Signs and omens? - Part 2

[I]n Ohio's 12th district, in which Troy Balderson edged ahead of Denny O'Connor, but not far enough that provisional ballots might not throw the whole thing into a recount and, considering that these two have to run again in November, Balderson may well end up being an actual congressman for approximately 11 minutes.

It is just as ominous a result for Republicans as people are saying it is, despite the mendacious little cock-a-doodle-doo from the president*, who is treating Balderson at the moment as though he were a valet parking attendant at the old Taj. This is a district designed by Republican state legislators to the specifications of John Boehner—who used to be someone, as you may recall. If Balderson is still sweating death by tabulation at noon on the day after the election, something truly is up.

[...]

This is not a party in turmoil or disarray. This is a party covering all the bases.

And that's where the Missouri referendum comes in.

Right to work is a fundamental Republican issue. It is a conservative article of faith. It has been a goal of the corporate conservative movement ever since that beast was revived in the 1970s. It is the emotional core at the heart of the careers of people like Scott Walker, the goggle-eyed homunculus hired by Koch Industries to manage their midwest facility formerly known as the state of Wisconsin. There is almost nobody in the party who is opposed to it in principle or in practice. It was central to the mission of all those Republican state legislatures that got elected in 2010 and 2014. The assumption was that right-to-work was unassailable.

  Charles P Pierce

...but hey, do what you want...you will anyway.

Signs and omens?

This gives me a little hope.  It looks like Missouri is still a strong union state.  The Missouri leg tried to push through something that Missourians never wanted in the first place.  The misleadingly named "right to work" law is in existence now in the Southern and most Midwestern states.  All the signs I saw in the yards in my rural (farming) part of Missouri were vote yes.  I was concerned.  Apparently, I didn't need to be.

(They probably should have switched those colors.)

From the start, pro-business groups supporting the law failed to keep pace with the millions of dollars that the unions pumped into the referendum. Yard signs, television ads and a radio ad by actor John Goodman — a Missouri native — dominated the campaign.

[...]

In 1978, the last time right to work was on a statewide ballot, 60 percent of Missouri voters turned it down.

[...]

Despite steep declines in the union workforce, Tuesday’s measure was defeated in both urban and rural areas. Unofficial returns showed just 14 of Missouri’s 114 counties supporting the law.

The proposal was closely watched across the nation after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in late June that public sector workers cannot be compelled to pay fees to unions.

The Missouri vote would have extended that to private companies that have union bargaining agreements.

[...]

From the International Brotherhood of Teamsters to the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, unions spent big on fighting what had been then-Gov. Eric Greitens’ signature achievement in his 17-month tenure.

  St. Louis Today

I thought his signature achievement was hiding the identities of his dark money donors while being forced to resign due to campaign-finance violations and sexual "misconduct".

Moving swiftly in Greitens’ fledgling administration, lawmakers approved the right-to-work law and he signed it a month into his term.

But the quick turnaround gave labor unions a window to collect more than 310,000 signatures to put the law before voters.

In the waning days of the 2018 legislative session, Republicans countered by moving the referendum from the November ballot to Tuesday’s primary. Though they said the maneuver was aimed at resolving the debate more quickly, Democrats said the GOP was trying to manipulate the outcome with a typically lower primary voter turnout.

Which is no doubt true. But it didn't work. Spectacularly.

Despite the vote, Republicans who control the House and Senate could return for their 2019 session and vote again to make Missouri right to work, potentially triggering a repeat of the referendum process.

I guess we'll have to rout them again if they do.

...but hey, do what you want...you will anyway.