Wisconsin Democrats Silent on New Steven Avery Filing as Midterm Voting Begins

Democrats blocking innocents' freedom will lose votes — some votes

Update: See new legal filing and updates site.
Updated - Madison, Wisconsin — Republicans attacking Democrats in Wisconsin on crime and law enforcement are nearly as fervent as Democrats' asserting police support.

Midterm absentee voting has begun in Wisconsin, and key Wisconsin Democrats are all in, (trying to be), for police, no matter the misconduct they defend, no matter the innocent lives destroyed in wrongful conviction cases.

The August filing by wrongfully convicted Steven Avery details a new witness who contacted the Manitowoc County sheriff office to report he saw the prosecution's star courtroom witness pushing the murder victim's car onto the property of the defendant. The August filing also details that Manitowoc County Sheriff Dept failed to disclose the witness's phone call, a partial copy of which was obtained by Avery' s post-conviction attorneys, another clear Brady violation.

In this state with a horribly corrupt criminal justice system, the question remains whether Wisconsin voters will reward statewide Democratic Party officeholders who continue to block freedom for the innocent Steven Avery and Brendan Dassey, both of whom the state attorney general and governor know were framed by corrupt law enforcement, amid Brady violations, evidence planting, among other misconduct. highlighted to a worldwide audience in the Emmy-winning Making a Murderer docuseries.

Avery and his nephew, Brendan Dassey, were convicted of first-degree homicide in separate trials in 2007 for the murder of a young photographer, Teresa Halbach. Both men are serving life sentences.

The case is State of Wisconsin v Steven Avery, featured in Making a Murderer in a spectacular examination of police and politcal corruption.

Dassey is seeking a pardon from Gov. Tony Evers, pointing out the convictions are unreliable. Evers says falsely he cannot pardon Dassey because his Pardon Advisory Board advises him not to pardon Dassey.

Wisconsin Democratic Party officials, Gov. Tony Evers and Attorney General Joshua Kaul, have made the political decision to work for this corrupt law enforcement, even the disgraced district attorney Kenneth R. Kratz who prosecuted both the Avery and Dassey cases. Ken Kratz.

This is political liberalism at its most irrational. Tony Evers and Joshua Kaul will not allow crooked Wisconsin police to take a hit, and both Democrats oppose pardons and agreements to vacate the Dassey-Avery wrongful convictions.

One month into his term in 2019, Attorney General Kaul filed legal responses signaling the DOJ would stall Avery's exoneration by filing procedural objections

Life is cheap to Wisconsin Democrats led by Gov. Evers (D) and Attorney General Kaul (D).

No matter the evidence that has piled up since the airing of Making a Murderer shined a light on police and prosecutorial corruption, Wisconsin Democrats remain committed to keeping in prison those whom they know are innocent.

Democrats love their police, no matter how corrupt, for example, Manitowoc County and Calumet County sheriff operations are, as the midterm elections feature Republican ads showering Wisconsin Democrats as weak on crime.

For Wisconsin Democrats, it's defend police no matter how many innocent lives are destroyed.

Tony Evers rejects Brendan Dassey pardon petition

In December 2019, Tony Evers hid behind his Pardon Advisory Board, a stance the governor has continued through spokesmen in the media and administration who falsely say Evers has no choice but to take the advice of his own advisory board.

But the truth about Evers' pardon power came out two years later, last Spring, when Evers announced he would offer immediate clemency to doctors prosecuted for performing abortions under Wisconsin's nineteenth century antiabortion law. Nothing about Evers' Pardon Advisory Board and its criteria.

Tony Evers, like any Wisconsin governor, has the Constitutional power (executive clemency), to grant pardons, (grants of forgiveness restoring civil rights), sentence commutations (roughly, shortening a sentence), and reprieves, for any reason.

The gubernatorial clemency power is so broad that it is monarchical. Gov. Evers could wake up one morning and decide that only those convicted in courts presided over by judges whom we know are corrupt may be granted royal relief — perfectly within the province of his gubernatorial authority.

Evers set up his Governor's Pardon Advisory Board that advises him on whom to pardon. All clemency decisions remain Evers' and his alone. To be clear, any reporting that also suggests that Evers is bound by his Advisory Board or any other political adviser is erroneous.

Attorney General Joshua Kaul

After the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization last Spring, Joshua Kaul repeated he would not use state resources to enforce the Wisconsin anti-abortion law against convictions of women and doctors.

Going forward

Seth Waxman — a member of Brendan Dassey's legal team — said that when reviewing the outrageous interrogation of Dassey by Mark Wiegert, (current Sheriff of the Calumet County Sheriff's Office), and Tom Fassbender (Wisconsin DoJ, DCI investigator (ret)), that his "blood ran cold."

Gov Evers maintains the explicit state Constitutional authority and right to summarily reject the Board's decision and grant Mr. Dassey his immediate freedom with a stroke of a pen for any or no reason, (Rolling Stone).

This action would entail using capacities that to date Evers has not displayed — intellectual honesty, knowledge of Wisconsin law enforcement, and to the worst of Evers' personal defects, a moral backbone and sensibility to the call of social justice.

