Real News:' Obama Slams Michigan 'Right to Work' Legislation

President Barack Obama spoke out against 'right to work' legislation moving through the Michigan Legislature during a speech in Detroit Monday. Michigan, a state that supported the president in two presidential elections and is thought by many to have benefited most from the White House decision to bailout the failing automobile industry in Obama's first term, is on the cusp of making law a Michigan House bill that would make the payment of union dues voluntary in the private sector; and a separate bill in the state Senate that also applies to public sector unions with the exception of police and fire unions.

Labor activists and Michigan Democrats have cried foul that the bills were moved quickly through the GOP-dominated House and Senate last week, and on Monday, the president said this is an issue of Republicans wanting to take away workers' rights to bargain.

"We should do everything we can to keep creating good middle-class jobs that help folks rebuild security for their families. What we shouldn't be doing is trying to take away your rights to bargain for better wages and working conditions," President Obama said Monday in Detroit.

"What they're really talking about is giving you the right to work for less money."

On 'Real News' Monday the panel discussed the realities behind Michigan's "right to work" laws and what has instigated them in the first place: