is my hope that no Senate Bill 5-lite is passed through the
general assembly. We`ve got to have all of our citizens look out for that.
SCHULTZ: I think it`s important to point out that throughout this
entire process, the negativity of Senate Bill 5 was very strong, way back
months ago. And the governor didn`t turn then. But now, it had to take a
vote to turn him. How sincere to you think he is? How do you expect him
to listen and work with you now?
TURNER: Well, you know, Ed, we heard him. We`re going to watch the
watcher who`s watching the watcher. So, it`s up to the citizens to stay
alert, to stay vigilant.
But you`re right. I was there when they locked our citizens out of
the statehouse. I was there when they took some of my Republican
colleagues off of the committee to get a certain result.
So, we`re not going to pretend like none of that happened. But what
we are going to do is move forward strong and boldly and hold their feet to
the fire to stand up for working class men and women in this state, Ed. We
can`t go back and we won`t go back in this state.
And we`re blazing forward into 2012, 2013, and 2014 for men and women
in this state who bring it every single day, Ed. They have a right to reap
the fruits of their labor and how dare anybody in the state, in this
nation, turn their backs on the men and women, our teachers, our
firefighters, our social workers, our nurses. How dare they?
(CHEERS)
SCHULTZ: Nina Turner -- the passion of the people spoken so well by
State Senator Nina Turner. That`s pretty much what it`s like all over Ohio
tonight for the folks who wanted to take down Issue Number 2 and they did
it. Great to have you with us. Thanks for your time.
Keep sharing your thoughts with us on Twitter @EdShow, using the
#EdShowIssue2. We`ll feature your tweets at the bottom of our screen
tonight throughout the show.
Coming up, more reaction to the rejection of Issue 2. Harold
Schaitberger of the International Association of Firefighters and Larry
Hanley of the Amalgamated Transit Union on the victory. What does it mean
in the big picture? And what is the middle class across America saying?
We`ll hear from Congresswoman Betty Sutton on what this means for the
Democrats. And Jim Dean, Democracy for America. The effort on the ground
-- is it the template to beat Citizens United?
Stay tuned. You`re watching THE ED SHOW, live from Columbus, Ohio.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SCHULTZ: Coming up, the defeat of Senate Bill 5 and a big victory
for the unions. Larry Hanley of the Amalgamated Transit Union and Jack
Reall, they will join me next.
Then we`ll hear from former RNC chairman, Michael Steele. He`s
weighing in on the latest explosive allegations against Herman Cain.
Stay tuned. This is THE ED SHOW, live from Columbus, Ohio. We`re
right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SCHULTZ: Welcome back to THE ED SHOW.
On the night of an overwhelming defeat of Issue 2 and a huge victory
for workers` rights, it doesn`t get any better than this when it comes to
the middle class workers.
Joining me now is Larry Hanley, international president of the
Amalgamated Transit Union, and Jack Reall, president of Columbus
Firefighters Union Local 67.
Gentlemen, congratulations. I know you put your heart and soul into
this -- a big victory and momentum for organized labor. No question.
Larry, your thoughts on what happened here tonight.
LARRY HANLEY, AMALGAMATED TRANSIT UNION INTERNATIONAL PRESIDENT:
First, Ed, I obviously want to thank my members and all the members of all
the unions here tonight for all the work they did to make this happen. But
also I want you to know on behalf of our members we thank you, Ed, for
telling this story every day so well and helping us make it happen. It`s
been a great night for working people all over America.
SCHULTZ: Well, I think it`s been a real attack on the middle class.
I mean, the finances of the country, our treasury is in tough shape.
States aren`t getting the help. So, it`s the trickle-down and it`s very
clear that this governor tried to balance the budget on the backs of
working people.
But, Jack, one thing is for sure, you know, you firefighters
obviously got out there and did what you had to do. We never really got
any hard numbers of what Senate Bill 5 was going to do to the budget. What
does that tell you?
JACK REALL, PRESIDENT, COLUMBUS FIRE FIGHTERS UNION 67: It wasn`t
going to do anything. I mean, that`s the fact of the matter is it wasn`t
going to do anything for state or local budgets. It was just going to hurt
the budgets of the working class family. That`s all it was going to do.
SCHULTZ: Where do you think the middle of the road voter is? Where
do you think the independent voters are on this issue? What did you see
when you were out canvassing? What you heard, did it match up with the
totals we`re seeing tonight?
