The Final Week

The third gubernatorial recall election in American history is Tuesday, June 5 in Wisconsin. Republican governor Scott Walker will face Democratic challenger, Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett, in this historic election. Polling shows Walker with a slight lead over Barrett, and for this final week before voters take to the polls, TCD compiles news, opinion and analysis from around the web in the Badger State and beyond.

Below, you’ll find a collection of every tweet with the hashtag #WIrecall updating in real time. If you find an interesting link this week, leave a comment below or tweet it @TCDigest or @danshaferMKE.

Voter information

• Government Accountability Board: Voter Public Access
• Government Accountability Board: Registration and Voting
• ACLU Wisconsin: Know your voting rights

Monday, June 4

• ‘Walker leads by 3 points‘ – Public Policy Polling (Results .PDF)
• ‘Two new polls show tight race in Wisconsin recall‘ – Reuters
• ‘All eyes on Wisconsin‘ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• ‘Former Walker aide in court today‘ – WUWM
• ‘Much of country focused on recall election of Gov. Walker‘ – WUWM
• ‘Poll watchers expected to be in full force Tuesday‘ – WUWM
• ‘Shell-shocked Wisconsin readies for recall‘ – Politico
• ‘Wisconsin Recall 2012: A Guide‘ – Huffington Post
• ‘The most important Wisconsin recall candidate you’ve never heard of‘ – Mother Jones
• ‘In Wisconsin’s recall, A Tale of Two Parties‘ – TIME
• ‘Should President Obama have gone to Wisconsin?‘ – Washington Post
• ‘Complaint filed with FCC alleges WISN, WTMJ radio bias on recall‘ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• ‘The Morning Plum: Wisconsin recall fight tightening?‘ – Washington Post
• ‘Review & Outlook: The Wisconsin Recall Stakes‘ – Wall Street Journal
• ‘Wisconsin recall campaigners face voter fatigue as polls tip toward Scott Walker‘ – The Guardian
• ‘Wisconsin Scott Walker recall stirs passion‘ – Wall Street Journal

Sunday, June 3

• ‘Walker: Our reforms are working for the state’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Scott Walker
• ‘Barrett: We can’t fix the state with Walker’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Tom Barrett
• ‘Regardless of recall, Scott Walker may face indictment’ – Current
• ‘Is Gov. Walker a target of ongoing John Doe investigation?’ – WITI Fox 6
• ‘There’s class war in Wisconsin, yet the Democrats sing Kumbaya‘ – The Guardian
• ‘Legal cloud gathers over Scott Walker as recall election approaches’ – Isthmus
• ‘Richards questions deployment of election monitoring agents’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• ‘Wisconsin in a state of uncivil discourse’ – Green Bay Press-Gazette
• ‘Russ Feingold: Key to beating Scott Walker is getting Democratic turnout higher than 2010’ – Huffington Post
• ‘Barrett: Walker should have kept focus on jobs’ – Associated Press
• ‘Barrett says turnout will be the difference in Tuesday’s vote’ – Wispolitics.com
• ‘Walker rallies supporters, says suggestion he’s target of John Doe probe is ‘100 percent wrong’’ – Wispolitics.com
• ‘Barrett: Walker should have kept focus on jobs’ – Associated Press
• ‘Opinion: Wisconsin: America’s noisiest neighbor’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Christian Schneider
• ‘Is Scott Walker facing indictment? And does it really matter to Walker’s Wisconsin supporters?’ – Forbes
• ‘Romney adviser downplays importance of Wisconsin recall for November’ – Talking Points Memo
• ‘Winners and losers in Wisconsin recall vote’ – Washington Post, The Fix
• ‘Krugman, Will agree Wisconsin is a ‘microcosm’ of what America faces’ – Talking Points Memo
• ‘A guide to voting in Wisconsin’s 2012 recall election’ – Isthmus
• ‘Political activists converge on Wisconsin for recall’ – Reuters
• ‘Review & Outlook: The Wisconsin Recall Stakes’ – Wall Street Journal
• ‘Open Channel: CPI: Wisconsin recall battle is state’s most expensive election’ – MSNBC
• ‘Wisconsin Recall: Bucking the Super-PAC trend’ – The Daily Beast
• ‘Faces of the Wisconsin recall’ – Green Bay Press-Gazette
• ‘After Tuesday, top of the to-do list for governor: jobs’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Editorial Board
• ‘Kohl calls Barrett a ‘unifier’’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• ‘Thompson predicts a victory by Walker’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• ‘Barrett, Walker appear at Brown County dairy breakfast’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• ‘In Brown County, a convergence of politicians’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• ‘Tom Barrett downplays lack of Obama, National Dem support in recall’ – Talking Points Memo
• ‘Scott Walker Recall: Phone bank script for GOP volunteers’ – Huffington Post
• ‘Report: Recall election most expensive in Wisconsin history’ – The Hill
• ‘Crunch time for recall volunteers’ – CNN
• ‘Nothing to see here: Wisconsin recall will provide few hard clues on who wins the White House’ – Associated Press
• ‘Walker recall battle may hurt Obama‘ – New York Times
• ‘Walker urges backers to get out the vote ‘ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• ‘Jesse Jackson Sr. leads voter rally in Milwaukee‘ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• ‘What will it take to move Wisconsin forward after recall decision?‘ – Wisconsin Rapids Daily Tribune
• ‘Walker leads Barrett 50% to 47% in new poll‘ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• ‘Opinion: Scott Walker recall vote will be America’s second most important election‘ – National Review, George Will
• ‘Review & Outlook: The Wisconsin Recall Stakes‘ – Wall Street Journal
• ‘Wisconsin Scott Walker recall stirs passion‘ – Wall Street Journal

