What A Pinhead; VOL IX

Next time, try robbing the Blind Squirrel Tavern or the Blue Hair Beer and Brats, pinhead!

Wausau Record Herald

Police officers this afternoon raced to the Cop Shoppe Pub, where the tavern named by former officers had become the scene of a crime.

A man had jumped over the bar, stole nearly $500 in cash and fled the pub near downtown Wausau only to be arrested minutes later and blocks away,according to police.

Wausau police arrested Roger Xiong, 25, after he flagged down a vehicle at the intersection of Sixth and McClellan streets.

Toast and Crackers

IL uber-lobbyist, Don Udsten, the songbird, is singing again;

Wisconsin Energy

The Ryan trial, now entering its 13th week, has focused the spotlight on how a small network of well-connected lobbyists and their friends wielded huge power in Springfield.

He said he first became aware that Wisconsin Energy was looking for a lobbyist when he got a call from an old friend, Nicholas Hurtgen, who was an aide to Wisconsin Gov. Tommy Thompson.

"We recognize that we are not the focus of the trial and we have cooperated fully with the prosecution," Wisconsin Energy spokesman Barry McNulty said.

Meanwhile, Hurtgen is charged in an alleged shakedown of a Naperville hospital in which an investment house whose Chicago office he headed was supposed to underwrite construction bonds

Finley For County Exec

No, not that one, the other one.

The very bold press release Jenifer Finley sent on the eve of Christmas seemed to send a message to her former boss, new Waukesha County Executive Dan Vrakas; I can do it better than you --

Sykes Writes

SATURDAY, Dec. 24, 2005, 7:18 p.m.
JENIFER FINLEY SPEAKS OUT

A statement released earlier this evening:

Subject: Jenifer Finley Press
Statement
From: Jenifer Finley
December 24, 2005

I can no longer sit silent. I had hoped to leave my position as Chief of Staff to Waukesha County Executive Dan Vrakas, and simply move on quietly to other arenas. However, County Executive Vrakas has made a series of management decisions that I do not feel are in the best interest of the taxpayers and that I can not be a part of.

I accepted the Chief of Staff position because of my love of public service, desire to serve Waukesha County, and because I could offer the County an array of professional experiences and a master�s degree in Administrative Leadership.

But I can no longer in good conscience serve in the Vrakas administration and I feel that I owe it to the community to explain why.

What was she thinking?

Any political operative knows one doesn't announce a campaign betweeneen Thanksgiving and News Years -- even if the release is aiming at the non-partisan April, Spring elections.

Finley's press release dated Christmas Eve was a manifesto on Vrakas' budget failings.

Reading between, below and above the lines, Finley appears prepared to launch her own bid for Waukesha County Executive.

I love this stuff. Having made the same sort of mistakes that Finley just made, I can speak first-hand to my missed opportunity to challenge acting Governor Scott McCallum for the GOP nomination in 2002.

UPDATE:
Brian Fraley says Finley broke the loyalty oath that staff are bound by...

Xoff drives-thru Waukesha County...

Garbage In, Garbage Out

Any operative who has ever worked campaigns beyond their home state borders can see this is a garbage poll. As more reputable pollsters will tell you, garbage in, garbage out.

Polling is both an art and a science. The science enters when random samples are drawn from a qualified source file, and then again when cross-tabs are pulled. Top line numbers rarely reveal anything, especially 10 months before an election and with the holidays rapidly approaching.

The art of polling is having insight into the political environment of a given state, and being able to intuitively know whether the poll results are within reasonable parameters.

Again, interpreting crosstabs is critical.

Wisconsin is a notoriously difficult state to poll in primaries because of same day voter registration, no party registration, combined with the cost of adding a battery of screening questions to drop all but the frequent, partisan voter. Most clients cut the screening questions from the cost of the poll and simply ask, do you plan on voting?

Response - ahh, yea, sure.

But less than 2 on 10 voters will vote in the GOP primary for govenror next September. And roughly 4 in 10 of all previously registered voters will bother to vote in the general election.

Note the difference is discussing eligible voters (those 18 years and older) and registered voters.

Bottom line is, I don't need a poll to tell me Governor Doyle is vulnerable, as the poll below suggests. But I do need a poll to tell me among which voting subgroups (demographics) he is vulnerable with.

Good thing neither Walker nor Green commissioned this poll. It is good for nothing but a door-stop at campaign HQ.

