For All The Marbles
By Mitch Berg
Stephen Hayes at Weekly Standard writes about the bold, principled conservative we’ve all been waiting for – but who’s gotta defend his seat in Wisconsin first.
It’s a great article about Scott Walker – and it ably lays out both Walker’s outsized accomplishments (especially against Wisconsin’s Democrat machine, which is better than Minnesota’s only because it’s out of power):
Walker came to office in the Republican wave of 2010. He inherited a mess. Under his profligate predecessor, Jim Doyle, state government had operated almost as a slush fund for public employee unions. Giveaways to teachers and others put the state on an unsustainable fiscal path, so Doyle raised some taxes and threatened to raise others. He raided a state fund set up to cover medical liability, essentially stealing contributions doctors had made to the pooled account. The Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled against that pilfering, but the money had already been spent. Even after budget gimmickry that would make Fannie and Freddie blush, the official deficit was $3.6 billion.
Just over a year later, Walker and the Republicans in the state legislature have nearly eliminated the deficit. For the two-year budget cycle, the state will show a $143 million shortfall because the stagnant economy has resulted in lower tax receipts than had been projected. But the shortfall is for the first half of the cycle; Wisconsin will run a surplus in the current fiscal year. And Walker said last week that he will eliminate the remaining shortfall without raising taxes. It’s a credible claim. He reduced the deficit without raising taxes. In fact, one of his first moves upon being sworn in was to cut taxes on businesses. His subsequent reforms have allowed property tax receipts to go down for the first time in years—by some $47 million.
He also writes about the outsized consequences if Walker loses:
For conservatives, the fight is about much more than one man in one state. A Walker defeat would send a message that political courage does not pay and political thuggery does. Walker doesn’t like to talk about the effect the past year has had on him and his family, but it hasn’t been pleasant. He has been subjected to numerous death threats. His wife, Tonette, has been verbally assaulted more times than she can count. His two teenaged boys have been targeted on Facebook. His modest home in Wauwatosa has been the site of several union protests. Last month, a protester outside Walker’s State of the State speech told State Senator John Kleefisch that his wife, Lieutenant Governor Rebecca Kleefisch, is a “f—ing whore.”
I think it’s time to start a “Minnesotans for Walker” group. The unions are going to go all-in on this election – because if they lose, it’ll be katie-bar-the-door.
If it weren’t for that Presidential election thingie, this would be the most important election of this year.
February 14th, 2012 at 10:04 am
Amen, Mitch.
Unions are being forced to fight battles on a number of fronts where right-to-work is on the ballot, but Wisconsin’s election is the front line. And if it weren’t for people like Tom Horner, we could have made more progress in Minnesota too.
February 14th, 2012 at 10:12 am
And, of course, if it wasn’t for that criminal investigation and probable indictment thingie
February 14th, 2012 at 10:30 am
I’ll fix this for ya, Ears:
And, of course, if it wasn’t for that witchhunt by a partisan opponent
There. Much better now.
February 14th, 2012 at 10:50 am
Governor Walker has several things going for him that others don’t:
A) He is a true conservative. Not a slick politician. You know exactly what he is going to do. He would rather lose an election then bend on his principles.
B) He thinks analytically and with a business-like mind. He is not one who would kiss up to special interest groups.
C) He has a demeanor like I’ve never seen before. He can give a speech while dozens of douche-bag unionists scream obscenities at him, and he goes on calmly like they are not even there. The closest I’ve seen to that is Bush 43. Although with President Bush, the haters weren’t in his face physically.
February 14th, 2012 at 10:53 am
For those that don’t know what Earsell is talking about…..the unionist lost at the ballot box, they lost in the state legislature chambers, they lost in their protests, and they will lose the recall.
So they are trying to come up with another way to destroy the Governor. By throwing all kinds of legal things at him (remember the 64 false charges brought against Newt Gingrich in the 90s?). None will stick. I’d be willing to wager large bucks on this.
Also the Milwaukee Country DA is a Democrat who wants to run for higher office, either Governor or US Senate, so this is his way to earn Democrat credibility.
Governor Walker is not losing any sleep over any of this.
February 14th, 2012 at 11:26 am
We now know that “earsall” does not believe in the quaint American concept of “innocent until proven guilty”. I wonder what other American ideals he has sacrificed to a vain ideology?
February 14th, 2012 at 11:30 am
I wonder how many of those union pukes want to have their property taxes raised?
With unions, I have found that supporting their union brothers and sisters, only goes so far. Further, most of the female union members are subjected to harrassment, but never report it. The same slime balls that perpetrate said harrassment are happy to have the women on the picket lines with them. Ahh; hypocrisy…ain’t it grand?
February 14th, 2012 at 11:59 am
See also – every single “complaint” and “investigation” re Sarah Palin. With no exceptions.
It’s a standard Dem tactic, going back to LBJ: delay, deny, destroy.
February 14th, 2012 at 3:04 pm
But but liberals say were the ones that threaten people, how can that be? /snark but seriously I don’t remember the guys’ name but he was a good leftie on Michael Medveds radio show and he said that without question or exception the scariest and most threatening e-mails/letters he got were ALWAYS from liberals.
February 14th, 2012 at 8:55 pm
I take a lot of the stuff at frontpagemag with a grain of salt, but this seems right on:
http://frontpagemag.com/2012/02/07/the-high-price-of-telling-the-truth-about-islam/
The Left in this country always finds the greatest evil in the hearts of their fellow Americans.
February 15th, 2012 at 8:06 am
Terry, as Dennis Prager said, there is a great commonality between the Left and Radical Islam, they both want to destroy the United States.
February 15th, 2012 at 8:18 am
After reading these comments, I just can’t get old Buffalo Springfield out of my head…..”paranoia runs deep”….
February 15th, 2012 at 11:35 am
Earsall Mackbee said:
“I just can’t get old Buffalo Springfield out of my head”
It’s taking up space you could potential use for thinking. Too bad.
February 15th, 2012 at 12:44 pm
Mitch Berg on February 14, 2012 at 10:30 am said:
I’ll fix this for ya, Ears:…”
I sense the next fixing won’t be done in a separate reply but the Ears original. Heh heh heh