REALL: Oh, absolutely. Those people we talked to, whether it was by
phone or knocking on their doors, what they wanted to know is, we support
you, how do we need to vote?
And we told them. And they did it. I mean, they did it, and it just
unbelievable victory for our guys.
(CHEERS)
SCHULTZ: I want to say this about Ohio. What we saw in Wisconsin,
the unions I think following the people. But I think here in Ohio, it`s
been the people following the unions.
I mean, I think there`s no doubt that you guys were the first ones
that said, hey, time out on this Senate Bill 5 stuff. This is coming after
a voice of the workplace. This is coming after middle class families.
What kind of leadership role is organized labor going to have to play
if President Obama is going to get re-elected? Because I didn`t hear much
about presidential politics when I was out and about in Toledo and in
Columbus a few times. This wasn`t about presidential politics.
Your take on all that.
REALL: This really had nothing to do with presidential politics.
What this did do is it showed our members that what they do in the polls
matters. They have to think long and hard, how they vote, how it`s going
to affect their job and the future. I think it`s going to make a heck of a
difference in 2012.
I think what it really meant here in the state of Ohio is, these
people sitting behind me have more votes than corporations and rich CEOs.
(CHEERS)
SCHULTZ: Larry, what about that?
HANLEY: Well, it`s absolutely true, Ed. This is democracy in
action. This is how it works.
More than that, who could have believed 10 years ago -- I`m from New
York, Ed. And I watched our members, bus drivers, rescue people on 911.
But more significantly, the guys sitting here, their brothers and sisters
in New York ran up burning buildings, steps to save people`s lives.
Who would have thought 10 years later people like Kasich could turn
around and make them and us the public enemies? That`s what`s wrong in
America, Ed. And we turn it around tonight.
SCHULTZ: How do you win over the independent voter on that? I mean,
do you tell this story, does this story continue on from Ohio?
HANLEY: I absolutely believe it. I think if the average voter in
America is starting to understand, they`re waking up, understanding what
rich people have done here. And what Congress has done and not done. Our
Congress has played to their fiddle and changed all the laws and all the
tax rules to help them and to hurt us.
This was the next step in their game and we stopped them dead in
Ohio.
(CHEERS)
SCHULTZ: What I think has to be grabbed by the American people on
this is that how could it be that firefighters and police officers and
teachers and librarians and nurses, all of a sudden, collectively, they
happen to be the problem with our economy. And if we don`t correct these
professions, you know, we`re not going to be able to balance our budget
ever.
It is amazing what has happened here in Ohio, that there was a
template to go after middle class families, go after their wages, go after
their voice, go after their future, go after their security, because
somebody wanted to balance the budget.
Now, this is the story that has to be taken across America. This is
a mission that the Republicans are on. This is a mission that they are on
to destroy collective bargaining because many people think that the last
line of defense for the progressive agenda in this country is organized
labor.
And so, I think it`s very clear what`s happening here. And I think
what John Kasich did tonight, he took the high road in defeat.
But, Governor Kasich, you know what you need to do? You need to go
visit with the other radical governors that are out there. Going up to
Michigan and visit your buddy, Mr. Snyder. Go on over to Wisconsin and
tell Walker if you want to keep your job, you better tread lightly on the
working folk of America.
Better tell Chris Christie, he likes to walk around with a tremendous
amount of bravado and like toss himself around -- oh, we cut teachers,
we`re going to straighten out the teachers union.
You`re going after the fabric of America. I wonder if the right wing
Republican governors understand who you`re going after. Do you really
believe that people who make $50,000 a year, that have a goal just to pay
off their home, and to have some kind of retirement and maybe be able to
see the doctor with a little bit of health care -- do you really think
they`re the enemy of the economy in this country?
(CHEERS)
SCHULTZ: Do you really believe that with your heart? Do you -- do
you really believe that you can`t go to the wealthiest Americans in this
country, that these people are the problem?
Governor, Governor, I have a chair for you. It`s still here. Come
talk to your buddy, Big Eddie. You know, I want to talk to you, Mr.
Kasich. Right here.
You know? You know, I mean, Governor Kasich, I understand. I
understand it`s easy for you to stand up in front of the microphone and
give a conciliatory speech because you`ve had a lot of training over on FOX
News. I understand how you sit down with Sean Hannity and talk it over
about how you`ve got this grand plan how you`re going to do the budget.
