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Practically Speaking
Kyle and her husband moved to Brookfield in 1986. She became active in local politics and started blogging in 2004. Her focus is primarily on local issues but often includes state and national topics, too. Kyle looks at things from the taxpayers' perspective in a creative, yet down to earth way, addressing them from a practical point of view.
Wisconsin April 7, 2015 Election Conservative Picks: Yes, Daley, Farrow, Maxwell, Bugenhagen & more
UPDATE: Asterisk notes winner.
Elmbrook School Board election 2014: Liotta, Kratoska, and both Area 1 candidates--all against Common Core
When you vote on April 1 this election cycle, you have a choice in each of the Elmbrook School Board races. For the Area III and the At-Large race, whether you support Federal Common Core curriculum standards or not might be your deciding factor.
Common Core has been increasingly in the news. I believe it is not just the latest flavor of education reform but a new form of Federal government overreach. Last month, the Germantown School District opposed adopting Common Core standards and instead, will set their own, higher ones.
Here in the Elmbrook School District, in the Area III race, Jeff Liotta is challenging incumbent Tom Gehl. This is what each stated at the Candidate Forum: (Emphasis mine)
Liotta: "Quite frankly, I look at the big picture. I reject the philosophy that is behind the Common Core. I think local boards of education are better suited to determine the standard for their individual communities, and I disagree with the concept that curriculum is separate from standards. I guarantee you that if testing is involved (with Common Core standards), it's going to drive the curriculum and staff, despite what we say, will teach to the test. Elmbrook has a 50-year history of excellence in education. We've done it right. Why would we abdicate our right and authority to determine our destiny and to determine the standards that we want our students to achieve?"
Gehl: " In Elmbrook, this community and this board has demonstrated our commitment to local control and will maintain that commitment. I believe there have been many good things happening the last two years with our curriculum and content than ever before in our district. The Common Core standards focus on skills...and can be used as a reference. They do not prescribe or demand particular content — that will be determined by the local board and administration — but in many areas, they represent a higher bar than what was in place before."
Area III seat: I am voting for Jeff Liotta. I really appreciate Liotta's strong opposition to Common Core, and I agree completely that teaching to the test is one outcome of adopting the standard. Standards do drive curriculum! Jeff Liotta is a former Elmbrook graduate and School Board member, who served in the 1980s. For more information, contact Jeff at firstname.lastname@example.com View Flyer
In the At-Large race, Write-in Jim Kratoska will challenge incumbent Kathryn Wilson, who is unopposed on the ballot. Read through his webpage on Current Issues:
Kratoska: "My principle objection is with the 'common' part of the core. Synonyms for common include ordinary, commonplace, and regular. Elmbrook district residents expect a much higher level of education.
"CC is as much about ideology as it is about education. Many of us have suffered through a variety of educational fads. My first was 'new math', which like CC, taught an ambiguous, convoluted approach that could never be used on a tax form or purchase order; just like the cubes, squares, lines and dots of CC Math...
"...Two members of the original CC standards review board, stated before the Wisconsin legislature, that the CC standards would set the average student back 2 years by the time they finished high school."
Wilson: "I do support Common Core implementation. There's a lot of misinformation out there about the Common Core standards. The standards are very simple, high-level aspirations. They are plain, college preparatory, liberal arts, achievement-oriented goals. I really don't see how anyone could argue with these standards as they are. That said, school boards get to decide what is taught, how it is taught and what curriculum is used as part of that teaching. We're certainly not limited in anyway by the Common Core standards of what we do with those standards." (Quote from Forum)
While I realize Common Core is the standard, and it is the curriculum that is the bigger problem (often written with a humanist, liberal slant), I still do not believe any Federal program is benign.
Ask yourself, what Federal program has not grown in size and scope to exceed its original grasp? (As I am still working on my income taxes, I can't help but think how that has ballooned into something completely unmanageable! Social Security is another Federal program that initially had a more limited scope. Today, it has expanded to cover far more recipients than just retirees.) I want less Federal intrusion into my life, not more.
At-Large choice: I will be writing in Jim Kratoska (Write his name down and take it to the polls.) He has an BS in Applied Mathematics and Physics, MS in Business Administration, MA in Philosophy, and has taught graduate and undergraduate courses in the Electrical Engineering and Business Schools at UW-M. Visit his website
The Area I seat is a difficult choice for me. Young Zackary Vrana is running against incumbent Richard Brunner (senior citizen). Both are opposed to Common Core--Vrana adamantly so, Brunner it seems in general principle. Again, look at the Forum answers:
Vrana: "I don't believe the Common Core was written for Elmbrook. We are not a district that strives to meet minimum standards. We should be leading and setting the bar for excellence in the state. My issues with the way we've implemented Common Core are the choices we made with the curriculum, such as taking Speech out of the required English curriculum. I think that's a great disservice to our students. Common Core is great to ensure districts meet the minimums, but we should be providing the best education for our students."
Brunner: "I've read a number of Common Core analyses in the last several weeks...and every time I read one, I think I change my mind. As far as Elmbrook is concerned, I do not believe we need to implement this program. I understand we do already have it, but I don't think it's necessary for the school district. I think we can (set standards) very well on our own."
I believe Vrana is spot-on here with Common Core; Brunner is less emphatic.
But their stance on 4K makes me lean to Brunner over Vrana, Vrana cheer-leading for 4K--even calling it day care, which it is; Brunner is just supportive.
Vrana: "I absolutely support a 4K program. I believe district parents need day care for their 4-year-old children, and it is time for us to provide for that...."
Brunner: "I think the district could benefit from a 4K program. We would, in effect, have a complete school system where the kids could start at four years old and go on through to high school. It's an incentive for people to move into the city ..."
So, Area I is a tossup for me... at least for now.
Brookfield and Elm Grove go to the polls on Tuesday, April 1, 2014. You can find your ward and preview a sample ballot at myvote.wi.gov All Elmbrook School District voters vote for all of the School Board candidates, regardless of what area of the district you live in.
I will be posting a final election pick post on Sunday or Monday.
In the news: Elmbrook candidates weigh 4K, Common Core programs
Elmbrook candidates discuss board member roles, block scheduling at forum
Germantown School Board opposes adoption of Common Core standards
Germantown sets higher standards than Common Core
Flyers, Websites, and Letters of Endorsement:
Jim Kratoska Endorsement Letter
Jim Kratoska Website
Jeff Liotta Flyer
Dr. Ben Carson: 'Gifted Hands' and a gifted mind
Dr. Benjamin Carson was the featured speaker at the Americans for Prosperity rally last Thursday night at the Waukesha Expo. Though Dr. Carson made quite the media splash at the National Prayer Breakfast in February 2013, his visit to Waukesha went largely unnoticed by local mainstream media.
Senator Ron Johnson was also invited by AFP, and he spoke prior to Dr. Carson about the dysfunction of Washington D.C. Then he gave an interesting intro about his first impressions of Dr. Carson at the prayer breakfast, which is included in the video clip below. (Sometimes being wrong is good!)
April 2, 2013 Election: Roggensack, Pridemore and other Conservative picks
Everyone in Wisconsin votes for Supreme Court and DPI Superintendent in the Tuesday, April 2, 2013 General Election. This election is of utmost importance, so don't sit this one out!
April 2, 2013 Election: Wisconsin needs Don Pridemore, a fresh, independent leader, for State Superintendent of Schools
Want more local control over schools? What about increasing a parent's right to choose which school they send their children to? How about an independent leader for State Superintendent of Public Instruction instead of one tied to the teachers union?
If you answered yes to any of those questions, I urge you to vote for Don Pridemore on Tuesday, April 2, 2013.
Add to these concerns the very disturbing news of the Wisconsin Department of Instruction "White Privilege" sensitivity courses that are being taught to our teachers, as part of a training program called CREATE Wisconsin for public school teachers. I watched the following video, compiled by the Education Action Group, and was sickened by some of the ideas being promoted by our DPI and courtesy of our tax dollars!
At the 38 second mark, this quote caught my attention: "We must be aware of how power holders oppressed all people of color to shape the country as they wanted it. Racism is one of several systems of oppression. Others are class, sexism, hetero-sexism, the institutionalized primacy of Christianity, and able-bodiedism. These systems work toward a common goal: to maintain power and control in the hands of wealthy, white, heterosexual, Christian, able-bodied men." The quote came from Dr. Francis Kendall.
And Wisconsin teachers aren't the only ones subject to this type of indoctrination. "White Privilege" is creeping into some Wisconsin public schools as well. In January, the Delavan-Darien District made national news when it was learned students there were being taught similar white privilege ideas.
Interestingly, the DPI website used to include information on White Privilege on their public webpages. It has since been removed from public view!
Another area of curriculum concern is "Common Core." Wisconsin agreed to use that Federally mandated curriculum when Gov. Doyle signed us on to the the U.S. Department of Education's Race to the Top program. (In order to compete for Federal dollars, we had to agree to use their national "Common Core" curriculum.) The math program in Common Core is called "Just Math."
We all know a firm foundation in math is necessary for so many career choices, but unfortunately, the Federally mandated "Just Math" curriculum transforms mathematics into a vehicle for pushing social and ecological justice subject matter onto our students.
'VIP' Primary Election for Justice Roggensack on February 19, 2013
UPDATE: Voters chose Pat Roggensack and Ed Fallone to advance to the April 2, 2013 spring election.
Yes, YES, Marco Rubio, Bravo!
Senator Marco Rubio delivered one of the most inspiring State of the Union Responses I can ever recall. In his 14 minute address, he clearly pointed out the differences between Liberals and Conservatives: more taxes and more government vs.protecting liberty and the American Dream
Can we please talk 'Debt Control'? It's For the Kids
Congress is poised to kick our debt ceiling crisis down the road to May, but instead of using this breathing room as an opportunity for getting our message out, we are still distracted by the topic of the day--gun control and now amnesty.
Debt Limit USA crafted this easy to understand 3 minute piece that explains what our government is doing--borrowing more money than it takes in. They call it Debt Limit - A Guide to American Federal Debt Made Easy, or as I call it, The Debt Crisis in Terms Even a Low Information Voter Can Understand!
It doesn't get much easier than this; watch the whole thing. The ending is applicable to our unsustainable debt problem.
In case you didn't catch the last slides from the clip, the dad's annual household budget had $140,000 household debt, income of $21,700, $38,200 in spending, $16,500 in new bank to loan (debt), budget cuts $385--about 1% of their total household budget. Sound familiar?
Our Federal Budget Deal to Raise Debt Limit was: $14 Trillion total debt (obliviously, this was from the last 2011 debt crisis because we are well over $16T now!), $2.17 T federal income, $3.82 T in Fed. spending, $1.65 T in new debt, and the amount "cut" (from future spending)? A measly $38.5 Billion, about 1% of the total budget.
No matter, our children, grand children and great, great grandchildren will be picking up this tab.
Unlike other It's for the kids pleas, this one IS for the kids! Us too.
More reading:
House Votes to Temporarily Suspend U.S. Debt Ceiling
Obama's Now Borrowed More Than All Presidents from Washington to W
US Debt Headed Toward 200% of GDP Even After 'Fiscal Cliff' Deal
Speaker: Fitch: Cut Spending or Risk Credit Rating Downgrade
Morning Bell: Don't Raise Debt Ceiling Without Balancing the Budget
I urge you to contact your legislators and tell them to talk about our spending crisis and then stand firm on more debt. We don't have much time.
Contact your Representatives and Senators
Find your U.S. Senators by last name
Wisconsin's U.S. Senator Ron Johnson (202) 224-5323
Wisconsin's U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin (202) 224-5653
Bald Eagle swims to capture prize; Conservatives must not give up either
I watched the following video clip with amazement. Since the American Bald Eagle is our national bird, I couldn't help but think of the symbolism of it all. Watch.
Republicans stuck between 'a Barack and hard place' must unite, stand firm, and go on offense
We averted the so-called fiscal cliff this week with mixed results: some say Republicans caved on raising taxes, some say Republicans protected most taxpayers, some Democrats thought Obama lost. I was surprised that Conservative Senator Ron Johnson voted for it and pleased that Senator Marco Rubio and our Congressman Jim Sensenbrenner didn't. But honestly, with our poor GOP leadership and under the no floor debate, lame duck, back room negotiating circumstances, I don't know how this could have been resolved in a positive way. If Republicans had voted it down, Obama would just have come back later to play the role of hero by enacting a middle tax cut, knowing he had already turned up the tax heat on all those evil rich. We would have needed more proactive leadership in Congress and have been discussing this all year long, not just in the eleventh hour.
The only positive thing to come out of the deal was that the Bush tax rates were made permanent for 98% of American earners. (Permanent as long as Republicans hold the majority in the House, that is.) But even this is Kabuki theater because our tax burden is still going up with other tax increases already in place as of Jan. 1st and new revenue increases via eliminating some deductions that were part of the fiscal cliff deal as well.
With the Bush tax rates now at least set for the 113th Congress, Republicans could for once in their lives go on the offense and get the message out that our out of control spending cannot, cannot continue. Republicans could redeem themselves by presenting a united front in the House and Senate and standing firm against increasing the debt ceiling by another 3 trillion dollars as the president wants.
But this will only work if they start talking about it now and are willing to draw the line in the debt ceiling sand and say, no further.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and Sen. Pat Toomey talked about this on Jan. 2nd. McConnell said, "'We have an immediate opportunity to act: the debt ceiling,' McConnell said. 'Washington's credit card has reached its limit again, and the Senate majority must act on legislation early in February—rather than waiting until the last minute, abdicating responsibility and hoping someone else will step in once again to craft a last-minute solution for them.'"
Toomey was more emphatic, "'[Obama] got a $2 trillion debt limit increase just 17 months ago — blew through all that,'Toomey said on Morning Joe.'We will only solve this problem when we finally get the spending under control. And the debt ceiling, and after that, the continuing resolution expiration — those are the vehicles that give us the opportunity to insist on making progress on the real problem.'" He "suggested" a "partial government shutdown" may be necessary to make the point. That's where truly necessary spending is continued and funded via tax revenue income; non-essential spending is stopped.
Getting the Republican message out is a problem with the pro Obama Praetorian press ruling the media markets. Maybe Republicans could hire the same people who created Senator Ron Johnson's ads for his senate campaign. Johnson's ads were short, concise, and explained just what was at stake with our out of control spending. We really need messaging like that in the GOP. RNC, are you listening?
I urge you to contact your legislators and tell them to stand firm on the debt ceiling. We have less than a month to do this.
Contact your Representatives and Senators
Find your U.S. Senators by last name
Wisconsin's U.S. Senator Ron Johnson (202) 224-5323
Wisconsin's U.S. Senator Herb Kohl (202) 224-5653
Find your U.S. House of Representatives member by state
House Representative James Sensenbrenner Washington D.C. (202) 225-5101, Brookfield (262) 784-1111
Tell Republicans to stand firm: No New Taxes
They call it the Fiscal Cliff. Falling off it is seen as disastrous to the U.S. economy and will cause us to fall back into recession. (Did we ever leave it?) If we do nothing to avert the cliff, we fall off on New Year's Eve.
But what is the Fiscal Cliff? Primarily, it is the end to the Bush Tax Cuts they band-aided back into law in December of 2010. It also includes expiration of the Payroll Tax Cut, which has little support from either side of the aisle. If you remember, it reduced the Social Security payroll deduction from 6.2% to 4.2% so workers would have a bit more take home pay. (Did you even notice?) However, it also reduced the amount of money flowing into the Social Security coffers--a bad idea for an entitlement already facing solvency issues. The $700 billion or so Doc Fix, military reductions, and some token spending cuts also part of the mix.
Our Congressman Jim Sensenbrenner wrote, Don't trade a cliff for an iceberg. In it he points out,
Currently, the US debt is on track to reach 187 percent of GDP by 2035. But unlike Greece, there is no "Germany" to bail us out. If our debt reaches this level, an international economic crisis would ensue.
The President and Congressional Democrats have called for a "balanced" approach to reducing the deficit.
But their approach has been anything but balanced. The President's "offer" included $1.6 trillion dollars in taxes and $400 billion in spending cuts. That's neither balanced nor helpful for our economy. When spending on entitlements is 62 percent of our budget, the President's focus on tax increases is not going to cut it.
We can't solve our debt problem without economic growth, and tax hikes could cost 710,000 jobs according to an independent Ernst &Young study.
Wisconsin gets another chance for Gogebic Taconite iron mine
It is not often a state gets a do-over, but it looks like Wisconsin will have another opportunity to woo Gogebic Taconite to open an iron mine--with its 700 good paying jobs--in Ashland County.
With Republicans gaining a healthier majority in the State Senate, passage of the Assembly's mining bill for streamlining of the mining approval process is likely. And with a passed mining bill, Gogebic Taconite says they are still interested in Wisconsin.
Because State Senate Republicans are no longer dependent on their weakest link, Sen. Dale Schultz, they should be able to pass the streamlined mining approval bill. Ironically, now that passage seems inevitable, Democrat Senator Tim Cullen now invokes Thomas Jefferson's appeal for "broad support for sweeping change"! In Sunday's paper, Cullen made his plea for not ramming through legislation with a slim majority.
Cullen's plea, however, seems very out of character with Democrats' actions, both in state and in Washington. After all, didn't Cullen join with the other Democrat State Senators when the 14 fled the state to deny the Senate Republicans from having a quorum during the Act 10 battle? And though he flirted with leaving the Democrat caucus in July, 3 days later he rejoined them with a promise of chairing 2 newly created committees--one being Mining.
As for Democrats in the U.S. Senate, didn't Harry Reid tweak and torture Senate rules to pass Obamacare on the slimmest of majorities? Hardly following Thomas Jefferson's appeal for broad support for sweeping change! Cullen stood with both Obama and Tammy Baldwin in the last election, so I guess that shows how much Cullen really values Thomas Jefferson's words of wisdom.
Since the introduction of iron mining would be a great boon for all of Wisconsin, I would like to think Democrats could put partisanship aside and do what is best for the state. Keep in mind the mining bill includes environmental protections, and iron mining is akin to quarrying, which goes on all over our state, it is not toxic strip mining. And the 700 jobs? Those are promised to be 95% union jobs, certainly a boon to economically challenged northern Wisconsin.
However, putting partisanship aside doesn't seem to be the direction state Democrats wish to move in: they just named Democrat Chris Larson as their Minority Leader. (Larson is a true liberal, believing that reducing government is reducing democracy!)
No doubt a passed mining bill will end up tangled in the Madison courts, just as our passed Voter ID and Act 10 have. But at least we should be able to jump the first hurdle of passing the mining legislation. The court battle will have to be overcome another day*.
*Note: Wisconsin has an extremely important State Supreme Court race coming up in April 2013, where we must reelect Justice Pat Roggensack.
Walker: With new bill, mining company will return
Best mining bill would have wide support
UPDATE: Sen. Tim Cullen rejoins Democratic Caucus
Democrats elected Chris Larson as state Senate leader
Sen Chris Larson Says, "Reducing Government" is Reducing Democracy"
Hurley residents decry 'devastating' collapse of Wisconsin mining bill
The importance of the upcoming WI Supreme Court race to Republicans
Wisconsin Justice Pat Roggensack
Gov. Walker says he will NOT set up exchanges
This just in, Gov. Scott Walker officially notified the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services "that Wisconsin will not build a state-based health insurance exchange and will defer to the federal Government's insurance exchange."
Yesterday afternoon, talk show host Mark Belling talked about this, that the word was, Wisconsin would be joining with 19 other states opting out of creating their own exchanges.