-- A new poll from Atlanta-based Strategic Vision shows Doyle with a 46-44 approve-disapprove rating from likely state voters.
The poll included 272 self-identified as Democrats, 216 who self-identified Republicans, and 312 who identified themselves as Independent or another party affiliation.

In head-to-head match-ups between Doyle and his likely GOP opponents, the governor beat U.S. Rep. Mark Green 45 percent to 43 percent, and Milwaukee Co. Exec. Scott Walker 46 percent to 39 percent.

Republican voters asked their choice to challenge Doyle responded 47 percent for Green and 40 percent for Walker.

“At this time Doyle is definitely vulnerable against both Green and Walker,” said David E. Johnson, CEO and co-founder of Strategic Vision. “Both hold Doyle below the critical 50 percent mark which this early in a campaign indicates serious trouble for the incumbent. Additionally, in the match-up with Green, the race is statistically tied.”

Illinois First (Dysfuntional) Family

The Illinois governor's race is shaping-up to be the most entertaining in the country. Democrat Governor Blagojevich just drew as a primary opponent a former aldermanic colleague of his father-in-law's, Richard Mell.

It was father-in-law Mell that accused the governor of selling board appointments in exchange for campaign contributions, after Blago axed a landfill deal that Mell may have had a financial interest in.

From May, 2005;

Gov. Blagojevich made his father-in-law sound like a monster-in-law Monday, blaming virtually all of his administration's problems on Ald. Richard Mell.

And he said "testicular virility'' had given him the fortitude to shake things up in Springfield and stand up to Mell (33rd).

I never went to Med School, but I believe that translates into the govenror has bigger balls than his wife's father's balls. Wow.

(Funny, an AC/DC song is playing in my head right now...)

Former Chicago alderman Edwin Eisendrath formally announced his Democratic candidacy for governor Sunday, saying Gov. Rod Blagojevich has fallen short on his promise to clean up state government.

Eisendrath told about 100 supporters at Kendall College in Chicago, where he is vice president of academic affairs, that he supported Blagojevich in his 2002 campaign. But he said the governor has failed to restore trust in state government.

"It took our party nearly 30 years to win the governorship. In less than four, the Blagojevich administration has let the perception of ethical lapses put all that we've worked for at risk," Eisendrath said.

Another Blue Collar Kid from Janesville

ABC Supply founder, Ken Hendricks.

I love the comments about the Janesville Country Club, which by the way, is not on the East-Side, Craig-side of town, but rather on the West-Side, Parker, Cow-Pie-High, side of town!

New Anti-Obey Site

It's called Obey Out and frankly, I was wondering why Congressman Dave Obey (D, WI-7) had not drawn more interest from the internet community.

Dave Obey is among the meanest dudes in Congress and he's got a hot temper at home too. I suspect this is why so many Republicans take a pass on challenging him, and why so many conservative Democrats live in fear of not towing the Obey line.

Creative internet strategies is what is needed to defeat a congressional incumbent that was first elected back in 1969; build a cyber groundswell and use ensuing symbolism to craft an image of how Obey is woefully out of touch with his district and the country.

Then again, ya can't beat somebody with no body - especially with one of the largest House Districts east of the Mississippi.

The New Odd Couple

Even though Illinois voters elect their governors and light governors from separate ballots, GOP frontrunner Topinka has paired herself with 2002 GOP Attorney General nominee Birkett.

There might be hope for the new political Odd Couple, with Topinka playing Oscar Madison to Birkett's Felix Unger.

Gubernatorial candidate Judy Baar Topinka, who has upset conservative Republicans with her stands on issues including abortion and gay rights, tapped a tough-on-crime prosecutor to be her running mate Thursday.

The announcement of DuPage County State's Attorney Joseph Birkett as Topinka's choice for lieutenant governor was widely expected.

Birkett opposes abortion and supports resuming executions, but the two stressed their common working-class roots and their agreement on concepts like integrity

.

Dead (NFL) Men Walking

When the Bears rise to the class of the NFC North, it's time for changes.

Packers' Mike Sherman
Vikings' Mike Tice
Detroit's Matt Millen

The Politics of Speechifying

The thing that continues to aggravate me most about President Bush’s renewed enthusiasm for taking-on his critics of the war is the Orwellian feel to it all.