Joshua Kaul too could refuse today to oppose Steven Avery's new filing calling for a new trial. A witness, Thomas Sowinski, has come forward and swears in a statement that he saw the prosecution's key trial witness plant the murder victim's RAV4 vehicle on the property of the man, Avery, convicted of homicide in 2007.

In other words, a credible resident swears he caught conspirators red-handed in a frame-up scheme in Wisconsin's infamous murder case drawing headlines in state post-conviction litigation.

Further, Zellner brings another Brady violation to the Court's attention, showing a phone "call to dispatch from a witness claiming to see the vehicle leave the property was not provided to previous counsel. Zellner says her office [recently] received the 'previously suppressed' call that was placed on Nov. 6, 2005. The recording had never been disclosed to the trial defense," reports WBAY-Green Bay, citing another spectacular legal filing on August 16.

A worldwide community remains appalled with Wisconsin "justice." Will Wisconsin voters? November will tell.

Corrupt police worked and worked until planting evidence and character assassination gave a ridiculous local press enough for the get-Avery project in the public mind in east-central Wisconsin. Corrupt Wisconsin courts okayed everything that the prosecution and police did.

The long time common law rule was “1 warrant, 1 search. Not 8 days & 7 searches/entries to SA residence on 1 warrant. We challenged the searches pretrial & (as usual) courts created new law in WI just for SA’s case to allow it. One of many “Steven Avery exceptions” to the law. 🙄 https://t.co/GTLFyVVpdI

— Jerome Buting (@JButing) October 6, 2022

How can you allow the continued suffering of an innocent?

It is tantamount to walking past a dying man on the street, pretending not to hear his call for help. What kind of person does that? YOU?

God has given you the power to do good @Tony4WI @JoshKaulWI. HOW WILL YOU USE IT? pic.twitter.com/UlORf1COPy

— Rhonda SD (@rhonda_sd) August 22, 2022

Indeed, what else are they hiding? They’ve always had this call, and clear time stamps for all calls. MTSO officials & records clerks should give sworn deposition testimony about where & how their records are stored. Maybe someone has the personal integrity not to lie under oath. https://t.co/adRhEs9n8K

— Jerome Buting (@JButing) August 19, 2022

It’s true. They deliberately stripped the call times from the tracks provided. We spent hours trying to discern the sequence & times of calls based only on content & subjects discussed. https://t.co/sxfmcIazrY

— Jerome Buting (@JButing) August 17, 2022

It’s another Brady violation. As usual in these cases, a stroke of luck defense ever found out. A new records clerk apparently made mistake & included Sowinski’s call in new open records request in May 2022. The call was hidden from us before trial & from @ZellnerLaw until now.

— Jerome Buting (@JButing) August 17, 2022

Wisconsin Republican Robin Vos Is Pathetic

Madison, Wisconsin — Wisconsin Speaker of the Sate Assembly Robin Vos (R-Rochester, WI) is digging in on his crusade to prevent State Rep. Jimmy Anderson (D-Fitchburg,WI) from attending legislative committee meeting by phone in a violation of the federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

Rep. Anderson is paralyzed and Vos does not like the presence of disabled people at Wisconsin Assembly Committee meetings.

Anderson was paralyzed in a California car accident in 2010 for which he sued Stanislaus County California for failure to timely install a four-way stop, (Mal Contends, Insurance News, Verdict Search).

It has been widely misreported that the proximate cause of the California tragedy is a drunk driver. A  California county's negligent failure to install a four-way stop is the cause of the accident, as Anderson argued in court and mediation, (Insurance News, Verdict Search).

Today, Vos sent a letter to Anderson criticizing the paralyzed lawmaker for alerting the press about Vos' blocking Anderson's virtual attendance at committee meetings, (NYT).

Reports the Associated Press:

The Republican speaker of the Wisconsin Assembly told a paralyzed Democratic state representative in a letter Thursday that he will not grant his request to call in to committee meetings by phone but will pursue other accommodations to appease the lawmaker.

Speaker Robin Vos sent Rep. Jimmy Anderson the letter just hours after The Associated Press contacted every Republican in leadership to see if they agreed with barring Anderson from calling into meetings. ...

But Vos also took issue with Anderson for taking his complaint to the press. 'Instead of resorting to political grandstanding, you could have called my personal cell phone at any time to discuss this matter,' Vos said.

Anderson, in an interview prior to the letter being sent Thursday, expressed frustration that Republicans were not commenting on his request.

It should be clear to the nation that Robin Vos and Wisconsin Republicans are spiteful, lawless and pathetic.

Wisconsin Republican Speaker: Paralyzed Legislator Cannot Attend Committee Meetings by Phone; Disability Is "Disrespectful"

Republicans declare the Wisconsin State Assembly 
exempt form federal law in effort to ban paralyzed
lawmaker from attending committee meetings.

Madison, Wisconsin — Wisconsin Republicans have reached a new all-time low in lawlessness and indecency.

The Wisconsin Speaker of the Sate Assembly Robin Vos (R-Rochester), is blocking State Rep. Jimmy Anderson (D-Fitchburg) from attending legislative committee meeting by phone in a violation of the federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), reports Patrick Marley in the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.

Reports Marley, Speaker Vos called the paralyzed legislator's inability to attend some committee meetings "disrespectful."