The Governor's letter restates the dilemma: "No matter which option is chosen, Wisconsin taxpayers will not have meaningful control over the health care policies and services sold to Wisconsin residents. If the state option is chosen; however, Wisconsinites face risk from a federal mandate lacking long-term guaranteed funding."
And if you called the Governor, you are mentioned in the letter: "...after much consideration and outreach with citizens across the state [that's you!], and in the best interest of the taxpayers of Wisconsin, we have determined Wisconsin will not develop a partnership or state-based exchange."
State Senator Leah Vukmir is on Vicki McKenna right now talking about this. I urge you to listen to the podcast when it becomes available: Hour 1, Part 1 11-16-12. Vukmir says there could be more states doing the same, and some Democrat governors have joined in the opt-out. She also mentioned a few mandates we would be spared from.
Illinois, Minnesota, and Michigan are said to be setting up the exchanges, so if you are a mid-west business, where would you rather locate?
In a related issue, HHS Secretary Kathleen Sibelius just announced she is "granting them [governors] an extension to Dec. 14 on the decision." Hmm, I wonder why she is doing that? I am sure they are hoping to peel off a few of those 20 resistant governors.
The 10th Amendment might be finally getting its day in the sun: "The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States, respectively, or to the people."
Here is another thought: If a state spends its own taxpayer money to fund their own exchange, aren't we still required to pay our federal taxes, a portion of which go to funding the federal health care exchanges? It's a variation of spreading the wealth around in my opinion. In effect, it would mean states with exchanges are paying twice.
If the 20 states stay united, thus not funding the government mandate, where is the federal government going to get the money to fund their mandate? (Republicans hold the majority in the House, where all funding bills originate.)
I am sure we will know more as time goes on, but at least we have dodged this first bullet. And taking a page from the Democrats, any measure to slow down the process is progress. This push-back could lead to more.
Gov. Scott Walker's letter to Secretary Sebelius
HHS Extends Exchange Deadline a Month
Analysis: 20 states will run their health-law exchanges .
Gov. Walker, please, no exchange, take backdoor to escape ObamaCare
In the wake of Tuesday's election results, the grim realization that we are not going to be able to escape ObamaCare started to sink in. But Vicki McKenna floated the idea last week that there was a backdoor way to prevent ObamaCare from taking root in Wisconsin--don't set up the state-run exchange.
Also last week, National Review posted an article by the CATO Institute informing us that Obamacare Is Still Vulnerable. The Obama "administration has asked state officials to decide by Friday, November 16, whether their state will create one of Obamacare's health-insurance 'exchanges.' States also have to decide whether to implement the law's massive expansion of Medicaid. The correct answer to both questions remains a resounding no." (My emphasis)
Hoping, praying for a Chick-fil-A kind of election day
In 2010, JT Harris asked the crowd of about 150 people waiting to see US Senate candidate Ron Johnson at the Waukesha County Republican Headquarters, How many of you are asking God for one more chance to turn this around? My hand shot up as did most in the room.
At the time, we had no idea how that 2010 midterm election would change the course of our state and nation. Nor did we have any idea how much worse things would get in the 2 years that followed.
Who could have envisioned our national debt hitting $16 trillion? Or unemployment never falling below where we started in 2009? Who could have predicted President Obama disregarding the 1st Amendment with his attack on Catholic hospitals? Or the Dream Act immigration reform by fiat? And the list goes on and on. The election hasn't even concluded and the President is killing off the coal industry through the EPA. A ban on fracking for oil won't be far behind. No legislation, just regulation.
So as the polls report Romney is ahead--no, it's Obama, I'm praying it will be a Chick-fil-A kind of election day.
Remember back in August, how people stood in lines that wrapped around the block, just to buy a sandwich to show support for Chick-fil-A? The fast food company's CEO had made a statement against gay marriage and was suffering some backlash for it. So Mike Huckabee cooked up a "Chick-fil-A Appreciation Day" to affirm a business that operates on Christian principles, by eating at the restaurant. And appreciate they did! Some customers that day were gay but joined in because they believed in free speech. The public had finally had enough, and they voted with their pocketbook to show support, with record breaking sales and crowds.
Well, I'm hoping for much the same in voter turnout for Romney and other conservative candidates today. I'm praying for an election day where voters, in record numbers, go to the polls and vote for the founding values our country was built upon.
People are praying about this election, and its not just superficial. There is a sense of urgency here. Two friends of mine each emailed me how they were praying about the election. (Neither know each other and we are of different faiths.) One wrote, "I'm praying a couple of times a day (yes, me!) that America find a clear path to Her future Tuesday." Another emailed, "I voted early for him - now I've got everything crossed & praying daily (hourly!). Here's hoping!"
By 10 PM Tuesday, we should have some idea which way the election will go. It has been a long 4 years. .
Nov. 6, 2012 Wisconsin ballot picks: Romney, Thompson, Ryan, Hutton, Kooyenga, Gudex ...
In person absentee voting is over in Wisconsin, so this Tuesday, the big "E" day* is it! It's the day we can return the United States to its Constitutional roots. Voter turnout is key, so disregard the latest polling data, which is often very skewed (CNN called it a tie but used D+11 to get there. In 2008 it was D+7 !) Just go vote Republican to preserve liberty.
If you still need some inspiration, watch these young teens' plea in Voices Without a Vote.
Voting and Poll Information: If you don't know what districts you live in, specific directions for finding your specific ballot here.
This year, depending on where you live, you may need to vote for the same person in 2 different races on the ballot: Residents in Congressman Paul Ryan's Congressional District 1, MUST remember to vote Ryan for Congress IN ADDITION to voting for the Romney/Ryan Presidential ticket. If you fail to remember, the Democrat Congressman could win and Republicans will lose the seat.
Same situation for Wisconsin State Assembly District residents in Paul Farrow's District 98 and Chris Kapenga's District 99. Constituents must vote for them in TWO places on their ballots:Once in the Assembly race and again in the 33rd Wisconsin State Senate District Primary. If you forget to vote for Farrow or Kapenga in their Assembly races, the opposing Democrat candidates could prevail.
Polls open at 7am and close at 8pm. If you aren't in line at 8pm, you will not be allowed to vote. Listed below are my picks for the major races on Brookfield's and neighboring areas Nov. 6, 2012 Presidential & General Election ballot. Being the conservative I am, I am voting for the Republican in all races, because we don't belong to the government as Democrats declared at their convention, the government belongs to us! However, you must vote for each individual candidate, because Wisconsin no longer offers a straight party ticket choice.
So here it goes, from the major races to the more specific in our area of the state, in the same order they appear on your ballot. Each race and candidate name will be in bold, so you can easily scroll down and find them, with candidate websites and pertinent links below.
However, before you scroll down the page to find your specific district races, Waukesha County voters should know the only contested county government race on their ballot is WAUKESHA COUNTY CLERK. Kathleen Novack the Republican is running against a Democrat. This might seem like an unimportant race, but as anyone involved with election observing, poll watching, or observing recounts knows, we need a Republican in this position! Vote Novack.
PRESIDENT of the UNITED STATES: Mitt Romney / Paul Ryan (Republican)
This is the most important election of my lifetime. Like Ronald Reagan after Jimmy Carter, I believe Mitt Romney is the right man for such a time such this. Romney supports biblical values, repealing ObamaCare, lower taxes, energy independence, job creation, etc. He offers Real Change From Day One. In fact, Madison's liberal Wisconsin State Journal endorsed Mitt Romney: "Not enough hope and too little change. ...This is not an easy endorsement to make. ...We endorsed Obama for change last time around. Now we're endorsing change again: Mitt Romney."
Romney for President
21 Newspapers Switch to Romney
Ann Coulter: Romney is what the country needs now
CNN's Erin Burnett fact-checked Obama's second term plan, it's old and doesn't add up.
US SENATOR: Tommy G. Thompson (Republican)
All of Wisconsin votes for US Senator. My vote goes to Tommy Thompson for a whole host of reasons but mainly to be the 51st vote to repeal ObamaCare and help Republicans gain the majority in the Senate. If they don't, the gridlock continues: Democrat Senate Majority Leader already said he won't work with Romney (or the Republican House). Tommy would also be another vote against Supreme Court activist justices (think Kagan and Sotamayor) and a vote for Supreme Court Originalist Justices, who would follow the Constitution.
Madison's Wisconsin State Journal: Tommy best to tackle Washington gridlock
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Baldwin's voting record places her among top liberals
Tommy Thompson, Wisconsin & all of U.S need you to stop ObamaCare
CONGRESSIONAL - DISTRICT 1: Paul Ryan (Republican)
In addition to voting for the Mitt Romney / Paul Ryan ticket for President, residents in District 1 will vote for Ryan in the Congressional race. This is because Paul Ryan was picked by Mitt Romney for Vice President, and Wisconsin's Favorite Son Rule allows him to be on the ballot twice. If the Romney/Ryan ticket prevails, there will be a special election next year to fill his seat. District 1 includes parts of New Berlin, and fans out from there to cover the southeastern corner of the state.
Paul Ryan House Website
Paul Ryan for U.S. Congress
CONGRESSIONAL - DISTRICT 4: Dan Sebring (Republican)
Vote Dan Sebring so"In November we can say, 'No Moore'!" District 4 has been redistricted to now include Bayside, Fox Point, Whitefish Bay, Shorewood, Glendale, Brown Deer, most of Milwaukee, and south along the shoreline to South Milwaukee. People I know in these areas are livid that they lost Jim Sensenbrenner and now have Gwen Moore as their representative.
Republican Dan Sebring hopes to change that with his candidacy. He says, "You have a choice of whether you would like to embrace my opponent's collectivist vision that "it takes a village" and you need government assistance in order to succeed, or my vision that you, the individual should be making decisions that determine your own destiny, without government interference." Sebring is endorsed by 4 Pro-life groups, Senators Alberta Darling and Leah Vukmir, among many others. Check out his issues page. He has pledged to oppose any debt limit increases unless Congress adopts Cut, Cap, and Balance.
Even though we are bombarded with non-stop political ads, I never tire of hearing his 'No Moore' ad featuring Gwen herself screeching, "Scott Walker, you gotta go baby, cuz we don't want you no more!"
District 4 map
Dan Sebring for US Congress
Listen to Sebring's 'No Moore' ad on job creation
CONGRESSIONAL - DISTRICT 5 - REPUBLICAN - F. James Sensenbrenner Jr.
Jim Sensenbrenner is running unopposed, but he still gets my support.
STATE SENATE - Wisconsin needs to regain its majority here
STATE SENATE - DISTRICT 4: David D King (Independent)
Independent David King is running for State Senate against Democrat Lena Taylor in the 4th district. He would be a welcome change! Certainly more favorable to job creating, pro-family, and pro-business legislation.
David King for State Senate
Senate District 4 map includes Assembly Districts 10, 11, 12
STATE SENATE - DISTRICT 18: Rick Gudex (Republican) Sen. Leah Vukmir alerted me to Rick Gudex, a pro-jobs, fiscal conservative. He is in the Fond du Lac area running against the incumbent Democrat, who won in the 2011 recall election against Republican Randy Hopper. I would love to see this district return to the Republican column. We need to gain a healthy majority in the State Senate if we want to see good for Wisconsin legislation passed such as the mining bill. Don't forget voter ID and Act 10 are mired down in the Dane County Judicial snare.
Rick Gudex for Senate
Senate District 18 map includes Assembly Districts 12, 13, 14
STATE SENATE - DISTRICT 20: Glenn Grothman (Republican)
Grothman is a solid conservative in the West Bend area.
STATE SENATE - DISTRICT 28: Mary Lazich (Republican)
Lazich from New Berlin represents suburbs to our south.
STATE SENATE - DISTRICT 33: Vacant Seat - Primary election in District 33 between Republican Assembly Representatives Paul Farrow and Christ Kapenga.
Former State Senator Rich Zipperer resigned his Senate seat to join Governor Walker's administration as Deputy Chief of Staff and Senior Legal Counsel to the Governor. Residents of the 33rd Senate District will choose between Farrow and Kapenga, who presently each serve in Wisconsin's Assembly (If I lived in the 33rd, I would be hard pressed to choose between them.)
Chris Kapenga is a CPA and business owner, who states he's pro jobs, pro business, pro life, for limited government.
Paul Farrow platform is much the same. He is endorsed by Lt. Gov. Kleefisch, Sen. Leah Vukmir, and a host of others.
Senate District 33 map includes Assembly Districts 97, 98, 99 - Hartford, Lisbon, Pewaukee, west Brookfield, Waukesha areas.
ASSEMBLY - DISTRICT 13: Rob Hutton (Republican)
This is an open seat due to redistricting, so there is no incumbent. However, Brookfield native Rob Hutton does have a very liberal Democrat opponent from Wauwatosa, who signed the recall, failed in bid for mayor, and is adamantly against voucher schools.
The new new district now includes southern Brookfield, Elm Grove, Wauwatosa, West Allis and Milwaukee. In Brookfield, it combined the southern half of the former 98th and former 14th Districts. I was not too pleased when I was redistricted out of the 14th Assembly District, because it meant losing my Rep. Dale Kooyenga. But Conservative businessman Rob Hutton will be a very worthy replacement.
Hutton is in fact endorsed by Representative Kooyenga, as well as former State Senator Ted Kanavas. Hutton ran a vigorous primary campaign by visiting over 7,000 homes in District 13, "...talking to people and really listening to what are their top-of-mind issues". By restructuring his responsibilities at his business Rock Transfer & Storage, Inc., Hutton is ready to make representing us in Madison his priority.
Rob Hutton Website: Conservative Republican for Wisconsin State Assembly 13th District
Facebook: Rob Hutton
Past Post: Rob Hutton for Wisconsin Assembly District 13
GOP Assembly Candidates from District 13, 14, 15 Share Belief Wisconsin is Headed Right Direction
ASSEMBLY - DISTRICT 14: Dale Kooyenga (Republican Incumbent)
Dale Kooyenga, served in Iraq, now is a Captain in US Army Reserve. He brings his CPA skills and small business experience to Madison. Kooyenga was my former representative prior to redistricting. He now represents northern Brookfield, Wauwatosa, and a small portion of Milwaukee. "On a daily basis I am working for fiscal accountability, freedom and liberty (e.g. free market principles) and for an overall strong Wisconsin."
In spring, Kooyenga was appointed as Vice-Chair to a Legislative Council Study Special Symposium Series to Study State Income Tax Reform Did you know Wisconsin was rated 43rd least favorable tax states for business, and that some Wisconsinites pay no income tax but still receive a tax refund? We need reform!
Past Post: Sept. 7, 2010 "I have decided on Dale Kooyenga. His platform and endorsements resonate with me..."
Representative Dale Kooyenga Home Page
GOP Assembly Candidates from District 13, 14, 15 Share Belief Wisconsin is Headed Right Direction
Dale Kooyenga For State Assembly Conservative Republican
ASSEMBLY - DISTRICT 15: Joe Sanfelippo (Republican)
Joe Sanfelippo, a voice of sanity on the Milwaukee County Board, states he is running for Wisconsin Assembly District 15 "To protect the future for our kids by building on the progress we have made so far." This is an open seat. He is endorsed by State Reps Kuglitsch, Craig, Knodl, Voss, Honadel, and Kooyenga.
Joe Sanfelippo State Assembly
Assembly District 15 map
GOP Assembly Candidates from District 13, 14, 15 Share Belief Wisconsin is Headed Right Direction
ASSEMBLY - DISTRICT 24: Daniel Knodl (Republican)
Dan Knodl, incumbent, currently serves as Assistant Majority Leader for the Republicans
Knodl for Assembly "Dan Knodl is somebody who understands that Madison had a spending problem."
Dan Knodl Assembly District website
Assembly District 24 map includes areas in Germantown, Menomonee Falls, River Hills, Glendale, Brown Deer
Don't forget, Assembly District 98 and 99 residents also must vote for Farrow and Kapenga respectively for Wisconsin Assembly
ASSEMBLY - DISTRICT 98: Paul Farrow (Republican)
ASSEMBLY - DISTRICT 99: Chris Kapenga (Republican)
That's it. The polls will be busy tomorrow; don't wait until the last minute, especially if you need to register.
*Nickname courtesy of Mark Levin
2012 Blog Posts:
- Tommy Thompson, Wisconsin & all of U.S. need you t...
- Top 5 reasons to vote Romney, short, simple YouTube...
- Understanding Romney momentum
- Clever, unique, homemade pro Romney campaign signs...
- Christian, don't sit this election out, vote God's Values...
- "Are you better off than you were 4 years ago?"
- How ironic! Voter Fraud billboards pulled during Free Speech week...
- Still time to see 2016: Obama's America
- Ryan/Biden 'debate': What in the world was that?
- 'Big Bird' joins AARP in telling Obama, Don't mention us again...
- 1st Debate: Romney? Presidential, capable, Obama? ..clearly a drag.
- Max Lucado's 40 Days of Prayer For USA starts today...
- Middle East unrest: Romney? presidential, Obama? busy campaigning...
- Great 1st week for Romney/Ryan ticket
- Rob Hutton for Wisconsin Assembly District 13, ...
Tommy Thompson, Wisconsin & all of U.S. need you to stop Obamacare
It may sound dramatic, but it is true: America must have a Republican majority in the U.S. Senate, if we have any hope of repealing ObamaCare, reducing the size of government, and just plain getting anything done in Washington D.C. Though I supported another candidate in the primary, I wholeheartedly support Wisconsin's Tommy Thompson for U.S. Senate now. Most importantly, Thompson is a social conservative: pro-life, pro traditional marriage, and pro family. He has a record of being able to get things done, even with a Democrat controlled legislature.
In addition, Thompson pledged to be the "51st vote" to repeal "ObamaCare," something the majority of Americans consider to be a #1 priority. From his website: "The law isn't even close to being fully implemented, but its flaws are already so clearly obvious and the threat to our economy so real that we must start completely over."
The economic threat Thompson referred to is the $716 billion Obama removed from Medicare to pay for ObamaCare, the $800+ billion in new ObamaCare taxes that will kick in on Jan. 1 2013, our rising insurance premiums to cover all the people included in ObamaCare, and my personal favorite, the IRS' latest intrusion coming into your life (and wallet) by adding a new tax form. It will require you to report what qualifying insurance plan you have, or pay the penalty tax--2.5% of adjusted gross income--for not being insured. (That is the fine; it doesn't purchase insurance!)
Understanding Romney momentum - Update
Update: Title change and as of Sunday, Nov. 4, Pennsylvania is too close to call
Christian, don't sit this election out, vote God's values
It is estimated that between 17 to 30 million Evangelical and self identified Christians did NOT vote in 2008. I know many conservative Christians (I know several) voted 3rd party in 2008, because they believed voting for the lessor of 2 evils is still evil.
Candidate Barack Obama won that election by about 10 million votes over opponent John McCain.
If we want our Republic as One nation under God to survive, this cannot happen again.
But what does a Christian do if they feel they cannot support Barack Obama or Mitt Romney, because they "don't agree theologically" with either one?
Dr. Greg Huffman, a pastor at Brookside Baptist Church, addresses this extremely important question in his 2 part radio program entitled: Why Is Our Country So Divided? PART 1 and PART 2 I urge you to listen to each 13 minute broadcast in its entirety.