Tonight was the President’s fourth or fifth recent speech directed straight at the American people. Most of Bush’s public comments in 2005 have been intended for the consumption of the international community; from the BBC to Al Jazerra. No wonder that roughly 7 in 10 Americans are hacked-off at the guy. We, we, want to know what the hell is going on.

I clicked over to ESPN’s game before the Democrats offered their rebuttal, so I have no idea what that clumsy bunch of angry flag-burners saw in Bush’s TV appearance.

For me, Ambassador Joe Wilson and NSC analyst Richard Clarke finished closer to vindication tonight. Remember, the White House stated the numero uno reason for invading Iraq was Saddam’s Weapons of Mass Destruction. Both Wilson and Clarke said repeatedly, at the outset, that Iraq did not possess WMDs.

And, they were right.

Had Bush 43 simply stated, 3-some years ago, that Saddam must be removed because he tried to assassinate his father, Bush 41 -- hey, good enough for me. Turner Classic reruns of The Godfather, Goodfellas, and The Sopranos broadcast on global Sky TV should have taught the world – you hurt one of ours, we kill one of yours. Mess with the famiglio – the family of Americans – and the U.S. Marines will find you – even if you are cowering in a spider-hole in a desert.

President Bush called me an honest critic tonight. I am not one of those who see nothing going right. I supported the war for the reasons the President gave us. Yet, how do I reconcile that support with the bad intelligence that we were force fed?

And that is the Orwell-nature of this mess; tonight, President Bush repackaged the war debate between victory and defeat – an either/or equation.

But what if victory has already been achieved, and everything that follows is defeat?

15 years ago, it took all of 100 hours to liberate Kuwait from Saddam. We have accomplished regime change in Afghanistan. We accomplished regime change in Iraq. Our ability to sweep in and accomplish the same again if needed is without question.

The President is claiming his plan is victory and everyone else’s is defeat. Unless, like those WMDs, it is not.

Choke on It, NY Times

Conservative Blogs are More Effective
here

True. Throughout history, conservatives have had to create their own vehicles of communication -- from Lincoln wresting control from the Whigs to win as a new Republican, to Teddy's Bull Moose Party, from rescuing AM radio with talk format, to the current proliferation of blogging.

Conservatives simply don't have mainstream media - East Coast networks and Left Coast movie-makers - on our side.

The Inn Never Changes; The Walls Talk

Who is this guy Gary Fisher?

Anyone know him? Yes? From the Inn on the Park you say?

For those who have not slopped tap beer and stayed too long at the favorite watering hole of legislators, reporters and lobbyists alike, the Inn on the Park is something akin to the office water cooler; a metaphor for where one goes to belly-ache.

The trouble with the Inn on the Park is everyone overhears the secret plans to screw with someone else.

Ya got a bill to kill? Let's amend it to death. Ya got pay-back on someone? Let's meet across the street at the Inn at 5:00pm and devise a dastardly deed.

It was easy to figure-out the assassins when it was Republicans v. Democrats. But occasionally, politics does indeed create strange bedfellows -- but we'll save those Tales from the Inn for future blog posts.

Veterans Affairs Secretary John Scocos is the Inn's latest target these days (post).

Politics is a zero-sum game, as in, I got zero, and I want some.

So, applying this political truism to the brinkmanship being played by the Veterans Affairs Board, and mixing-in the clumsy chatter at the Inn on the Park, the game against Scocos is as obvious as the beer foam at the bottom of Senator Roger Breske's glass.

*Democrat Governor Jim Doyle; He's got zero. VA Secretary Scocos is a Republican appointee hold-over;

*Democrat ex-Senator Rod Moen; He's got zero. The defeated pol/ex-Naval vet desperately wants Scocos' job;

*Republican St. Rep Terry Musser; He's got almost zero. The Veterans Committee he chairs was split into 2 committees, by Republican Speaker John Gard , diluting his clout;

*Republican VA Secretary John Scocos; He's got some. As a Gard loyalist, Scocos draws fire from those Assembly GOP caucus members who have been disciplined by their emotional leader.

The enemy of my enemy is my friend. Or, as Dick Morris redefined it, John Scocos is being triangulated.

Cheers, Big Red

In 1985, I got to class by one of two methods, either riding the Tube or walking to Hanger Lane to jump the #112 for the ride down Uxbridge to the Ealing Broadway stop.

For a 19 year-old, Blue-Collar Kid From Janesville, it was such a thrill to jump on London’s famous red double-decker buses every day.

