Politics
Candidate Forum Tonight
Whose Side are You On? With all the hoopla surrounding the presidential sweepstakes, it’s easy to overlook the state and local races taking place this year. Adding to the confusion is Wisconsin’s odd tradition of holding so-called non-partisan elections in the Spring. Sometime back in our state’s history, our ancestors decided that certain offices, like Mayor and County Executive, shouldn’t be tainted by the unseemliness of political party competition. As a result, Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett, a proud Democrat, and County Executive Scott Walker, an equally outspoken Republican, will be on the non-partisan ballot April 1. Just as our founders intended, eh? But wait, there’s more. If more than two candidates run for any of these non-partisan offices then a primary is held to whittle the field down. Which brings us to February 19, the date of Wisconsin’s primary. Most political prognosticators are predicting that our primary will be too late to have any meaning in this year’s heavily frontloaded race for the Democratic and Republican nomination. The oddsmakers are convinced that that the choice of both parties will be determined by February 5th, when more than 20 states, including delegate rich New York and California, will have their say. It’s looking more likely that at least two candidates from both parties will still be competitive when our primary comes along so brace yourselves for the quadrennial onslaught of the presidential wannabes and their national media entourages parading across the state sometime in the not too distant future. But don’t forget some of those pesky local races will also be on the Feb. 19th primary ballot so it’s time to roll up your sleeves and figure out who you support. For example, if you live in Milwaukee’s East Side or Riverwest neighborhood, currently represented on the Common Council by Michael D’Amato, who has chosen not to run for reelection, there’s a wide open race to replace him. And nothing stirs the juices of a political junkie more than the competitive ramifications of an open seat. A candidate forum will be held 7 pm tonight, Jan. 16th at the Miramar Theater (Oakland and Locust) and another is scheduled for Tuesday, Jan. 29th at Gordon Park Pavilion (Humboldt and Locust). The crowded field includes Sam McGovern-Rowen, a legislative aide to D’Amato who happens to be the grandson of George McGovern, the 1972 Democratic candidate for president. D’Amato could probably have cruised to reelection so McGovern-Rowen may be the presumptive favorite. But D’Amato has also drawn criticism for being too supportive of development so the activist district is unlikely to give McGovern-Rowen a bye. Sura Faraj, a co-founder of the Riverwest Food co-op and 2007 chair of the Riverwest Neighborhood Association; Nik Kovac, a journalist and member of the RNA and Matt Nelson, a member of the Milwaukee Transit Riders Union and the Milwaukee Police Accountability Coalition are among the other candidates for the third district alderman seat. So if you live in the Third District come to the one of the candidate […]
Jan 16th, 2008 by Ted Bobrow
Broydrick, Lobbyist for Disaster Preparedness Group Faces Own Disaster in D.C. Whore Scandal
Bill Broydrick linked to the “Washington Madam.”
Jul 19th, 2007 by Michael Horne
J B Van Hollen as You’ve Never Seen Him Before
Wisconsin's Attorney General, J. B. Van Hollen, was installed as the Grand Master of Masons in Wisconsin.
Jul 16th, 2007 by Michael Horne
Raclaw to Challenge Veteran in 14th Supervisory District
Supervisor Nyklewicz will face a rare challenge for his seat when Milwaukee Police detective Sebastian C. J. Raclaw announces his candidacy for the Milwaukee County Supervisor for the 14th District
Jul 13th, 2007 by Michael Horne
Beer Protest Spill a Spash!
The Spirit of ’07 Milwaukee Beer Party Protest and Demonstration was a good old-fashioned publicity stunt that brought cameras and crowds to the Milwaukee Ale House on Tuesday, July 10th, 2007.
Jul 11th, 2007 by Michael Horne
Brewpub Owners to Protest “Brewpub Tourism Development” Act
Who could oppose a bill with the apparently forthright name of “Brewpub Tourism Development Act”?
Jul 9th, 2007 by Michael Horne
Tommy Thompson to Graze Through Iowa
Thompson will graze his way through the cornbelt, feasting at cookouts, pizza parties, restaurants, and even participating in an ice cream social, that pinnacle of Iowan hospitality.
Jul 6th, 2007 by Michael Horne
Time to grant women equal rights
By Martha Burk The new Congress has been busy, what with scandals in the Justice Department and votes to rein in war spending with some accountability and better training for the troops. Both are good things, and proper priorities. But both are likely to end with standoffs as they go head-to-head with the White House, no doubt because the 2008 election season is already well under way. The president is determined not to give Democrats an edge with voters. But some members of this Congress are already looking ahead and hoping to boost the party’s stock with the majority of voters – women. These Congress members are going beyond non-binding resolutions and bills that won’t get past the president’s veto pen. They are talking about passing the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA). The ERA states “Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.” Recently renamed the Women’s Equality Amendment and introduced March 27 by its chief sponsor, Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), to a standing-room-only news conference, the ERA would grant equal constitutional rights to women — something we have yet to achieve. It’s a simple concept that had the blessing of both political parties until the Republicans struck it from their platform in 1980, with the Democrats following in 2004. The ERA was first introduced in Congress in 1923, but was not passed and sent to the states for ratification until 1972. Unlike the 27th amendment, ratified after hanging around for 200 years, the Equal Rights Amendment was passed with a time limit of only seven years for approval by the states. In that brief time, it was ratified by 35 states, but was stopped three short of the required 38 by millions of corporate dollars backing Phyllis Schlafly’s anti-woman storm troopers. They feared unisex toilets more than they valued freedom from discrimination. Schlafly always resurfaces at the Republican platform committee hearings leading a band of zealots campaigning for their own constitutional amendment banning abortion. She says Republican women want to do that. (No doubt a few do. We saw just how few last November, when 100 percent of anti-abortion ballot initiatives were defeated.) Much has changed in the 35 years since Congress first passed the ERA. Women have become the majority of both the population and of the electorate. Most are now in the work force full time, including nearly three quarters of mothers with children between 6 and 18. Women head one third of all households, and a whopping 61 percent of single parent families. While much has changed, little progress has been made. On average, women still make only 76 cents to a man’s dollar, working full-time and year-round. They hold 98 percent of the low paying “women’s” jobs and fewer than 15 percent of the board seats in major corporations. Three-quarters of the elderly in poverty are women. And in every state except Montana, women still pay higher rates than similarly […]
May 1st, 2007 by Vital Archives
Doyle to Taste Good Life of Milwaukee
Governor James Doyle will be in Milwaukee on Thursday, October 5th to attend a fundraiser on his behalf to be held from 5:30 - 7:30 p.m. at Good Life.
Sep 28th, 2006 by Michael Horne
The Other Sheriff Dave
There is another Sheriff Dave just two counties to the south, in Kenosha.
Sep 27th, 2006 by Michael Horne
Petri Kin Dazzles on Jeopardy!
Introduced to the audience as being "originally from Fond du Lac, Wisconsin," Petri seemed worldly for her years -- and for her hometown.
Sep 22nd, 2006 by Michael Horne
