Campaign 2010 is up and running, if money transfers by unions are any indication.
Enormous deposits by labor unions into campaign accounts are just now being disclosed, and the depth of their commitment is becoming evident.
Item: The California Teachers Association has staked more than $660,000 to a proposed ballot initiative to repeal several business tax incentives passed by the Legislature in 2008 and 2009.
Item: Two more government employee unions have dropped more than $1.1 million into a proposed ballot initiative to remove the ability to subject certain tax and fee increases and other state policies to a voter referendum.
Item: Several unions have been reported to be creating large independent expenditure committees to support Jerry Brown’s gubernatorial campaign, ostensibly to counter the personal wealth of either likely Republican nominee, Meg Whitman or Steve Poizner. According to these reports, labor will put $20 million into Level the Playing Field 2010, and another $20 million to $30 million into Democratic Governors Association.
Labor, and particularly government employee unions, clearly recognize their stake in who operates the levers of California government, and the unfettered flow of money into the system.