Reports Marley: "It just comes down to the fact that I think it's disrespectful for someone to be asking questions over a microphone or a speakerphone when individuals are actually taking the time out of their day to come and testify in person," Robin Vos said.

Anderson was paralyzed in a California car accident in 2010 for which he sued Stanislaus County California for failure to timely install a four-way stop, (Mal Contends, Insurance News, Verdict Search.
---
Vos' move in blocking phone and virtual attendance of a paralyzed representative is also contemptuous of the constituents in Wisconsin's 47th assembly district.

That a state legislative body may simply declare itself a lawless island is absurd.

Further, consider the make of the man, Robin Vos, who is apparently so deformed that Vos declares Assembly committee meetings forbidden for a legislator who dares represent constituents while disabled.

An educated guess: Not even Wisconsin Republicans are stupid enough not to back down.

Foxconn-O-Meter Measures Opposition to Co Black Hole by Democratic Gov Hopefuls

Candidates for the nomination of the
Democratic Party for Wisconsin governor
are ranked by opposition to Foxconn
in new press release.

Madison, Wisconsin — Gubernatorial candidate, Matt Flynn, is the acknowledged anti-Foxconn voice in the Democratic Primary.

It's not controversial, as Tony Evers' evolving position is now Foxconn is here to stay.

From the Matt Flynn campaign comes another Foxconn press release dated July 19. The release is reproduced below.

The release highlights the growing rift between candidates Matt Flynn and Tony Evers.

Evers insisted at a debate last week that Foxconn cannot be fought and the company is here to stay, as well as the $4.5 billion Wisconsin taxpayers are expected to cough up.

Flynn is unequivocal that he will fight Foxconn and terminate the contract.

Flynn and Paul Soglin lead the anti-Foxconn index. Evers brings up the bottom.

From the Flynn campaign.

Of the Eight Democrats Challenging Walker, Flynn is by Far the Strongest in Opposition to Foxconn

(Milwaukee) – All eight Democrats challenging Scott Walker say they are opposed to the $4.5 billion corporate welfare giveaway to Foxconn, but there are differences between them on what to do about it. The “Foxconn-O-Meter” shows where every candidate ranks in opposition to the Foxconn deal, based on their approach to stopping it.

Of all eight Democrats, only Matt Flynn has released a detailed strategy for stopping the Foxconn deal. Most candidates have released little-to-no details about their approach to Foxconn, only saying they’re against it. Two candidates – including Tony Evers – say they will not even try to stop Foxconn.

“The Foxconn deal is the worst economic development plan in history,” said Flynn. “It is also unconstitutional. As governor, I will bring litigation to rescind the contract on Day One. Foxconn can come here, but they will have to follow our laws and they will not get our tax dollars. No other candidate is as committed to stopping the deal.” #

Trump Hails Scott Walker on Foxconn, Tony Evers Says Co Is Here to Stay, Matt Flynn Vows Foxconn Is Gone and Terminated, If Elected

Madison, Wisconsin — Gov. Scott Walker attended a White House ceremony with Trump and Cabinet members in D.C. yesterday, which included a lovefest on the proposed Foxconn Technology Group project in Wisconsin, (AP).

In Wisconsin, Republican-lite Tony Evers, candidate for the Democratic Party nomination, continues his stance Foxconn is here to stay.

While Matt Flynn, candidate for the Democratic Party nomination, says the Foxconn-Wisconsin contract will be terminated, if Flynn is elected governor.

Wisconsin Special State Senate Election — Dem Candidate Gets Campaign Manager from Jan Special Election Win

Caleb Frostman of Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin
declares for special state senate election.

Campaign team to include manager who worked with St. Croix County medical examiner and now State Sen. Patty Schachtner in senate special-election win

Updated - News a candidate declared for the nomination of the Democratic Party for state senate district one in northeastern Wisconsin was met with a lot of 'who is this guy?' talk today.

Door County's Economic Development Corporation Executive Director Caleb Frostman announced his campaign for Wisconsin’s 1st senate district in the June 12 special election, following Scott Walker's failed effort to block two legislative elections, (Door County Pulse).

According to several sources in northeastern Wisconsin, Frostman's campaign manager will the same activist who worked with St. Croix County, (Wisconsin), medical examiner and now State Rep. Patty Schachtner to an upset victory in January.

Frostman is the nice guy about whom noone apparently knows he's "political."

Several residents in Door and Kewaunee counties joked Frostman must be a fake Democrat.

A nice guy without a political resume may be the candidate Wisconsin State Senate district one needs in the special election that so frightens Scott Walker, the pip-squeak governor needed three judges to explain what a writ of mandamus and positive duty are.

The election is June 12. Stay tuned, going to be a fun Spring.

Scott Walker Aims at Wisconsin's Century-old Civil Service System

Governing by Deceit

Scott Walker never campaigned on eliminating Wisconsin's century-old civil service system before or during his five-year tenure as governor.

No one did.

Fresh from a humiliating 'campaign' for the presidency, Walker discerned (from god apparently) he has been called to eliminate the anti-corruption system (DeFour, Wisconsin State Journal).