But you`ve got to come talk to other Americans. And I know you want
to be president of the United States. I know what this is all about.
This was all about you going after the unions. This was all about
you being the hero. This is all about you going back to Washington, not as
a congressional member anymore, but as somebody who is going to do the job
from the Oval Office.
You`re not going to do it if you`re going to go with this kind of a
power grab. But people do matter. The rest of the Republican governors
out there who think that you can`t go a bridge too far, I hope you learned
a lesson here tonight, that these 99 percenters who are in the street, they
have a message for the people in Washington, that the 99 percenters in the
street -- they have the support of these people, the middle classers across
America.
Larry Hanley, Jack Reall, thanks for joining us tonight. I
appreciate it so much.
Coming up: Herman Cain says he won`t quit the presidential race, even
as a second accuser comes public. Former RNC chair Michael Steele weighs
in.
And John Kasich`s union-busting law goes down in defeat. I`ll get
reaction from the crowd here in Columbus.
You`re watching THE ED SHOW on MSNBC. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SCHULTZ: Welcome back to THE ED SHOW live from Columbus.
We`ve been following the other big story of the day. Herman Cain
held a doozy of a press conference, denying all allegations of sexual
harassment against him. Cain says he will not drop out of the race and
claims that he doesn`t remember anything about one of his latest accusers,
Sharon Bialek.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HERMAN CAIN (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I have never acted
inappropriately with anyone, period. The charges and the accusations I
absolutely reject. They simply didn`t happen.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: The Republican front-runner said he`d be willing to take a
lie detector test if he had to. Cain also believes that Bialek`s claim of
sexual misconduct are an attempt to smear his campaign.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CAIN: These anonymous allegations are false and now, the Democratic
machine in America has brought forth a troubled woman to make false
accusations.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: Meanwhile, just minutes before Cain spoke, one of his
original accusers went public. Karen Kraushaar received a settlement from
the National Restaurant Association in 1999. She tells "The New York
Times" she is considering the idea of a joint press conference with Cain`s
other accusers.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SCHULTZ: Joining me now is MSNBC analyst and former Republican
National Committee chairman, Michael Steele.
Michael, great to have you with us.
MICHAEL STEELE, MSNBC ANALYST: Good to be with you, Ed.
SCHULTZ: I appreciate your time. You bet.
There are four accusers now. And now a fifth woman that has come
out, and there you have Herman Cain saying it`s a Democratic machine.
You got to put some sense to this for us.
STEELE: Well, yes, I`ve tried for the last week or so to do that
myself. Even in conversations with Mr. Cain and his campaign, making it
very clear, first off, these allegations are very serious.
You cannot dismiss them. You cannot take them lightly, even though
they are 12 years old in many cases or 14 years old. There were
settlements attached to them. You have to address this.
Number two, last week, to go out and say that this was the Perry
campaign doing that and then this evening to say, oh this is the Democrats
doing that. At this point, America doesn`t care how the press got the
story or where it came from.
It is -- it`s out there. It is factual. It`s got live human beings,
now, that are coming forth. It`s not just Herman Cain speaking to this
issue.
And so, I thought tonight`s press conference was -- fell a little bit
short of the mark. I thought that he needed to really address the
particular accusations from Ms. Bialek yesterday who had specifics. Car,
hotel, et cetera, that he -- I think, needs to be addressed.
So, this story is not going away. It`s unfortunate coming on the
precipice of tomorrow night`s debate that CNBC is going to be hosting. And
this is going to be front and center not just for Herman Cain but for the
other seven candidates as well. And I don`t think they need to be talking
about this right now.
SCHULTZ: Well, basically, Herman Cain is saying trust me, as opposed
to the accusers because I`m a business man and I`ve been married to my wife
for 43 years. But it`s very clear there seems to be a pattern of behavior
here.
But now, some of the Republicans are starting to step up. Senator
Lisa Murkowski says she`s concerned about the allegations. Governor Haley
Barbour of Mississippi says Cain needs to get all the facts in front of the
people.
I mean, are we going to see more Republicans publicly questioning
Cain at this point? And when does he start hurting the Republican brand in
your opinion?
STEELE: Well, I think -- I think -- to answer the second question
first, I think that`s already started. The fact that we`re taking up time
on the show tonight to talk about this instead of what`s going on in Ohio,
based on the leadership that you`ve shown there and the grassroots movement
that`s been a part of the public debate since 2009, I think that says a lot
about where the state of the campaign is for the party right now.
