This tersely worded story from Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reporter Patrick Marley spells trouble for Assembly Democrats. According to this and other stories, rumors spread around the Capitol Friday that Assembly Speaker Mike Sheridan was in jeopardy of losing his leadership post over an alleged, inappropriate relationship the married speaker had carried on with a lobbyist.
Sheridan, Rep. Garthwaite's boss in the Assembly, denied these allegations Friday, stating that the lobbyist was just a friend and that they had gone on just one date. He has since amended his story stating, "I have dated a gal who is a lobbyist. It's not been a conflict, and I have no problem saying that..." The Speaker also told the Journal Sentinel that, "We (He and the lobbyist) went to a Christmas party. I think we went out with like a group of people a couple different times and that type of thing." "Like a group of people." "That type of thing." Why does the Speaker of the State Assembly sound like a kid who broke curfew and doesn't want to fess up to his parents about what he was out doing?
The Assembly Democrats already faced a tough election fight. The mood of the country and state is swinging back against their big taxing, big spending policies. Their total lack of focus on jobs and the economy over the last year doesn't help their cause much either. This potential scandal, however, adds a whole new dimension to the challenges that vulnerable Representatives like Garthwaite will have next fall.
For starters, this issue will further divide an Assembly Democrat Caucus that is already split over the proposed mayoral take over of the Milwaukee Public Schools. Coupled with their failure to put the Jeff Wood incidents behind them, the Assembly Democrats will be distracted this spring and will likely leave this session without having accomplished anything of substance on jobs, the economy, or anything else. What will they have to run on in the fall? A failed stimulus bill and honey regulation?
Secondly, an embattled and divided Assembly Democrat leadership will not be able to properly organize and fund raise for members facing tough challenges. Democrat Majority Leader Tom Nelson was already set to be in the fight of his life over budget pork that cost his district and comments he made in regards to the Democrat auto insurance premium hike of 2009
Sheridan too will now be preoccupied with his own survival.
Traditionally, Assembly Democrats have counted on large third party expenditures from public employee unions, trial attorneys, and tribal gaming interests to bail them out of situations like this. This year, however, those groups will be focused on getting a Democrat into the vacant Governor's mansion first, maintaining a precarious majority in the State Senate second, and keeping vulnerable Assemblymen like Garthwaite in office a distant third. This all spells trouble for the Democrat from Grant County next fall.
Showing posts with label Tribes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tribes. Show all posts
Monday, February 1, 2010
Saturday, June 6, 2009
The Smoking Ban
A few weeks ago Rep. Garthwaite voted against Senate Bill 181, which bans smoking in all Wisconsin businesses and public places. To his credit this vote was consistent with his stance during the last campaign, however, I cannot fully applaud Rep. Garthwaite for standing up for his beliefs. Here is why.
The smoking ban was driven by the leaders of the Democrat controlled legislature in Madison but was a bi-partisan bill. Many Republicans in the Assembly voted in favor of the bill. This meant that Rep. Garthwaite could vote against the bill without harming the wishes of his Democrat bosses in Madison. After all, his vote against the ban would be canceled out by a GOP vote in favor of the ban. When it came time for votes on amendments, however, things weren't so simple.
SB 181 contained an odd caveat that would make Wisconsin unique amongst states with smoking bans. It would prohibit smoking in 100% of all hotel rooms. Roughly half of the states in the US currently have some sort of statewide smoking prohibition in place, however, all of them either ignore hotels or allow for a certain percentage of rooms to have smoking. Most commonly, states allow for a hotel owner to keep up to 25% of his or her rooms smoking. Iowa does this as does Illinois. The Democrat drafted Wisconsin ban, however, prohibits Wisconsin innkeepers from allowing smoking in any rooms. It even makes it illegal for the Innkeeper to smoke in their own room or home if they happen to live on premises.
The affect that this total prohibition will have in Wisconsin is two-fold. Smokers who choose or are forced to stay in Wisconsin hotels will simply smoke in non-smoking rooms. What is to stop them? This means that non-smokers like myself will have to suffer the terrible stench that is a smoky hotel room.
The second affect of this provision will be to reduce business to Wisconsin’s hotels, especially in border areas like Grant County. Why would a smoker stop at the Governor Dodge Hotel and Convention Center in Platteville when they can drive another 35 minutes and get a smoking room at the Holiday Inn in Dubuque?
To correct this problem, Assembly Republicans introduced an amendment to let hotels allow smoking in a small percentage of their rooms. When this amendment was brought to the floor of the Assembly, the Democrat leadership in Madison motioned to kill it but enough Democrats from Rural areas sided with Republicans to keep the amendment alive. Unfortunately, the Madison liberal elite then called for the Assembly to go informal, a pause in debate where leadership can speak with their members. The Democrat leadership from Madison used this time to browbeat their rural members into voting to kill the amendment. A few minutes later the amendment died by a vote of 50-48.
Phil Garthwaite was the deciding vote to create a major disadvantage for Grant County inn keepers and a huge advantage for the hotels and motels in nearby Illinois and Iowa. If you don’t believe me, please see the vote. The facts speak for themselves. It’s available for all the public to view on the legislature’s webpage. You can see the history of the smoking ban bill here and the vote on this amendment here
Rep. Garthwaite then voted to allow smoking in Indian Casinos in Wisconsin, thus giving the Tribes a monopoly on smoking customers. It must be noted that Indian Tribes such as the Ho Chunk Nation were major contributors to third party groups that ran issue ads in favor of Rep. Garthwaite during the last election. Rep. Garthwaite also voted against allowing Veterans to smoke in their private clubs such as American Legion and VFW posts. Here is the vote to prove it.