Saturday, June 2

• ‘High-wage industries hire, but wages fall’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• ‘DOJ to send election observers to poll sites Tuesday’ – Wispolitics.com
• ‘Wisconsin: State of anger, state of action’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, The Wisconsin Voter
• ‘Recall victims: Stop the madness’ – Politico
• ‘‘War on women’ comes to Wisconsin comes to Wisconsin recall — and could be decisive’ – Christian Science Monitor
• ‘Police misreporting trend extends to assaults on officers’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• ‘Criminologist in Walker ad says governor ‘misrepresented’ his views’ – Huffington Post
• ‘Scott Walker’s eerily consistent support’ – Politico
• ‘Lt. Gov: Obama skipping Wisconsin ‘speaks volumes’’ – CNN
• ‘Wisconsin recall election: Message at war with itself’ – Politico
• ‘Recall race repercussions go far beyond governor’s chair’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• ‘Wisconsin recall vote to resonate in presidential race’ – Reuters
• ‘Milwaukee’s Black voter turnout will be the deciding factor in governor’s recall race’ – Milwaukee Courier
• ‘Your right to know: On open records, Walker and Barrett are imperfect’ – Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism
• ‘School districts raise health insurance deductibles to reign in costs’ – Wausau Daily Herald
• ‘ ‘On Tuesday we save Wisconsin,’ Ryan tells huge Racine TEA Party rally’ – Racine Journal Times
• ‘Burlington Progressives’ rally shows recall effort’s national support, attention’ – Racine Journal Times
• ‘Unions have much riding on Walker recall’ – Eau Claire Leader-Telegram
• ‘Polling vacuum in nationally-watched Wisconsin recall race’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• ‘Priebus fires up tea party crowd’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• ‘Social Circle: What are your thoughts on the recall election?’ – OnMilwaukee.com
• ‘Wisconsin recall vote raises issues crucial to voters nationwide’ – The Seattle Times
• ‘Opinion: Imagine a world where political ads were true…’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• ‘Opinion: Big education issues won’t change with election results’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• ‘Barrett says he will ditch ‘deer czar’ if he wins’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• ‘Scott Walker’s teenage son used homophobic slur on Facebook’ – Wisconsin Gazette
• ‘Opinion: Walker’s jobs record an unmitigated disaster’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Marc Levine
• ‘On The Capitol: Walker’s press release overkill’ – Wisconsin State Journal
• ‘Walker’s police ad draws fire from criminology expert’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• ‘An autocratic King Scott damaged state’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• ‘VIDEO: Scott Walker’s Divide-And-Conquer strategy Is “The New Model For The Country’ – Mother Jones
• ‘Opinion: Legislatively Speaking – What Walker has meant for Milwaukee’ – Milwaukee Courier, Sen. Lena Taylor

