The Kenosha News is reporting that Rep. Garthwaite has agreed to lead the way in the Assembly for a piece of legislation that is to be introduced by State Senator Bob Wirch. The legislation would mandate that state government (primarily the UW and prison systems) purchase at least 10% of their food goods from Wisconsin producers. This mandate would increase to 20% in 2020.
While "feel good" legislation like this mildly annoys me, I really don't have a problem with this particular bill other than that I don't necessarily agree that prisoners deserve to eat the fine products produced in our state. At the end of the day, however, I doubt that this bill will accomplish anything at all. I predict that Wisconsin's prisons and the UW already procure more than 10% of their food goods from Wisconsin producers. If this bill passes, it will probably just mandate what is currently standard practice in our institutions.
In other news, the payday loan scandal continues. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports that the Assembly Democrats' payday loan bill narrowly passed committee today on a 6-5 vote. Rep. Dean Kaufert, a Republican supporter of payday loan reform issued a warning to Democrats stating,"Don't pose for holy pictures. You're in the soup. You're trying to find your way out of this. . . . Trying to rush this through, get it by, get the stories over - I don't know; it's not pretty."
The Associated Press is reporting that Majority Leader Tom Nelson continues to deny his support to ethically challenged Democrat Speaker Mike Sheridan. Payday Gate is becoming a case study in public relations mismanagement and continues to threaten the reelection chances of vulnerable Democrats like Phil Garthwaite.
Showing posts with label Speaker Sheridan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Speaker Sheridan. Show all posts
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Friday, February 5, 2010
While Assembly Democrat Leadership Crumbles, another Vulnerable Democrat gets Himself into a Scandal
News stories about the troubles of Rep. Garthwaite's bosses in Madison continue to proliferate. The latest news is that the Democrat Majority Leader and Speaker are at odds, questions are being raised about the Democrat leader's travel reports, and apparatly the Speaker's campaign finance reports are all sorts of messed up.
Meanwhile, a Democrat Rep. who like Garthwaite stands a good chance of being defeated in the next election has found himself in the middle of a growing scandal. State Rep. Cory Mason, a Democrat from Deerfield, WI who represents Racine, WI is under attack for accepting campaign contributions from the owner of a company who would have received a state sanctioned monopoly thanks to legislation authored by Rep. Mason.
According to WKOW-TV, "Campaign finance reports and state e-mails show former Racine lawmaker Jeff Neubauer made a campaign contribution to the author of proposed environmental legislation with benefits to Neubauer's company on the same day the proposal was unveiled at news conferences."
After reading a few other articles about this, the facts appear to be this:
1. A former Democrat legislator, Jeff Neubauer wrote a bill that would give his business a near monopoly on certifying cleaning products as green. The bill would also mandate that all state buildings use so-called "green" cleaning supplies. Obviously, this legislation would bring in substantially increased revenues to Neubauer.
2. Neaubauer gave this bill to Rep. Mason along with a campaign check.
3. Mason introduced the bill and began ushering it through the legislature.
This story has been floating around for about two weeks but today's revelations from WKOW-TV bring it to a new level. The fact that campaign cash exchanged hands on the very day that this terrible legislation was introduced stinks like rotten cheese. This is relevant to Garthwaite in two ways.
If Garthwaite's leaders force him to vote for this stinky proposal, he could get dragged into this mess too. More likely, however, is that this will mean that fewer campaign dollars will be available for Garthwaite during the fall.
Mason is going to be in rough shape when the next election comes around. That means that all the cash Assembly Democrats were counting on from the Trial Lawyers Lobby, the Teacher's Union, and Tribal Gaming Interests will have to be spread thinner, leaving less money for Garthwaite to defend his terrible record.
Meanwhile, a Democrat Rep. who like Garthwaite stands a good chance of being defeated in the next election has found himself in the middle of a growing scandal. State Rep. Cory Mason, a Democrat from Deerfield, WI who represents Racine, WI is under attack for accepting campaign contributions from the owner of a company who would have received a state sanctioned monopoly thanks to legislation authored by Rep. Mason.
According to WKOW-TV, "Campaign finance reports and state e-mails show former Racine lawmaker Jeff Neubauer made a campaign contribution to the author of proposed environmental legislation with benefits to Neubauer's company on the same day the proposal was unveiled at news conferences."
After reading a few other articles about this, the facts appear to be this:
1. A former Democrat legislator, Jeff Neubauer wrote a bill that would give his business a near monopoly on certifying cleaning products as green. The bill would also mandate that all state buildings use so-called "green" cleaning supplies. Obviously, this legislation would bring in substantially increased revenues to Neubauer.
2. Neaubauer gave this bill to Rep. Mason along with a campaign check.
3. Mason introduced the bill and began ushering it through the legislature.
This story has been floating around for about two weeks but today's revelations from WKOW-TV bring it to a new level. The fact that campaign cash exchanged hands on the very day that this terrible legislation was introduced stinks like rotten cheese. This is relevant to Garthwaite in two ways.
If Garthwaite's leaders force him to vote for this stinky proposal, he could get dragged into this mess too. More likely, however, is that this will mean that fewer campaign dollars will be available for Garthwaite during the fall.
Mason is going to be in rough shape when the next election comes around. That means that all the cash Assembly Democrats were counting on from the Trial Lawyers Lobby, the Teacher's Union, and Tribal Gaming Interests will have to be spread thinner, leaving less money for Garthwaite to defend his terrible record.
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
"And the fact that his Democratic caucus is not overly concerned about this may indicate why so much is so wrong in Madison."
That is what the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel has to say about the Assembly Democrat Caucus in the wake of Payday Gate. Phil Garthwaite is a part of that caucus.
The Wisconsin State Journal Editorial Board has weighed in as well, and their comments aren't much prettier.
The Wisconsin State Journal Editorial Board has weighed in as well, and their comments aren't much prettier.
Monday, February 1, 2010
Assembly Democrat Leadership Woes Forcast a Tough Fall for Vulnerables Like Garthwaite
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.
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.
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Garthwaite Linked to Questionable Campaign Materials
Blogger Playground Politics posted an Assembly Democrat campaign document today that was reportedly discovered in the state capitol. As you can see the document entitled Agenda for Meeting with Speaker is clearly a campaign document and had no busisness being in the state capitol. This begs the question, were Assembly Democrats campaigning on state time and the taxpayers' dime, and was Rep. Garthwaite involved as this document seems to indicate?
I would certainly hope that the Republican Party of Wisconsin will soon file an open records request for the calendars of Speaker Mike Sheridan, Rep. Garthwaite, and the other Assemblyman mentioned in the document. If these meetings are taking place in the State Capitol then we have here a clear violation of the public trust and state law.
I would certainly hope that the Republican Party of Wisconsin will soon file an open records request for the calendars of Speaker Mike Sheridan, Rep. Garthwaite, and the other Assemblyman mentioned in the document. If these meetings are taking place in the State Capitol then we have here a clear violation of the public trust and state law.
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