IIn Part 1, Pastor Huffman eases the Christian's dilemma by clarifying, "we're not electing a pastor, we're electing a president." The real question becomes, "So who can do the best job leading our country, with all the conflicting ethical and biblical issues at stake?" He goes on to say that fifty years ago, there wasn't a "whole lot of difference between the platforms of the two major parties". But today, there is a stark difference. The issues involved are morally and ethically worlds apart which reveal totally differing views of human life and the institute of marriage.
Then he outlines how the Obama administration has already chipped away at our religious rights by appointing an "EEOC Commissioner [Equal Employment Opportunity Commission] who asserts that society should not tolerate my private beliefs, including religious beliefs, if they may negatively affect homosexual equality... Then in May of 2012, that same administration opposed legislation to protect the rights of conscience for military chaplains who didn't wish to perform same-sex marriages. ...They said, sorry, you must perform same-sex marriages. Then in June of 2012, Bibles for the American military, that had been printed ever since the American Revolutionary War, all of a sudden could no longer be printed with the military service emblems on those military Bibles."
"We are in a battle for the ethical values and biblical values of our country. ...The issues are of interest and concern to the Lord." Huffman then warns that God will give up on a nation if they are promoting sins such as fornication, adultery, and homosexuality.(Romans 1:24-25, 26-28 ) "God has said that He gives up on a nation when we consider that we can make all the rules and become totally anti-God."
"We, as a church, need to be concerned about allowing God be God, but our country needs to allow the church to preach and teach the same message. That's why these are ethical and biblical principles that we are facing in the election today."
In Part 2, Dr. Huffman recaps Part 1 [my summation] Why are we so divided as a country? Basically it is a division in philosophy and therefore, it is a division of politics. For Christians, their foundation, their worldview, is based on the principles of the Bible. For a non-believer, that foundation is anything but the Bible. So our election is basically a worldview test.
Then Dr. Huffman discusses other things that cause God to give up on a nation, such as the shedding of innocent blood (2 Kings 24: 1-4) in abortion. Psalm 106:36, 41 speaks of those who sacrificed their children to idols. "And God gave them into the hand of the heathen, and they that hated them, ruled over them." As a consequence for their sin of child sacrifice, God allowed other nations to come in and defeat His people, because they were the shedding innocent blood of their children.
"Our country today is so involved in a battle of pro-life and pro-choice." This is indeed a moral conflict between anti-God philosophies and worldviews and pro-God philosophies and worldviews."
"God designed government to keep order in society" (Romans 13), and we are to "be subject to higher powers for there is no power but of God, and powers that be [local authorities/government] are ordained of God."
Dr. Huffman concludes, "When you vote, you will be taking a test, a worldview test, and that will tell so much about your theology, God or anti-God, biblical truth or humanistic lies... May the Lord give you wisdom and give you courage to take a stand for that which is right against that which is wrong. Let's reestablish the moral foundations upon which this nation was founded."
Many other religious leaders and groups, from Billy Graham's full page newspaper ads, to the Catholic church, to Evangelical Christians such as Ralph Reed and James Dobson, are making the same plea: vote for biblical values this November.
It is vital that we support all candidates who support God's values, the biblical principles our nation was founded upon. If we don't, we will find ourselves under Democrat leadership, the party that tried (unsuccessfully) to scour any reference to God from its party platform, the party that openly supports homosexuality and same sex marriage, and the party that advocates murder of the unborn at any time through abortion. Remember that Senator Obama voted 4 times to withhold comfort care to aborted babies who survived the abortion!
So, you see, this election is too important to vote 3rd party or not vote at all. We, His people, must vote to support His values.
'Big Bird' joins AARP in telling Obama, Don't mention us
In last week's Romney/Obama debate, President Obama proudly referred to AARP* as supportive to his ObamaCare plan. After the debate, AARP promptly said, 'don't mention us again': ""While we respect the rights of each campaign to make its case to voters, AARP has never consented to the use of its name by any candidate or political campaign," the group posted in a statement. "AARP is a nonpartisan organization and we do not endorse political candidates nor coordinate with any candidate or political party.""
Now that statement is pretty remarkable, since AARP sold out its members by supporting ObamaCare in the first place! But now that the bloom is clearly off the ObamaCare rose and Obama presidency, AARP is requesting Obama not to refer to them again. Thanks a lot, AARP. You pushed for the legislation, got the equivalent of a waiver for yourself, and now you don't want to be associated with Obama and ObamaCare?
In that same debate, when talking about how to deal with Obama's unbridled spending, adding a trillion+ dollars to the debt a year, Romney gave the example of cutting unnecessary spending. Since PBS's Jim Lehrer was the moderator, Mitt Romney mentioned discontinuing taxpayer subsidies to PBS, as one example of wasteful spending.
Romney said, "I'm sorry, Jim, I'm going to stop the subsidy to PBS. I'm going to stop other things. I like PBS, I love Big Bird. Actually like you, too. But I'm not going to — I'm not going to keep on spending money on things to borrow money from China to pay for. That's number one."
Well, after that debate, President Obama jumped on Romney's nixing Big Bird as a campaign issue. He talked about it on the stump. His campaign quickly cooked up an absurd campaign ad featuring Big Bird! Trouble is, like AARP, "Big Bird, it seems, isn't thrilled about his cameo in the presidential race."
In fact, "The folks at Sesame Street are asking the Obama campaign to pull down a TV ad released Tuesday that mocks Mitt Romney for vowing to yank the subsidy to PBS." the "Sesame Workshop, a nonprofit educational organization that produces and owns the show, issued a statement Tuesday saying [like AARP], "we do not endorse candidates or participate in political campaigns. We have approved no campaign ads, and as is our general practice, have requested that the ad be taken down."
The CEO of Sesame Workshop, Sherrie Westin, stated on CNN that "the Sesame Workshop receives very little funding from PBS". Apparently, they are able to fund their programing through selling licensed products, donors, and corporate underwriting/sponsorship. Westin does not like Big Bird being the poster
child bird for public funding.
The bigger picture here is why is President Obama and his campaign fixating on Big Bird and not the real issues crippling our economy and threatening our nation?
Romney summed it up nicely yesterday, ""You have to scratch your head when the president spends the last week talking about saving Big Bird," he said. "I actually think we need to have a president who talks about saving the American people and saving good jobs.""
Maybe Obama is hoping you will be thinking about Big Bird instead of why the White House's Benghazi narrative differs so from the under oath State Department testimony. (You mean the attack wasn't a spontaneous response to that anti-Muslim video?)
*Many people, in the past, joined AARP so they could enjoy the travel-related discounts, however, today, there are many other organizations that provide the same benefits. I am a AAA member; others have joined organizations such as AMAC, a conservative alternative to AARP
1st Debate Transcript
1st Debate: Romney Presidential, capable, Obama? ...clearly 'a drag'
AARP to Obama: Don't mention us again
How AARP's support for ObamaCare was bought and paid for
After AARP gets 'waiver' from Obamacare, conservative groups fight for information, answers ""It's payoff time to the AARP (some call it bribery) for selling out seniors and endorsing Obamacare, an awful proposal which makes no sense to seniors who know it's bad medicine for them," Martin said in a statement."
1st Debate: Romney? Presidential, capable, Obama? ...clearly 'a drag'
I listened to and watched nearly all of last night's 1st debate between Gov. Mitt Romney and Pres. Barack Obama, and I couldn't be more pleased with Romney's performance. For many viewers, this was the first look at Mitt Romney without the Praetorian press/media* filter in place.
Christians join Max Lucado's 40 Days of Prayer For USA; it starts today
What can Christians do for our nation? Pray!
Many of us do pray daily for our country and leaders, as directed in 1 Timothy 2:1-3:
"The first thing I want you to do is pray. Pray every way you know how, for everyone you know. Pray especially for rulers and their governments to rule well so we can be quietly about our business of living simply, in humble contemplation. This is the way our Savior God wants us to live." The Message translation
But if you haven't been in the habit of praying for our leaders and this election, Minister and author Max Lucado is urging those of us who believe in the God of the Bible to join him in 40 Days of Prayer For the USA, starting today until the election on November 6th. He also offers a pledge page if you would like to join with other like-minded people. (Only first name and last initial is made public).
Prayer points he includes:
"Are you better off than you were 4 years ago?"
Last September, I had the privilege of visiting the Reagan Library in California. At the time I snapped this picture, I answered his question with a resounding, NO. Little did I know how much worse off our country and the world would be in the span of just one year.
Most think of this question in terms of the economy. After all, Reagan was running against President Jimmy Carter. But there was also the Iran hostage crisis hanging over our country like a national pall. So Foreign Policy was also a concern.
If we go back to 2008, our country would be about $10.6 trillion in debt, instead of the $16+ trillion we're at now. Obama increased it by 50% in less than 4 years! That works out to $111,414 per taxpayer and counting. And Obama was the one, who in Feb. 2009, pledged he would cut the deficit in half by the end of his first term!
As Obama inferred in his 2009 pledge, the interest on the debt would increasingly become unmanageable. How unmanageable? Take a look at this: Brother, Can You Spare a Trillion?
Stop Tom Barrett's Folly Trolley at Streetcar Named Disaster rally: Sept. 18, 2012
Milwaukee Alderman Bob Donavan, along with the MacIver Institute and Americans for Prosperity are holding a rally against Milwaukee's latest huge waste of money project, the Milwaukee Streetcar. I often refer to it as Barrett's Folly Trolley. Most know it as A Streetcar Named Disaster. Whatever you choose to call it, it is a very expensive, unnecessary project.
The purpose of the rally is to pressure the Milwaukee to put the 2 mile long downtown streetcar project on a binding referendum, so voters can have a say as to whether or not we want to pay for this.
There is also an online petition for you to sign. Because all of us in the southeast Wisconsin will be paying higher WE Energies bills to cover the $55+ million to relocate the utility lines, you DO NOT need to be a Milwaukee County resident to sign. AT&T customers will be paying more too. Sign here.
Attend the rally if you can. A strong showing is needed to send Mayor Tom Barrett and the Milwaukee Common Council an unmistakable message: WE DON"T WANT THIS BOONDOGGLE.
The rally will be held at Serb Hall from 5pm to 7pm, though Alderman Bob Donovan* said the doors would be open at 4pm and probably go past 7pm. Alderman Donovan will be addressing other issues besides the streetcar, but stopping the streetcar is the main focus.
Estimates are that the very short streetcar line will cost $64 million plus the utility relocation costs of at least $55 million. I have heard a figure of about $120 million in all. $3 million of that is just to operate the thing for one year. And remember all this money is just to build a 2 mile line!
Some of this money is Federal Money, some is local. Regardless of where it comes from, we cannot afford this. And to top it all off, I think we can be sure if this 2 mile leg is built, more will follow, just like the Milwaukee to Madison train project that Gov. Walker stopped was just the 1st installment. So speak up!
Serb Hall is located at 5101 West Oklahoma Avenue Milwaukee, WI 53219
*I believe I heard him on Vicki McKenna's radio show last week.
More Reading: The Streetcar Scam: A report by the MacIver Institute
Giving back the high-speed rail "free pony" anchor baby
Stop the Obama & Doyle waste-of-money train .
Great 1st week for Romney / Ryan ticket
What a great first week Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan had.* In fact, I would say, adding Paul Ryan to the ticket has reset the Romney campaign: Picking Paul Ryan as VP has removed all doubts about Mitt Romney's resolve to scale back big government and cut our out of control debt.
It is clear Romney and Ryan don't want to get into the gutter of negative campaigning, rather, they just want to talk about the real issues threatening America's future: jobs, the economy, entitlements, etc.
It is exciting to see Americans responding to their message in such a positive way. I saw this excitement for myself at the Romney / Ryan rally at the Waukesha Expo last Sunday. True, this was in the heart of Republican Waukesha County, but not everyone of the 12,000+ was from Waukesha. I heard some in line talking about how they came from Wausau, Racine, and West Bend.
The place was packed. I was close enough to catch a glimpse of the candidates, and it was plain to see Mitt Romney truly admires Paul Ryan. I can only compare it to maybe a father proudly looking at his son.
The Ryan pick has boosted a cautiously hopeful Romney campaign to one that Republicans and Independents can be energized about. I saw a little bit of that energy even on election eve 4 years ago. Excerpts from It made me feel better: Palin 2012 Ryan, a past post will explain:
"On election eve, I quickly made this campaign button to illustrate my hopes for the 2012 ticket. I wore it to the Waukesha Republican Victory Party.
"Barely there 2 minutes, a few women from the Waukesha Republican Party and I started talking. ...Then they spotted my button, and their eyes lit up. Where did you get that? I said I made it. They definitely liked the idea. These ladies were not alone. In the course of the evening, my humble button received enthusiastic support.
"I know many blame Governor Sarah Palin for McCain's loss on Tuesday. But that sentiment shows how little those naysayers understand conservatives. It was very clear to me that fellow volunteers at the phone bank were there only because of Sarah, not McCain. Same with rally attendees.
"As Senator John McCain gave his concession speech that night, he took the full blame for his failure to win. Amongst the Waukesha Republican faithful watching on the big screen, there was no murmur in the audience to the contrary. When McCain thanked Governor Palin, the audience cheered. You would think BBC reporter Ali Reed was there in the room with us. ...he reported the same reaction:
'The sombre air at Senator John McCain's concession speech was momentarily pierced by cheer as Mr McCain spoke about Alaska Governor Sarah Palin.'
Aug. 14, 2012 Primary picks--it's still Eric Hovde, Rob Hutton, plus others
Listed below are my picks for the major races on today's Partisan Primary Ballot for the southern half of Brookfield. You can find your sample ballot, voting place, and status by filling out your information here, then click on your name, and then click on the View sample ballot link toward the bottom of the next page.
Since this is a partisan primary, a party preference must be declared. Crossover voting will not be allowed.
First race on the ballot and on everyone's mind is the US Senate race, so I will start there.
US SENATOR - REPUBLICAN - Eric Hovde
A month ago, I was pretty sure I was voting for Eric Hovde for U.S. Senate. Now it is the big day, and Eric Hovde still has my vote. If you still are undecided, the following is for your consideration. Not only is he the most likable of the 4 men running, I believe he is the best equipped to do the job in the US Senate and deal with the difficulties our nation faces. His strong business bent will compliment the Romney / Ryan ticket well.
A few days ago, I heard the first airing of Wisconsin State Senators Leah Vukmir and Glenn Grothman's radio ad endorsing Eric Hovde for U.S. Senate. I knew Vukmir was backing Hovde for months; Glenn Grothman's support was news to me. Since I consider Leah Vukmir and Glenn Grothman 2 of Wisconsin's leading conservative Senators in Madison, I value their opinions. Here is their radio ad:
Grothman also stated: "'I have gotten to know Eric Hovde quite a bit during the past eight months... His knowledge of the issues is amazing. His interest in small community banks gives him a special understanding of some of the bailouts of reckless and well-connected institutions. It also gives him knowledge of our monetary system that is probably unmatched in Congress. Simply put, we need Eric Hovde,' "
Vukmir and Hovde also made this ad. Listen as did State Senator Frank Lasee.
We need people who are well versed in banking and business practices in Washington. For example, Hovde has been criticized for not signing Grover Norquist's anti-tax "'Taxpayer Protection Pledge' which commits candidates to opposing any legislation that would result in any type of tax increase." The other 3 candidates have signed it. But when Hovde explained his reasons for not doing so, I realized just how complex this issue is and how right he was to reject it.
Here is Hovde's explanation to Green Bay conservative talk show host Jerry Bader:
"...Norquist's pledge simply protects the status quo, in which politically connected corporations carve out giant loopholes in the tax code. When anybody attempts to close those loopholes, Norquist brands them as 'tax hikers.' "
"Behind the story with Grover Norquist is he's funded by giant corporations that have created loopholes in our tax system,' said Hovde. 'We need to lower the rates, but we also have to get rid of the corporate welfare. How is a small business going to compete if they're trying to compete against General Electric, that in some years, pays nothing because they can buy off Washington politicians?' "
The thing that really made me shake my head in disgust was when Hovde cited this example: "...last year... Senate Republicans pushed to eliminate $6 billion in ethanol tax credits. ...but Norquist insisted that eliminating any type of tax credit amounted to a tax increase and thus opposed the measure."
WISN's Jay Weber interviewed Eric Hovde on his radio show last week. The interview was about 15 minutes long. Listen I think it will help voters gain a better sense of who Eric Hovde is, what he stands for, and how he is best suited for the job.
So by this time tomorrow, we should know who our candidate is for the November election against liberal Tammy Baldwin. The good news is that any one of the 4 Republicans running will be vastly better than Baldwin and than our current Senator Herb Kohl. But I hope Wisconsin doesn't just settle for the better when they could have the best.
Website: Eric Hovde U.S. Senate Issues page
Past Post: For me, it's Hovde, Fitzgerald, Neumann, Thompson, in that order
CONGRESSIONAL - DISTRICT 5 - REPUBLICAN - F. James Sensenbrenner Jr.
Jim Sensenbrenner is running unopposed, but he still gets my support!
ASSEMBLY - DISTRICT 13 - REPUBLICAN - Rob Hutton
This is an open seat due to redistricting. The district now includes southern Brookfield, Elm Grove, Wauwatosa, West Allis and Milwaukee. In Brookfield, it combined the southern half of the former 98th and former 14th Districts..
As I wrote before, I was not too pleased when I was redistricted out of the 14th Assembly District, because that meant I lost my Rep. Dale Kooyenga. But Conservative Rob Hutton seems to be a very worthy replacement. He is in fact endorsed by Representative Kooyenga, as well as former State Senator Ted Kanavas. And like Dale Kooyenga, Hutton is getting to know the residents in this newly drawn district by going door to door. Hutton has visited over 7,000 homes, because he believes that "The times we live in are difficult and people are weary of negative television and radio ads [and repetitive Robo-calls]. Physically talking to people and really listening to what are their top-of-mind issues brings our whole system into perspective."
For constituents who live outside of Brookfield and don't know much about Hutton's more prominent opponent, Tom Schellinger, let me just say he is Brookfield's perennial candidate, often running for multiple races--sometimes 3 at a time! In 2005, his antics captured the attention of Journal Sentinel columnist Laurel Walker. She poked fun at his efforts in a piece titled, If at first you don't succeed, run again. She referred to Schellinger as "Waukesha County's own Harold Stassen."
Things haven't changed over the years. This year he ran unopposed for Waukesha County Supervisor and Brookfield Alderman. Though there was little chance he would regain his twice lost Alderman seat, I believed if he won, the dual role would be a conflict of interest. So I wrote: Conflict of interest? Schellinger for County Supervisor & Brookfield
I believe being my County Supervisor AND Wisconsin Assembly Representative would also create a conflict of interest. Plus, what kind of person would run unopposed for County Supervisor, knowing he would win that race, and run for Alderman in that same spring election, while planning all along to also run for the Wisconsin Assembly?
Then there is the issue of his campaign style: Schellinger sinks to new low with misleading campaign literature (Includes many links to past posts)
But conflict of interest and misleading campaign literature aside, just what kind of Assembly Representative would Schellinger make? Perhaps his failed 2010 bid for Mayor of Brookfield might give you some insights. (He again was running for multiple races that year.) The Candidate Forum consisted of the 4 men in the race and questions were put to each one. I remember it became almost laughable when Schellinger answered many times that his idea, his solution to whatever the question was to study the issue.
For example, when the question was whether a high speed rail stop in Brookfield would have a positive or negative impact on our city, he answered, "'I think this is going to be a very interesting debate for the community.' He says he'd like to appoint a task force with voices from across the community to look at the positives and negatives.'" He couldn't give his opinion. Knowing what our Republican legislators went through in Madison this past term, the death threats, the occupation, the tension, I cannot imagine Schellinger being a good fit for the task.
