Brew City Brawler

WI GOP: A History of Voter Suppression

So how will Wisconsin Republicans try to rig the state electorate in their favor? Will they try to kill same-day registration, even though Gov. Scott Walker has sorta-kinda distanced himself from that? Will they up the ante on voter ID? Will the sabotage the GAB? Will they go for the cherry on top and rig the electoral college to reflect the vote in gerrymandered districts? Or do they have another secret bomb they want to drop?

Tough to say, but rest assured they'll try something. And odds are good that whatever they do will either make it harder for black people to vote or make their votes count for less. After all, it's been a dream of theirs for more than a decade.

Wisconsin Republicans insist that cracking down on voting, whether its voter ID or killing same-day registration, is all about ensuring integrity at the polls. They can't prove there's a problem substantial enough to justify these actions -- but trust them, there are problems out there! Glenn Grothman said just that. Fortunately, their voter suppressing compatriots in other states have been more candid: The laws are about suppressing turnout. Oh: and voter fraud is a myth.

Now one could be generous and say Republicans want to suppress the black vote because of the way they vote, not because of the color of their skin. However, there's no question this issue motivates the Republican base because, let's face it, the Republican base in Wisconsin -- many of them first or second generation white flighters from Milwaukee to Waukesha -- have less than complimentary views of black people. And I would suggest that believing, without evidence, that lots of black people vote illegally  (a view regularly promulgated by Charlie Sykes as he constantly complains about voter fraud in the "central city") is racist on its face.

This case of racial paranoia is nothing new among white people in Wisconsin. Back during the 50s, some white folks speculated that billboards were going up in the south directing black people to move to Milwaukee. During the 1960s and early 1970s white flight was rampant.

Tommy Thompson won his first gubernatorial election by insisting that Milwaukee was a welfare magnet for black people from Chicago who were apparently to shiftless to work but such shrewd economic actors that they would uproot their  lives and families to move north. Thompson's revolting claims were a longstanding urban legend among racist white folks and while many conservatives uphold the "welfare magnet" line to this day, all available research said it was not true.

Put in this light, the Wisconsin GOP's obsession with suppressing the black vote has a long-running and shameful pedigree.

The push to make it harder for black people to vote in Wisconsin has been going on for 12 years. As we wait for the catastrophe that will be the next session of the Wisconsin legislature, I thought it would make sense to provide a handy timeline.

Does Scott Walker think rape babies are God's plan?

So apparently the lesson Wisconsin Republicans are taking from the 2012 election is they must double down on a far right agenda, whether it's making it tougher for black people to vote or clamp down on a woman's right to choose. 

Quick, somebody should ask Scott Walker if he think rape babies are part of God's plan. His reply might be slicker than, say, Todd Akin's, but the position is the same. And it's a position that most people -- that is outside the far right fringe -- find abhorrent.

Does GAB think GAB's Voter ID ad campaign will be ineffective?

Why say that about the Government Accountability Board's plan to spend $436,100 on a radio, billboard, transit, online, print and  campaign to educate voters about Scott Walker's confusing and contested Voter ID bill? 

Because in July the GAB was saying an effective campaign that included television advertising would cost more than twice that (page 2):

In order to conduct a campaign that also includes television advertisements, staff was informed that a budget of $892,000 would be required, and would generate approximately 117 million impressions. Board staff is not recommending inclusion of paid television advertising for budgetary reasons.

Then as now the budget was $436,100 ($64,000, or 13% less than what the GAB said was necessary). It included the previously mentioned media without TV, and was expected to generate more than 70 million impressions.

How many impressions will this new campaign, as constituted, generate, particularly if the TV ads are running during "unsold" (read, widely unwatched) times of the day (p. 23)? One also has to wonder how the campaign is weighted toward southeastern Wisconsin, where the bulk of people affected by the changes in Voter ID reside.

States that implement voter ID laws are required to engage in substantial education efforts about the changes. Given the GOP's apparent desire to make obtaining a voter ID complicated at every step of the way, one has to wonder at their commitment to that legal obligation.

Also, the GAB has said it may need an additional $250,000 for advertising, depending when the recall elections fall. Will the Republicans let that fly?

 

 

 

Scott Walker bemoans state of the economy

Here's what Scott Walker had to say in 2010 (try not to laugh at the sight of Randy Hopper in the front row behind Desperado):

 

Are the tools working? Not so much. And about that balanced budget ...

 

Scott Walker bemoans state of the economy

Here's what Scott Walker had to say in 2010 (try not to laugh at the sight of Randy Hopper in the front row behind Desperado):

 

Are the tools working? Not so much. And about that balanced budget ...

 

Scott Walker and Jesus

Scott Walker: Wisconsinites cross the line by exercising 1st Amendment rights

Charlie Sykes, who, during the Tea Party summer said it was the right of Americans to tell their politicians to go to hell, spent the morning whipping his listeners into a froth that protesters would march in Scott Walker's neighborhood and pass his house. "Targeting private family homes." The wildly unpopular Walker, prompted by Sykes, said this tactic is "crossing the line." (the relevant part of the unfortunate exchange starts around 20:50). To top it off, he made a Gabby Giffords reference.

The Supreme Court, including Scalia, would disagree that it crosses a line.

"Although the town's streets are narrow and of a residential character, they are nevertheless traditional public fora ..." 

 

An injury to a dunce is an injury to all

Terry "Gooch" McGowan, head of Operating Engineers Local 139, suggests in his latest newsletter (p. 2) that some people hold unfair attitudes toward labor:

“Lazy union workers that just keep taking and demanding more.” 

He suggests that union members challenge these stereotypes:

So the next time you hear some of that rhetoric, tell them to stop their self-righteous whining and save it for when they are well into their retirement. See if there is enough left in Social Security to subsidize them after their 401k is exhaust- ed. Tell them how fortunate they are to have a safety net like Medicare (Gasp! A government health care program taking care of them). So each and every member has a great story to tell and a great product to sell.

A great idea. An even better one would be for Gooch to stop supporting Scott Walker.

 

 

 

Happy Birthday, Scott Walker

You are now more unpopular than Jim Doyle was at the end of his term.

Jim Doyle disapproval, November 2010 (Table 12): 54.2 percent.

Scott Walker disapproval, October 2011 (Question 11): 56 percent.

"And many more."

Source: WPRI

Scott Walker losing enthusiasm gap, WPRI says

According to the latest poll by the right-wing WPRI, 56 percent of people disapprove of the job Scott Walker's doing as governor while 42 percent approve. The real story is that 45 percent of people strongly disapprove of Scott Walker ... while only 24 percent strongly approve.

Now, that doesn't mean that a recall election will succeed (though it definitely means that Walker opponents will get the signatures). Wisconsinites oppose a recall 47-45 and crosstabs show 21 percent of Democrats aren't in favor of a recall nor are a majority of independents ... at this point.

But that 21 point gap has to be concerning to Walker, who, as soon as recall papers are filed, will start to raise tens of millions to fund a disinformation campaign the likes of which has never been seen in Wisconsin. Will it be enought to move the needle? He's already lost 45 percent of the state.

For those keeping score at home, in November 2010 21 percent of Wisconsinites had a very favorable opinion of Walker while 19 percent had a very unfavorable opinion (total favs-unfavs were 45-35). This shows a) the Democrats ran an amazingly ineffectual campaign against Walker and b) Scott Walker has done a heckuva job over the past year.