Monday, May 28, 2012
When the current political "food fight" is over, perhaps the state can calmly re-examine if, when, and how to recall public officials.
A prominent political scientist recently observed that "Wisconsin is a state in turmoil." Sadly, many objective observers of state politics from around the nation concur with University of Virginia professor Larry Sabato. It’s easy to see why. By summer, Wisconsin will have attempted to recall 15 state officials in a year. The number and frequency of these elections, the money spent, and the toxic rhetoric are all unprecedented in state and American history. In this polarized environment, Wisconsin cannot have a civil discussion about how to restore stability to state government. But, eventually, we will have to consider how to end the destructive cycle of recall elections. When that day comes, it will be helpful to know how Wisconsin …
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
Gov. Scott Walker has raised $13 million in campaign contributions this year, while his two key challengers in the recall race — Kathleen Falk and Tom Barrett — have taken in less than $1 million each.
Republican Gov. Scott Walker has raised $13 million in the most recent three-month reporting period in his effort to retain his seat in Wisconsin's historic recall election, new campaign finance reports showed. By comparison, Democratic challenger Kathleen Falk received nearly $1 million in contributions, while Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett netted $831,000 in the reporting period that ended April 23. Barrett, Falk and three other Democratic candidates are squaring off in the May 8 recall primary election. Walker, who has token opposition in the GOP primary, will face the Democratic primary winner on June 5. In addition to raising big bucks, Walker’s campaign noted that it had a total of 125,926 contributions, many of which came from small …
Monday, April 30, 2012
Here are the latest updates from the campaign trail in the upcoming recall elections.
Every day between now and the May 8 primary recall elections, Patch will provide regular updates on what's happening in the campaigns of those who want to be our next governor. Check back with this column throughout the day for the latest from the campaign trail. 2:05 p.m.: Falk wants DNR secretary fired Democratic gubernatorial candidate Kathleen Falk is calling for Republican Gov. Scott Walker to fire the state Department of Natural Resources secretary, The Huffington Post reports. Falk made the demand Monday at a news conference after the Wisconsin State Journal reported that the number of DNR environmental permit violation notices dropped to a 12-year low in 2011. DNR Secretary Cathy Stepp told the newspaper she wants the agency to …
Saturday, March 24, 2012
About 100 people waved signs and shouted their support for Gov. Scott Walker Saturday.
Calling a recall election inevitable, about 100 supporters of Gov. Scott Walker rallied Saturday on Bluemound Road outside Brookfield Square to energize their base with sign-waving, horn-honking and camaraderie. "We're trying to get our own people motivated for the upcoming recall election," said Santo Ingrilli, who helped coordinate the event, dubbed "Walker Backers At The Square." "It's going to happen; we've accepted that," Ingrilli said. "So let's get pumped for it and win it." There weren't any speakers at the event, but state Sen. Alberta Darling (R-River Hills) stood with her husband among the crowd as they waved their signs for oncoming cars. "We have to raise awareness that this election counts and what Walker is doing is working…
Monday, February 6, 2012
Hari Trivedi says he can't self-finance a gubernatorial race and will eventually need to seek campaign funds.
A Brookfield physician says he spent $27,600 on Super Bowl ads in Madison and Milwaukee to draw attention to his planned bid for governor as an independent candidate if a recall election is scheduled. Hariprasad "Hari" Trivedi ran a 32-second spot that focused on unemployment, showing statistics on Wisconsin's recent job losses amid national job gains. In an email to Patch Monday, Trivedi said he paid $17,000 for eight ad spots in Milwaukee that included pre- and post-Super Bowl times and some slots on other days. He said he spent another $10,625 for four ad spots in the Madison television market. "The most important thing that drove me to run was the disillusionment with the current political establishment — be it Republican or Democratic…
Friday, February 3, 2012
State elections chief says requiring a public searchable database would be expensive and impractical. The state might use a searchable database in its review and enter names, not addresses.