Friday, June 1

• ‘12 News Gubernatorial Debate: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4’ – WISN, Upfront with Mike Gousha
• ‘Bill Clinton campaigns with Barrett at Pere Marquette Park’ – ThirdCoast Digest
• ‘First time voters take to the polls’ – ThirdCoast Digest
• ‘Campaign 2012 Newsmakers: Pre-Election Analysis’ – Wisconsin Eye
• ‘Walker, Barrett spar in final debate before recall election’ – WISN
• ‘Wisconsin recall tests conservatives ground game’ – Reuters
• ‘In Wisconsin, recall is labor’s call to arms’ – Minneapolis Star-Tribune
• ‘The Wisconsin debate moment everyone’s talking about’ – Washington Post, The Plum Line
• ‘Bill Clinton hits a home run in Wisconsin. Will it be enough?’ – Washington Post, The Plum Line
• ‘Barrett decries “Willie Horton” tactics’ – Politico
• ‘Wisconsin tops itself in big-money race’ – New York Times
• ‘In Wisconsin recall, Democrat Barrett fails to excite’ – Reuters
• ‘S.C. gov.: Country watching ahead of recall election’ – Wispolitics.com
• ‘Haley describes Walker as courageous’ – WUWM
• ‘Walker: Obama steering clear of Wisconsin’ – Appleton Post Crescent
• ‘Fight over election maps cost state $925,000’ – Associated Press
• ‘George Will: Wisconsin’s Peter Pan progressivism’ – Washington Post
• ‘The Milwaukee turnout factor on June 5’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, The Wisconsin Voter
• ‘Walker and Barrett exchange harsh words in Final Debate’ – WUWM
• ‘Nearly 200,000 voters have requested absentee recall ballots’ – WUWM
• ‘Barrett had one person on staff charged with crime’ – Wisconsin State Journal
• ‘On Campus: Planets aligning (literally) on recall election day’ – Wisconsin State Journal
• ‘Campaign 2012: Tom Barrett Campaign Rally Featuring Former President Bill Clinton’ – Wisconsin Eye
• ‘Final recall debate gets international attention’ – Wispolitics.com
• ‘Milwaukee’s Zeidler building busy on last day of early voting’ – WITI Fox 6

Thursday, May 31

• ‘Document suggests Walker stalled inquiry’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, No Quarter
• ‘“We Are Wisconsin” brings Madison protests to the big screen’ – ThirdCoast Digest
  
• ‘A closer look at buzzworthy documentary “As Goes Janesville” ’ – ThirdCoast Digest
• ‘Debate rewind: A look at our past recall-related ratings’ – PolitiFact
• ‘Can Democrats get the huge margins they need from union voters on June 5?’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, The Wisconsin Voter
• ‘Ex-Walker spokeswoman given immunity in John Doe probe’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, No Quarter
• ‘Barrett once fought “grave act” of overturning Clinton’s election’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, No Quarter
• ‘In an evenly split community, recall feelings run deep’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• ‘New discrepancy in jobs data’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• ‘Dems voice deer fears’ – Wisconsin Radio Network
• ‘Public sector union head says Dems could do more for Wisconsin recall’ – The Hill
• ‘More than $61 million spent on Wis. recall’ – WSJ
• ‘Murphy’s Law: Did the state screw Talgo?’ – Urban Milwaukee
• ‘Will scandal-plagued election clerk supervise Walker recall in key county?’ – Mother Jones
• ‘Unusual Senate Recall Race Has No Incumbent’ – WUWM
• ‘Political Newcomer Compas Takes On Incumbent Fitzgerald In Senate Recall’ – WUWM
• ‘It’s official: Bill Clinton heading to Wisconsin to campaign against Scott Walker‘ – Washington Post