Scott Walker in 2011 turned civil service state positions into 37 new Walker political appointees just a month after declaring, "we're broke," (Stein, Marley, Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel).

Poor Scott Walker.

Scotty's a sad, little man who wants to stack myriad levels of state government with Scott Walker cronies.

Wisconsin is mobilizing by this latest ambush by Walker.

Noted by DeFour is the fact Walker said the civil service system is a critical part of the public labor system in Wisconsin when he deceived the Wisconsin people in 2011:

The move comes more than four years after Walker swept away collective bargaining for most public-sector employees, a proposal he defended by saying the civil service system is 'the protection that workers have that’s the most important in the state of Wisconsin. … It was there long before collective bargaining, it’ll be there long after.'

One surmises god has a different take now, more plausibly Walker is an inveterate liar.

Maybe Scott Walker will be called in the future to propose legislation mandating allegiance to Scott Walker as a condition of state employment, maybe that's what Walker is doing now.

Wisconsin Dem Party Is Going to Need Some Good Staff

Martha Laning's victory as Chair of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin (irrespective of the machinations behind the win) needs to be followed by one heck of a good staff if the Party hopes to turn around its fortunes.

That starts with the Executive Director and Communications Director.

Political Journalists Revealed State Dem Party-Nation Consulting Corruption

Martha Laning emerged victorious June 6 as elected Chair at the Wisconsin Democratic Party (DPW) Convention in a repudiation of the outgoing Chair's virtual dissolution of the DPW's campaign work.

But this unlikely blow-out victory would not have been possible without the work of political journalists who blew the lid off the feckless Mike Tate and Nation Consulting corruption out of Milwaukee.

Kudos to Aaron Camp for his work:

• Wisconsin Democratic Chairperson Candidate Jason Rae Employed by Firm Founded by Individual That Provided Money to Koch-funded Organizations
• Nation Consulting’s Ties to Republican Firms Run Even Further

Same to Zach at Blogging Blue: Thad Nation: "I run a firm with a lot of different clients. We work with both Republicans and Democrats and we employ Democrats and Republicans."

And Cognitive Dissidence for the series on the Milwaukee County Democratic Party, Nation Consulting, Jason Rae and Mike Tate's shenanigans.

Finally, Joe Wineke deserves plaudits for sounding the alarm last year about the ineffectual DPW and its abandonment of the fundamentals of campaigning and Party building from the people and for the people.

The DPW is a stronger position now than it was yesterday.

Martha Laning Emerges Victorious in Wisconsin Dem Party Chair Race

Martha Laning was elected Chair of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin (DPW) this afternoon by a sizable majority in a clear rejection of outgoing DPW Chair Mike Tate and his chosen successor.

Amid a historic decline of Wisconsin public school funding, the University of Wisconsin System, environmental protection and control of local governments by the state, the DPW faces the political equivalent of a Manhattan Project against Republican forces and billionaires.

Martha Laning was elected Chair among five candidates of out an unofficial delegate total of 1,321 votes, with the possible addition of some 25 alternate votes.

Manitowoc County delegate, Bernie Starzewski, said, "I will stand watch and give Martha a fair chance."

Laning received 53 percent of the vote.

Starzewski declined to comment on widespread allegations of an unfairly rigged convention.

Rick Adamski, a Shawano County delegate, said was surprised by the margin of the win.

Some sixty-seven percent of the vote rejected the Tate-Rae-Nation Consulting faction that presided over a once powerful political Party.

Long Lines at Wisconsin Dem Convention Chair Vote

Sample Ballot for election for
Chair of the Democratic
Party of Wisconsin

Freakfest in Milwaukee as Martha Laning Delegates Slur Opponents in Bathrooms

Update III: Unofficial total votes cast: 1,321, still being tabulated.

Update II: Five candidates on ballot. Laning, Wineke or Rae's game.

Update: Source reports, some 1,942 voting delegates expected to vote which would make a winning candidate garnering 389 delegates as a mathematical minimum, assuming five candidates. Thx to Aaron Camp for the math.

A voting delegate phoned me saying voting began before Noon at the Democratic Party of Wisconsin's (DPW) Convention in Milwaukee.

Source says voting is heavy and the lines to pick up the ballot for voting for Chair are long.

Four candidates were nominated, no word if four or five names are on the ballot.

Source reports the line to grab a ballot loops around and loops again and so on. People are stepping out of line because the line is so long. Voters have to be in line by 2:00 p.m. to cast votes but this is going to be a long day. 

Source estimates between 1,000 and 2,000 delegates. 

Martha Laning delegates are getting sleazy saying, a vote for Wineke is a vote for Rae with no basis in fact as Wineke came out of retirement to re-energize and repair the damage wrought by outgoing Chair Mike Tate, Rae and Nation Consulting.

That bullshit is enough to turn any rational person against Laning. Another voting delegate says it's between Laning and Joe, but his basis for calculating this is unclear. 

Laning delegates are putting signs up in the bathrooms slurring opponents, apropos, source says.

The election for DPW Chair has generated political interest because of the radical reengineering project of Wisconsin public schools, the University System, SeniorCare, healthcare, environmental protection among a host of other public policy initiatives none of which Scott Walker and the GOP ran on during the 2014 campaign.