Most times, I never reached the campus of Ealing College of Higher Education (now called Ealing, Hammersmith and West London College -- site.)

The temptation to simply ride the busses into central London and explore was too great for a kid who had hardly been beyond Wisconsin.

Which is why it is a sad day for those who have lived in London, and for those who will not have the experience to live and ride like a native Englishman.

The Last Ride

Randomly, I would jump off near Trafalgar Square or Piccadilly Circus and walk the narrow streets called Mew or Close, in search of the perfect pint.

Oddly, every pub I visited in London poured the perfect pint. And after several pints, games like Snooker and Cricket began to make sense.

20 years ago, I rode the Roadmasters of London. I never thought they'd be gone before I got back to the streets of London and Queen Vic's Pub.

I lift my pint to the East, across the Pond, to say thanks for adopting this American and carrying me home safely each afternoon.

Scocos' Only Sin? Being Named By Tommy

Changes in Administrations bring changes to most levels of government - as the old saw goes, to the winner goes the spoils.

Which is the real reason why the Secretary of Veteran affairs, John Scocos, is being ambushed from inside the wire.

When someone serves 14 years in the governor's office, their influence lingers, particularly among the Corp. of political appointees throughout the numerous boards and commissions.

Tommy Thompson's appointments secretary was a master at getting the right people placed.

So it takes awhile for a new governor of the opposing Party to clean house and reward their campaign worker bees with resume-choking appointments.

Democrat cross-hairs are pinned on John Scocos.

The real issue is not the quality of service Scocos is providing our veterans.

More can always be won for those who have never, ever, ever, received their fair share for their sacrifice - but the reviews on Scocos say he never stops marching on the decision-makers for a renewed commitment to those who fought and died for my right, among rights, to write this blog.

The real issue is the Veterans Vote is a a critical voting bloc in Wisconsin.

Having one of your own traveling the county roads to VFW lodges and American Legion halls, extolling praise upon the incumbent governor, is grassroots campaigning worth more than any 30 second TV ad.

And when the incumbent governor is slumping in the mid 40s in polls when asked who will vote to reelect the guy, grabbing control of Veterans Affairs becomes all the more urgent.

Scocos doesn't have a capitol D after his name, so he is being slammed by Governor Doyle's appointees to the Veterans Board.

It's warfare, Capitol-style.

Escape FROM Wisconsin

Reason #173 why Wisconsin retirees leave Wisconsin, and why Wisconsin is unable to attract retirees to Wisconsin.

New resident not humored by wait time for licensing

To the Editor:
About 3 1/2 months ago I moved up here to Woodruff from Illinois. On July 18, after driving to Rhinelander to get the forms to apply for new titles and new plates for my two cars, I filled them out, enclosed the $90 fee by check for each car ($55 for the plates and $35 for the title) each in separate envelopes and mailed them off to the DMV in Madison. Exactly one month later, Aug. 18, after hearing nothing from Madison and checking my tele-bank to find that they hadn't even cashed my checks yet, I drove over to the Woodruff Police Department to ask some questions as to why I hadn't received or heard a thing from Madison.

They told me, 'well, you know it takes 12 weeks.' I laughed because I thought they were kidding. I said, "12 weeks, that's three months, one-quarter of a year. That's crazy. In Illinois, I have never had to wait more than three weeks." All they said was "well, that's the way it is up here."

Well, they weren't kidding because 11 weeks to the day I finally received the title and registration card for one of the cars (not the one that had already expired over a month beforehand, but for the one that had recently expired). However, two days later I received the other title and registration card.

Now this whole thing is not only crazy, it's insane. I don't know if this Gov. Doyle is a Democrat or Republican and I don't care, but I put the blame on him. If he and this so-called great state of Wisconsin can't do better than that at the DMV in Madison, he should resign and/or be removed from office and the DMV should be properly staffed so as to get this work done in a reasonable and timely manner, like in Illinois.

And I don't need to hear any of this "if you don't like it, move back to Illinois" crap, either. I have talked to several Wisconsin residents who feel as I do. In the meantime, the plates on both cars expired as a result, even though when I applied, I had nearly 1 1/2 months to spare on the one car and nearly 2 1/2 months on the other car.

