"Burdensome" costs are exaggerated by recall opponents

For the price of a take-out value meal, you get the right of a recall

Folks who are against the recall on Gov. Scott Walker based on economic grounds make a case most everyone can relate to: the estimated $9 million cost is a burden to taxpayers, a burden that, according to this line of thought, is unjustly placed on the people of Wisconsin.

$9 million is a lot of money, but it's hardly the economic crisis that these critics make it out to be. Mike Tate, the chairman of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin, puts it in perspective:

It would take more than 7 recall elections to equal the cost of Walker's tax increase on seniors and working families. It would take more than 11 recalls to equal the tuition hike Walker foisted on University of Wisconsin-System students and their families. And Walker's $2.3 billion in tax giveaways to out-of-state corporations and the super-rich would pay for more than 255 recall elections. Wisconsin simply cannot afford Scott Walker any longer.

At the end of the day, no matter how Scott Walker and his Republican Party try to spin it, the people of Wisconsin called for this election. There is no price tag on democracy.

Emphasis added.

Those are great comparisons for the people of Wisconsin to consider...as is this one:

The number of paid workers in the state during the month of November was approximately 2.74 million individuals. The costs of the recall, at $9 million total, amounts to less than $3.30 for every individual earning a paycheck.

That's less than a value meal at your favorite take-out restaurant. When you think about it, having the right to recall government leaders, to have a people-powered democratic tool, is well worth the price of a cheeseburger, fries, and a small soda.

If you oppose the recall because you support Gov. Walker, fine. That's your right to do. But exaggerating the economic costs of a recall -- a process that every citizen of this state has the right to initiate -- is uncalled for, especially since its costs, when all is said and done, are relatively low.