Rob Hutton Website: Conservative Republican for Wisconsin State Assembly 13th District
Facebook: Rob Hutton
Past Post: Rob Hutton for Wisconsin Assembly District 13, Vote Aug. 14, 2012
ASSEMBLY - DISTRICT 14 - REPUBLICAN - Dale Kooyenga
Dale Kooyenga was my former representative in Madison prior to the recent redistricting. He represents northern Brookfield and Wauwautosa
Past Post: Sept. 7, 2010 "I have decided on Dale Kooyenga. Rarely have I ever seen a candidate campaign as energetically and effectively as Kooyenga has, which hopefully will translate into how hard he will work for us in Madison! It isn't just his energy though, it is his platform and endorsements that resonate with me..."
Representative Dale Kooyenga Home Page
ASSEMBLY - DISTRICT 22 - REPUBLICAN - Don Pridemore
Don Pridmore is a solid conservative: pro-life, pro-family, fiscally responsible and stood with Gov. Walker during the Act 10 ordeal. He represents the Menomonee Falls/Lisbon/Richfield area. Pridemore is endorsed by the Menomonee Falls Taxpayer Association MFTax.org
Don Pridemore for Assembly
WAUKESHA COUNTY CLERK - REPUBLICAN - Gina Kozlik
Gina Kozlik is endorsed by the Menomonee Falls Taxpayer Association MFTax.org
GINA KOZLIK The Right Choice
REGISTER OF DEEDS - REPUBLICAN - Michael Starich
Michael Starich is endorsed by the Menomonee Falls Taxpayer Association MFTax.org
There are a number of other races on the ballot unopposed. With little exception, I usually leave them blank unless I know who they are and support their candidacy.
I am curious what voter turnout will be compared to our spring primary. Polls close at 8pm., we will know soon after that.
Rob Hutton for Wisconsin Assembly District 13, Vote Aug. 14, 2012
With Wisconsin's Primary just a month away, it's time to focus on our ballot choices on August 14th. I live in the newly redistricted 13th Assembly District, and I was not too pleased when I learned I lost Dale Kooyenga with that swipe of the redistricting pen. But Rob Hutton seems to be a worthy replacement. He is in fact endorsed by Representative Kooyenga as well as former State Senator Ted Kanavas. If you check out his website, you can see his growing list of endorsements.
Rob Hutton grew up in Brookfield and graduated from Brookfield East. He is a Conservative, pro-life and pro-traditional marriage. Hutton is President and CEO of a Wisconsin based company, Rock Transfer & Storage, Inc. and will bring that private sector experience to Madison. He has served on the Waukesha County Board as a Supervisor for 7 years.
Like Representative Dale Kooyenga, Rob Hutton has been knocking on doors and meeting the residents in his district. This is no easy task and it demonstrates a level of commitment to the job. His yard signs are popping up all over too, not just on the right of ways, stuck here and there, but in the front yards of real supporters in our district. Rob came to my front door 2 times and I found him to be just what I am looking for in a Representative.
So in the weeks before our primary, take some time and read over his positions, his concerns, his background and family, and endorsements. August 14th will be here before we know it.
Website: Conservative Republican for Wisconsin State Assembly 13th District
Facebook: Rob Hutton
I will be posting a pre-primary ballot pick piece in about 3 weeks...stay tuned!
For me, it's Hovde, Fitzgerald, Neumann, Thompson, in that order
Way back in October of 2011, Rep. Jeff Fitzgerald announced he was running for U.S. Senate. At that time, he was my likely pick over Tommy Thompson or Mark Neumann. I didn't want Thompson when he was toying with running in 2010. (Thank Goodness we had Ron Johnson step into that race.) I'm still not liking Thompson in this 2012 race, for the same reasons: he's not all that conservative, he was a big spender, and he is too old. Thankfully, Eric Hovde, the newest candidate to enter the 2012 race to fill Herb Kohl's vacant seat, is pulling ahead.
I have liked Eric Hovde ever since I heard him interviewed on Mark Belling's radio show some months ago. Hovde talked about how he was conservative, even in his college years. He mentioned how he was required to give 2 speeches for one of his classes and he chose to do both, extolling Reagan's policies. And that was in Madison! (Hovde's father worked for the Regan administration.)
I thought, there aren't many college students who are conservative (people tend to grow more conservative with time), much less at the University of Wisconsin - Madison! That indicated to me he was able to stand up for his convictions, which is an important quality in a U.S. Senator. His ads are hitting a lot of the issues important to me.
Needless to say, any one of the 4 in the running would be a vast improvement over what we had in Kohl and certainly over Tammy Baldwin.
So I am still deciding, but I think Eric Hovde will get my vote. Seems other people are thinking that too since he is giving Thompson a run for his money now.
Wisconsin's Primary is August 14th. The winner will go on to face Democrat Tammy Baldwin in November.
Website: Eric Hovde U.S. Senate
...and the winner is Scott Walker!
Marquette poll: Walker up 7%, but what about voter fraud?
One would have to be living under a rock to not know the eyes of the nation are upon Wisconsin's Walker recall election on June 5th. It's not often the Weekly Standard covers our elections in such detail: Tom Barrett Fires Blanks at Scott Walker... and Barrett Can't Name Any Schools Hurt by Walker....
Emotions are running high with campaign ads bombarding the airwaves, the mailbox stuffed with politician post cards, and political phone calls (live and robo) taunting us from morning to night. Everyone in Wisconsin who votes needs to vote for 2 separate races: Governor AND Lt. Governor. For me that would be Scott Walker and Rebecca Kleefisch. In areas where there is also a State Senate recall, they will need to vote for State Senator too. Without our Republican Senators holding their seats, Wisconsin can forget any major legislation passing. (Margins are already razor thin--remember the jobs creating mining bill defeat?)
One thing is for certain--I think we will all breathe a sigh of relief when this is over. I hope I will be smiling when the results are in.
But turnout is key to a Walker win. Though the latest Marquette University Law School poll shows Walker at 52% to Barrett's 45%, with a margin of error of +/- 4.1% points, I am very concerned about the percentage of fraudulent votes cast for Barrett. So we have to outvote the fraud. If you want to help get out the vote in support of the Governor, the GOP Victory Centers are still looking for people to man the phones from 9am - 9pm to make calls from now through Tuesday.
Conservatives to gather in Madison for Tax Day Rally, April 14, 2012
Americans for Prosperity is once again sponsoring a Tax Day rally at our state capitol in Madison on Saturday, April 14, 2012, from 11:30am to 1pm--so even working folks can participate. Their invitation reads,
Voter guide to conservatives on southeast Wisconsin ballots
Election day is just a few days away now. Hopefully, you have been following the candidates running in your area, but sometimes, it is difficult to garner the information you need to make an informed decision when voting. Since these are non-partisan races, how do you know who is the more conservative choice?
If you live in the southeast corner of Wisconsin, you can take a look at the Wisconsin Conservatives - Vote April 3rd! Voter Guide*. It covers School Board Candidates, County Races, and Municipal Races, where identified Conservatives are running, from Appleton to Kenosha. There is even a spot to leave a comment on each of these web pages.
I live in Brookfield. So on this voter guide, my Elmbrook School Board incumbents Wartman and Lambert are named as the conservative choices. I heartily concur. In the County Races section, the only contested Waukesha County Supervisor race for us is for District 7 in northeastern Brookfield (also includes southeast Menomoneee Falls, Butler). The Voter Guide picks Jennifer Grant. She is endorsed by my State Assembly Representative Dale Kooyenga and the Menomonee Falls Taxpayer Association. She would get my vote too, but I live south of her district. Our Municipal Aldermen are not on the guide, but in the 3 contested races, I would pick Dan Sutton in District 1 and Renee Lowerr in my District 7. I know Lowerr to be Conservative.
For those living in Milwaukee County, the important Milwaukee County Conservative Candidates are listed:
- Milwaukee Comptroller: Bunting
- Milwaukee Judge 17: Nelson Phillips - JudgeNelsonPhillips.com
- Milwaukee 1: Cegielski
- Milwaukee 9: Taylor
- Milwaukee 11: Borkowski
- Milwaukee 17: Sanfelippo
- Milwaukee 18: Alexander
Register to hear Romney, Santorum & Newt in Waukesha - March 31, 2012
I received a robo-call last night inviting me to the Wisconsin Faith & Freedom Presidential Kick-Off at the Country Springs Hotel in Waukesha this Saturday, March 31, 2012, from 10am to Noon.
The event is free, but you must register in advance on their webpage.
Country Springs Hotel is located at 2810 Golf Road, Waukesha. Take I-94 westbound to exit 291, turn right, then take Golf, the frontage road to the hotel. (You will see the hotel from the Interstate.)
Though the primary process pretty much a foregone conclusion, this is still a unique opportunity to see these 3 candidates together.
They are expecting I received a robo-call last night inviting me to the Wisconsin Faith & Freedom Presidential Kick-Off at the Country Springs Hotel in Waukesha this Saturday, March 31, 2012, from 10am to Noon.
Hope Judge Nelson Phillips prevails on Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2012: Primary Election Milwaukee County
Voter ID is now in effect, so do remember to bring it to the polls if you live in a municipality holding a primary election tomorrow.
All of Milwaukee County will be voting for Branch 17 Judge in the primary. Judge Nelson Phillips is the Conservative in that race. His website is judgenelsonphillips.com but clicking that link gave me a Bandwidth Limit Exceeded message and suggested trying again later.
The following is from my fellow Conservative blogger, Randy Melchert:
"Tomorrow is the Nonpartisan Primary Election. Most of Waukesha County does not have a primary (except for a Western Waukesha County municipal judge race), but Milwaukee County and many other areas do.
"The areas below are having primaries where there are identified conservative candidates:
"Conservavite alternative to Barack Obama" Rick Santorum wins 3!
What a night for Republican candidate Rick Santorum--he swept all 3 primaries in Minnesota, Missouri, and Colorado. And what is even more remarkable, he did this on a shoestring. Mitt Romney's millions (and I have nothing against wealthy people) and Newt Gingrich's millionaire backing didn't seem to matter. Rick Santorum still managed to pull ahead. Santorum has won 4 states--3 caucuses and 1 primary in Missouri, the most of any candidate so far.
It is easy to see why Newt fell from favor, given his sour grapes comments lately, plus, he wasn't on the Missouri primary ballot. But Romney's fall? Romney came in 3rd in Minnesota. "Romney should have had the advantage in both Colorado and Minnesota, which he carried in the 2008 Republican presidential primaries. He awaited the returns Tuesday night in Colorado, where he spent most of the past week campaigning." At the end of the night, Santorum came in with 40% of the vote to Romney's 35%!
True, voter turnout wasn't as high as 2008, but..."Romney won fewer voters than he did in 2008, signaling that he hasn't been able to hold onto those who turned out to pull the lever for him last time. In Minnesota in 2008 he won nearly 26,000 voters in the caucuses, while on Tuesday he won fewer than 10,000. In Missouri's primary his take dropped from 172,329 votes to just 63,826. And in Colorado's caucuses he won more than 33,000 votes last time but fell 10,000 votes shy of that this year." Even in Mormon friendly Nevada, Romney's total was 25% less than his 2008 total.
Given that Romney has run before, if we compare this 2012 election cycle to 1980's, Romney's lackluster numbers should be cause for pause. In 1976, Reagan ran again for president and lost the nomination to Gerald Ford. It was at the convention, where Reagan delivered the speech for Ford, that the party realized they nominated the wrong man. Ford lost and we got Jimmy Carter instead.
So given that many of us felt (myself included) that we chose the wrong man in John McCain and would have preferred Mitt Romney, wouldn't we expect Romney to distinguish himself this go round? Instead, it seems Romney is fizzling out.
It is still early in the game, especially in this unusual election cycle where anything seems possible, but it would seem Rick Santorum is finally hitting his stride. Maybe people are finally bothering to ferret out what each candidate actually stands for.
In any event, it is refreshing to hear a candidate state what so desperately needs to be said, " 'I don't stand here to claim to be the conservative alternative to Mitt Romney,' [Santorum] said. 'I stand here to be the conservative alternative to Barack Obama.' "
A big AMEN to that.
Delegate Scorecard: Remember, 1,144 delegates are needed for the GOP nomination. Delegate estimates :Romney 86, Santorum 38+, Gingrich 29. According to RNC rules, early primary delegates should be awarded proportionately too, but in Florida, they were all given to Romney. Missouri's were non-binding and will be awarded in future.
State by State Primary Results
Behind the numbers: Romney's Tuesday disaster
Tommy Thompson for US Senate? Thanks, but NO thanks
UPDATE: Russ Feingold says "he will not be a candidate for political office next year" -- 2012.
Good week for Conservatives: Perry is 'in', ObamaCare struck down & more
Just a quick post here--I am up to my elbows in paint brushes and sandpaper--but there were a few positive news items that should be noted from last week. I will start with the most recent first:
2012 Presidential Election
Texas Governor Rick Perry announced he is running for President on Saturday at a RedState event. How refreshing to hear, "You see, as Americans we're not defined by class, and we will never be told our place. What makes our nation exceptional is that anyone, from any background, can climb the highest of heights. As Americans, we don't see the role of government as guaranteeing outcomes, but allowing free men and women to flourish based on their own vision, their hard work and their personal responsibility. And as Americans, we realize there is no taxpayer money that wasn't first earned by the sweat and toil of one of our citizens." (My emphasis)
Perry is being attacked by the Left, so I would say they are seeing him as a serious contender! One cannot help but make the comparisons to Ronald Reagan. In fact, Richard Cohen titled his piece on Monday, The Texas Gipper. "Here again was a governor declaring for the presidency and some very wise people cautioning us on the air and in print that what worked in Texas might not work in the nation. Perry is too conservative, too much a cowboy, too religious and, while we're at it, too handsome. This, more or less, was what was said about Ronald Reagan. "
In other 2012 Election news, Congresswoman Michelle Bachmann won the Iowa Straw Poll with 29% of the vote on Saturday. Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty dropped out of the race. Some are still holding out hope for Rep. Paul Ryan and Gov. Chris Christie to throw their hats in the ring. I am not a Christie fan as he is not as Conservative as I would like across the board.
On Friday, Appeals Court Rules ObamaCare Unconstitutional: "...the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals struck down the so-called individual mandate, siding with 26 states that had sued to block the law." They stopped short of declaring "the entire overhaul as unconstitutional".
Wisconsin Republican Recall Election
It would appear last Tuesday's recall results will be enough to repel Obama's Magical Misery Tour through the Midwest from crossing our border. "Obama's bus trip this week will bring him to an Iowa town within twenty miles of the Wisconsin border on Tuesday. That's the same day that two Wisconsin Democratic state senators who sided with labor last winter face recalls mounted by the Republican Party and national conservative groups."
Phew! Republicans hold majority, Darling still Republicans' darling
Conservatives in Wisconsin are breathing much easier this morning, because 4 of the 6* recalled Republicans won their elections! Just enough victory to keep their majority in the Senate--important because the majority controls which bills come up for vote in the Senate.
Despite this being the best election paid political operatives could muster, the Democrats still couldn't pull off a win here. To me, that is huge. For despite all the out of state Union money flowing into anti-Republican advertising, phone banks, door-to-door canvassers, and BBQ for Votes parties, the Republicans still prevailed.
Since this is the 3rd election effort against the conservative agenda, and the conservatives won, I think it is clear Wisconsinites like this new less tax and less spend direction.
The whole country was watching these recalls--Conservatives hoping Wisconsin voters would uphold Walker's return to fiscal sanity so their state could do the same; Liberals hoping a Democrat victory would make legislators think twice about cutting spending and challenging the unions. Drudge posted this as his top set of links (before 9am): "Republicans take 4 of 6 in recall elections, hold Senate... (todaystmj4 GOP maintains control of Senate)
GOP's stand could reverberate elsewhere...(Washington Times)" Drudge also characterized the Democrat loss as "Unions Lose in Wisconsin".
Well, the focus on Wisconsin's Republican victory didn't last long on Drudge. Now the headline link is More Slide. The Dow is at -377.62 at 9:20am--make that 389.58 at 9:29am. Can it be any more clear? Our nation needs to cut our out of control deficit spending lest we join Europe in their debt-fest. Maybe President Obama would like to have a chat with Gov. Scott Walker for some cost cutting pointers? ;-)
Next Tuesday, Aug. 16th, Republicans have a chance of capturing 2 more seats in the Simac and Steitz races against 2 Democrat Senators who fled the state rather than vote. I would think yesterday's results would energize their campaigns.
I want to thank talk show host Jay Weber for making a point to allow a caller yesterday make a plea for people to pray about the recall elections. Though I couldn't vote in yesterday's election, I and many others did pray for justice and fairness.
Today's TMJ4 GOP maintains control of Senate
Washington Times: Wis. GOP's stand could reverberate elsewhere
AP Vote Totals
Wisconsin GOP holds on to Senate
*These results were not unexpected: Dan Kapanke is in a Democrat district. Randy Hopper's personal problems were seen as a big negative.
Aug. 9th Voter Turnout Key to WI Senate Republicans Keeping Seats
UPDATE: Milwaukee to see ["at least $11 million"] net gain from state budget [The Walker budget the 6 recalled Republicans voted for] Part of Republican Alberta Darling's Senate district is in Milwaukee.
Tell Congress to tel Mr. Obama, No new taxes! Cut, Cap & Balance instead +P.S.
Hitting the Debt-Ceiling has been in the news for months now. Though in theory we surpass our borrowing limits on Aug. 2nd, we don't have to default on our loans as the President threatens because the Treasury can choose which bills to pay--the essential--and which to not pay--the non-essential.
Our government had prepared to shut down those non-essential services, such as the National Parks, back on April 8th. (I was well aware of that possibility, because we had plans to leave on a 15 National Parks and Monuments vacation in the southwest on the very next day--April 9th!) The shutdown never happened however, because Congress passed a stop-gap measure near midnight on April 8th.
Then there was discussion that the debt limit would be reached in mid May. They got through that crisis by tapping into the Federal worker pension fund and using the $200-some billion that flows into the Treasury every month. But now we are hitting our borrowing limit, the debt-ceiling, again.
We have enough revenue; we just spend too much. Yet the President's solution to his debt crisis is to raise the debt-ceiling limit and increase taxes on the rich. (Maybe he is channeling his inner Herbert Hoover?) The words cut spending don't ever seem to be in Obama's vocabulary.
Our economic recovery is in the doldrums. It has even been called a growth-less recovery by Obama's former Chair of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, and the President sees raising taxes as our only solution?
Raising taxes on anyone right now is NOT the solution to our debt problem. Instead, we need to Cut , Cap & Balance our spending and live within our means by cutting spending and debt and passing a Balanced Budget Amendment to the U.S. Constitution that would include a "spending limitation and super-majority for raising taxes, in addition to balancing revenues and expenses".
Take a moment to sign the Cut, Cap & Balance pledge and then contact your Senators and House Representative and urge them to pass the Cut, Cap & Balance Act of 2011 introduced on Thursday by Senators Toomey, Paul (Rand), Lee, Blunt, Vitter, Sessions, DeMint and our own Ron Johnson. The CC&B Act currently has 21 co-sponsors.
Let your representatives in Washington D.C. know your views on the debt-ceiling problem.
