On August 9 the key recall elections against six Republican State Senators will take place.
I have not focused enough on this lately, with the all consuming debt ceiling fight taking time. But Wisconsin is critically important.
Before I forget, you can donate to help defend the recalls at Frontline Wisconsin.
Here are some links as to what is going on (to be added to, any suggestions please post in the comments):
- The challenger to Republican Alberta Darling has been caught in a growing scandal involving payoffs in the form of food to absentee voters.
- National unions have poured $9.7 million into the recall effort including through We Are Wisconsin, the group led by Harry Reid’s former campaign strategist.
- Two major Tea Party groups are joining together for a bus tour of the state in support of the Republicans.
- A variety of groups have stepped up to help Republicans, including a Citizens United affliate.
- Dems are messaging that their internal polls show them leading in three of the six races — take with large grain of salt.
- Let the conspiracy theories begin: Americans for Prosperity mailed absentee voting applications which had the wrong due date. AFP calls it a printing error, Democrats call it voter suppression.
- The recalls are taking place in the context of good news for Wisconin on job creation and school budgets related to the collective bargaining law which gave rise to the recall effort.
- Club for Growth has spent $3-4 million on the recalls, and total spending by all groups on both sides is expected in the $20-25 million range..
Anyone with on the ground intel, or links to assessments of how the races look, please post in comments.
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Attended rally in Ripon WI for Luther Olsen with Gov Walker attending. The “Walker Stalkers” were there, blocking entry into parking area, needed police to clear the driveway with each vehicle trying to enter or exit. Walker called them his “fan club”. He touted job numbers, credit + rating, schools reports coming in now from all over the state with budget surplus/savings, and yesterday paid back the raided (Dems/Doyle)patient medical malpractice fund ahead of schedule.
Wisconsin Reporter, wisconsinreporter.com sent me an email this AM with multiple articles on all of the points listed in the post here.
Also, have email from Obama’s Organizing For America, OFA, asking me to support their effort in the recall. They state they have staff, phone banks and store fronts (saw one in Ripon). Why is Obama’s re-election campaign involved in recalls? The Gov. stated yesterday that turning this challenge back will set a national tone, that conservatives will not allow the election process to be derailed by recalls (read including his later next year).
McGyver Institute polls in WI show Repubs up, with exception of Luther Olsen/Fred Clark with Clark up 2 pts.
Clark story broke this AM that he is engaged to a lobbyist and she is head of the Conservation lobby that has endorsed him…without revealing her conflict of interest.
Great update, SunnyJ.
I don’t live in Wisconsion, but I dropped one of my bigger donations of the past two years in the box for the lot of them. Please vote, Wisconsin conservatives! I’m doing what I can – since I can’t vote for you.
You have our support and best wishes in continuining to take your state government back under control.
“The recalls are taking place in the context of good news for Wisconin on job creation and school budgets related to the collective bargaining law which gave rise to the recall effort”
Any “good news” about school budgets will be more than offset by the news that will be generated in the upcoming months as local government units (city, village, town, county) prepare their budgets and set tax levies for 2012. The school budgets offered “low hanging fruit” (pension & insurance), but that might not be the case with local units. A lot of local public employes were already paying for health insurance and their pay and other benefits not as good as with the school districts. Today, it was noted that Milwaukee County is looking at a $21 M hit (Gov. Scott Walker was county exec and already implemented a lot of cost saving measures – not so sure he left any stones unturned). School cuts tend to be invisible to the average citizen, but cutbacks at the county and city level are much more visible and felt by the average citizen.
Yah, well, Milwaukee County still has Yooooooonion grass-cutters in the parks system. Walker could not push AFSCME hard enough–which is why he made “rules” bargaining extinct in Wisconsin.
There is a LOT of fat in Milwaukee County gummint. Always has been.
So from Aug4-7, the Unions will spread as much FUD as they can, and pray that assult charges against Prosser will be filed on Aug 8. (even if they get tossed out Aug 10.
I used to think I was too jaded about the political process in WI. Now I realize I was not jaded enough.
Looking back at all the crap we are enduring in Wisconsin; take-over of the capitol, recall elections, senators leaving the state to hold legislation hostage, Kloppenhag recount, Dane County lawsuit to void legislation, free food for votes, etc.; yet the Tea Partiers are accused of hostage taking and being terrorists. We should be so lucky if the Tea Party would emulate the leftist approved tactics used in Wisconsin.
Speaking of Wisconsin, the public employee unions are now using thug tactics in California. The union have put out a lie-filled radio ad undermining the vital petition process in the state. We need everyone who is Californian or knows Californians to get the word out!!!! Thanks.
Please give heavily. These elections are key to 2012. If we can hold off the Red Waves here, we can win in 2012, with large margins to boot.
Fight.
Last I heard (from pretty good (R) sources) is that Olson is in trouble. Kapanke race (LaCrosse) is very tight. Simac may pull off a victory north of Green Bay, Holperin will probably hold his seat IN Green Bay (area) and Steitz (Kenosha/Racine) is not looking too good.
Da YOooooooooooooooooonions really, really, really want to knock off Darling here in MKE area, but it’s not going the way they want, and the dirtbag/flat-out illegal ‘BBQ for votes’ is not good publicity.
WI statutes on the question, by the way, are clear: NO inducement of value greater than $1.00 is allowed, even to get someone to vote–no matter whether you push a particular candidate or not.
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