Posts Tagged ‘wisconsin’

I will have an Examiner Article up before the end of the night and a longer post in the morning concerning the Union/Tea Party rally in Boston today but the ultimate irony of the rally can be expressed in this simple video:

You will remember this film from the one nation rally

and this from 9/12

Well this actually makes sense, the grown-ups always end up picking up after the spoiled kids don’t they?

Update: Instalanche! Thanks Glenn. My Examiner column is now up here (it’s worth .75 of a cent per click to me so please click it) and the full set of my videos and a report is now up here.

Powerline does such a great job dismantling the “arguments” of Lee Feng that there is little to add but there is something I want to say concerning this:

There is definitely some dream-fulfillment going on here, but it isn’t Harry Bradley’s. What is the sum and substance of Think Progress’s expose? Governor Walker’s position is endorsed by a majority of Wisconsin voters, as well as several conservative groups, some of which have gotten modest amounts of support from conservative philanthropists. In what world is that some kind of scandal?

Certainly not in the world of Think Progress, which is entirely a creature of the billionaire left. One curious feature of today’s left is its obsession with “astroturf.” There is a reason why lefties who work for billionaire-funded web sites like Think Progress constantly talk about astroturf: it is the world they live in. They are paid by rich liberals, and the demonstrators who are bused in to left-wing protests are generally union members who are paid to attend. No one on the left does much for free. So lefties find it hard to understand that ordinary citizens (“Tea Partiers”) will turn out at rallies without being paid, that conservative voters vote on principle, not financial self-interest, and that conservative activists act out of conviction, not because they are subsidized by a sugar daddy. Failing to understand that conservatism–unlike liberalism–is a movement of principle, not self-interest, they are constantly looking for the elusive, non-existent money trail.

I recently experienced an entertaining example of this phenomenon. A local columnist who was laid off by the Minneapolis Star Tribune went to work for a web site called MinnPost, which is funded by liberal sugar daddies. He is one of a number of former Strib employees who now work for rich liberals at this site, which may or may not be different from what they were doing at the Star Tribune. Anyway, this reporter referred to me as “one of [Bill Cooper’s] high-profile investments.”

When I see this it gets my blood up. Liberals tend to assume that we conservatives are rolling in it.

Let me tell something to Mr. Feng and Powerline’s pal who got laid off and covered. I have a $1200 mortgage and additional bills each month that total about $2700 not counting local taxes (including gasoline, electric etc). I don’t own a flat screen or high def TV, There isn’t a car in my family newer than a 2000, my cell is a trac-phone because I can’t afford better and at the moment my youngest isn’t being taken for his permit because I can’t afford the $600 for the driving lessons mandated by Massachusetts. My wife has been putting off getting a new set of glasses because right now $400 is a fortune. If my oldest didn’t have an academic scholarship he’d have to work full time because we wouldn’t be able to afford to pay for State College.

Our income currently consists of my wife’s unemployment, $900 in monthly rents (before expenses), whatever I can sell for ads for DaTechGuy on DaRadio minus the cost of the show and whatever comes in via DaTipJar (which has amounted to a whopping $10 this year so far).

Every day I go door to door trying to sell ads for the Radio show. At CPAC I spent an inordinate time in the vendor area pushing the show, yesterday I put another 30 miles on the car with zero ads to show for it. I’m taking in before expenses (but after the cost of the show) less than I did when I was on unemployment. Each month paying the bills is an adventure.

Is there some sour grapes here? Yeah I guess there is. It grates me to hear this stuff from people supported by rich patrons. I suspect that if I suddenly flipped I would find all the patrons I wanted to pay me to document my revelations of the perfidious right.

I WISH I had a conservative sponsor paying just 40k a year. Such a sponsor would mean I wouldn’t have to choose between covering the rallies in Boston today or going door to door to sell my ads. Mr. Feng feel free to send my name to the Koch brothers, the Bradley foundation, and any other conservative foundation you want. Then when you write about me being financed by conservative foundations I’ll say “Yup”.

Of course my father who worked harder than I ever will likely have to would likely answer. “Stop complaining and get to work.” He’s right.

Four days ago Politico highlighted the involvement of the DNC was and OFA in Wisconsin:

The Democratic National Committee’s Organizing for America arm — the remnant of the 2008 Obama campaign — is playing an active role in organizing protests against Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker’s attempt to strip most public employees of collective bargaining rights.

