Wisconsin Republicans win test vote on union plan

The Wisconsin state Assembly late on Tuesday rejected an attempt to send back to the drawing board a Republican proposal to curb public sector union rights that has sparked large protests and a tense stand-off with Democrats.

Republican Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker warned that thousands of state and local government workers would be laid off if lawmakers do not approve his party's plan to reduce budget deficits.

"We are broke in this state because time and time again politicians of both political parties ran from the tough decisions and punted them down the road for another day," Walker said in an address to state residents.

In a first test vote, the Republican-controlled state Assembly voted against sending the proposal back to a committee for more work. The vote was 56 to 39, with only one Republican joining minority Democrats, according to website WisPolitics.