State Senator Shawn Mitchell is spot on in a Denver Post story yesterday making the case for a bill he will present this week that would repeal Bill Ritter's executive order unionizing state government.

Mitchell's money line about the need for unions in this modern era may well be the quote of the year.

The problem happens when we have budget dollars to fight over, when we want to reform civil service or we want to contract out more and we've created and organized, well-funded interest groups to oppose those policies. And what's the purpose of labor unions? It's not like we're talking about industrial sweat shops in state government.

It is hard to improve on that quote, Senator Mitchell. But on a factual level, it's also worth noting that, in addition to working in a business environment devoid of sweat shops or child labor, state workers also happen to enjoy a civil service system that protects them from termination, transfer, or other professional tumult.

As long as there is a civil service, there is flatly no reason for Colorado WINS. Except of course the union dues they generate.

Right. Union dues. The mother's milk of the Democrat party. The same mother's milk that gets converted to campaign contributions that in turn fills the coffers of the Democrats who will decide the fate of Mitchell's legislation.

The bill will die. But that doesn't make the Democrats right, or Colorado WINS one whit more necessary.