On Gov Walker and Political Lies

Update: Stop Gov. Walker's anti-democratic, anti-family power-grab!
Here's the Big Five Republican lies:

• Working families with a state employee are responsible for budget deficit
• Collective bargaining for working families is responsible for budget deficit
• Wisconsin seniors, rural citizens, blacks, browns and working families are engaged in massive voter fraud
• Modest population growth (same number of congressional seats now as last 11 years) requires radical realignment of all Congressional, State Assembly and Senate districts in a scheme that just happens to favor Republican incumbents [you'll hear more about that beauty in the coming months]
• The University of Wisconsin system needs to be run by a bunch of Republican politicians

Gov. Walker, when you target Wisconsin working families because they don't like your politics, you use the machinery of government in the same manner as Richard Nixon and Joe McCarthy.

Knock off your political paybacks and political lies. Get back to the economic state of emergency for Wisconsin working families that you told voters is your top priority.

Wisconsin citizens do not owe you and the Republican Party political allegiance. We can vote for and work for whomever we damn please. It's called: Democracy.

The Reason Why Progressives Want Mark Neumann; It's Not the "Lord's Will," as Neumann Says

- It's Mark Neumann's extremism that comes from Neumann's church, the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (WELS) instructing its members in explicitly anti-Catholic, anti-Semitic, anti-choice and anti-gay teachings; hate that does not play well in Wisconsin no matter that Neumann calls his hate "morals," "ethics" and "values". Hate will make Neumann a weak candidate in the general election. -

Neumann's political decision-making process—that in Neumann's own words is directly guided by his religion—micromanages its members' lives in a manner that is exclusionary, bigoted and hateful.

Heartland Hollar had a piece out last May, Neumann's the One, linking to an interview with Christian Life Resources, a religious organization that "subjects itself to the doctrine and practice of the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod."

And as the Christian Life Resources interview and another interview, Faith in the Political Arena, make clear, it is Neumann who makes his religion the public basis upon which he seeks public office, specifically citing scripture text as interpreted by his church. So we're supposed to ignore it?

We expose the hate, and come next Tuesday wish for Mark Neumann, a gifted man in many respects, to be the GOP gubernatorial nominee. Wisconsin will not vote hate, progressives believe: Call it "faith."
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Christian Life Resources Interview
- Clearly Caring Magazine, Sept/Oct 2008, Vol. 28, No. 5

Will you run for office again?

The words of James 4:13-17 are useful tools in planning my life. If it is the Lord's will I would consider it a privilege to run for office again and serve the people if elected.

Was there any portion of God's Word that you leaned on while serving in public office?

The most worn page of my Bible referenced Matthew 6:25-34 where Jesus tells us not to worry. James 1:2-7 also reminded me that trials lead to maturity and that wisdom will be provided to those who do not doubt.

WELS Interview

Asked how he made his decisions in Congress in an interview with the WELS Communication Services Director, Neumann replied, "What we did in our office, and Sue (wife) helped me a lot with this, we established a checklist, so to speak, on any bill that would come before us. And we'd ask ourselves first, 'Is there a moral or ethical reason to a cast a vote in any particular way.' And if there was, it didn't' matter what anybody else said to me, we were going with the morals and ethics first."

[This an edited version of a previously published piece.]

See also:

Mark Neumann in His Own Words
Mark Neumann: The Mean Machine
Mark Neumann for Gov. - Please Jesus, Yes!
Mark Neumann's Church: An Unfair Topic?
Mark Neumann Is Ready, Wisconsin Is Not

Walker Supported Transportation Bill That He Hits Neumann on in New Ad; Even Wrote Letter to Editor

Now, this is fun. Scott Walker caught again in a blatantly hypocritical position.

You read it before: Walker is too slick by half. What a blunder to make on a last-minute attack ad.

Take a closer look at Scott Walker via the Mark Neumann campaign:

WAUKESHA, Wis. - September 8, 2010 - A newspaper article and letter to the editor reveal that Scott Walker supported the transportation bill that he now attacks Mark Neumann for voting in favor of back in 1998.

The bill is at the heart of Walker's last-minute, negative attack ads on TV, radio and direct mail which attempt to link Neumann to Nancy Pelosi for voting to support the same transportation bill that Walker himself supported.

"Scott Walker is attempting to smear Mark Neumann's record as a true fiscal conservative with a desperate, negative attack campaign attempting to link Neumann to Nancy Pelosi," Neumann campaign manager Chip Englander said. "Yet, Scott Walker supported this bill as well. He said it would 'save Milwaukee County taxpayers money.'"

"What Walker calls pork today, in 1998 he said would save money."

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel article by Larry Sandler published May 30, 1998

And the state legislators agreed, in a letter saying, "We believe the taxpayers of Milwaukee County will benefit from not being forced to use these transportation funds on a light rail system that would cost hundreds of millions of dollars, or on (special) lanes that would tear up residential and commercial property in Milwaukee County."