Walker is expected to declare his candidacy for the presidency in weeks.

Reformist Legislators Break Joe Wineke's Way in Race for Dem Chair

Joe Wineke

A slew of Democratic legislators announced their support for Joe Wineke in his run for the chair of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin to be held on Saturday.

Reads a Wineke press release:

Senator Jon Erpenbach (Middleton), and Representatives Terese Berceau (Madison), Chris Danou (Trempealeau), Dianne Hesselbein (Middleton), Andy Jorgensen (Milton), Robb Kahl (Monona), Tod Ohnstad (Kenosha), and Lisa Subeck (Madison) issued the following statement:

We support Joe Wineke for Chair of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin. Having served as a local elected official, in the state legislature for 16 years, and as party chair for 4 years, Joe's unmatched experience uniquely qualifies him to lead our party. 

As elected officials, we see firsthand the damage done to our state by the Republican majority. We need a strong leader who will stand up for our core Democratic values and who has a proven track record of winning elections. Joe Wineke has long been a strong voice for labor and hardworking people. While Joe was in leadership he led Democrats to win majorities in both houses of the Legislature and held the Governor's office.

With Joe as our Chair, we are confident that the voice of the Democratic Party will be heard loud and clear throughout the state. We are confident Joe Wineke can and will lead us down a path to Democratic victories in 2016 and beyond.

Wisconsin Dem Party Chair Election's a Debacle, Could Get Worse Saturday

Gaylord Nelson for governor from 1958.
Will the legacy of Nelson and the founders
of the modern Democratic Party of Wisconsin
be betrayed this Saturday? Stay tuned.

"The Democratic Party began to matter in Wisconsin when young activists decided in the 1940s to stop worrying about patronage and to start worrying about building a political movement," writes John Nichols in The Capital Times.

On the eve of the State Convention of the Democratic Party, patronage is the objective of a faction of the Party: Nation Consulting lobbying firm, (a for-profit Milwaukee outfit whose founder and senior partner is a large contributor to Republicans,) and Nation and outgoing Chair Mike Tate's chosen candidate, Jason Rae.

"The late political journalist Walter Karp, I think articulated this most clearly when he argued that the most defining feature of American politics is the effort of self-interested hacks to keep morally driven reformers out of power," writes Tony Palmeri of the Oshkosh Independent.

Rae, Tate and cohorts drafted the election rules and sited the convention in Milwaukee, Rae's home city, prior to the Milwaukee County Party giving accreditation to delegates based on allegiance to Jason Rae.

Patronage in the form of a Party job is precisely the motivating factor among Rae and his band of happy election riggers, including the late-endorsing and current Chair of the Dane County Democratic Party, Mike Basford, who is looking for a gig after running a disastrous campaign against Madison Mayor Paul Soglin.

Yesterday, Chair candidate Jeff Smith (a late entrant into the election whose name will still be on the ballot) endorsed Martha Laning leaving three serious candidates for Chair: Rae, Laning and Joe Wineke. Smith as late as this week mailed out a glossy 8 1/2 by 11'' piece to delegates promising to turn around the Party from the ground up, a theme Laning and Wineke share, and Rae rejects.

A Laning-voting delegate tells me this morning half-joking there will be a "riot," Saturday and more seriously that acts of civil disobedience and protest against the rigged election are expected.

Another delegate tells me that anyone who tells you, in light of the mounting criticism against Tate-Rae-Nation Consulting, they know who is going to win is kidding you.

Joe Wineke tells me, "I'm just going to keep doing what I'm doing and stay out of the drama. Everyone knows the score now."

The state party, if staffed by activists working for the public interest, can be critical in recruiting candidates, grassroots Party building, fortifying county and field offices, and effective communications and message to the press and social media.

In other words, doing what Nelson, Proxmire, Lucey, Kastenmeier, Dave Obey and Snarlin' Marlin Schneider fought for, building the Wisconsin Democratic Party in the mid-20th century through the 1970s from the people, for the people and of the people.

Wisconsin still has lions honoring this legacy such as Baldwin, Feingold, Risser and Pocan.

But this Saturday at the Party convention could be a pretty sad show, at worst a victory by Jason Rae followed by mass resignations of Party members across the state, a best-case scenario a victory for Joe Wineke bringing small town and rural Wisconsin back into the movement against Walker, and a mediocre outcome, the inexperienced but well-meaning Laning beating back the corruption of the self-interested hacks of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin.

Lobbying Firm Wants Total Control of Wisconsin Dem Party for Profit

Want to know why the once prominent and progressive Democratic Party of Wisconsin (DPW) keeps getting waxed?

Scott Walker and Republicans are only part of the reason. The DPW has also abandoned public service and grassroots party building because lobbyists and flunkies looking for a quick buck are running the Party.

And, as anyone living in Wisconsin since 2010 knows, this bunch knows virtually nothing about running campaigns, throwing away race after race.

Chris 'Capper' Liebenthal‎ at the Wisconsin Urban and Rural Progressive Coalition notes the effort of the for-profit lobbying firm, Nation Consulting [which does work for Republicans], to transform the Wisconsin Democratic Party into less than it is now.

