Doyle’s Gone, Good Riddance

People all over Wisconsin were happy Monday to see Gov. Jim Doyle announce his intention to not seek reelection.

One thing that progressive Democrats and rightwing Republicans agree on is that Jim Doyle is a liar, a vindictive and corrupt politician.

That’s who he is as governor. A lot of Democrats cannot stand the guy on a personal level. And Republicans are sad to see him go as Doyle would have given them a clear shot at the governor’s office.

That’s not really news and it’s not entirely clear how this reality fits into Doyle’ decision to not seek reelection.

According to Doyle, he reached his decision some seven to 10 days ago [WisPolitics], coming around to his belief that he claims to have held since being first elected governor in 2002: He will only serve two terms, the “norm” for governors.

"I think this national norm serves good purpose. It keeps the political world from becoming stagnant. It allows new leaders to develop. It gives the voters more choices,” said Doyle Monday.

Why then did Doyle raise more than $2 million for reelection?

Republicans are demanding that Doyle return the campaign money, but he’ll likely give it to a worthy cause to polish his legacy.

In the face of declining poll numbers, a few weeks before the time that Doyle says he was deciding not to run again Doyle announced the appointment of an over-the-top, former anti-drug prosecutor as a finalist to a Dane County Judgeship, Amy Smith.

Smith was rejected by a judicial advisory selection committee but inserted by Doyle as a finalist though Smith was “rebuked for dishonesty on two separate occasions by appellate court judges” during her tenure as an anti-drug prosecutor.

“His judicial selection process … was besmirched by his decision to add the name of a longtime aide and campaign donor to the list of finalists for a Dane County judgeship -- and then to appoint the woman [Amy Smith],” reads the Capital Times editorial reacting to Doyle's announcement, Memo to would-be governors: Embrace real reform.

On July 8, Doyle announced the appointment of Smith.

Doyle is corrupt to the bone and his legacy will be remembered as politics as usual, dishonest and self-serving.

At least he’s leaving now. Memo to would-be governors: Don’t be Jim Doyle.