Wednesday, May 30

• ‘Campaign 2012 News Conference: Governor Walker Visits Great Northern Corporation’ – Wisconsin Eye
• ‘Campaign 2012 News Conference: Governor Walker Visits Husco International’ – Wisconsin Eye
• ‘Wisconsin Unions See Ranks Drop’ – Wall Street Journal
• ‘UW Teaching Assistant Association won’t support Tom Barrett in recall election’ – Isthmus
• ‘Truth elusive in Wisconsin recall campaign’ – PolitiFact
• ‘Marquette Law School Poll finds Walker leads Barrett in Wisconsin recall’ – Marquette Law School Poll
• ‘Walker Transfers $100,000 to Legal Defense Fund’ – WUWM
• ‘Gov. Walker answers questions regarding legal defense fund’ – WITI Fox 6
• ‘Feds confirm Walker’s job growth data’ – Associated Press
• ‘Greater Wisconsin Poll: Barrett 49, Walker 49’ – Wispolitics.com
• ‘Candidates see tight race despite new poll numbers’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• ‘Scott Walker leads by 7 in latest Wisconsin recall poll’ – Washington Post
• ‘Can Walker and Obama both be leading in Wisconsin?’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• ‘Trial for former Walker aide will be in Milwaukee County’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• ‘Wisconsin Recall: State Election Board Predicts Near-Presidential Turnout’ – Huffington Post
• ‘Kane: Mitchell makes historic bid in lieutenant governor recall race’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• ‘Opinion: Wisconsin reaches for the last resort’ – Washington Post, E.J. Dionne, Jr.
• ‘Judge overseeing Walker probe sees no partisanship’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• ‘Out-of-state donors keep giving Walker cash’ – Associated Press
• ‘Survey finds state firms bullish on hiring, growth’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• ‘Why Wisconsin’s recall election matters to Obama and Romney’ – CBS News
• ‘Wisconsin recall tests voters appetite for cuts’ – Miami Herald
• ‘Barrett Can’t Name Any Schools Hurt By Walker’s Collective Bargaining Reforms‘ – The Weekly Standard
• ‘Next week’s Wisconsin recall: a test drive of themes for Election 2012’ – Christian Science Monitor
• ‘Days before Wisconsin recall, Scott Walker says feds have approved higher Wis. job numbers’ – Washington Post
• ‘Beloit billionaire pays zero in 2010 state income tax bill’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• ‘GOP Chairman Says Recall Outcome Could Help Turn Wisconsin Red In November’ – NPR
• ‘Wisconsin recall fever: Fundraising, rallies and an Obama petition’ – Isthmus
• ‘Dem. Reps. to deliver letter to Walker regarding John Doe’ – WITI Fox 6
• ‘Rindfleish attorney says Brett Davis, three former Walker aides were targeted in John Doe searches’ – Wispolitics.com
• ‘Walker attends Ashley groundbreaking in Whitehall’ – La Crosse Tribune
• ‘Walker Commits to Mining Open Records Request’ – Ashland Times
• ‘Feingold joins Barrett in demanding John Doe emails’ – Wisconsin Public Radio
• ‘Americans for Prosperity bus to stop in Oshkosh tonight’ – Oshkosh Northwestern
• ‘Walker nets large donations, including $50,000 from Wal-Mart family member’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• ‘DGA head O’Malley to campaign in Wisconsin’ – Wisconsin State Journal
• ‘DNC chair: Eat, sleep and breathe the recall to get Lehman and Barrett in office‘ – Racine Journal Times
• ‘RNC chairman Priebus alleges rampant voter fraud‘ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Tuesday, May 29

• ‘Diners Talk Recall Politics‘ – WUWM
• ‘Column: Wisconsin Dems may regret recall‘ – Boston Herald, Linda Chavez
• ‘Wisconsin Recall: Scott Walker enters final week with edge‘ – Washington Post, The Fix
• ‘Barrett, Walker stump one week before recall election‘ – 620 WTMJ
• ‘GOP leader talks recall‘ – Gannett Central Wisconsin Media
• ‘Walker responds to Journal Sentinel story on John Doe investigation‘ – 620 WTMJ
• ‘Walker campaign sends $100,000 to John Doe legal fund’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, No Quarter
• ‘Statistics fly in Wisconsin’s Recall Battle’ – Wall Street Journal
• ‘News Analysis: Walker has momentum, but Barrett still has hope’ – Rhinelander Daily News
• ‘Turnout for recall election expected to exceed 2010 race’ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• ‘Walker responds to Journal Sentinel story on John Doe investigation’ – TMJ4
• ‘Walker keeps adding to funds with $5 million raised in less than a month’ – Wisconsin State Journal
• ‘Tom Barrett Campaign Flooded With Calls After Spam Text Messages Label Mayor Union Puppet’ – Huffington Post
• ‘Opinion: What Does Wisconsin See In Scott Walker?’ – Carl Gibson, Huffington Post
• ‘WI’s lieutenant governor contest important but caught in shadows’ – Wisconsin Reporter