It`s not talking about the economy and job creation, the
administration, war and peace issues. But, you know, 14-year-old
allegations on sexual misbehavior.
So, I hope more Republicans will step up and say, look, this has to
get behind us not for the sake of Herman Cain but for the sake of the
country and the conversation, the debate we need to have. This has been
adjudicated in some respects. Herman , just lay out the facts and live or
die by those facts on behalf of how people perceive it.
SCHULTZ: Well, it`s not he said/she said, it`s he said/they said at
this point. And you`ve got -- it`s gone from an electronic media lynching,
that description, to Rick Perry`s fault, to now the Democratic machine. I
think the Republicans would probably do themselves well to distance
themselves at this point from Herman Cain, in my opinion.
MSNBC analyst Michael Steele, thanks for your time.
Go ahead, you got one more comment?
STEELE: No, I was going to say I agree with that. I think that that
is the correct analysis here. We`ve got to get beyond it. And the
discipline has been broken. And the party`s got a problem if this goes on.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SCHULTZ: That was MSNBC analyst Michael Steele earlier this evening.
Coming up, reaction from Ohio Congresswoman Betty Sutton and also Jim
Dean of Democracy for America as the middle class celebrates. The GOP is
already spinning results.
And the people of Ohio have spoken at the voting booth. But they
have a lot more to say. You`ll hear from them later. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SCHULTZ: Welcome back to THE ED SHOW from Columbus, Ohio.
The celebration continues this great citizens of America after the
overwhelming defeat of Governor John Kasich`s union-busting law.
Joining us tonight, Ohio Congresswoman Betty Sutton. Jim Dean is
with us, the chair of Democracy for America. And also, Congressman Tim
Ryan.
Great to have all of you with us tonight.
The effort to defeat this Senate bill has been fantastic but we
should also point on the fact that there was tremendous effort to make sure
that Senate Bill 5 stayed in place.
This was a defeat tonight for the Koch brothers. It was a defeat
tonight for Liz Cheney. She was involved.
Karl Rove is involved. Sarah Palin was involved. Pat Boone was
involved. A number of Republican governors were involved. They were the
losers.
FOX News came here with Hannity. That didn`t do any good.
Rush Limbaugh said the people of Ohio were going to rape themselves
to pay public employees. And Herman Cain did a robocall.
So, none of that had any effect. You had these national politicians,
these national professional fund-raisers for issues get involved, and they
were pushed aside by the Ohio middle classers.
(CHEERS)
SCHULTZ: That`s what they -- but the workers of this state.
Congresswoman Betty Sutton, your response to what happened tonight?
REP. BETTY SUTTON (D), OHIO: We have seen the power of the people.
(CHEERS)
SUTTON: We know -- we know that so much money was poured in here.
We know that top 1 percent, they control so much influence and power in
this country. But, but, they only control 1 percent of the vote and we
showed them what we can do here in Ohio.
SCHULTZ: Well, you know, a lot of this is happening because the
state needs money and of course they want to destroy the unions for future
effort and winning elections. No question about that.
But there`s another guy from Ohio that`s pretty well set in
Washington and that`s the speaker of the House. How can he -- now, he has
gone around -- he has gone around the country, press conference after press
conference in Washington, talking about what the American people want.
Can you tell Speaker Boehner tonight what the American people want?
SUTTON: The American people want jobs! They want jobs! They want
jobs!
(CHEERS)
SUTTON: I think it`s pretty clear, the people have spoken, they know
that the answer to our problems is getting America back to work.
I hope Governor Kasich hears us. I hope Speaker Boehner hears us and
gets to work on putting America back to work.
(CHEERS)
SCHULTZ: Jim Dean, Democracy for America. We`ve already heard
Governor Kasich come out and say, hey, I got the message, you know, we`re
going to do something about it, going to work together.
Do you think we`ll see a different Governor Kasich in this state?
JIM DEAN, CHAIR, DEMOCRACY FOR AMERICA: Well, you know, we hear this
talk all the time from Republican leadership. They start -- the minute
they get this kind of action going in a place like here in Ohio, they start
talking about bipartisanship a lot.
And, you know, the fact is we`ve got to keep pushing this. This is
the beginning. This night is the beginning. It`s not the end.
And we`re going to have to keep fight. And we`re going to have to
keep fighting for worker`s rights and the right to make a living.