Find your U.S. Senators by last name
Wisconsin's U.S. Senator Ron Johnson (202) 224-5323
Wisconsin's U.S. Senator Herb Kohl (202) 224-5653
Find your U.S. House of Representatives member by state
House Representative James Sensenbrenner Washington D.C. (202) 225-5101, Brookfield (262) 784-1111
President Obama would like to settle our debt problem now, before the summer recess in August, and with enough spending cushion so the borrowing ceiling/spending issue doesn't come up again until after the 2012 elections. This spending crisis is too important to just push on down the road until after November 2012. Make the calls!
Will "Firearms Prohibited in this Facility" signs come to Wisconsin?
One version of Conceal Carry passed the Wisconsin Senate Judiciary Committee yesterday. So will these signs soon be seen in various public places in our state as they are in Arizona, a state that allows Constitutional Carry?
We recently spent a few weeks in Arizona and I admit, at first those signs were a bit of a surprise. We soon became accustomed to seeing them though, and we also adjusted to seeing someone's firearm peeking out from a jacket or even openly holstered on the hip.
One Navajo woman, at dinner with her family, had a belt on with bullets sheathed around her waist and a derringer where the buckle would be! (That was on the Navajo Nation--they have their own regulations there.)
We also visited some folks we know in Phoenix and found that the husband carried. He frequently went target shooting to keep his skills honed.
Did I feel threatened by the people carrying? Not at all. In fact, since I was a bit unnerved knowing armed illegals travel at will in the southern portion of that state, it was somewhat comforting to know that many Arizonans pack a piece.
Concealed Carry will pass in some shape or form here in Wisconsin. The question is what version--Constitutional Carry like Arizona and 3 other states or Concealed Carry with a permit as Utah does along with 43 others. Wisconsin is one of 2 states in our Union that doesn't allow Conceal Carry in any form.
I am torn as to which type of Conceal Carry law we should have. Before President Obama, I would have said sure, by permit is fine. But since our President is so eager to over-regulate firearms, including by means "under the radar" as he recently told James Brady's wife, Sarah, I don't know.
Since any responsible person would go for training before carrying a firearm, and background checks are done at the time of purchase*, I think I could be OK with Constitutional Carry. Criminals will disregard any regulations for permitting or background checks for purchase no matter what the Conceal Carry law states.
If you are thinking of carrying, you should check with your homeowner's insurance carrier to see if you need some extra liability insurance. The insurance issue was raised by one of the attendees at the Kooyenga Town Hall meeting.
In Arizona, we saw the "Firearms are prohibited in this facility" signs posted at numerous National Park Visitor Centers. National Parks recently changed their policy and now allow concealed carry of loaded firearms in the parks, using the gun regulations of the respective state.
We also encountered one of those signs at the Courthouse in Phoenix, a beautiful building I would have liked to have toured but was prohibited from entering.
Catching up: Voter ID, Kooyenga Town Hall & Elmbrook
Voter ID
At long last, Wisconsin's Voter ID bill passed the Senate yesterday and now awaits Gov. Walker's signature. Hallelujah. No doubt it will end up in court, but Sen. Alberta Darling mentioned yesterday on Jay Weber that though she preferred passing 2 separate bills, at least the bill is severable. (The Voter ID portion, which has been upheld by the courts, can be separated from the more controversial portions of the bill.)
Voter ID will be in place for the 2012 elections. I wonder what those elections will look like with Voter ID in place and the end of mandatory Union membership for State workers. (Unions fund Democrat candidate advertising with their dues.) Though the Budget Repair Bill is stuck in the doldrums of the Madison court, the Republicans could just incorporate it into the overall Budget bill.
By the way, Voter ID does not eliminate same day registration, but that turned out to be the better avenue. If we had eliminated same day registration, we then would need to implement MotorVoter laws, which ties obtaining a drivers license with registering to vote. I don't think registering to vote should be such an autopilot arrangement. My understanding of same day registration is that it still requires an approved photo ID. If the person doesn't have this, then they cast a provisional ballot (sealed in an envelope) and are given an opportunity to bring back their photo ID for their vote to count.
Past Post: Call Wisconsin Legislature to move on Photo Voter I.D.
Rep. Dale Kooyenga Town Hall
I didn't know what to expect. Would protesters be there? Would the room be packed as Town Halls had been before the November elections? As it turned out, there were 6 of us there--8 in all if you count Dale and his assistant William Neville. The 6 citizens in attendance consisted of 3 men I didn't know and Elmbrook Schools Superintendent Dr. Matt Gibson, Elmbrook Board President Tom Gehl, and little ole me.
The discussion was informal, with Kooyenga sitting with us in a circle of sorts. One man was talking about the concealed carry legislation when I cam in. Kooyenga briefly talked about the Combined Reporting changes, some which are addressed in the budget bill. Dale said rather than repeal the whole law, they would be looking at lowering the corporate tax rate.
Incidentally, did you know there is now a CPA Caucus? Kooyenga and his fellow CPAs now have their own group. He said they are working on a constitutional amendment to require a balanced state budget, applying business accounting principles to the state.
Dr. Gibson stated his support for the Governor's budget and appreciation for Kooyenga meeting with them regarding the coming budget changes. However, Gibson was looking to influence the per student dollar allocation. He mentioned working with the Fair Aid Coalition that represents property rich districts like Elmbrook (donor districts), who contribute to other school districts through their property taxes. Gibson said he was looking at increasing taxing authority as a possible solution to Elmbrook's shortfall.
It does seem like there might be some wiggle room in the state aid formula, "Some Republican legislative leaders say that they are working on a plan to lessen aid cuts for some Wisconsin schools. The legislature's budget committee will take up the issue Thursday." I don't know if Elmbrook is included in that group, but it shows there could be some adjustments coming.
You can sign up for Rep. Dale Kooyenga's Legislative Wisconsin Capitol Update by contacting his assistant William Neville at email@example.com
Petitioning Waukesha School District subdivisions can't join Elmbrook School District
Don't know if you saw this, but those 3 subdivisions to Elmbrook's west lost again at the state level in their quest to be included in the Elmbrook School District. I blogged about this in February of 2011 in What? Families who HAVE 4K petition to join Elmbrook WITHOUT 4K?
BrookfieldNOW reported in Neighborhoods lose bid to join Elmbrook, again that "The state's School Boundary Appeals Board last week denied the request of nearly 200 property owners in the Black Forest, Summit Lawn, Emerald Ridge and Shire subdivisions to leave the Waukesha School District and join Elmbrook.
Trump, Huckabee out, Newt, Romney should go too, we need a Ryan!
So far, the field of announced 2012 Republican contenders for the presidency is abysmal.
Rep. Dale Kooyenga Town Hall/Listening Session, Wed. May 18, 2011
This coming week, newly elected State Representative Dale Kooyenga will hold a Town Hall / Listening Session at the City of Brookfield's Safety Building Municipal Courtroom on Wednesday, May 18th, 7pm. (The Safety Building is just north of Brookfield City Hall on Calhoun Road.)
Kooyenga has been doing an excellent job keeping his 14th Assembly District constituents informed of what is going on in the Madison legislature via email alerts and also personal correspondence. I am pleased he is also doing the Town Hall meeting.
The legislators have been busy, passing the long awaited Voter ID bill just this week. It should be interesting to hear what else is on the horizon.
Talk show host Jay Weber has a Conservative Wish List posted on his web-page. Check out how many issues have been dealt with, those still pending, and the ones waiting for action. It is pretty impressive.
My wishes would be #10, "End all state mandates and subsidies for Ethanol", and #11, "Get rid of the mandatory emissions test for Wisconsin autos. (Kleefish working on it, vote not pending, though)" I heard one of the hurdles on emissions tests is the contract with the emission workers is still in effect. I would also like #13 dealt with: "Repeal the Planned Parenthood sponsored Sex Education bill."
Dale Kooyenga 14th Assembly District: Phone (608) 266-9180, Email: email@example.com
If voter turnout is like blog traffic, Prosser will win & Ballot Picks
See sample ballot below: Prosser, Carter, Write-In Kormanik & Brunner
Guest Posting: Nancy Kormanik Fiscal Conservative
Recently, I asked Nancy Kormanik if she would write a guest posting for my blog. After all, who better to speak for Nancy Kormanik than Nancy Kormanik!
How to Write-In candidate Nancy Kormanik for AT-LARGE School Board Member & Flier
On Friday, I stopped in at City Hall to get a sample ballot. While there, I noticed some people were voting absentee--before candidate fliers have gone out. There is also some confusion as to how to vote for someone as a write-in candidate. I hope this posting clears that up.
Want ObamaCare defunded? Call Congress to sign VOTE NO pledge on Continuing Resolution
Many newly elected Republican Congressmen ran on a pledge to defund ObamaCare; reelected Republican Congressmen voted against ObamaCare over a year ago. On January 19th of this year, all of the House Republicans (plus 3 Democrats) voted to overturn ObamaCare.* However, unless these Republican Congressmen sign a pledge to vote NO on the Continuing Resolution up for a vote next Wed., March 17th, ObamaCare's implementation will be funded and next to impossible to repeal or defund in the future.
You see, $105 Billion was stuck here and there within the bill to fund ObamaCare's implementation WITHOUT Congressional Appropriation! In other words, this money ensured ObamaCare would proceed regardless of who won the November elections.
This is why it is essential that we call Speaker John Boehner, Majority Leader Eric Cantor, and Chair Rogers and tell them to VOTE NO on the Continuing Resolution vote that includes this ObamaCare funding. Tell your Congressman to sign the pledge to VOTE NO on the Continuing Resolution if it contains ObamaCare funding. If enough Republicans sign that pledge, Boehner will have to take that ObamaCare funding out. (Congressional contact numbers below)
Last month, Congressman Michele Bachmann blew the whistle on the $105 Billion dollars to fund implementation tucked in the ObamaCare bill, which passed in early 2010. (No wonder Speaker Nancy Pelosi said we have to pass to bill to find out what is in it!)
Last "[Wednesday] former Congressman Ernest Istook testified before the House Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee about the $105 billion slush fund in advance appropriations liberals tucked inside Obamacare. The $105 billion bypasses the traditional yearly budgeting process and is spread throughout the 2,700 page legislation. It took the Congressional Research Service (CRS) seven months to identify all the disparate funds and it was not until February (11 months after the bill passed) that all of the funds could be totaled up."
Republicans have the position of strength here--the upper hand. The Continuing Resolution must be passed if we are to keep funding the Federal Government and avoid a shut down on March 18th. Instead of always negotiating weakly from a position of strength, like they did with extending the Bush Tax cuts, urge them to stand strong here? Ask them to honor their pledge to repeal and defund ObamaCare. Tell them to sign the pledge.
House Switchboard (202) 224-3121
Speaker John Boehner (202) 225-0600
Majority Leader Eric Cantor (202) 225-4000
Congressman Jim Sensenbrenner (202) 225-5101
Find your Congressman
H/T Conservative Mark Levin spoke with Congressmen Michele Bachmann and Steven King last night from about 19 minutes to 30 minutes into the broadcast. Listen.
Mark Levin surge: Call Congress, Vote NO on Continuing Resolution
Don't laugh, this is serious, Rand Paul is pro-choice on toilets!
I think we could all use a little comic relief, so when I saw this caption on the Drudge Report, I had to snicker: Paul wants government hands off his toilet.
That's right. Newly elected Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky (Rep. Ron Paul's son) asked, "If the federal government can support abortion rights, why can't it also support light bulb choice."
I don't mean to diminish the serious side of Rand's inquiry, but it is a good question.
If you have shopped for incandescent light bulbs lately, you probably noticed that some higher wattage models are becoming scarce. (My personal favorite is the 150w large white globe bulb. It gives a nice even bright light for open ceiling fixtures, and because of its large size, the filament doesn't overheat--it lasts a long time. I can only find them at my trusty Elliot's Ace Hardware store.)
The article went on to suggest it was better not to "get [Paul] started about his toilet".
Rand Paul said, "'Light bulbs, refrigerators, toilets, you name it. You can't go around your house without being told what to buy. You restrict my purchases. You don't care about my choices. You don't care about the consumer.''' (I would add phosphate dish-washing detergent to that list--you know, the kind that actually works.)
Judge David Prosser & Jeff Stone need your support Tuesday, Feb. 15
Be sure to read April 5, 2011 Judicial Ballot Picks: David Prosser & Lloyd Carter
Yikes! Must be a Parallel Universe? Libs favor Walker, Johnson
Did we enter an Alternate Universe since last Thursday? Maybe Mirror Universe would be a more accurate way to describe 2 Madison publications, The Isthmus and Wisconsin State Journal, going CONSERVATIVE!
Every vote should count...but only once! Become a POLL WATCHER
Last April, I became acquainted with some local women* who launched We're Watching Wisconsin Elections. They created this group to help fight voter fraud in our state.
They are following legislation that affects voting and voter fraud and are also involved with educating volunteer Poll Workers and Election Observers.
While it is too late to become a Poll Worker for this election cycle, you may still become an Election Observer this November. (Deadline for the 2011/2012 Poll Worker registration is this November 30th.)
The group, We're Watching Wisconsin Elections already held a series of poll watching education sessions, but you can still take part in this important effort. They are holding a new series of training classes across the state, with 2 in our area on Oct. 18th at the West Allis Library at 6:30pm and on Oct 19th at the Waukesha Republican Headquarters on Pearl and HWY 164 at 6:30pm. (I am glad they are doing this since I was out of town for the previous ones.) Other dates and locations are listed here.
Election Observers can volunteer to watch at the actual Poll on Election Day, at the Poll AFTER the poll closes, and at your City Hall absentee ballot counting place. Since absentee voting just started, volunteers are already watching at nursing homes and City Clerk's Offices.
The Election Observer Sign-Up page states: "Election observers are integral to restoring integrity to Wisconsin elections. Your participation in the statewide election observer program will help to ensure that our elections are honest and without fraud. Please sign up below to be a part of the program. We will be providing training seminars throughout the state leading up to the elections. Once you are signed-up you will be contacted as to the training seminar in your area. You may also contact Jon Waclawski – Chief Counsel and Election Day Operations Director – with any questions: email@example.com / 608-239-2996."
If you care about fair, honest elections, do sign up. Without a photo voter ID law in Wisconsin, this is one of the few tools we have to curtail voter fraud.
We're Watching Wisconsin Elections Campaign email alert
*News from Rally against Vote Fraud at Milw. City Hall Turns out, I knew 2 of the ladies in this group--in fact I rode the same bus to the Madison Tea Party with one of them the next day.
Now is the time...come to the aid of your political party
Do they still use that old typing exercise? Now is the time for all good men to come to the aid of their party? It never made much sense to me when I was in high school. It sure does now!
Well, that time, the time for all good men to come to the aid of their party, is now. With just 31 days to go until the midterm elections, we are in the homestretch.
It's time to roll up your sleeves, dig in your wallet, and prepare to hit the streets to help your favored candidates win this November. They need help distributing literature, making phone calls, manning the office desk, and doing whatever else needs doing.
For example, Representative Leah Vukmir, running against Democrat Jim Sullivan for State Senate, sent out a help request last weekend and this for literature distribution. Click her volunteer link or come to campaign headquarters on Saturday and Sunday from 9am - 6pm.
Gubernatorial candidate Scott Walker is holding a fundraiser luncheon featuring New Jersey's Conservative Governor Chris Christie at the Country Springs Hotel on Monday. Maybe you would consider attending.
Senate candidate Ron Johnson, who is leading Russ Feingold by 12 points in the latest Rasmussen poll, could use your help too. He will be at the Trinity Bar on Saturday, Oct. 2 from 2:30 - 6pm for a fundraiser. (125 East Juneau in Milwaukee) You can watch the Badger game and help Ron at the same time!
At the very least, make a donation and put up a yard sign for your candidate.
Speaking of donations, you might consider helping Conservative candidates in other states too. Here are just a few: Sharron Angle in Nevada is running against the well funded Democrat Harry Reid. Michele Bachmann could also use your help in Minnesota. Joe Miller in Alaska won the primary but RINO Murkowski won't call it quits.
If you were interested in these out of state campaigns, talk show host Mark Levin frequently interviews many of these Conservative candidates, and Senator Jim DeMint has a PAC called the Senate Conservatives Fund. DeMint has been instrumental in helping true Conservative candidates get their message out.
So get involved. This is especially true for those of you who participated in Tea Parties over the last year and a half. Protect your investment of time and energy in protesting the current government by working on the behalf of candidates who more closely represent your views.
I have worked on various campaigns over the years and it is a worthwhile investment in time. This year, it is essential, if we are to reverse the Liberal/Progressive agenda and rampant, irresponsible spending. I don't mean to be dramatic here, but our future and our children's futures depend on the outcome in November.
Walker rally made political hay, ad gained national attention
At a rally held in the shadow of the Hoan Bridge on Monday, Scott Walker drove home his point: "Yes we can" stop the train!
Wisconsin cannot afford this $810 million dollar train, that virtually no one will ride, and we certainly cannot afford the $10 million per year siphoned off from the Wisconsin Transportation Fund to pay for its operating costs! Or in other words, we must spend our precious tax dollars wisely on Roads not Rails. (My phrase.)
The weather was indeed perfect for that rally on Monday, but the sun didn't just literally shine on Walker and the attendees in Milwaukee, Walker also captured national attention with his "Yes We Can" stop the train ad.
Here is just a sampling: "The Wall Street Journal: 'Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker, a Republican candidate for governor, has been running a campaign advertisement attacking another stimulus program Democrats had hoped would prove popular: a high-speed rail link between Milwaukee and Madison', Time: 'Essential viewing,' Fox News : '...Walker, by the way, is running an ad that ties Barrett to the Obama stimulus package by way of a controversial rail project,' Politico: "Today, when Obama is in Wisconsin, Republican gubernatorial candidate Scott Walker will capitalize on all the attention to the presidential visit by holding a rally to protest the construction of a stimulus-funded high-speed train...' PBS : 'Walker hammers away at what he calls an $810 million boondoggle to build a high-speed rail line from Madison to Milwaukee,'" and more.
Walker calls our $810 million dollar "high" speed train stimulus grant a "perfect example of the out of control taxing and spending in Washington and Madison." I couldn't agree more.
If you are against the waste-of-money train, go to Scott Walker's NoTrain.com to register your opposition.
More reading: WSJ: Wisconsin GOP Candidate Jabs Obama
What They're Saying ...Scott Walker Ad Receives National Attention
Past Posts: STOP the Obama & Doyle waste-of-money train
Ron Johnson inches ahead in poll, 48% to Feingold's 46%
Did you see this good news? Last week, U.S. Senate candidate Ron Johnson inched ahead of incumbent Russ Feingold in the latest Rassmusen poll of likely voters.
"The Wisconsin Senate race is still a toss-up, with Republican Ron Johnson and incumbent Democrat Russ Feingold in a near tie.
Lt. Gov. candidate Rebecca Kleefisch on Fox & Friends, Sun. 8:45am
Wisconsin has 5 Republican candidates on the ballot for Lt. Governor. Like the office of Vice President, Lt. Gov. is often a position that is overlooked, that is until they are needed to step into the top job! Of Wisconsin's 5 candidates, Rebecca Kleefisch is becoming my favorite; she's conservative, articulate, and seems very capable.
Rebecca Kleefisch will be featured on FOX & Friends news show this Sunday, July 25, 2010, at 8:45am Central Time. She will be joined by CeCe Heil of Tennessee and Julie Parrish of Oregon. All 3 ladies are running for office in their states. They are to discuss "the rising popularity of conservative women - particularly mothers - who are running for office and the electoral success of Sarah Palin's 'Mama Grizzlies' ".