The six state legislators, led by Rep. Scott Walker (R-Wauwatosa), said the money would be best spent on such projects as reconstruction of the Marquette Interchange and the Zoo Interchange, and increased support of the Milwaukee County Transit System.

Scott Walker Letter to the editor, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, published June 15, 1998
Scott Walker says: "Transit projects a good use of funds"

. . . Originally, $241 million of federal funds was set aside for use on the East-West Corridor. Specifically, the money could be used for a light rail system along the corridor or for the widening of I-94 to insert car pool and bus lanes…

. . . At that time, a group of Milwaukee County lawmakers objected to both proposals. Fast forward to May 1998. The same Milwaukee County lawmakers -- three Democrats and three Republicans -- applauded the change in the use of the $241 million and asked that the funds be used on local projects, including the reconstruction of the Marquette Interchange, the Zoo Interchange and on expanding support for the Milwaukee County Transit System.

In our opinion, supporting these projects is a better use of the funds and will ultimately save Milwaukee County taxpayers money.

Rep. Scott Walker
R-Wauwatosa

Englander concluded, "Mr. Walker, please take down your negative and hypocritical attack ads and run a positive campaign."

Please click here to read the articles in their entirety:

- Milwaukee Journal Sentinel article by Larry Sandler published May 30, 1998
- Scott Walker Letter to the editor, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, published June 15, 1998
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Download the Press Release (PDF)

Effort Begun to Swing Close GOP Gov Race to Mark Neumann

With a divided Wisconsin GOP still dominated by the religious right, an effort is under way by progressives to take advantage of the lack of significant Democratic primaries [the Madison 78th assembly race being an exception] to make Mark Neumann the GOP nominee for governor.

So, look for a significant turn-out of Democratic and progressive voters casting their lot with Mark Neumann next Tuesday.

Mark Neumann has a profoundly, if earnestly held, anti-Catholic, anti-Semitic and anti-gay worldview that would make Neumann a weak general election gubernatorial candidate.

Call it what you will but a close race could very easily be swung to Neumann with a little help from his Democratic and Progressive friends.

See:
Mark Neumann in His Own Words
Mark Neumann: The Mean Machine
Mark Neumann for Gov. - Please Jesus, Yes!
Mark Neumann's Church: An Unfair Topic?
Mark Neumann Is Ready, Wisconsin Is Not

Scott Walker Worried about Neumann

Pre-primary polls are about as reliable as Brett Farve running hard for a needed first down.

And this truism applies emphatically to the Rasmussen polling touted by Mark Neumann in the GOP gubernatorial primary campaign.

What is clear from both the past pro-Scott Walker spots by shadowy independent groups and the new Walker direct mail piece assailing Mark Neumann as comparable to Nancy Pelosi [a bad thing among Republicans], is that Walker is worried about Neumann and the national GOP does not want Neumann as the nominee.

And Walker should be worried. Walker is running in the twenty-first century GOP, not exactly big on the Enlightenment.

And with no big statewide Democratic races, an unknown, perhaps significant number of Democrats may vote in the GOP primary for Neumann, seen as a weaker general election opponent.

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WALKER LAUNCHES NEGATIVE ATTACK AGAINST NEUMANN

As Walker falters in polls, Walker launches smear attempt to compare Neumann to Nancy Pelosi
Neumann Pledge: I will continue positive TV ads & mailers; asks Walker to do the same

WAUKESHA, Wis. - September 5, 2010 - In the wake of a new poll indicating that Mark Neumann is now the strongest candidate in the race for Governor, challenger Scott Walker has launched a negative attack in the form of a direct mail piece that compares Neumann to House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi. The piece has surfaced just days before the Sept. 14 primary election.

In response, Neumann has signed a pledge not to run any negative TV attack ads or mailers in the closing days of the primary election campaign, and has asked Walker to do the same. The pledge was hand-delivered to Walker's campaign headquarters this afternoon.

"When I first heard about this mailer I thought it was a joke. Nancy Pelosi? Is he kidding? I was kicked off a Congressional committee for fighting government spending," Neumann stated. "This is the type of last-minute smear campaign that career politicians launch when they are trying to make up lost ground in the closing days of a campaign." Neumann was considered one of the principal architects of the 1998 balanced budget - the first balanced budget in decades.

"The people of Wisconsin want constructive solutions from the candidates for Governor, not desperate last-minute attacks - and I won't stoop to that level," Neumann added. "I ask Scott Walker to join me and sign the pledge not to run negative TV attack ads or mailers in the closing days of this campaign."

The latest Rasmussen poll shows Neumann would beat Tom Barrett, 48 to 44%. It is Rasmussen's 10th poll in this race and the first time the poll has shown Neumann would beat Barrett by a wider margin than Walker. It was also the first poll to show Neumann outperforming Walker with Republicans.