Nation Consulting is based in Milwaukee and one of its senior associates, Jason Rae, is running for Chair of the Democratic Party this coming weekend at the convention sited in Milwaukee, per Rae and Nation Consulting's ally, outgoing Wisconsin Dem Party Chair Mike Tate.

Nation Consulting has already effectively taken control of the Milwaukee County Dems. Milwaukee County Democratic Party members have let the word out that under Jason Rae/Nation Consulting's machinations, the Chair of the Milwaukee County Democratic Party is choosing their delegates to the state convention based on how much they support Jason Rae for Chair.

Writes Liebenthal‎:

Nation Consulting's Andy Suchorski was elected Corresponding Secretary at [the] Nov. 27, 2013 meeting of the Milwaukee County Dems. Notice he still does not have a Bio under his name like the other [officers]. That's because he is an employee of Nation Consulting [a supporter of Republicans]. These guys are clearly scheming to control the Wisconsin Dems. Also, notice in Nation Consulting bio link, Andy Suchorski bio does not mention he is secretary for Milwaukee County Dems. Clearly an attempt to hide his ties to Nation Consulting. 

There are several good candidates challenging Tate's handpicked Jason Rae from Nation Consulting, but unless two of the candidates get together, the rigged election appears already over to some observers.

Others tell me Joe Wineke has enough support statewide in rural Wisconsin to spring a surprise.

We'll see this Saturday. In the meantime, Scott Walker isn't breaking into a sweat worrying about the Democratic Party of Wisconsin getting its act together.

Well, maybe the feckless former Dem spokesperson Graeme Zielinski will pray for the Dems to throw itself to the higher power, fake Democrat Milwaukee County Exec Chris Abele.

Joe Wineke Has Solutions for Ailing Wisconsin Dems

Back in 1989-90 when the notorious Enron Co. was a hard asset pipeline entity, its subsidiary tried to ram an environmentally destructive natural gas pipeline through northern Green and Dane counties.

Small communities like Paoli and Belleville joined larger cities, such as Fitchburg and Madison, in knocking down the effort, successfully moving the pipeline to a different route.

What was striking was the bipartisan opposition from then Sen. Herb Kohl (D-Wisconsin), State Sen. Russ Feingold (D-Middleton), State Rep. Joe Wineke (D-Verona), State Sen. Chuck Chvala  (D-Madison) and local Republicans such as Dane County Supervisors Denise Solie and the late Lyman F. Anderson of Oregon with legal assistance of super attorneys, Ed Garvey and Michael R Bauer.

Farmers, landowners, environmentalists, radicals, progressives and other citizens joined together across parties to protect the land and the Little Sugar River and in colorful terms told Enron what to do with their pipeline idea.

What is sorely missing from politics throughout the country is this kind of bi-partisan support for issues that matter greatly to local populations. Joe Wineke would bring that much-needed focus back to Wisconsin politics.

I had some coffee in January with Joe Wineke (who was my most prolific source for a Capital Times series on the Enron pipeline), discussing his current run for the chair of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin (DPW), which he had held in 2005-09.

I said to Wineke: Everyone, I mean everyone, from Sunny Schubert of the Wisconsin State Journal to Isthmus and the Capital Times to every politico I talked to went to bat for the citizens of Green and Dane counties, never missing an opportunity to blast Enron and Northern Natural Gas for what Chvala called the "off-the-charts arrogance" of Enron.

“That wouldn't happen today. The Republicans have abandoned their constituents for special interests. Republicans are the most extreme, the most destructive I have ever seen them operate and this is precisely because they have abandoned the people who they are supposed to be in office for," said Wineke. "What floors me is the cavalier way they have attacked public schools, which is a blow across the state and especially rural communities. What we need to protect the people of Wisconsin is effective representation. But first we have to win elections. When I was Chair, we fielded a variety of candidates in every legislative and local race we could, not just competing in the ‘so-called’ competitive seats. Not to mention we were pretty darn successful in doing it, filling the vast majority of seats for the Assembly and Senate. [But] in 2014, we left 31 Assembly Republicans off with ‘free rides.’ If I am elected Chair those days are over.”

Facing the massive amount of money (open and dark), the domination of Wisconsin government by the Republican Party, and the fecklessness of the Democratic Party, Wineke was asked if the DPW needs the political equivalent of the Manhattan Project.

“Yes, but you have to remember you have to dance with the girl or boy that brung you, i.e., we can’t change the rules right now. The United State Supreme Court five years ago stacked the deck for rich people and corporations to play the elections. Somehow, a corporation is a person who has the right to vote? I don’t even know who that person is,” said Wineke. “But until we can get a better Supreme Court, and if we can elect a Democratic president in 2016, which is one of my top goals, along with getting back the U.S. Senate seat in 2016 and I sure hope Russ Feingold runs [he is], if we can elect Hillary and we have four to eight more years of a Democratic presidency, we will get a Supreme Court that will be better on these issues that doesn’t kowtow to the billionaire crowd. And then we will be able to fix the mess we are in. Until then, we have to play by the rules we got and since we cannot compete dollar-to-dollar with the Koch brothers and the Republicans we have to go grassroots. And grassroots is the way it should be anyway.”

Wineke sees a once dominant state Democratic party that has abandoned the fundamentals of running campaigns.

