MADISON, Wis. — Wisconsin Democrats who fled the state nearly three weeks ago asked Monday for a meeting with Gov. Scott Walker to talk about changes to his plan to eliminate most public workers’ union rights, a request the governor dismissed as “ridiculous.”

Walker said he and his administration have been in communication with at least a couple of the AWOL Senate Democrats about a deal that could bring them back, but the lawmaker who asked for the meeting, Senate Minority Leader Mark Miller, “is firmly standing in the way.”

Additional Photos

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker discusses a letter from Sen. Mark Miller on Monday. Walker rejected a request from Democrats that he meet with them to resume negotiations. Associated Press

That accusation led to a flurry of responses from Democrats who said Walker was misrepresenting the talks. The sometimes-angry exchange suggested that any resolution to the stalemate was farther away than ever.

“Right now, I’m so damn mad at his misrepresentation of the truth and the public should be as well,” said Sen. Bob Jauch, one of two Democrats who had talked last week with the Senate Republican leader about possible compromises. “Trust is completely broken down now. I don’t believe anything he says.”

The standoff has drawn national attention and placed Wisconsin at the center of a vigorous debate over the future of union rights. Walker’s proposal to balance the state budget remains in limbo because, without the 14 Democrats, the state Senate does not have enough members present for a quorum.

The senators said pressure is mounting on Walker and the GOP to compromise after weeks of protests that have drawn tens of thousands of people to the Capitol.

In addition, polls show substantial opposition to the governor and his plan, and recall efforts have been launched against Republican senators. Recall efforts have also begun against the Democrats.

Walker tried to place blame for the stalemate on Miller, the Democratic leader in the Senate, saying he blocked progress on talks with Jauch and Sen. Tim Cullen.

“It leads you to question who’s in charge,” Walker said at a news conference also attended by the Republican leaders of the Senate and Assembly.

Miller issued a statement saying if Walker didn’t want to talk with him, the governor could meet with any of the 14 Senate Democrats. And Democratic Sen. Jon Erpenbach said it was Walker who was standing in the way.

“We continually reach out with suggestions, ideas, offers,” Erpenbach said. “We’re not the ones getting in the way.”

Before Walker refused the meeting request, Democrats were talking more openly about the need to return sooner rather than later. And even if they lose in a Senate vote, the lawmakers said, they had accomplished their broader goal of striking a nationwide political blow against the GOP’s plans to cut back union rights.

“I don’t think anyone expects us to stay here forever,” Jauch said in a telephone interview from Illinois.

Walker’s proposal would remove most collective bargaining rights for public employees, except over wage increases no greater than inflation. Police and fire departments would be the only exemptions. The legislation would also require state workers to start paying more for their pension and health care benefits starting in April, which amounts to an 8 percent pay cut on average.

The unions have agreed to the pay concessions as long as they can retain their bargaining rights. Over the past three weekends, rallies at the Capitol in opposition to the measure have grown as large as 80,000 people.

Since last week, Miller has been talking about the importance of returning to oppose Walker’s larger budget bill, which cuts about $1 billion from public schools and local governments to deal with a projected $3.6 billion shortfall.

“I don’t think a lot of us have the stomach to stay away and watch our state plummet off a cliff,” Democratic Sen. Chris Larson said.

Miller sent a letter Monday to Walker and the Republican Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald asking for an in-person meeting “as soon as possible to resume negotiations” on how to resolve the impasse over the union bill.

Fitzgerald replied to Miller’s request saying he forfeited his right to make changes to the bill when he skipped town rather than propose changes on the floor of the Senate.

“While we wait for you and your colleagues to finally show up, Senate Republicans continue to stand ready to do the job we were elected to do, here in Wisconsin,” Fitzgerald said in the letter. “I hope you are enjoying your vacation, and your vacation from reality.”

Both sides had been talking last week, but Democrats said negotiations broke down Thursday. Walker said his administration continued talks over the weekend, and he personally called a senator Monday morning.

Walker refused to describe what specifically was being negotiated, other than to say there were multiple ideas that get to the “mechanics of the process.”

He reiterated that any part of the proposal dealing with collective bargaining rights could not be altered because doing so would make it more difficult for schools and local governments to deal with $1 billion in cuts he’s proposing.

The state Democratic Party on Monday filed an ethics complaint against Walker, alleging, among other things, that he violated campaign finance laws during a recorded prank call recently posted online. The Democrats contend that Walker’s apparent request for help shoring up politically vulnerable Republican lawmakers from a caller he thought was a wealthy campaign donor constituted “illegal third-party coordination,” of campaign donations. Walker’s spokesman, Cullen Werwie, called the allegations baseless.

Among the 14 senators who fled the state are Sen. Julie Lassa, who is pregnant, and Sen. Fred Risser, who at 83 has been in the Legislature since 1956. He is the longest serving lawmaker in the country.

“There are some realities that have to be faced,” Jauch said, referring to the fact that Lassa is more than seven months’ pregnant.

If Democrats return without meaningful concessions, the protests will only intensify, Jauch said.

“It’s very difficult because I realize even though we didn’t plan it this way, people are resting their hopes on our decisions,” he said. “I know that at the point we return, some people are going to be terribly let down. We have to communicate with them that we stand together.”

Related Stories