OfA, as the campaign group is known, has been criticized at times for staying out of local issues like same-sex marriage, but it’s riding to the aide of the public sector unions who hoping to persuade some Republican legislators to oppose Walker’s plan. And while Obama may have his difference with teachers unions, OfA’s engagement with the fight — and Obama’s own clear stance against Walker — mean that he’s remaining loyal to key Democratic Party allies at what is, for them, a very dangerous moment.

OfA Wisconsin’s field efforts include filling buses and building turnout for the rallies this week in Madison, organizing 15 rapid response phone banks urging supporters to call their state legislators, and working on planning and producing rallies, a Democratic Party official in Washington said.

The @OFA_WI twitter account has published 54 tweets promoting the rallies, which the group has also plugged on its blog.

During my interview with Andrew Breitbart on Sunday morning he commented on their presence saying the following:

I’ve sensed that any time when Obama’s Organizing for America gets involved they are up to no good. So when I see them go up against the people I try to be there.

Now in the surest sign that the White House has figured out where this is going to end up, there is some serious backtracking going on:

Administration officials said Sunday that the White House had done nothing to encourage the demonstrations in Wisconsin — nor was it doing so in Ohio, Florida and other states where new Republican governors are trying to make deep cuts to balance their budgets.

And, officials and union leaders said, reports of the involvement of the Democratic National Committee — specifically Organizing for America, the grass-roots network born of Mr. Obama’s 2008 campaign — were overblown to start with and were being inflated by Republicans sensing political advantage.

Because we all know how Politico is really a house organ of the Republican Party, that’s why they are always being quoted on MSNBC

I think the White House has seen these polls and is getting cold feet BIGTIME:

A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 48% of Likely U.S. Voters agree more with the Republican governor in his dispute with union workers. Thirty-eight percent (38%) agree more with the unionized public employees, while 14% are undecided.

And as Captain Ed Morrissey at Hotair reports the details are even more damning:

No one will be shocked to find Democrats opposed to Walker’s plan, 21/68, although the opposition seems a little weak, under the circumstances. Also, no one will be surprised to see almost the mirror image among Republicans, 68/15. Independents across the nation give a strong endorsement to Walker, 56/31. Among income demographics, only those earning under $20K per year support the unions (30/54), while Walker gains a plurality or majority in every other income demographic, including a 62/27 among the $60-75K demo. Interestingly, unions only barely edge Walker among government employees, 44/46. (bolding mine)

I put this down to Bill Daily. He is a man of the left and a big supporter of these same unions but he knows politics and sees where this is going. His job is to minimize the damage to the white house. He also understands that if Democrats shut down Wisconsin with the White House behind them it will be harder to blame republicans for a shutdown here.

Little Miss Attila points out one thing that the dems in Wisconsin have forgotten:

Just remember: every day that you aren’t there, the Repubs are taking votes.

Hold on there, I thought there wasn’t a quorum? Not so fast:

Bringing up hot-button legislation while the Democrats are gone is another arrow in Walker’s quiver. Though the Wisconsin constitution requires three-fifths of the senate to be present to pass fiscal legislation, a simple majority of 17 members constitutes a quorum for other bills in the 33-seat state senate. So the 19 GOP senators who remain in Madison can pass any number of bills while their Democratic colleagues are on the lam, and Republicans are a majority in the assembly, too. “They can hold off, but there is a whole legislative agenda that Republicans in the senate and assembly can start acting on that only requires simple majorities,” Walker warns.“If they want to do their jobs, and have a say, they better show up.”

Just think of all the GOP friendly legislation that can be passed while they are gone!

Hey maybe it is a good time to make a new redistricting plan for the state? Just think of all the culture war victories we can have in Wisconsin with nary a vote against.
Is Wisconsin a right to work state? If it isn’t it can be really fast.

Want to require ultrasounds before Abortion? Let’s go for it.

Open up heathcare over state lines and maybe tort reform? Now’s the time to do it.

English as the official language of the state? Go for it.

Tougher sanctions on illegal immigration? Come on down!

Gun laws? Lets get concealed carry passed!

It will be like 1862-1865 in Congress, democrats were gone and republicans can go wild.

When will we have a chance like this again? Let’s go for it!