SCHULTZ: I want you to listen to this spin that RNC chair, Reince
Priebus, put on the GOP defeat tonight here in Ohio. Here it is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GRETA VAN SUSTEREN, FOX NEWS: Issue to collectively bargaining shut
down. Governor Kasich, no doubt disappointed tonight.
REINCE PRIEBUS, RNC CHAIRMAN: I`m sure he`s disappointed. But, you
know what? It`s a state issue. I`m from Wisconsin. Obviously, much
different outcome.
I think the bigger issue nationally, though, out of Ohio is obviously
issue three, which really puts Obama on the ballot. His keystone peace
legislation Obamacare goes down in a major way. I think that`s what`s
personalized nationally, and what you can glean from Ohio if you want to
take anything out of that state tonight.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: Congressman Tim Ryan, your response to that. Is this just
a state issue or is there a bigger picture in play here?
REP. TIM RYAN (D), OHIO: Well, I guess that`s what I`d be saying if
I just got my rear end kicked, too.
(CHEERS)
RYAN: Fifty percent of the people voting on Issue 3 didn`t really
know what it was. This was all about Issue 2. This was all about
collective bargaining. This was all about trying to destroy the unions.
The most informed voter was voting on this issue -- and they lost.
That`s the bottom line here. So, they`re trying to spin it to win it. But
it`s not going to work.
SCHULTZ: While listening to the RNC chair there trying to make it a
parochial issue. It`s a state issue.
Is he signaling that the Republicans in Washington aren`t going to be
paying attention to this at all and it`s going to be same obstruction that
we`ve seen?
RYAN: He wants it to be -- he wants it to be a state issue but it`s
a national issue because this is happening all over the country. And we
sent a signal here.
And I think a model, as you said, for how to defeat something like
this. You get the working class people together. You get them working
together. You do the grunt work that`s necessary during the campaign --the
knocking on the doors, grassroots effort. It works every time.
So they got the money. We got the votes.
SCHULTZ: You know, interesting statistic put together by our team
tonight. They caught this. More people voted no on Issue 2 tonight than
voted for John Kasich in 2010.
(CHEERS)
SCHULTZ: Jim Dean, what`s the template now? What`s different about
Ohio than maybe some other elections?
DEAN: Well, I think it`s - the biggest thing here is we`ve got to
keep talking to our family, friends and neighbors about issues like this
and especially I want to really thank the folks who worked tirelessly on
these phone banks. As you know, there was a big disinformation campaign
out there to confuse voters about whether to vote yes or vote no. It was
these folks here that did the door knocking and canvassing to make sure
they got that vote right.
And that`s what we got to keep doing in other states. There`s going
to be lots of opportunities to do this. We got two recall elections coming
up. We got a lot of forward thinking legislation in states.
SCHULTZ: Betty Sutton, I want to know, Congresswoman, what`s your
next conversation with John Boehner going to be like?
SUTTON: I hope that he watched the results tonight. We`re going to
ask him and we`re going to ask him is he finally going to hear the voice of
the people and get focused on putting people back to work.
(CHEERS)
SCHULTZ: Great to have you with us. Congresswoman Betty Sutton,
Congressman Tim Ryan of Ohio, and Jim Dean, Democracy for America -- great
to have all of you with us tonight. Thanks so much.
Coming up, Jack Reall is back with perspective from the firefighters
here in Ohio.
Stay tuned. We`re right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SCHULTZ: You`re watching a special live edition of THE ED SHOW here
in Columbus, Ohio, where folks are celebrating a victory. The voters of
Ohio have spoken and have rejected Governor John Kasich`s union-busting
law.
Hannity, where are you tonight? This is where it`s happening. Oh,
wrong party.
Big political blow for the Republicans.
We`ll have more from our crowd when we come back in Ohio.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SCHULTZ: Welcome back to THE ED SHOW. Columbus, Ohio, is where we
come to you from tonight. You can count on the crowd. They`re pretty
jazzed up.
I`m joined by Jack Reall, president of the Columbus Firefighters
Union local 67 and, Jon Bauman, the otherwise known as Bowzer from Sha Na
Na.
Gentlemen, welcome.
REALL: Thank you.
SCHULTZ: All right. We`re just going to get this out of the way
right away.
Bowzer, give us the song on a no vote on Issue 2.
JON "BOWZER" BAUMAN, SHA NA NA: The song I`ve been singing all week.