Monday, May 28

• ‘Absentee voting brisk ahead of recall‘ – Associated Press
• ‘What happens if Wisconsin recall voters elect a Democrat and a Republican?‘ – Associated Press
• ‘Editorial: Political Money Talks‘ – The New York Times
• ‘Significance of email exchanges won’t be revealed for a while” – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, No Quarter
• ‘Scott Walker recall: Wisconsin governor flies under radar‘ – Politico
• ‘GOP Governors campaign on Walker’s behalf” – Wisconsin Public Radio
• ‘Recall Roundup: Wisconsin Senate races off the radar despite importance‘ – Appleton Post-Crescent
• ‘Obama’s Wisc. harbinger‘ – Salon
• ‘Barrett accuses Walker of signing recall petitions against Kohl, Feingold‘ – WITI Fox 6
• ‘Gov. Walker, Barrett have full slate of public appearances‘ – WITI Fox 6
• ‘Michael Reagan Says ‘Win One For The Gipper’ in New Pro-Walker Ad‘ – Shorewood Patch
• ‘The New Normal‘ – political cartoon, Wisconsin State Journal
• ‘Tale of two cities: sustainability trailblazers in America’s heartland’ – The Guardian

Sunday, May 27

• ‘Wisconsin recall turns on job creation issue” – Associated Press
• ‘Barrett unlikely to erase Walker’s lead in funding‘ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• ‘No memory’ of signing Kohl-Feingold petitions, Walker says‘ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• ‘Wisconsin recall’s a ‘test run,’ DNC chair says‘ – CNN
• ‘Editorial: What we said 40 years ago: A search for unity‘ – Wisconsin State Journal
• ‘DNC Chair Downplays Wisconsin Recall Election” – National Journal

Saturday, May 26

• ‘Black officials unite to elect Barrett for Governor‘ – Milwaukee Courier
• ‘Opinion: Political bribery is legal again‘ – Robert Kraig, Citizen Action of Wisconsin; Mike McCabe, Wisconsin Democracy Campaign; Andrea Kaminski, League of Women Voters of Wisconsin
• ‘Opinion: Of course it’s all about the money‘ – Christian Schneider, Wisconsin Policy Research Institute
• ‘Editorial: Readers critical of Walker endorsement strike back‘ – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Editorial Board, David Haynes
• ‘Wisconsin recall candidates crush opposition in debate‘ – Politico
• ‘In Wis. recall, Gov. Walker seeking vindication‘ – Minneapolis Star-Tribune

Friday, May 25

• ‘Walker and Barrett spar over jobs numbers, leadership‘ – WUWM (Link includes complete audio of Friday night’s debate. Click here for video of the debate in its entirety.)
• Analyst: Walker and Barrett Targeted their Base and Undecided Voters in Debate‘ – WUWM
• ‘State Election official: Don’t tweet your ballot‘ – WUWM
• ‘Unions angry with Democrats over lack of help in Wisconsin governor’s recall‘ – The Hill
• ‘Wisconsin’s progressivism faces a recall‘ – Reuters
• ‘Group criticizes Walker over veterans issues‘ – Wispolitics.com
• ‘Milwaukee could decide race‘ – Urban Milwaukee
• ‘Do endorsements matter in the Wisconsin recall?‘ – Isthmus
• “Barrett campaign: Bringing in surrogates ‘not a big issues for us’ “ – Talking Points Memo

Thursday, May 24

• ‘How did Wisconsin become the most politically divisive place in America?” – The New York Times
• In Wisconsin, Walker Is Likely To Survive Recall‘ – The New York Times, FiveThirtyEight Blog
• ‘If elected in recall, Tom Barrett would take office by late June‘ – Isthmus
• ‘Walker mixes and matches to create jobs number‘ – PolitiFact Wisconsin
• ‘What if Barrett wins? What if Walker wins?” – Isthmus
• ‘Very existence of Wisconsin Democratic Party at stake in recall election‘ – Rachel Maddow

Wednesday, May 23

• ‘Behind the rhetoric: School budgets in the year ahead‘ – PolitiFact Wisconsin

Tuesday, May 22

• ‘Editorial: Wisconsin Working Women Deserve Fairness‘ – Lilly Ledbetter
• ‘Op-Ed: Scott Walker at Marquette University: A Personal remembrance by Dr. Glen Barry“

Monday, May 21

• ‘Scott Walker Is Not Alone, Nor A Fan Of Deer Hunting” – Esquire
• ‘Why the coalition trying to recall Scott Walker is splintering‘ – TIME

Below is an infographic of appearances of the #wirecall hashtag over the last month.

(Infographic: Adam Horwitz)

Follow ThirdCoast Digest on Twitter and Facebook. If you find an interesting link this week, leave a comment below or tweet it @TCDigest or @danshaferMKE.