6/10/11 – The Walker administration says it’s getting ready for large crowds of protestors next week, when the full Legislature takes up the proposed new state budget. Administration Secretary Mike Huebsch told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s Editorial Board he’ll have officers from numerous state agencies on hand. But for now at least, the administration won’t bring in local police like it did during the massive Capitol demonstrations in February and March over the limits on public union bargaining. Huebsch said his people learned lessons from those protests, when crowds were incited because they couldn’t enter the Capitol quickly enough. He said the current access limits seek to balance the need for security with the rights of protestors. Six of the Capitol’s eight entrances remain locked, and folks need to go through metal detectors and police screenings at the other doors. Huebsch says that policy will continue at least through the end of the budget process. Republicans have talked about putting the union restrictions into the budget, as they continue to be blocked by the courts. But even if they don’t, the budget has triggered lots of opposition due to its massive cuts in state aid and social programs, which are aimed at ending the state’s deficits for good.