"Mama Grizzlies" was a term coined by Alaskan Gov. Sarah Palin to describe women--mothers--who like the mother grizzly bear, rises up on her hind legs to protect her cubs. In the political arena, many women get involved in politics because of some issue that affects their children and family. Minnesota Representative Michelle Bachmann fits that description. (Locally, I would call Wisconsin's Rep. Leah Vukmir, who is running against Democrat Jim Sullivan for State Senate, a "Mama Grizzly" too. Vukmir began her involvement in politics on the Wauwatosa School Board because of some issues that affected her family.)
It would seem I am not the only one pulling for Rebecca Kleefisch, she is the top fundraiser in her field. She "raised $141,634.58 in the first six months, 27% more than her nearest competitor."
Pre-WI Primary, 2 U.S. Senate candidates remain: Ron Johnson & Dave Westlake--Forget 3rd Party
Yesterday, 11 states held primaries for Governor and mid-term elections. For the most part, conservatives did well.
In Wisconsin, our primary is Sept. 14th, which is very late in the election season. But the Wisconsin GOP convention in May became a catalyst for thinning the herd for U.S. Senate from 4 to 2 candidates. At the convention, candidate Dick Leinenkugel only received .5% of the vote and so threw his support to Ron Johnson. Terrance Wall, who came in at 23% on the first ballot, withdrew from the race a few days later.
Wall told his supporters, "With a heavy heart, I am withdrawing my candidacy from the United States Senate race against Russ Feingold. I am so grateful for the support of Wisconsinites that are hungry for real fiscal conservatism and a change in their government.
No matter how much I want to stay in and fight, I feel the honorable thing to do is to exit...[If only Mark Neumann would do likewise!]
When I started this effort, I had two goals: first, to turn this country around before it's too late and second, to prove that Russ Feingold could be beat. ...I wish God's blessings on my two opponents, David Westlake and Ron Johnson."
Dave Westlake only received 15% of the vote, but has vowed to remain in the race because the vote represents "only a fraction of the voters in the state". [True]
Westlake said, "'If I stopped now, think about the tens of thousands of people who are Republicans, independents and Democrats who wouldn't have a voice anymore,' he added. 'I owe it to them, to all of Wisconsin to be the voice of the common guy.'" I do like Dave Westlake, his platform, and his Mr. Smith Goes to Washington persona, but because of his T-shirt fund-raising strategy, he has limited his viability.
There is also another 3rd party Constitution Party candidate, Rob Taylor*, who is being touted as the only one with experience by some conservatives. As I recently explained to a conservative friend (who was unaware of Johnson entering the race) I cannot support a 3rd party candidate in this election: 3rd party = Feingold reelected.
So who is Ron Johnson? Take a look. This video clip is from his Q&A after his announcement. When asked why he was running (at about 4:23 into clip) Johnson says,
"I'm not willing to give up hope.... This 234 year experiment we call America is just absolutely precious, and I'm watching that being squandered. So if I am fortunate enough to represent the people from Wisconsin, I would take a deep reverence for the genius for the founders of America, in terms of what they have given us in this country."
"There is a reason the U.S. that holds 5% of the world population, yet produces 25% of the worlds goods, that is really freedom. I think that kind of perspective, that kind of deep sense of how exceptional this country is, is a good perspective to take to Washington."
Johnson needs to get the word out that he is running and what his positions are on the issues. People are already in summer mode--more interested in vacations and picnics than politics. This bio video clip from Charlie Sykes will at least give you a glimpse into who Ron Johnson is as a person.
Unless something very unusual happens between now and the primary, Ron Johnson will be the Republican candidate. At the GOP Convention, Leinenkugel surprised everyone by withdrawing and supporting Johnson, "It is Ron Johnson's time, ...it is too critical, too important that at this time in our history, we unite against defeating Russ Feingold." I am hoping Conservatives, Republicans, Independents, and even Democrats will follow suit.
Ron Johnson enters U.S. Senate race against Feingold
Oshkosh businessman Ron Johnson formally entered the GOP primary for the U.S. Senate today, a fact that makes conservatives like me breathe a little easier.
I don't know Mr. Johnson personally, but I have spoken to him on the phone and emailed him a few times. I have found him to be thoughtful, measured, responsive, and conservative.
In some respects, he reminds me of our first President, George Washington. Like Washington, Johnson is not seeking to be a career politician. Instead he is answering a call to serve as a Citizen Legislator. Being a Citizen Legislator was one theme Johnson touched on in his speech at the Madison Tea Party in April.
One of the things I asked Ron when I called to encourage him to run against Russ Feingold was, did he have any skeletons in his closet? I believe Choir Boy was the term he used to describe himself. That made me smile. (I don't think I was the only one to ask that question.) Character is a very important element of a candidate to me.
I believe Ron Johnson has a very good chance of winning in November against Russ Feingold. He certainly has a lot going for him.
From the ISTHMUS, The Scons,
"He [Johnson] apparently has money, which unfortunately often translates into legitimacy in politics. The parties love a guy with money, not only because he can contribute to his own campaign, but because it relieves them from some fundraising duties, especially in a race against Feingold, who may be vulnerable but certainly is not worth the GOP attention that the governor's race or the two House races up North deserve. He's still the favorite by a long-shot."
Being able to self-fund a campaign is very helpful, especially since it is a bit late in the game to be running. (I blame Tommy Thompson for that.) But money alone doesn't guarantee success. Terrance Wall is wealthy and has contributed to his campaign, but he has some baggage in that he has avoided paying income taxes because of depreciation allowances. He is also not as conservative as Johnson. (In the Governor's race, Mark Neumann is self funding, but he is not an ideal conservative candidate either with his pro ethanol/ renewable energy stance. Neumann also seems to be hedging on answering some very simple questions lately.) So self-funding alone does not an ideal candidate make!
The following factors do matter to voters, as pointed out by Craver, "Last but not least, Johnson doesn't have any ideological question marks on his record. He has not served in a Democratic administration or headlined a fundraiser for Democratic candidates, and he has not made any contributions to Democrats in the past, unlike Terrence Wall. Johnson actually spoke at the Tea Party rally, unlike Wall or Westlake, and he can apparently give an OK speech. All you have to do is read a few conservative blogs [hey, that's me!] to discover that many conservatives feel the current primary field is neutered, and desperately in need of some right wing testosterone."
I don't see Johnson as being just right wing, to me he represents American values like hard work and living within your means.
Whatever happens in November, I have to say a big, thank you, Ron Johnson, for entering the U.S. Senate race. Our country and state need someone like you in Washington. I appreciate the huge sacrifice you and your family are making on our behalf.
One bit of trivia, Ron Johnson is brother to Home Time's Dean Johnson.
You mean Times Square bomber wasn't a Tea Partier angry about ObamaCare?
The Left has really been trying to paint the Tea Party movement members as violent. Remember the accusations that rocks were thrown through a Congressman's home office window in Cincinnati on ObamaCare weekend? (The weekend ObamaCare passed back in March.) Trouble was the office was on the 30th floor! I bet the Cincinnati Reds and Bengals' scouts are still looking for that rock thrower. After all, anyone who can toss one that far would make a heck of a pitcher or quarterback! ;-)
The other hard to swallow accusation from ObamaCare weekend was that Tea Partiers hurled verbal assaults at Democrats. Pretty unusual that no one had their cell phone there to capture those epitaphs on video. Andrew Breitbart even offered a $10,000 reward to anyone providing incriminating video, but thus far, I don't think anyone collected it. (Video is of protesters shouting, Kill the bill!)
But last weekend's Times Square bomber incident escalates the accusations regarding disgruntlement over ObamaCare to a new level. This time there was a real event that involved a potentially life threatening explosion, and Mayor Bloomberg guesses "twenty-five cents" it is "somebody with a political agenda who doesn't like the health care bill or something"?
Upcoming Events: Scrolls, Vukmir/Sensenbrenner Town Hall, Civil War Encampment, Nat. Day Prayer, Garlic Mustard Weed Out
There are a number of special events on my calendar for the next 2 weeks that I wanted to share with you. (I will try to post more about each individual event later.)
One thing I would love to mark on my calendar would be the date businessman and Oshkosh Tea Party founder Ron Johnson announces that he is running for U.S. Senate against Russ Feingold. If you haven't heard, State Senator Ted Kanavas just announced he is NOT running.
Here is what is on my calendar:
- Tuesday, April 27th, 7:30pm: Dead Sea Scrolls presentation, by Dr. Jastram, at Concordia College.
- Saturday, May 1st, 9am: Town Hall Meeting with Congressman Jim Sensenbrenner and State Representative Leah Vukmir, at the Elm Grove Village Hall.
- Saturday and Sunday, May 1st & 2nd, 10am - 4pm: Civil War Encampment at Brookfield's historic Dousman Stagecoach Inn ~ The 2 day event includes craftsmen, soldier camps, skirmish, cannon fire, President Lincoln, fashion show, worship service, and more! We had quite an interesting conversation about President Lincoln with the embalmer at a past encampment.
- Thursday, May 6th, Noon to 12:30pm: National Day of Prayer gathering at City Hall Plaza flags. Post from last year's event
- Saturday, May 8th, 9am - noon: 6th Annual WEED-OUT Garlic Mustard Pull at Mary Knoll Park ~ The Garlic Mustard is coming up early this year. In fact, it is already blooming in places. Check out last year's post for more information, links and pictures: Mary Knoll "Weed Out"
- Don't forget Mother's Day on Sunday, May 9th!
Ron Johnson would be my ideal candidate for US Senate
The big question on conservative minds in Wisconsin is, Will businessman Ron Johnson throw his hat in the US Senate ring this week?
Governor Doyle's Commerce Secretary, Dick Leinenkugel, announced Monday that he IS running, get this, as a Reagan Conservative! (He couldn't be any worse than Russ Feingold, and he promises to repeal ObamaCare and be against High Speed Rail--for now.)
State Senator Ted Kanavas, as expected, announced he is NOT running against Feingold.
Thanks for making calls to Madison that "don't work", THEY DID!
What a great Earth Day; I got my wish and more: NO GLOBAL WARMING Bill, NO VOTER FRAUD PROTECTION Act, and NO RTA. I almost can't believe it.
And why did I receive such a great gift? Because of all the calls, emails, letters and visits to our State Legislators. You know, the calls that don't work.
Bottom line? We were spared these bills thanks to those of you who did waste your time calling and going to Madison. So THANK YOU.
Another thank you goes to Talk Radio* for getting the word out.
Republican Senate Leader Scott Fitzgerald mentioned yesterday** that it was the calls that made the difference. For example, in Democrat Jim Sullivan's office, the call record was running 10 to 1 AGAINST the Voter (Fraud) Protection Act.
The same was true in the Assembly. Representative Leah Vukmir stated, "Thanks to your calls and emails, we managed to stop some of the worst legislation of the session. ...The calls and email from constituents sent a very clear message through the halls of the State Capitol and legislators became very wary of taking bad votes on these bills."
I have to think the other sobering moment for our more liberal legislators was the size of the TEA Party crowd last Thursday (April 15) and the number of attendees who stopped into their representatives offices to leave their vote NO sentiments. (Photo: Tea Party attendees look up their reps. office number inside Capitol.)
Of course the Liberal Legislative Phoenix could always rise from the ashes to call an extra session and try and revive these top 3 bills (and others), but at least for now they are dead.
Some bad bills did make it through Madison. Maybe the worst being the Ethanol Mandate 408 / SB 279, which I think requires increasing the total % consumed for ethanol to 50% by 2015 and for bio-diesel to 25% by 2015. Nobody likes the stuff and since it is harmful to most engines and yields abysmal mileage, I don't see how this will work.
Increasing those covered under BadgerCare via BadgerCare Basic Plus also passed. (FYI, Medical Marijuana and the Green Cleaning Product mandate failed, but so did AR-21 to have Wisconsin challenge Constitutionality of ObamaCare. Raw Milk passed.)
So we cannot rest on our laurels. We must stay involved. Work for conservative candidates so we can Remove the liberals, Repeal the bad legislation, and Restore good LIMITED government!
Imagine the kind of government we would have today, if people were always this engaged at the State and Federal level?
Representative Leah Vukmir and Congressman Jim Sensenbrenner will be holding a Town Hall meeting at the Elm Grove Village Hall on May 1st at 9AM
Past Posts: Wisconsin Legislature's last stand - Global Warming, Voter Fraud, RTA - Call now!
News from Rally against Vote Fraud at Milwaukee City Hall
Follow the money: Why are Potawatomis pushing Clean Energy Jobs Act?
Call Now! We cannot afford Gov. Doyle's AB 649 Global Warming/Clean Energy Jobs Act
*I often listen to Jay Weber and Vicki McKenna. When legislation is pending, Mark Belling** is also helpful.
News from Rally Against Vote Fraud at Milwaukee City Hall - Correction & Update
UPDATE: April 14th Rally & April 15th Madison Tea Party against Voter Fraud Protection Act, Global Warming Bill & Taxes
UPDATE: This Just In from Kevin Fisher's blog, "Citizens for Responsible Government to Join with Other Concerned Citizens to Rally Against Vote Fraud" at NOON TODAY, April 14th at Milwaukee City Hall Rotunda. Contact CRG at 414-573-8709 for more information.
Run, Johnson, Neumann, Grothman, Kanavas, Leibham, RUN! Spare us from Leinenkugel
For the first time in a long time, Wisconsin's US Senate seat is there for the taking. All we need is a credible candidate. So where, oh where, is that candidate?
We have 2 in the running: Dave Westlake and Terrance Wall. Bless them for stepping out there but each has flaws: Westlake isn't doing fundraisers and Wall has a tax perception problem. (He is not delinquent in paying; he avoided paying state income taxes by using legal depreciation allowances.) Because Wall has run some good ads, he is better known than Westlake.
This week we learned that Dick Leinenkugel, Governor Doyle's Commerce Secretary, just announced he was throwing his hat in the ring...but as a Republican? The guy who went to Spain to buy the 2 choo-choo train engines from TALGO*, with no bids, is going to run on the more conservative side of the ticket? OH, PLEASE.
Former Gov. Tommy Thompson has been rumored to be our winning candidate for months, however, I don't consider him my ideal or even acceptable candidate. Could we have counted on Tommy, the creator of Wisconsin's BadgerCare health insurance plan, to vote against its BIG Federal brother, ObamaCare? Could we count on him to vote to REPEAL and REPLACE ObamaCare?
Thompson could win we are told, he polls at 45% to Feingold's 33% but he is NOT the conservative candidate I would embrace. Shame on him for putting his desire to bask in the lime light of will he run ? above what is good for our state and nation.
So who do we have as possibilities?
There is Ron Johnson, a 55 year old Oshkosh business man, who according to the JSOnline article is, ...president and co-founder of PACUR, a [plastics] manufacturing company in Oshkosh. He described himself as a conservative with no prior political experience who is fed up with the 'loss of freedom' in the United States, including passage of health care reforms under President Barack Obama. He said he had resources to help fund a campaign if he gets in." (My emphasis)
If Mr. Johnson is indeed as described above, I could get behind him. Maybe you would like to contact him? I found this phone number on the internet for Pacur - (920) 236-2888.
Who else? My first thought is Mark Neumann. He certainly has name recognition. Although I am not wild about his somewhat supportive ethanol stance (in that it is good for Wisconsin's corn producing farmers) and some of his campaign tactics against Scott Walker, instead of beating up Scott Walker, how about him setting his sites on knocking out US Senator Russ Feingold?
I do appreciate his petition against ObamaCare, which is both a Federal and State government issue.
Mark Neumann could really play hero here and graciously bow out of the governors race to enter the US Senate race, for the good of the people of Wisconsin.
3 State Senators also come to mind: Senator Ted Kanavas - Brookfield, Senator Glenn Grothman - West Bend, and Senator Joseph Leibham* of Sheboygan. Of the 3, Grothman is better known to me because he is often interviewed on local radio talk shows. Glenn seems very comfortable speaking out for conservative issues.
Charlie Sykes, WTMJ's talk show host was again mentioned by Mark Belling, and I don't think Belling is just trying to get rid of his competition. Instead, I think it shows how dire our lack of a real candidate is.
I would really hate to have Republican and conservative Wisconsinites snatch defeat out of the jaws of victory again by not having a great contender in this race against Feingold. The US Senate seat is ripe for the picking.
PLEASE, could someone viable run?
*Mark Belling was talking about Wall, Westlake, and Leinenkugel yesterday. I had forgotten Leinenkugel was part of the Spain enteourage. Mark also mentioned the 3 State Senators and Sykes as possibilities (though I thought of Kanavas and Grothman for some time). If no one else steps forward, I will vote for Wall in the primary.
ObamaCare passed, now what?
For the majority of Americans, yesterday's narrow margin of victory on the ObamaCare vote marked a very sad day in our history. Amid shouts of Vote No from protesters outside, Bart Stupak sold out, as did most of the anti-abortion Democrats, giving ObamaCare 219 yes votes. (There were 34 Democrats who voted no along with all of the Republicans.)
The President was obviously pleased. He said, "Another stone laid in the foundation of the American Dream" and unbelievably, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi quipped, "No money exchanged hands"! All I can say is that often dreams turn into nightmares.
I have to hand it to those who trekked to Washington DC for their one, last-ditch effort to persuade lawmakers to listen to the people. But in the end, the majority of Democrats did not care what most of us thought.
So now what?
Conservatives have been cautioning that repealing ObamaCare legislation would be very difficult. But at this point, fighting back is all we have.
Several states have already begun the process of suing the Federal Government over ObamaCare. Idaho, Virginia, South Carolina, and Florida have set the wheels in motion. "Texas, Nebraska, Utah, North Dakota, South Dakota, Washington, Pennsylvania, Oklahoma and Alabama are expected to join the campaign."
Other states will probably push to retain the rights of their residents to contract privately for their own health care coverage and "prohibit enactment of any law that requires any person to obtain or maintain health insurance coverage or to participate in any health care system or plan," as Wisconsin is trying.
On February 22, 2010, Senate Joint Resolution 62 was introduced by Wisconsin Senators Leibham, Lazich, Kapanke, Darling, Grothman, Lasee, Hopper, and Shultz, along with 23 Representatives.
The road ahead will be difficult. We already cannot afford the government programs we currently have. ObamaCare will add even more to the deficit. Moody's has been warning that America's debt level will move us "'substantially' closer to losing its AAA rating".
Wisconsin Conservatives to gather in Dells for AFP's Defending American Dream Summit
There is still time to register and attend the Americans for Prosperity 3rd Annual Defending the American Dream Summit this weekend, March 12th and 13th. The event runs 2 days at the Chula Vista Resort in Wisconsin Dells. The event begins on Friday with registration and a reception. The speakers and seminars begin at 9:30am on Saturday and continue until 7pm, and then there is an After the Tea Party Party in the evening.
Some of the speakers include: Lord Christopher Monckton, former adviser to Margaret Thatcher (he gave that compelling speech warning of the US ceding our rights if we entered into the Copenhagen treaty last Oct.) , Grover Norquist - Americans for Tax Reform, Congressman Jim Sensenbrenner, Representatives Leah Vukmir and Jim Ott, Niger Innnis-Congress of Racial Equality, John Fund of the Wall Street Journal, Vicki McKenna, Michael Reagan, and Fred Kelly Grant of Stewards of the Range - land use rights.
