Truth is an Absolute Defense

The various New York public employee unions held a rally in Albany.

[Disclosure:  I am a member of one of them.  I have the choice under Section 208(3)(a) of the New York State Civil Service Law, popularly known as the "Taylor Law," of joining the union or having an amount equal to the union dues deducted from my paycheck as an "agency shop fee."  I choose to pay the dues and be a member; as such, I have the right to attend union meetings and they cannot eject me for making comments that are at odds with the party line.  They have to let me participate in the union meeting.  Not everyone is happy about that.].

 One of the speakers was Danny Donohue, the President of the New York State Civil Service Employees Association (CSEA).  In his speech, Danny referred to Governor Andrew Cuomo as a "moron" and a "monkey."

[The video is here; if your tolerance for leftist labor union rhetoric is limited, Danny's discourse begins at 4:03, the "moron" comment starts at 5:04, and the "monkey" comment at 7:31].

I find the video very interesting because the speakers are all implicitly if not explicitly critical of Andy Cuomo's high-handed autocratic actions.  These same people, mind you, were leading their sheep in force to get out the vote for another autocrat, Barack Hussein Obama.

American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten and New York State Public Employees Federation President Susan M. Kent issued a joint statement to wash their hands of Danny's comments, calling them a "poor choice of words."

I, for one, am with Danny Donohue on this matter if not on the politics he generally espouses.  Truth, after all, is an absolute defense to defamation.