Updated (Feb. 3): An appeals court has vacated a Waukesha County Circuit Court's order that state elections officials do more to ferret out duplicate signatures on Recall Walker petitions, saying the court erred in not allowing recall organizers to intervene in the case. The decision by the Court of Appeals District IV panel based in Madison means Waukesha County Circuit Judge J. Mac Davis will need to re-hear the case, allowing for input from representatives of both campaigns — that of Gov. Scott Walker and the recalls. "We conclude that the recall committees are entitled to intervene as a matter of right," the appellate court ruled. "It cannot be seriously disputed that the recall committees have an interest in the procedures that will …
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Picketers could be ushered away, though, because event organizers have also rented that part of the park where they intend to protest.
- GOVERNMENT
- Jim Price
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Thursday, January 19, 2012
Protests of some kind are being planned Saturday afternoon to counter the Celebrate Walker rally in Hart Park in Wauwatosa, according to several sources. But they may be stymied if their anticipated protests get too loud or impede anyone's access to the pro-Walker event, as its organizers have already laid claim to the same turf the protesters want to use. We Are Milwaukee, the consortium of labor and social-left groups that organized and staged a Recall Walker rally and signature-gathering event Nov. 15 in Wauwatosa, has calls for protests on its Facebook page. The group also created an events page on Facebook called Stand Against 1% Walker to promote a protest, but in the past 24 hours it has been largely taken over by posts and comments…
43.046148
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Hart Park
7300 Chestnut St, Milwaukee, WI
Protesters planning to gather at 70th and Chestnut.
/articles/protesters-are-planning-to-show-at-hart-park
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Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Organizers sets new target of collecting 720,000 signatures to force recall election for Wisconsin governor.
Story updated at 11:40 a.m. CST Thursday to reflect new numbers. One month to the day after the start of the effort to recall Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker from office, organizers announced Thursday that they have collected more than 507,000 signatures on recall petitions. Gathering the majority of the 540,280 petition signatures needed to spark a recall election, Democratic Party of Wisconsin Chairperson Mike Tate told supporters at a press conference Thursday, volunteers will continue to canvass. United Wisconsin, which is spearheading the recall effort with the Democratic Party of Wisconsin, echoed Tate, setting a new goal for how many signatures it hopes to collect: 720,277. That's one-third of the total turnout in the November 2010 …
Monday, November 21, 2011
Politicos trying to force Wisconsin's governor into a recall election are planning to be out among the frenzy of shoppers.
As if Black Friday needed more craziness. The annual shopping frenzy will have a dash of the political this year as supporters of an effort to recall Gov. Scott Walker plan to circulate petitions among the deal-hungry masses. Wisconsin Democrats are planning to collect signatures in the Milwaukee area at several stores, including: Recall supporters won't have any luck at Southridge Mall, said Mary Mokwa, manager of the mall. Collecting signatures is a form of soliciting, Mokwa said, and the mall allows no soliciting inside of the building or in its parking lot. The closest recall supporters could get to the shopping center are the public sidewalks surrounding the Southridge property, she said. "If we would observe them and we would …
Friday, November 18, 2011
United Wisconsin says about 50,000 signatures — just less than 10 percent of the 60-day goal — were collected in the first 48 hours.
With the recall effort against Gov. Scott Walker in full swing, organizers say they have already collected 50,000 petition signatures in the first 48 hours. United Wisconsin, a coalition of grassroots organizations throughout the state and the organization spearheading the recall effort, also claims 20,000 people have downloaded petitions from recall websites. Democrats say the surge of signatures sends a clear message that the state is taking a stand against Walker. "The enthusiasm is palpable," said Democratic Party of Wisconsin spokesman Graeme Zielinski. "It shows the people are holding Governor Walker accountable, finally. It’s a cry of enough, from the people of Wisconsin. People are tired of the lies. This isn't hard to figure out. …
James R Hoffa
5:59 pm on Monday, June 4, 2012
Gotta respect the Borscht Belt! I really miss those old resorts - a uniquely American experience in every regard. Grossinger's was king, followed by The Concord. Ah, the good old days! more ›