Specifically, the Walker negative attack mail piece singles out one vote from 1998 that 143 Republicans voted for, including Wisconsin Republican Congressmen Tom Petri (Walker endorser) and Scott Klug, along with national conservative leaders like Dick Armey, now a leading Tea Party advocate. Democrats, including Wisconsin's David Obey, voted against it.

Importantly, the bill also ensured that all federal gas tax revenue would be dedicated to transportation projects. As Governor, Neumann has made it clear he will dedicate transportation-related taxes to transportation projects and ban any raids on segregated funds, including the transportation fund. It was not immediately clear whether Walker's negative attack signals a change in his own position on transportation funding.

Facts and Law v. Corruption

The foundation upon which we elect judges to Wisconsin's top appellate court is impartiality and committed application of the law and facts, right?

Wrong again.

With the notable exception of Shirley Abrahamson, this year's supreme court campaign between Judge Randy Koschnick and incumbent Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson again demonstrates the utter lack of fidelity to the above principles, with virtually all of journalism blindly following along the circus (disappointingly journalist Dee Hall joinied in the no-thinking chorus).

Last night's debate and coverage are emblematic of the know-nothing judicial campaigns of Wisconsin.

Consider Hall's reporting.

Hall makes no reference to Wisconsin's Code of Judicial Conduct that mandates "'(impartiality' (meaning) the absence of bias or prejudice in favor of, or against, particular parties, or classes of parties, as well as maintaining an open mind in considering issues that may come before the judge."

Hall, instead, gives readers a he-said, she-said reporting of the debate:

In what is becoming a replay of previous Wisconsin Supreme Court races, Judge Randy Koschnick, a self-declared 'judicial conservative' and 'choice of law enforcement,' sought to paint incumbent Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson as a liberal who favors defendants over victims and the police.

Abrahamson retorted that 'a judge is not supposed to be pro- or anti-anything.' Calling such labels 'meaningless' and 'name-calling,' Abrahamson insisted that she decides cases on facts and law — not her personal feelings.

[Note Stacy Forster's reporting in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel is no better than Hall's, quoting Abrahamson's reference to a "fair, impartial, independent judiciary" without mention of the fact that an impartial, independent judiciary is the law.]

Only one candidate's campaign, Abrahamson, is in compliance with Wisconsin's Code of Judicial Conduct mandating impartiality and application of facts and law.

This campaign is a replay certainly (like the Butler-Gableman race last year), but the culprits are know-nothing journalism such as Hall's and Koschick's campaign, in stark contrast to Abrahamson's.

Koschnick outright promises to be biased in favor of a class of litigants (what he terms law enforcement) while Abrahamson promises fidelity to facts and law.

This routine per se breaking of the foundation of judicial policymaking in judicial campaigns escapes Hall's reporting (and all that I've read), though Koschick has said, in effect: 'Elect me, I'm corrupt.'

Isn't this worth a graf or two?

Terrorists in Fitchburg Says Mayoral Candidate

Update: Bill Lueders of Isthmus broke this story at 9:58 this morning.

Mayoral candidate Jay Allen [at right] supports policies facilitating terrorists living in Fitchburg, says Allen’s opponent, former Fitchburg mayor Mark Vivian.

Mark Vivian is a hard worker; I respect him.

But Vivian has reportedly teamed up with GOP political operative (and occasional radio personality) Brian A. Schimming of the Midwest Strategy Group, a lobbying and consulting group in Wisconsin, in Vivian’s bid to defeat Allen on April 7 in this non-partisan mayoral race.

And the results are deplorable.

In a fund-raising letter dated March 9, Vivian writes:

My opponent, Jay Allen, has introduced legislative action to use the City’s police powers to condemn land owned by the Novation Campus, and threaten 2.5 million dollars of your tax money to interfere in what should be a private matter between current tenants living illegally on Novation property and its owners. The illegal tenants have known ties to an organization identified on the U.S. Federal Government list of domestic terrorist groups.

Honestly, this silly fear mongering employed by Vivian is sad, but I doubt Vivian came up with this nonsense by himself.

Writes Isthmus' Lueders: "The (alleged terrorist) group is called Food Not Bombs (a peace group)," Vivian says, when asked what domestic terrorist outfit he was referencing. "They’ve been working with the people [at Drumlin Farms] to organize protests."

Fear mongering is standard GOP fare that fortunately will not play any longer no matter how often Dick Cheney, Mark Vivian, or anyone tries it.

"This is funny," said Allen this morning. "Really, I just don't know what to say."

The John McCain-Sarah Palin-GOP fear mongering presidential campaign of 2008 generated some 37 percent of the vote in Fitchburg last November against Obama-Biden's 72 percent.

Look for similar results on April 7.

As for Mark Vivian, he's a better man than this silliness would lead you to believe.

Below is the picture of political desperation from Isthmus written by someone whose quest for political power has transformed him into a political golem.