At the end of the day, what does this mean? It means that Rep. Garthwaite can be trusted to stick to his word when he votes on issues that are supported by a majority of Reps. in Madison. Unfortunately for the voters of Southwest Wisconsin, it also means that Rep. Garthwaite cannot be counted on to vote in the interest of his constituents when the liberal Madison elite who control the Assembly need his vote. To reiterate, if Rep Garthwaite had stood for SW Wisconsin, hotels in the area would not have been put at a disadvantage in comparison to their counterparts in nearby Iowa or Illinois. His vote was the deciding vote to kill an amendment that would have helped his district.
Just the Facts:
Rep. Garthwaite voted against SB 181 – a bill to ban smoking.
If you support banning smoking in public places such as restaurants and taverns then Rep. Garthwaite voted against your interests.
If you oppose banning smoking in public places such as restaurants and taverns then Rep. Garthwaite voted in your interests.
If you own or work in a hotel in SW Wisconsin then Rep. Garthwaite voted against your job and livelihood.
If you think that it is unfair that Indian Tribes are given a monopoly on smoking in taverns in Wisconsin then Rep. Garthwaite voted against your beliefs.
If you are a Veteran or believe that Veterans have earned the right to smoke in their private clubs then Rep. Garthwaite voted against you.
The smoking ban was driven by the leaders of the Democrat controlled legislature in Madison but was a bi-partisan bill. Many Republicans in the Assembly voted in favor of the bill. This meant that Rep. Garthwaite could vote against the bill without harming the wishes of his Democrat bosses in Madison. After all, his vote against the ban would be canceled out by a GOP vote in favor of the ban. When it came time for votes on amendments, however, things weren't so simple.
SB 181 contained an odd caveat that would make Wisconsin unique amongst states with smoking bans. It would prohibit smoking in 100% of all hotel rooms. Roughly half of the states in the US currently have some sort of statewide smoking prohibition in place, however, all of them either ignore hotels or allow for a certain percentage of rooms to have smoking. Most commonly, states allow for a hotel owner to keep up to 25% of his or her rooms smoking. Iowa does this as does Illinois. The Democrat drafted Wisconsin ban, however, prohibits Wisconsin innkeepers from allowing smoking in any rooms. It even makes it illegal for the Innkeeper to smoke in their own room or home if they happen to live on premises.
The affect that this total prohibition will have in Wisconsin is two-fold. Smokers who choose or are forced to stay in Wisconsin hotels will simply smoke in non-smoking rooms. What is to stop them? This means that non-smokers like myself will have to suffer the terrible stench that is a smoky hotel room.
The second affect of this provision will be to reduce business to Wisconsin’s hotels, especially in border areas like Grant County. Why would a smoker stop at the Governor Dodge Hotel and Convention Center in Platteville when they can drive another 35 minutes and get a smoking room at the Holiday Inn in Dubuque?
To correct this problem, Assembly Republicans introduced an amendment to let hotels allow smoking in a small percentage of their rooms. When this amendment was brought to the floor of the Assembly, the Democrat leadership in Madison motioned to kill it but enough Democrats from Rural areas sided with Republicans to keep the amendment alive. Unfortunately, the Madison liberal elite then called for the Assembly to go informal, a pause in debate where leadership can speak with their members. The Democrat leadership from Madison used this time to browbeat their rural members into voting to kill the amendment. A few minutes later the amendment died by a vote of 50-48.
Phil Garthwaite was the deciding vote to create a major disadvantage for Grant County inn keepers and a huge advantage for the hotels and motels in nearby Illinois and Iowa. If you don’t believe me, please see the vote. The facts speak for themselves. It’s available for all the public to view on the legislature’s webpage. You can see the history of the smoking ban bill here and the vote on this amendment here
Rep. Garthwaite then voted to allow smoking in Indian Casinos in Wisconsin, thus giving the Tribes a monopoly on smoking customers. It must be noted that Indian Tribes such as the Ho Chunk Nation were major contributors to third party groups that ran issue ads in favor of Rep. Garthwaite during the last election. Rep. Garthwaite also voted against allowing Veterans to smoke in their private clubs such as American Legion and VFW posts. Here is the vote to prove it.
At the end of the day, what does this mean? It means that Rep. Garthwaite can be trusted to stick to his word when he votes on issues that are supported by a majority of Reps. in Madison. Unfortunately for the voters of Southwest Wisconsin, it also means that Rep. Garthwaite cannot be counted on to vote in the interest of his constituents when the liberal Madison elite who control the Assembly need his vote. To reiterate, if Rep Garthwaite had stood for SW Wisconsin, hotels in the area would not have been put at a disadvantage in comparison to their counterparts in nearby Iowa or Illinois. His vote was the deciding vote to kill an amendment that would have helped his district.
Just the Facts:
Rep. Garthwaite voted against SB 181 – a bill to ban smoking.
If you support banning smoking in public places such as restaurants and taverns then Rep. Garthwaite voted against your interests.
If you oppose banning smoking in public places such as restaurants and taverns then Rep. Garthwaite voted in your interests.
If you own or work in a hotel in SW Wisconsin then Rep. Garthwaite voted against your job and livelihood.
If you think that it is unfair that Indian Tribes are given a monopoly on smoking in taverns in Wisconsin then Rep. Garthwaite voted against your beliefs.
If you are a Veteran or believe that Veterans have earned the right to smoke in their private clubs then Rep. Garthwaite voted against you.
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