If you live in Wisconsin you need to get out and vote today as well. I don’t care who you vote for and I will not reveal my vote. Today is a historic day in Wisconsin and the nation, the second step in recalling a sitting governor.
Yesterday the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel stated in an editorial:
It's unnecessary, it's expensive, it's ugly - and it's coming Tuesday […] Enormous amounts of money have been raised on both sides; much of that, again on both sides, is coming from folks and interests outside Wisconsin. Our guess is the ads will be ugly and divisive, especially once we move past the primary. This recall is seen by some here and elsewhere as part of a larger struggle taking place across the country. It also carries the potential, as Walker told the Editorial Board this week, for setting the stage for a constant recall election cycle.
And we still maintain this is all unnecessary because it essentially boils down to one issue: last year's legislation that severely curtailed bargaining rights for most public employees. Politicians, regardless of party, should not be recalled over one issue or one (or even several) votes.
Which is why we hope that state Sen. Robin Vos reintroduces his bill to make it more difficult to conduct recalls in Wisconsin. It's just too easy now, and Wisconsin needs to curb this fever as soon as it can.
The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel is wrong. This recall election is necessary and there is no need to play the fear card by saying it will spark a constant recall election cycle. It is also not easy to recall an office holder. Seriously, you have to really screw up to get recalled. Does the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel have any idea how incredibly difficult it is to collect the required number of signatures to recall? I am guessing they don’t.
This is not just about collective bargaining. This recall is about abuse of power, Walker’s lies and jobs. He and his minions have demeaned our friends and neighbors by calling them “Big Union Bosses” and “Out of State Agitators” and “Slobs.” Well Governor Walker, I am a proud Wisconsinite and unlike you I was born here, I grew up here and will graduate with a Master’s degree on Saturday from one of our state Universities, and I know what it means to be from Wisconsin.
I stood out there shoulder to shoulder with my fellow Wisconsinites in freezing temperatures only to have Walker and his cronies disparage our voices. That is not my Wisconsin. In my Wisconsin we honor and respect Robert M. La Follette and the progressive tradition he started. We have traditions here in Wisconsin that started with La Follette which included getting rid of the patronage system that Walker brought back. The Progressive era also brought us the recall election which the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel wants to repeal. The state of Wisconsin’s motto is FORWORD, not backward.
Get out there and vote today!