Issues include Global Warming-Climate Change-Economic Suicide, Net Neutrality, Hands Off My Health Care, Voter Fraud, and Property Rights and Coordination, and more.
I attended this event last year and found it very worthwhile. In looking at the speaker lineup, I see some of last year's speakers will be there again. Of particular interest is Fred Kelly Grant of Stewards of the Range. Last year he told how a community stopped the NAFTA highway at the very local level by using land rights law. This process might apply to High Speed Train right of way too. I don't know if it would be of any help with the recent 10 million acre land and ocean/lake waters grab, via Executive Order, from the Obama Administration, but you could ask Fred.
If you are interested in the Conservative perspective on local and national issues, I urge you to attend. The cost is $39.99 for adults and $24.99 for students. Register here
Still think Republicans are Party of NO or that there is no difference?
How many times have we heard from the Democrats that the Republicans are the Party of NO? How many times do we hear that there is no difference between Democrats and Republicans?
Well, if you watched any of yesterday's Obama summit, you now know differently. The Republicans utilized their 110 minutes of speaking time to their best advantage, compared to the President repeating the same old / same old for 119 minutes and the Democrats prattling on for 114 minutes.
My favorite Democrat prattle was the one where Rep. Louise Slaughter told the story of one constituent who was forced to wear her dead sister's false teeth as a reason to pass ObamaCare. Trouble is, ObamaCare has nothing to do with dental care!
Contrast Ms. Slaughter's moment in the limelight with Congressman Paul Ryan's 6 minute synopsis of the Republican's idea of health care reform vs. the Obama plan [YouTube]. Ryan skillfully reminded the President of his pledge to not sign a bill that adds one single dime to the deficit.
Ryan then gave some facts on how ObamaCare does not reduce the deficit, and how it double counts offsets. He stated that in the first 10 years ObamaCare really runs a $460 Billion deficit and in the next 10 years, a 1.4 Trillion deficit. Clearly the differences were pretty stark.
It is true that Republicans in the past often went along with irresponsible spending, but compared to the Democrats this past year, they now look like tightwads.
But on a far more serious front, consider the 2 parties positions on abortion. Here the difference is night and day with Democrats being pro death and Republicans being pro life. I would beg to differ with those saying there is no difference between the 2 parties, because it makes a HUGE difference to the unborn baby.
And that difference goes back to the differences in health care reform, with the Democrats allowing taxpayer money to fund abortion and the Republicans opposing.
More reading/viewing: Louise Slaughter: dead Sister's Dentures
Heritage Foundation: The Four-Minute Guide to the Seven-Hour Summit
More Boor Than Cure, The summit persuaded nobody. It probably wasn't meant to: Lamar Alexander, "It's not appropriate" to rewrite the rules of 17% of the U.S. economy through what is called 'reconciliation.' [51 vote procedure] Don't go 'jamming it through.' 'Let's start over'."
Rubio, oh Rubio, wherefore art thou? Our country and state need one like you
Have you been following the Florida Senate race between Republican Governor Charlie Christ and Florida House Speaker Marco Rubio? For some time now, I have. If your are a conservative, it is very exciting. I first heard about Marco Rubio from my favorite national talk show host, Mark Levin, who describes Rubio as a solid conservative. (When Levin is in his quiet, serious mode, he is superb.)
I finally got to watch all of Marco Rubio's speech at CPAC and I have to agree--he is a solid conservative. Rubio believes that in the United States you can become anything you are willing to work hard to be. If he remains true to his conservative Tea Party roots, I would love to see him as President some day.
But for the present, he is challenging Gov. Crist for Senate. In case you don't remember, Gov. Charlie Crist gave John McCain the blessing during the primary and we pretty much have him to thank for pushing McCain onto the ballot, so to speak. Crist also supported for Obama's Stimulus bill before it was passed. Marco Rubio's rise in popularity shows that the conservative message resonates with voters. Rubio's poll numbers have grown from just 8% back in April 2009, to neck and neck in December, to taking the lead this year.
Although Rubio didn't get the network CPAC media hype that Ron Paul* and Glen Beck received (neither of which are consistent enough in their message for my taste) even non-conservatives are paying attention to Rubio.
See if you agree. Here is a sample of his speech that I transcribed:
Feingold has got to go & Sensenbrenner, was that a hint?
There is an old saying that if you repeat a lie often enough and it's big enough, people will believe it. Now, I am not saying Senator Russ Feingold is lying when he claims most people are for ObamaCare, because I think he believes it himself. It seems he just cannot fathom that the majority of Americans don't want a government take over of healthcare.
Despite being hammered at nearly all of his listening sessions, Feingold is still insisting, "'If you think all of those people that say they don't want the bill, are people that don't want health reform - there's a good chunk of them who want a much stronger bill,... I think the largest group is probably the people that are for the bill. The second largest group is the people that are against the bill because they don't think they want to do anything. And then there is a third group, which is significant because they want a stronger bill.' "
So maybe Feingold is thinking that if he repeats that mantra often enough, some will believe it?
Tuesday's Senate upset in Massachusetts, combined with Sen. Feingold's refusal to acknowledge most Wisconsinites don't want ObamaCare, makes him very vulnerable this fall. People are also angry about all the deal making fostered by ObamaCare.
While I am inclined to think the dog catcher might be able to win against Feingold in November, Senate races usually take a lot of money, good name recognition, and a well run campaign to be successful. So far, we only have 2 long-shot Republican candidates.
This afternoon I caught a bit of Mark Belling's radio show and heard Congressman Sensenbrenner and Belling talking about other possible Senate candidates. Belling was very impatient and negative on Wall and Westlake's ability to win. Belling was suggesting Mark Neumann or Tommy Thompson or even talk show host Charlie Sykes as possibilities.
Sensenbrenner said more than once, just be patient and that we still had time. That suggests to me there is someone more able to win that the Republicans have in the wings to challenge Feingold?
I hope that wasn't just wishful thinking on my part. Don't get me wrong, my hat is off to those 2 businessmen for rising to the occasion, but a stronger opponent would be wonderful. It would be great to turn half of our blue state red in the Senate. I guess we will just have to stay tuned on this one.
So thankful Brown won!
The Massachusetts special election is a Tea Party dream come true! They are even referring to it as the Boston Tea Party. Best of all, the margin is large enough to call it 52% Brown - 47% Coakley.
Tomorrow I will be watching the Dow. I'm thinking it will be up again in anticipation of ObamaCare's demise?
I am also wondering if more Senators will jump ship now that they know ObamaCare is unlikely to pass the Senate. Why stick your neck out if you know it won't pass?
Why stick your neck out, indeed, if you know that a Republican just won in the very blue state of Massachusetts? No doubt, there will be concern over seating Scott Brown before moving forward with ObamaCare. There will also be increased concern over deficit spending and shifting of tax burden to the states connected with their version of health care reform. These 2 issues could provide a gracious turnaround on a former yes vote.
Still, I hate to count chickens before they are hatched. Democrats are so desperate to pass something, they are again talking about using the nuclear option or the House passing the original Senate version.
But for today, I'll breathe a sigh of relief, because of the Brown victory. To think a year ago, tomorrow, Conservatives like me were grieving over the inauguration of a president we knew would push a socialistic agenda. Who in their wildest dreams could have predicted this upset?
Election news: WH Reacts to Massachusetts Special Election
Coakley concedes
Brown Gives Rousing Victory Speech
Brown needs healthy margin to win Massachusetts to beat possible fraud
Today is the day! Massachusetts votes to replace the late Senator Ted Kennedy. Will this very blue state go for the establishment Democrat or the more conservative, by comparison, Republican Scott Brown?
Polls suggest Brown will win. If you look at the polls, you can see the momentum is going to Brown. The polls from this last week range from 1 tie on up to +15 points.
President Obama did go to Massachusetts, after he said he wouldn't, to campaign for Martha Coakley. It seems his promo fell flat, although it is said he saved or created 1,000s of votes! Even the President is said to doubt Coakley will win.
But it seems a win for a Republican needs to be a bigger win than for a Democrat. MSNBC's Ed Schultz and Chris Matthews both suggested cheating or buying votes as the way to a Democrat victory. Remember the Minnesota Senate race between Coleman and Franken? During the lengthy recount process missing ballots from car trunks, etc. finally added up to a Franken victory. Brown needs to have enough of a victory to prevent recount mischief.
I admit I will be on pins and needles and in prayer for Massachusetts today. There is a lot riding on this election. Our Senator Feingold said at the Concord Listening Session that he might hold his vote on ObmaCare until Brown is seated, should the Democrats lose in Massachusetts. The fact that it is this close is nothing short of miraculous.
Sen. Feingold turned deaf ear to 97.5% at Listening Session
Monday, Senator Russ Feingold held a Listening Session at WCTC in Pewaukee. The lecture hall was packed by the time I got there, standing in the hall room only! I asked the security guard how many people the room held. He replied, about 350, plus the people standing at the sides and seated in extra chairs. There were maybe 30 more outside in the hallway. The guesstimate was over 400.
At first some thought the room was packed with Obama supporters, but as the questions were asked, it became clear from the response that most people were against ObamaCare. Just how many would be affirmed later.
It was rather difficult to hear out in the hallway as Feingold's mike wasn't as loud as the attendees' microphone. I wrote down the questions as best I could and the key words or essence of the response from the Senator. Words I am not sure of are in brackets. My questions and answers are not direct quotes but will at least give you a flavor of the meeting. Topics of questions will be in bold, so you can easily skip to the ones you are interested in or skip to the conclusion at the bottom. My favorite 3 questions are in red. Feingold did not always give a response to the question or statement.
Wisconsin Grandsons of Liberty - Tea Party - meeting Wed. Dec. 30th, 5:30pm
The Tea Party movement, that began as a spontaneous tax protest, is moving toward the next step: organizing to protect our constitutional rights.
Locally, a group that calls itself The Wisconsin Grandsons of Liberty organized a lakefront tea party last September. They are now holding an open meeting at the Franklin Library on Wednesday, Dec. 30th at 5:30pm, for those interested in learning more about the group and its activities.
Come and talk with members and attend a short meeting that will "cover plans for events and activities in 2010."
Their website states they are "a group of non-partisan, like minded individuals dedicated to the restoration of the American republic to its originalist constitutional basis. We have chosen our name in homage to those Revolutionary Patriots, the original Sons of
For more information, call Tim Dake at 262-308-0553 or email Tim at email@example.com
Defeating ObmaCare isn't about inflicting punishment!
Late Saturday night, I checked Drudge to see if there was any news on the Senate healthcare procedure vote and found Historic health care bill clears Senate hurdle. The opening paragraph revealed a strong media bias. (My emphasis throughout):
"Invoking the memory of Edward M. Kennedy, Democrats united Saturday night to push historic health care legislation past a key Senate hurdle over the opposition of Republicans eager to inflict a punishing defeat on President Barack Obama. There was not a vote to spare."
The article then quoted Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid's absurd comparison that the Republicans trying to squelch debate on his health care bill was like preventing debate on ending slavery or granting the right to vote!
"Imagine if, instead of debating whether to abolish slavery, instead of debating whether giving women and minorities the right to vote, those who disagreed had muted discussion and killed any vote," Reid said. (By the way, Republicans championed abolition.)
Republican Minority Leader Mitch McConnell summed up the real reason for opposing Reid's ObamaCare. McConnell "said the vote was anything but procedural -- casting it as a referendum on the bill itself, which he said would raise taxes, cut Medicare and create a 'massive and unsustainable debt.'"
The bill does create MASSIVE and UNSUSTAINABLE DEBT. That is the REAL reason for opposing ObamaCare, not to just deliver a defeat to the president! Someone has to be the grownup here and say, no. Bottom line is, we cannot afford this legislation.
By the way, Sen. Mary Landrieu corrected the perception her vote was purchased for $100 million in aid to her state; it was really $300 million! She held out for a better deal.
It is ironic that Harry Reid views his health care legislation in terms of abolishing slavery or granting rights when in reality it will*:
- Create 3,425 new mandates for individuals and businesses
- New mandates will be managed by 111 NEW bureaucracies
- Creates massive and unsustainable debt
- Fails to cover 12 million Americans
- Costs closer to $2.3 trillion over 10 years; $6.4 trillion if impact on private sector is factored in
- Mandates taxpayer funded abortion
ObamaCare passed House: Some frogs must like it hot!
Sunday's news, Health Bill Passes House, sickened me, especially because the vote was so close. Although there was little hope that the Pelosi version of ObamaCare would fail, if ever there was a week that might give a House Democrat pause to rubber stamping Pelosi's ObamaCare legislation, you would think the recent turn of events would do it.
For Democrats, last week was not a good one:
- Tuesday's Republican victories in Virginia and New Jersey
- The expose' of falsely reported stimulus jobs
- Congressmen and Senators challenging ObamaCare's Constitutionality
- Rep. Michelle Bachmann's impromptu "House Call on Washington" rally on the Capitol steps attracted about 20,000 citizens
- October's 10.2% unemployment numbers (highest percentage since 1983)
- President Obama's flip response to the Ft. Hood murders (Video).
N.Y.'s 23rd Congressional race more interesting: Republican quits
When I posted Litmus Test: Watching Doug Hoffman's N.Y. 23rd race with great interest on Thursday, I never anticipated that the Republican candidate, Dede Scozzafava, would suspend her campaign on Saturday! This is amazing.
I wouldn't have known about it, but someone asked a question about starting a 3rd party at Congressman Sensenbrenner's Town Hall meeting* and mentioned that Scozzafava had dropped out of the New York race. Wow. I wondered, Could that be true? As soon as I returned home, I checked Drudge. Sure enough, it was:
"Republican Dede Scozzafava announced Saturday that she is suspending her campaign in the Nov. 3 House special election in New York, a dramatic development that increases the GOP's chances of winning the contentious and closely-watched race."
Her analysis of her unpopularity shows she just doesn't get it.
"'In recent days, polls have indicated that my chances of winning this election are not as strong as we would like them to be. The reality that I've come to accept is that in today's political arena, you must be able to back up your message with money—and as I've been outspent on both sides, I've been unable to effectively address many of the charges that have been made about my record,' she said in a statement. "
In my opinion, it wasn't the money, it was her anti-Republican positions! She was after all pro-abortion, pro-gay marriage, pro-stimulus spending, pro-card check, to name a few.
If she had been even a moderate Republican, I doubt conservative people from all over the nation would have rallied against her with donations of time and money.
I would like to point out that though many in the media, and even within the Republican party, would like to discount former Gov. Sarah Palin's ability to influence, she was one of the first to throw her support to the true conservative, Doug Hoffman.
It is a good thing November 3rd is just a few days away, this is getting exciting.
*The Town Hall was well attended, about 200. I hope to post a report on Monday.
Litmus test: Watching Doug Hoffman's N.Y. 23rd race with great interest UPDATE
The 2010 elections are being talked about as a possible comeback for Republicans. But even more important are the few early races, such as Virginia and New Jersey's governor races and New York's 23rd Congressional District race. The 23rd, to me, is the most important, because it will be the litmus test on conservatism vs rinoism in the Republican party.
In that November 3rd New York race for the U.S. House of Representatives, the GOP, several key house republicans such as House Minority Leader John Boehner (who I think has been doing a fairly good job in unifying the Republicans against the stimulus bill, etc.), and Newt Gingrich (shame on you, Newt, its stuff like this that totally dilutes any good messages you have) have endorsed liberal State Assemblywoman Dede Scozzafava.
Why was she selected? She isn't a Republican in her convictions! She is pro stimulus spending, pro abortion, pro gay marriage, and pro card check. Scozzafava was endorsed by ACORN, need I say more?
UPDATE: Come for tea at Milwaukee's own Tea Party: Veterans Park, Sat. Sept. 19, 3-5pm
UPDATE: See local news coverage links at the bottom of posting.
It takes another Regular Joe to expose the real Obama plan
Back in October, during the 2008 Presidential campaign, Joe the Plumber asked the president a simple question that exposed Obama's plans to "spread the wealth around." That simple question acted like a firebrand and ignited awareness of what Obama's spread the wealth philosophy really was. If it were not for Joe the Plumber, Obama's true beliefs of spreading the wealth would never have come to light in the way it did.
Last Wednesday night, another Joe, Congressman Joe Wilson, couldn't take it any more and blurted out, "You lie" to the president, during his Joint Session of Congress address, in response to the presidents assertion that illegals would not be covered under his plan. I wonder how many Americans listening to the speech said or thought the same? I know I did.
The media is focusing on the impropriety of the remark, but this wasn't unprecedented. Senator Harry Reid called President Bush a liar and President Bush was booed during his 2005 State of the Union address and the Obama Inaugural pre-introductions. That doesn't make it right, but it is not the first time something of this nature happened.
What Joe Wilson's comment did though was bring to light who Obmacare will and won't cover and the fact that Democrats do not want specificity on legal resident status. Obama still wants to spread the wealth to illegals. (Joe knew that at the committee level the amendments that required verification for residency were defeated.)
"House Minority Leader John Boehner said Thursday that, according to a Congressional Research Service report, illegal immigrants would indeed be covered, defending Wilson's assertion even though he called the manner in which he delivered it 'inappropriate' "
Conservatives and many Americans seem to be embracing this second Regular Joe just as they did Joe the Plumber. Why? Because they both resonate with our core beliefs: that what we have worked so hard for shouldn't be spread around to those who do not work or who are not here legally without our consent.
Congressman Wilson has apologized, but some Republicans and many Democrats in Congress still are acting outraged over Joe's outburst. I have to ask, where is the outrage that Obamacare wouldn't prohibit coverage for those here illegally?
It was a BIG TEA PARTY, people are finally waking up
The September 12th Tea Party in Washington D.C. exceeded my expectations. Crowd estimates are all over the map, ranging from 10s of thousands, to 100s of thousands, to over a million. Crowd estimates have always been iffy; the Million Man March, for example, ranged from 850,000 to 1.9 million.
Whatever the numbers, the crowds were peaceful, from what I could glean, and the signs clever. One protester had a hearse with big letters on the side reading OBAMACAE. Another had a frowny face with tears that read: Worried Democrat. This was no AstroTurf, this was real grassroots.
Here are a few video clips and reports: Michelle Malkin: Yes, the picture is real, nutroots (great time lapse of crowd, photos, and crowd estimation chart at the end), MSNBC Tom Costello "Our own people think 100s of thousands",
Sen. Jim DeMint Corrects Fox News Crowd Estimate; Says There are "Hundreds of Thousands" at 9/12 March on Washinton - Video 9/12/09
VIDEO: Highlights from the 9/12 Taxpayer Tea Party March on Washington (This one had closeups of the signs mentioned.)
One thing I learned from my first venture in fighting city hall on a very local issue back in 2004, was that it takes a l-o-n-g time to get the information out and people to get up to speed. People are so busy these days, they often don't pay much attention to issues -- even when it affects their own back yards.
I also remember talking to a few homeowners the day before the vote for our 2008 $62 million dollar Elmbrook School referendum. These taxpayers either didn't know there was a referendum on the ballot or didn't look at the materials the school had sent out... yet. That referendum was for $62 million dollars and they couldn't be bothered?
Much the same happens with State and National elections. Election day comes and many voters haven't investigated the candidates beyond a campaign slogan or commercial. Life goes on and the ill informed voter goes on his/her merry way on autopilot, not to be bothered about it until the next election. (That is if they vote at all.)
