It says the police retreated to the 3rd floor. There is no mention of the employees on the 1st or 2nd floors.

Janet, amidst the completely justified anger (which I admit is much more than before), please know that they are still the same people who had been protesting peacefully for the last three weeks -- so peacefully, in fact, that there have been ZERO arrests among hundreds of thousands of protesters, and the police have released statements to that effect every single day.

The police are on the side of the protesters but have done a fantastic job in separating their professional duties from their personal protests. I would bet that the respect and solidarity shown by both sides throughout this mess has gone a long way in building good relationships between regular citizens and members of law enforcement.

For reference: I live two blocks from the Capitol and worked there several years ago. I have many close friends who have been protesting this whole time. They are your neighbors and friends; they are angry for reasons you would be angry too. They would take care of you.

Also, I don't mean to imply anything about your own political beliefs or "side" in a situation like this, but I imagine that if you felt your rights were disappearing, it would be a pretty scary time.

I work in a similar capacity to a Capitol staffer -- just at the other end of the street in the university's main administration building. So I completely understand how vulnerable you can feel in the midst of something in which you probably had no input (but people think you did because you're the nearest scapegoat).

Here, have a hug:

*hug*

I'm boiling about this too, but I think based on past form the worst thing that is likely to happen is that a lot of Republican legislators are going to get an earful. (And I think recall lies in the future for virtually all the legislators and the governor too, but we shall see.)

This is an outrageous perversion of representative government. People can be very angry about that without threatening the safety of anyone who works in a capitol.

So here's an example: yes, the troopers are carrying protesters out, but when one kid's pants were falling down, they let him down gently so he could pull them back up, then picked him back up to get him out. Everyone laughed and cried.

There's a lot of humanity out there.

I've given up on the accuracy of the "mainstream" media during all of this (The New York Times has been sadly echoing FoxNews lies - they even did a glowing profile of one of the Koch brothers, who does own a paper company so the Times probably got a discount on newsprint). The reports of the level of "angry" are a clear misinterpretation designed to make people like you afraid of the protesters. I was around during the Sit-Ins of the '60s, and this is possibly even more non-violent than them; and also remember who the "instigators" of this protest are: schoolteachers. I don't know any class of people (except maybe librarians) more dedicated to decorum, and as one of the people I respect who is near the scene tweeted yesterday, nobody is better at outlasting a child having a tantrum (like Scott 'Kadaffi' Walker) than a good teacher.

The right has been very successful in changing the spin here, from the increasing, real, power of the oligarchy in the US, to the alleged greed of public employees.

If and when this comes to my state, and am not sure how pacifist I will be.

changing the spin here, from the increasing, real, power of the oligarchy in the US, to the alleged greed of public employees.

Yeah, that's happening in my state too.

"What more egregious, illegal, unethical step can be taken to prevent democracy in Wisconsin?" asked Rep. Donna Seidel, D-Wausau

Umm, how about fleeing the state and leaving those you are supposed to be representing without representation. Stupid moves like that leave behind mob rule with neither leadership nor direction and inevitably lead to what occurred yesterday. I love how many stones both sides can cast, each side with their own selectrive memories.

The governor of PA wants to cut education funding in half! This seems to be a co-ordinated Republican plan since all the governors are doing the same things.

So Ardiril wanted the Governor to have the voting quorum he needed to force the members of his party to give him unprecedented unchecked power (and the bill is not just about unions) with no possible legal recourse. Totally false equivalence. The Republican Party all over the U.S. has become a monolithic entity that forces its elected members into unanimous support of policies that were considered unheard-of a few years ago, and if you think the Democrats (as corrupt as that party is) is doing anything equivalent, you need to adjust your medication.

Ardiril, we could get into it all you want offline, and I don't doubt that you've seen way more than I have in your lifetime.

But please, take it from me and the many close friends and colleagues I have in and out of the Capitol (not just protesting, either; I have personal connections to Sen. Mark Miller, Rep. Kelda Roys and others): the level of crazy is such that this is the only thing they could do to essentially filibuster and give people time to see what's actually happening behind the scenes.

Note that Peter Barca (who served in Congress) didn't even know what was in the bill in front of him last night, and the Republicans wouldn't tell him.

I respect your opinion, but as someone on the ground here I'd like to say that we are perfectly well represented by those who have stayed. Moreover, the level of respect we have for the 14 Senators is sky high. If they chose to come back en masse, the motorcade would stretch from here to the Illinois border. I'm not even kidding you.

And I shouldn't blame Ardiril for his extreme misinterpretation of the situation; he's probably getting his information from the same lying sources... if, as I've noted, the New York Times has gone so anti-union as to be disseminating lies, a lot of people are going to be fooled.

Umm, how about fleeing the state and leaving those you are supposed to be representing without representation.

I think they did the right thing, and if I were a constituent, it's what I'd have wanted them to do. It forced an important moment and was a legitimate action. Also, representatives, in theory, represent ALL the people, not just those in their party, so plenty of protestors, I'm sure, still had their nominal representation - just not sympathetic representation.