“Democrats have been so focused on their hatred with Scott Walker, the problem the Democrats have is that we identified ourselves as against Scott Walker but we’re not getting through with our own message. We need an opportunity agenda. What I want do is: Economic security, educational opportunity and equal opportunity.” Wineke says, “I don’t believe in confiscatory tax rates, punishing people because of wealth. It is really true the current system is just ripping off the poor and working class, Joe and Jane lunch bucket making $25,000 to $50,000 a year are in trouble right now.”

Wineke says if he is elected and the Democrats lose more seats, he'll resign. If the Party loses seats after his prospective two-year term, the former legislator of 16 years said by phone, “I’ll promise to leave the post because I would not have been doing my job. Look, since September, 2012 I have been retired; I don’t need the money. What’s driving me is the direction our state and our party are careening.”

Wineke several times brought the conversation back to the mechanics of running campaigns.

“Message. Message. Recruitment of candidates. Message. When I talk about that opportunity agenda, I’m talking about creating a simple message that we pound home over and over. And the point I want to really raise on this is the sharp contrast between where a Democrat stands and where a Republican stands so that people have a clear idea that if you’re concerned about the future of your rural school—and in a rural area the school is the community center, everything revolves around the rural school district—if you care about equality for people so your child is not being discriminated against because they happen to be black, they happen to be gay, they happen to Native-American, vote for the Democrat because the other side is pandering to prejudice.”

There are five announced candidates for the election of the of the Chair of the Democratic Party next weekend in Milwaukee.

Unless two candidates for chair come together to defeat Tate's hand-picked successor, Jason Rae (who would spell disaster for the people of Wisconsin), I don't see anyone other than Rae winning this rigged election held in Rae's hometown, per Tate.

That's another fundamental Wineke mentioned: Coalition building and grassroots against special interests. "You don't win from the top-down," said Wineke last year on the Joy Cardin show (WPR).

I strongly urge the delegates to the Wisconsin Democratic convention to vote for Joe Wineke for chair.

Gov Walker, How about capping all political appts' salaries?

Gov. Scott Walker is telling the people of Wisconsin a cook earning $28,000/year is way too much, so Walker needs to bring public employees "into line" with everyone else.

Getting into line. How about Gov. Walker begins by capping the salary of every political appointee to $45,000/year with benefits not to exceed those of a cook?

After all, Walker is claiming the people he appoints are dedicated public servants.

So, how about it, Walker?

I mean, if you are so serious about the budget. Many of us believe you are using the budget to hammer political opponents and reward cronies.

This weekend, it came to light that Wisconsin's nurses, cooks, teachers, librarians and other public workers earn 4.8 percent less than private sector workers with similar levels of education, according to a report by the Economic Policy Institute.

In Dane County, we have State Senator Jon Erpenbach (D-Middleton) who is delivering pizzas to make ends meet.

How about your political appointees likewise step up to the plate?

GOP Declares War on Wisconsin Citizens

The GOP is targeting Wisconsin citizens who are not working with the GOP political coalition.

Using our state budget, our legislature, the Attorney General's office, seemingly every legal and political lever available, Gov. Scott Walker and the Republicans are waging war against political enemies and non-aligned citizens.

Their latest target: Public employees and collective bargaining.

The unions' mortal sin is not being a part of the GOP.

Exceptions are made for favored public employees.

Take Tom Nardelli, a public employee who is on the GOP team, Nardelli was just appointed by Gov. Walker to a $90,000 a year state job. (Xoff - Uppity Wisconsin)

A long-time alder and Walker's former chief of staff in Milwaukee County, Nardelli will now draw at least $100,000 a year in pensions, on top of his $90,000 salary. (Xoff -Uppity Wisconsin)

So, GOP players like Nardelli have it made as it's likely Walker will not call out Nardelli and make noise about his pension, salary and crunching state budgets. Call it budget reform.

Other non-GOP citizens. The working class, the elderly, blacks, Latinos, college students all have one thing in common. They're not with the GOP so screw them. Call it election reform.

Who else can the GOP target? Trial attorneys who fight for consumers against big business. Call it tort reform.

What's the matter with Wisconsin, asks Theo Anderson in In These Times this morning. Good question, Mr. Anderson.

One problem is Mike Tate, chair of the state Democratic Party. Tate cannot get a message out to save his life.

Every media, every editors' phone, every GD telephone poll and kiosk, every talk show, anyone who writes have better get the message out that Wisconsin citizens are under attack by the Republican Party. Like now.

It's going to get worse very soon.

Pres Obama on Veterans Benefits - Raised the Veterans Administration's budget by 11 percent

From Wednesday's Town Hall Meeting in Racine, Wisconsin:

THE PRESIDENT: If you take a look at it -- first of all, our military has just been extraordinary. So much burden has been placed on them -- (applause) -- I mean, they've been fighting two wars now for a long time. And, frankly, a lot of folks have been going about their business, not really changing how they behave.

People in uniform have made all kinds of adjustments and their families have made all kinds of adjustments and sacrifices. That's part of the reason why, even though I've frozen discretionary domestic spending, I haven't frozen the budgets that are needed to give pay raises to our troops, to make sure that our veterans are properly cared for, to make sure that their families are getting support on things like child care. (Applause.) Because my attitude is, we've got a solemn obligation to those who put on the uniform to protect the United States of America.