President Obama won the 2008 election promising Hope & Change. The voters who didn't agree with his real agenda, but voted based on his campaign promises, hoped the change would be for the better. If Obama had not hit the ground running toward the left so vigorously, I wonder if we would have these Tea Parties today? If he would have taken a slower pace, maybe the whole taxpayer protest movement would have never gotten off the ground.
But slow paced, Obama is not. Between apologizing all over the world for America being America, his unprecedented spending, his promotion of Cap and Trade, and now his ObamaCare push, the majority of Americans are feeling very uneasy. They are realizing no matter how strong our economy, we cannot sustain this level of deficit spending. We certainly cannot afford this with a sick economy and high unemployment numbers.
People are snapping out of autopilot and realizing their liberty is at stake. They are now willing to inconvenience themselves and invest their time and money to travel to their state capitals and this past weekend, to their nations capitol, to let their government know this has to stop.
I venture to say, if people would have been paying attention all along, there would be no need for term limits or tea parties.
It is thrilling to see the crowds, peacefully assembling, as our Constitution allows, in our capitol cities. I can only pray it is not too late to turn this around.
When we studied the Revolutionary War in our homeschool, we learned about the Patriots that had the ability to ignite the public to action. They were called firebrands. Two come to mind: Samuel Adams and Patrick Henry.
Our 2009 Tea Party movement was sparked by Chicagoan Rick Santelli back in February. He isn't exactly a firebrand, but I would have to call him a spark or catalyst of the modern Tea Party movement. Rick has faded into the background, but the idea he kindled is alive and well.
A BIG thank you to all who have participated in Tea Parties and Town Halls this year. We all need to be informed and involved in local, state, and national politics. As we have found out the hard way, autopilot doesn't work too well!
UPDATE: Hoping for a really BIG Washington D.C. TEA PARTY
UPDATE: Michelle Malkin reported that as of "12:34pm Eastern: Police estimate 1.2 million in attendance. ABC News reporting crowd at 2 million." You can keep track of Tea Parties on the Tea Party Express blog
Taxpayer Tea Parties, as American as Mom and Apple Pie
It's Independence Day! A day set aside to celebrate the birthday of our nation.
Senator Jim Sullivan's Town Hall...GRILLING! OUCH!
Curiosity won out last night, and so I went to Brookfield East's library for Sen. Jim Sullivan's Town Hall meeting. I didn't know what to expect; I have never been to one of his meetings. Would I be the lone conservative amongst liberals?
National Day of Prayer: Meet at City Hall Plaza flags, Thursday, May 7, 12:20pm
This coming Thursday is the 58th annual National Day of Prayer in America. All across the country people of faith will be gathering around the flag poles at schools, city halls, and other public places to pray for our country and leaders. Some events are well organized; some are just a generic invitation to meet at your city hall flag pole from 12:20 to 12:40 pm.
Possible American extremists according to Homeland Security
NOTICE: Brookfieldnow bloggers recently switched to a new software. Until I learn how to navigate, no new posts on Brookfieldnow. I will be posting on brookfield7 however.
The Tea Party report & photos: local, state, and national
All over the nation yesterday, average people gathered to peacefully protest taxation without representation at the local, state, and federal level! By all accounts, it seems the Tea Parties were a great success.
Ants, Grasshoppers, and April 15th Tea Parties - UPDATE
UPDATE: See bottom of post for Milwaukee's Tea Party location.
Being "stubborn as a mule" can be a good thing
Or I could title this post: Of MULES AND MEN
Good stuff: More Hot Air from Rep. Ott.
When Theory is Confronted by Reality http://mail.google.com/mail/?shva=1#all/12039a4cf2af90c4
Time for tea on Thursday? 1,000 cities with tea parties
I'm voting Judge Randy Koschnick on April 7th
Do you want a Supreme Court Justice to apply the law, not make it? To in effect umpire the baseball game by calling the balls, strikes, outs, and plays, not make up new rules as the game progresses?
Parental Rights Amendment to be introduced March 31
Pepsi promotes homosexual lifestyle, prompts boycott
This one nearly slipped by me. It is a boycott of Pepsi and Pepsico products because of Pepsico's sponsorship of the homosexual lifestyle.
Hersheys sponsors gritty teen TV show
I will admit it; I don't watch network TV anymore. It has become too edgy or sleazy for my tastes. Plus, with a young adult in the house, I don't think we need to bring images into our home of lifestyle choices that we do not approve of but watch as being the norm. What we watch does influence what we think and how we act.
U.N. Convention on Rights of Child...it's back, AGAIN!
Ever notice how you can never totally kill a bad idea? No matter how many people contact their representatives requesting a NO vote, and the measure is defeated, the bad idea never goes away. It may lie dormant for awhile, but almost always it comes back.
Stubborn as a mule
http://www.ibdeditorials.com/IBDArticles.aspx?id=320977608242634 Republicans are under no obligation to render bipartisan support to this statist coup d'etat. For what is going down is a leftist power grab that is anathema to their principles and philosophy.
UN Convention on Rights of Child...it's back, AGAIN! Argh
The Ant and the Grasshopper & Tea Parties
I don't know if the Aesop fable, The Ant and the Grasshopper is still being taught in school as it was in my school days. It wouldn't seem so based on who most younger voters chose in the last election.
Not every governor is taking the $timulus
Republican Governors Step up attacks on Obama Economic Policies
Painstaking care vs. rushing it through
If you have ever studied early American history, you know the painstaking care our founding fathers took in crafting every document. The Declaration, The Constitution, and The Bill of Rights were not just something a few guys threw together without thought.
Stem cell success, stem cell failure, which kind worked?
Just this week, we have 2 more stories in the news about stem cells used in human trials. In one case, a Parkinson's disease sufferer was helped, and in another case, a child with a brain disease, stem cells made the situation worse.
Investors are not stupid
(Originally posted yesterday. I reposting today to try to improve the spacing and type face.)
Investors aren't stupid
You know how that expression, put your money where your mouth is, means that if you believe in something, you are willing to invest in it?
Soon we'll need Radio Free America
Camille Paglia http://www.salon.com/opinion/paglia/2009/02/11/stimulus/
UPDATE: Rep. Sensenbrenner & Rep. Leah Vukmir Town Hall
UPDATE: Rep. Vukmir informed me that Rep. Rich Zipperer and Sen. Ted Kanavas will also be at the Brookfield Town Hall meeting on Sunday. Sen. Jim Sullivan, 5th District, was invited but has not confirmed.
Superintendent of Public Instruction race
Remember to Vote February 17th
There are five candidates running to be our next State Superintendent of Public Instruction. Your vote on February 17th could make a big difference.
Obama's pro-p*orn lawyer nomination for #2 to Attorney General?
You cannot make this stuff up. Attorney David W. Ogden is President Obama's choice for 2nd in command in the U.S. office of the Attorney General. So what?
UPDATES Stop the Senate socialist spending "stimulus" bill
UPDATES at bottom of post.
Michael Steele new RNC Chairman
Just heard this on WISN radio, Michael Steele was elected the new RNC Chairman: GOP elects first African American chairman, Steele of Maryland.
Christians pray to change Obama's heart, Vatican criticizes Obama on abortion
Last Thursday, I posted Ad celebrates Obama's mother's choice. That very afternoon, I received an email from Focus on the Family Action urging Christians to "pray for a change of heart for President Obama" regarding his pro-abortion and pro Freedom of Choice Act positions
Ad celebrates Obama's mother's choice during Sanctity of Life week
January 18 - 25th is Sanctity of Human Life week. It also marks "the 36th anniversary of the 1972 U.S. Supreme Court Roe vs. Wade opinion that struck down state restrictions on abortion, essentially installing that "right" in the Constitution."
Porking up the stimulus package
Most Americans were outraged at the pork included in the first TARP bailout. Remember the wooden arrows?
One area of economy booming: gun sales!
Belgium, sanctity of life
Obama is not going to defend life like President George Bush did. It was pretty hard to swallow Obama's line in his inaugural address that science would have it's rightful place regarding health care. I couldn't help think he referring to stem cells. Science is revealing Adult Stem Cells to be useful. Embryonic plagued with problems.
Is TRILLION the new BILLION? Deficit spending must stop!
Conservatives were not pleased with President Bush's spending habits. Liberals criticized Bush for expanding the deficit too. So why is it, now that the Democrats are in charge of everything, they are making Bush look like a penny pincher? Why is it that these proposed unprecedented deficits are winked at as not having devastating consequences for us, our children, grand children, and great grandchildren?
Petition Congressman to block tax-funded abortions
From Family Research Council:
Minnesota's Franken/Coleman recount: One monster of a Senate race
It appears Al Franken has truly turned Minnesota election law into a Franken-stein of a monster recount--something the election laws were never intended to do: enable stealing an election.
RNC Chairman
Exodus from public education?
poll, 69.99% said it was easier and less expensive than private or homeschooling http://www.onenewsnow.com/Poll.aspx?ekfrm=371710
Nomination papers for judge and superintendent
Are you naughty, nice? Stingy, generous?
Christmas is the season of giving. Many charities make their year end pitch during the Christmas season. Whether you respond to their pleas or not, may depend more on your politics and religious beliefs than your wallet.
It's nice to see a little bit of Christmas in advertising
Have you noticed? Some stores are actually using the word, CHRISTMAS, in their advertising this year. It is nice to see. After all, Christmas is the reason people go out in the cold, spend money they don't have, and brave the crowds!
RNC chairmanship: Who do you want?
Michael Steele Newt Gingrich? Newt seems to have lost his nerve. Sitting on the couch with Nancy Pelosi must have that affect?
WARNING: Is a Constitutional Convention on horizon?
Don'f forget my US history teacher's warning about the convention
Thank you Senators for standing up against auto bailout
Wish we had more like these 6 Republican Senators. I really don't care what party they are from, just that they have common sense.
Global Warming tough sell, but Obama still buys what Gore is selling
There is a lot at stake for former Vice President Al Gore with the Global Warming* issue. Without the threat of Global Warming, he is rather out of a job. Who would hire Al Gore to come speak about the threat of normal weather? Without Global Warming, who would ever buy a carbon credit from the corporation he is affiliated with? Without Global Warming, Al Gore just becomes another washed up Vice President who did not make it to the ultimate status prize of the presidency.
Global warming -"Is the cure worse than the disease?"
Georgia & Minnesota on my mind...no filibuster proof Senate majority
Phew! If you have been watching these state's Senate races, you know that the Senate's filibuster proof Democratic majority hung in the balance. But Senator Saxby Chamblis easily won reelection yesterday in that Georgia runoff, 57% to 43%. So the Democrats won't get their 60 seat majority.
1st Amendment rights threatened, will you be Speechless?
Homeschool kids called "demented?"
The right to homeschool in the United States has been a long, hard fought battle. In many countries, it is still illegal. The public perception of homschooling is rather two-faced: People know homeschoolers on average outscore private and government school children on standardized testing*, but they still view the parents and students with skepticism.
"Christmas," I saw it in a store ad!!!
Kohls ad and newspaper bag ad said, Christmas sale.
Homeschool kids "demented?"
The right to homeschool in the United States has been a long, hard fought battle. In many countries, it is still illegal. The public perception of homschooling is rather two-faced: People know homeschoolers on average outscore private and government school children on standardized testing*, but they still view the parents and students with skepticism.
US Senate filibuster proof race hangs in balance
http://mail.google.com/mail/?shva=1#inbox/11dba87f8c336d13 Fred PAC
Grow your own transplant parts from ADULT stem cells
Don't you love it? Grow your own transplant parts from your own stem cells. Claudia Castillo gets windpipe tailor-made from her own stem cells: (My emphasis)
Tightening the belt and grim realities are never easy
Let Detroit Go Bankrupt Mitt Romney Nov. 18, 2008
Bush going out with a bang
US filabuster proof senate in the balance with Saxby Chambliss runoff Friday
Chambliss Warns: Out of Control Congress at stake in Georgia Race Nov 17
Why we need Talk Radio
NBC has its eco week. Did they tell you about Nasa's mistake? No, they were giving misleading info about oceans rising 200 feet!
Anglo-Saxon vs. Euorpean-style, who will speak for us?
Telling It Like It Is At A Tipping Point http://www.ibdeditorials.com/IBDArticles.aspx?id=311472435104525
No use for wishy-washy
Wall street journal cited Ryan succeeding in dem territory.
It made me feel better: PALIN 2012 RYAN
On election eve, I quickly made this campaign button to illustrate my hopes for the 2012 ticket. I wore it to the Waukesha Republican Victory Party.
Other 2012 hopefuls
Governor Sarah Palin gets to bask in some sunshine at The Republican Governors Association conference this week: Palin still center stage:
Call the RNC, tell them what you think
Ronald Reagan's 1964 speech, nothing's changed
Ronald Reagan made this speech at a Barry Goldwater campaign event. It is about 27 minutes long, but well worth the time.
Successful Republicans urge: Stand up for what works
It has become a family tradition to attended the Waukesha Republican's "Victory" party at the Country Springs Hotel. Various local candidates stop in and give a pep talk along with Waukesha Republican leaders. This year most of us hoped for good news but were braced for the bad.
Palin 2012
The Alinsky machine is in place, it's going to be tough
Conservative? Better let RNC know that
RNC phone number 202-863-8500
Republican party wrangling: Jealousy?
Republican party wrangling Jealousy?
What can you expect? We didn't choose our candidate
Senator John McCain managed to get 56,494,802 votes, which translates to 46.4% of the total. That was 1.9% less than John Kerry received in 2004. Hardly the trouncing Bob Dole took in 1996 with his 40.71% of the vote or Carter's 41.0% in 1980 or Mondale's 40.6% in 1984.
Wow! Wisconsin is bluer than I realized
Conservatism in exile
conservatism in exile
Forget the Bradley effect, what about the Bush effect?
I've been wondering about this for some time. Are some independents reluctant to voice support for John McCain because they don't want to take flack for supporting the Republicans? Democrats have incessantly talked against George Bush during this election cycle, as if they are running against him, even though George isn't running.
The elitists don't like Palin...they didn't like Reagan eitherI've been to 2 McCain Palin rallies. Believe me, Republicans and conservatives adore Sarah Palin. Many of them would never have braved the crowds and long lines for John McCain. But for Sarah? Yes. The question, Can we reverse the ticket? (Palin, McCain) is more than a light hearted joke.
What can you expect when the liberal media chose both candidates?
http://www.weeklystandard.com/Utilities/printer_preview.asp?idArticle=15718&R=13C7B8B Sarah Palin's Future Alaska's most valuable resource oct 27 Fred Barnes
Canada just elected new Prime Minister, will US follow suit?
Our race for the White House seems like it has gone on forever. Canada just got the job done in less than 2 months. (Lucky them!)
Fed up? Where do you get your news?
I stopped watching network news long ago. I just couldn't take it anymore. CNSNews.com
Parents, what is your child learning at school?
We value education in the United States. Parents often make sacrifices to send their children to good colleges. But do you know who is teaching your child? Do do you know what your young adult is learning at their school?
Arnold Schwarzenegger OK, Howard Dean OK, but Sarah Palin NOT OK?
It amazes me that the question is still out there: Is Sarah Palin qualified to be Vice President or God forbid, President? Considering Senator Barack Obama has so little experience, the question is laughable.
An American Carol: Funny & thought provoking, but w/reservations
I saw An American Carol on its debut, Friday, Oct. 3. Usually I wait for a movie to hit the Budget Theater, but with these more offbeat type films, often you better see them when you can. (Same thing happened with the movie, Expelled. It just came out on DVD in case you missed that one.)
McCain goes to La Crosse Friday, Palin not willing to give up Michigan
On the news yesterday, I heard that John McCain and Sarah Palin will go to La Crosse Friday after their stop in Waukesha on Thursday. I think that is a good move. McCain will also be in Mosinee, WI, and Palin in Wilmington, OH later on Thursday.
Congressmen Ryan and Sensenbrenner on why I voted Yea and Nay
I heard both Congressmen Paul Ryan and Jim Sensenbrenner interviewed on Jay Weber's radio show this morning. (Hour 4 Part 2).
Since I trust the opinion of both of these men, I was curious as to why
Ryan voted YES and Sensenbrenner NO on the latest bailout bill.
Obama ad misleading about McCain stem cell research stance
What if I had a cure for Parkinson's, leukemia, diabetes, or paralysis caused by spinal cord injury? All you would have to do is take an infant, remove all of its stem cells (sorry, the infant dies), tweak the cells, and transfer them to the ill patient.
McCain & Palin in Cedarburg: so close, yet so far away + pictures
The phrase so close, yet so far away was never more true for me than yesterday. A friend asked on Thursday night if I was interested in going to Cedarburg Friday, That was just the nudge I needed. I said, yes!
Palin on difference between hockey mom and Pit Bull dog
Sarah Palin was warned about the potential for vicious attacks from
McCain's opponents. She is no shrinking violet though. William Kristol posted this:
MSNBC crossed the line
Last night, Bill O'Reilly was hot under the collar about MSNBC's coverage of McCain's Sarah Palin VP pick. Here is the YouTube clip.
Our VP's nickname was Sarah Barracuda
"She's a female Teddy Roosevelt" a caller told Jay Weber today, as I was listening for the latest VP news. That sums it up well.
Holding my breath in preparation for holding my nose
(See updates at bottom of post)
Save 10% on gas with the "Melchert Plan"
Last May
I told you about Randy Melchert, candidate for the Wisconsin State
Assembly--24th District. Although that is not my district, his "Melchert Plan"
to lower area gasoline prices by 10% is appealing. I don't have to live
in the Menomonee Falls/Germantown area to be in favor of that!
Brewer's boot "Hot Air Tour" from ballpark Saturday, July 26, but it's still a go!
Americans for Prosperity, a nationwide grassroots group, was to have held a rally/press conference as part of their Brewer game Taxpayer Tailgate outing tomorrow. The rally was to raise awareness "about the serious threat global warming alarmism poses to our prosperity, including legislation being considered by Congress that would more than double gasoline prices."
Cost of "Hot Air Tour," Tailgate, and Brewer Game July 26th
UPDATE: The Hot Air Tour rally location has been moved to AFP headquarters at 1126 S. 70th St, West Allis, 1:30pm.
Ryan's "Roadmap For America" Ensures Easy Travel For ALL Generations
If you've ever planned a road trip, mapping your route ahead of time makes a big difference: which way will allow you to travel with the least amount of traffic, major city rush hours, or road construction? Often a little planning ahead can save hours being stuck in a traffic jam. Certainly there is no sense to chart a course leading to a bridge closed for repairs. No reasonable person would say, the only bridge ahead is closed, but we'll make such good time before the bridge, we'll pick that route anyway.
Yet this is what our government is doing by ignoring the coming Social Security/Medicare crisis. Politicians don't want to deal with that reality. They know it is going bankrupt, but their attitude is, we'll cross that bridge when we come to it. "There is a growing, bipartisan consensus about the greatest threat to our nation's long-term economic prosperity: the explosion of entitlement spending." (Ryan)
Randy Melchert To Run For 24th Assembly District
Here is a little news for residents to our north, Randy Melchert* is running for State Assembly, 24th District. That area starts just north of Lisbon Road on up to Pioneer Road and from 124th St. west to Hillside Road and includes Butler, Menomonee Falls (most), Germantown, Hubertus and Colgate.
Ugh, McCain and Huckabee? Say it aint so
Just when I finally think I can stomach a McCain presidency, John goes and does something else that makes me shake my head in disgust.
Conservatives, American Dream Summit this Saturday?
Feeling a little low after this week's Super Tuesday results and Romney's campaign suspension?