Here it is. Ba bamba bamba bam ding ga dang dang ding ga dong ding no on
Issue 2.
(CHEERS)
SCHULTZ: I mean, if you`re going to be in the winner`s circle, you
might as well have fun while you`re there.
BAUMAN: What I didn`t do, the thing that I had until tonight was I
said that tonight, at the end of tonight when this was announced, I wanted
to be doing this.
(CHEERS)
BAUMAN: And we did it!
SCHULTZ: How do you feel? Tell us how you really feel about this?
BAUMAN: I feel that I`m so happy to have come here in support of the
great people of Ohio. These extraordinary people, these really wonderful
people, the firefighters, the nurses, the teachers, the policemen, the snow
plow drivers, everyone -- I am so happy to have come here to be part of
this.
SCHULTZ: Well, I tell you what, the firefighters did one heck of a
job.
Jack Reall, you had a lot of guys who sacrificed and awful lot to
make this happen. Tell us about it.
REALL: Absolutely. I mean, we went from basically political
passivists to political activists. I got -- I got over 30 percent of my
membership participated four or more times during the last two months of
this campaign.
(CHEERS)
REALL: I got guys who took vacation to go out and canvas. I got
guys who spent every single non-working day doing something, phone banking
or canvassing. That`s what made this a reality.
SCHULTZ: So, they just saw -- they recognized the moment and went
out and got it done. That`s what firefighters do.
REALL: Absolutely. Now, our guys -- it doesn`t take much. They`re
not stupid people. They`re smart guys, smart guys and gals. What they did
is they understood the implications of this bill.
SCHULTZ: Jack, great to have you with us. John, thanks so much.
Appreciate your time tonight.
Coming up, tonight`s vote is a real victory for the middle class.
I`ll talk to some folks in the crowd tonight. Stay tuned. We`ll be right
back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SCHULTZ: Welcome back to THE ED SHOW.
The people of Ohio have been the heart and soul of this movement.
This has been ground zero for collective bargaining in America. Tonight,
the people have spoken.
You are a 99 percenter, correct?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, sir.
SCHULTZ: Well, I thought the 99 percenters were non-political. But
you`re here tonight, which I`m encouraged about.
What`s happening?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Because the 99 percent are firefighters, they`re
police officers, teachers and nurses. And the fight of unions are the same
fight of the occupiers. We all have the right to collectively come
together and organize and to say things under one unanimous voice together.
That`s why we are proud to stand with the unions here today.
SCHULTZ: So, this is a victory for the 99 percent movement?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Absolutely. See? The issue of the 99 percent
movement or the occupy movement and issues with the unions are the same.
It`s people putting down and stifling people`s voices and we`re not going
to have it anymore.
SCHULTZ: Would you agree?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Absolutely, 100 percent.
SCHULTZ: What do you make of this 99 percent movement and
connection? Had the 99 percent movement not been out there, would we have
had the same outcome tonight in Ohio?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I`m sure it will be. For people like me, I am a
state employee and right now, we have a contract that expires in February.
We were asked in the last three-year contract to take three unpaid leave
days. And Ted Strickland was willing to do the same thing.
SCHULTZ: You`ve already had the haircut.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Exactly. Now, the question is, if John Kasich
asks us to do that again, is he going to do the same thing for us?
SCHULTZ: Well, he`s making $10,000 more than the last guy, isn`t he?
He`s making $10,000 more than Strickland. Are you going to ask him to give
that up?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If he wants to do the same thing, he better do
that to us.
SCHULTZ: What does this mean tonight, sir?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I`m a teacher and those guys stepped in my
classroom and took my voice away from taking care of my students. And I`m
going to -- it will be the last breath I take to let them take that away
from me.
SCHULTZ: Where do you teach?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I teach technology in Beaver Creek, Ohio.
SCHULTZ: Did you know it would turn out hike this tonight?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I didn`t think it would be this big. I`m glad it
was.
SCHULTZ: It`s the teachers, firefighters, the middle classes of
America. Only time will tell if this message, this vote tonight resonates
with people all across America.
That`s THE ED SHOW. I`m Ed Schultz.
Rachel Maddow takes it from here at the midnight hour. Good evening.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY
BE UPDATED.
END
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The Ed Show for Tuesday, November 8, 2011, 11p.m. show
Read the transcript to the Tuesday 11p.m. show