And in the past, there have been times, frankly, where we didn't live up to that obligation. I mean, Veterans Affairs is a great example. When we came in, for all the talk about how we were going to take care of veterans, the truth was the backlogs were so bad and a lot of the facilities for veterans were just not up to snuff. So we actually raised the Veterans Administration's budget by 11 percent -- the biggest hike in 30 years -- just so we could catch up and start making sure that our veterans got the kind of care that they deserve. (Applause.)

Now, but what I may have been referring to is this. When you look at a place like Afghanistan, or you look at a place like Iraq, so many of our military personnel are having to engage in work that really should be civilian work -- helping to build schools, helping to build bridges, helping to set up rule of law and courts, helping -- agricultural specialists to help people learn how to irrigate their fields so that they can grow more food. And the problem is, is that we don't have a civilian effort that has always matched up to the military efforts.

So the military goes in there, they clear out everything, they're making everything secure -- and now the question is, all right, can we get the civilians to come in to work with the local governments to improve the situation. And a lot of times, that civilian side of it has been under-resourced.

So what I'm trying to say is, don't put all the burden on the military. Make sure that we've got a civilian expeditionary force that when we go out into some village somewhere and the military makes it secure, let's have that agricultural specialist right there. Let's have that person who knows how to train a police force right there. Let's have all those personnel and let's make sure that we are giving them the support that they need in order for us to be successful on our mission.

And that means that --by the way, the State Department, our diplomatic arms, we've got to give them more support. A lot of times -- we really support our military, but I'll be honest with you, when you go up to Congress and you start talking to them about the budget for training our diplomats and training our development specialists and all that, then people want to cut their budget because they think, well, that's just foreign aid, that's not -- we don't want to spend our money on that.

But the problem is, is that if you shortchange that, you may end up having to send our troops in to a very dangerous situation because a country has collapsed. We didn't do the good diplomatic work and it's too late, and now the only solution is a military solution that might cost us five times as much. So we've just got to be smart about using all the elements of American power, not just one element on American power. All right? (Applause.)

Okay. Right there in the green. Right there in the green blouse.

Q First of all, thank you very much for all that you do. (Applause.)

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.

Mark Neumann for Gov. - Please Jesus, Yes!

Jim Klauser is a very smart GOP operative advocating that Mark Neumann throw his hat into the ring against Jim Doyle in 2010.

Writes Klauser in his open letter in WisPolitics:

Mark Neumann, a former Congressman who nearly defeated Russ Feingold [in 1998], is a potential candidate. Mark is a successful business man from Waukesha County (a growing county). He and his family are involved in choice and charter school reforms. He is involved in his community and church. While a Congressman, Mark worked with Speaker Newt Gingrich to develop a no tax increase alternative to Bill Clinton’s spend, spend, and spend. ... I have concluded that of the prospective candidates, Mark Neumann is best able to win and govern well. I encourage you to consider Mark Neumann for Governor.

Neumann is independently wealthy and did fight against Clinton and those huge budget deficits [oh, wait Clinton had giant budget surpluses, and was on a path to zero national debt]. Nevermind, Cheney proved facts don't matter and Wisconsin does not want Scott Walker getting killed in 20 months. And people in Wisconsin love Newt Gingrich.

The Knockdown

Neumann's problem is that he is a rabidly anti-gay, rightwing extremist with a long record of hateful ideological baggage that would make George W. Bush blush.

In a widely reported address to the La Crosse Christian Coalition in 1997, Neumann said that he would not hire a person who applied for a position in his legislative office after stating a gay or lesbian orientation.

“If somebody walks in to me and say, ‘I’m a gay person; I want a job in your office.’ I would say, ‘that’s inappropriate’ and they wouldn’t be hired because that would mean they are promoting their agenda. The gay and lesbian lifestyle (is) unacceptable, lest there be any question about that.”

In a March 9, 1997 address to the Madison Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (WELS) church [preaches no abortion even in cases of rape, women need to submit to men and gays are to spend eternity in hell], Neumann said his political advisers warned him not to mention his religion in his 1998 run for the Senate against Sen. Russ Feingold who is also up for reelection in 2010.

“When I first ran I had all kinds of consultants telling me not to mention religion. They told me to tone down any discussion we might have. … they did ask me to tone down the concept of religion or values that are taught in our churches and synagogues as being a part of what we were,” said Neumann.

I think Klauser is thinking that Scott Walker would wash out, and Neumann has lots of money and just might be crazy enough to run.

Open Brief Letter to Mark Neumann

Did you know that Jim Doyle has proposed a statewide domestic partner registry, is an elitist (went to Harvard Law School and was in the Peace Corp) and that he talks to gay people, like all the time.

Mr. Neumann, Jesus wants you to run. Just remember that Satan is closer than the shirt on your own body, to paraphrase Martin Luther’s admonition about the proximity of the Devil. And in Wisconsin politics this intimacy with the Devil emanates from another fallen man with five letters in his name: D-o-y-l-e.

And I think he's Catholic.

- via mal contends