Also, I had to wait all this time for them to cash the checks so I could close out my old checking account. And besides sending in my "old" titles, as they required, I also sent in my "old" registration cards to show that in Illinois I got a $54 discount on the one car for being a senior citizen (on the plates), but here I didn't receive a cent off on either car.

As far as the cost of the titles at $35 each that is also a ripoff. I remember when they were $3 (in Illinois). Finally, when I went to Rhinelander to get a new driver's license, they told me I would have to pay $18 (because I was a new resident) for only three years (the first time or $6 a year), but next time it would only be $24 for eight years (or half the cost at $3 a year).

In Illinois, I paid $10 (two years ago) for four years, but, of course, I received nothing for the almost two years I had left to go on the (Illinois) driver's license before it expired.

Now my main complaint here is about the 12-plus week wait. That's pathetic. What a joke this is!
Harlan Parke
Woodruff
December 09, 2005

Brian Burke in PJs

WI State Journal

...Picture convicted felon and former state Sen. Brian Burke camped out on the couch in his Milwaukee living room, watching television in his pajamas and slippers.

Boy, would that show him and the public that crime doesn't pay.

Yeah, right

Sounds familiar, but with a bit more bite.

WI's Only Statewide Republican

 Republican State Treasurer Jack Voight announced his candidacy for a fourth term today, focusing on issues like EdVest, the Local Government Investment Pool and the Unclaimed Property Program. Voight has three fundraisers scheduled in the next three days.
____________________

Perhaps we can all learn from Jack.

4 terms would tie Tommy.

Law and Order; CSI Saddam

BBC

Chaos mars Saddam court hearing
The trial of ousted Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein has resumed after a walkout by defence lawyers initially threw the third hearing into disarray.

Saddam Hussein and his half-brother shouted at the judge

...Witness Ahmed Hassan Mohammed al-Dujaili - who says he was among many people arrested in Dujail - then addressed the court. "I heard a knock on the door and secret service people came in," he said. "People were taken to prison and most were killed there. The scene was frightening. Even women with babies were arrested."

..Another, former US Attorney General Ramsey Clark, said that unless the trial was seen as "absolutely fair", it would "divide rather than reconcile Iraq".
______________________________________

Want to reverse public opinion on the War in Iraq?

Televise the trial.

Americans love courtroom TV. From Perry Mason to the People's Court, from Judge Judy to L.A. Law, court drama consistently drives the ratings game.

Think, O.J.

The Saddam Trial might just give birth to a new Nightline, or discover the next Jeffrey Toobin.

IL GOP Risks Cannibalizing Themselves

Craine's Greg Hinz

...Unfortunately for Republicans, that campaign cannot be waged very effectively — at least, not without a fast, major makeover — by the GOP's primary front-runner, Illinois Treasurer Judy Baar Topinka, who declared her candidacy last week.

...It shouldn't be that way. Ms. Topinka herself needs to prove that she's not just a get-along, go-along gal. She can start by moving away from Bob Kjellander, who has a stunning conflict in his twin roles as a lobbyist who has to butter up Democratic officials and a protector of GOP interests as the state's Republican national committeeman. Then she can propose and unite her party behind new ethics laws with teeth.

Ms. Topinka can't undo the past. But she needs to demonstrate the future will be different.

No one within the cadre of IL GOP candidates for governor has captured the reform mantel as Hinz suggested.

Illinois is a Democrat state. Without any of the Republicans willing to focus a reform message directly at Blago, the state GOP risks another 4 years of irrelevance.

Dennis York Revealed

Clues up ahead...

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2005
The Canonization of "Saint Lyndee"
As soon as Hall’s puff piece about caucus “scandal” informant Wall surfaced this morning, I immediately received e-mails from Capitol staffers and ex-staffers asking me to offer a more balanced view of Ms. Wall

Maybe the most notable crime against democracy occurred on November 30th of 2000 when the police were called to investigate Ms. Wall drunkenly trying to kick in window at Ken’s Bar near the Capitol after she found out her boyfriend, a Republican state legislator, was cheating on her. The relationship with the legislator reportedly ended in April of 2001, right about the time Wall decided to go public with the legislature's dirty laundry. (She apparently got over the relationship fairly quickly, seeing as how she now has a 3 year old son - do the math.)

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 16, 2005
Martin Luther Speaks Against Self Defense from the Grave

Is the divinity of Christ in question if a certain percentage of Wisconsin residents believe he ain't coming back?

I'm no theologian, but religions exist to dictate public opinion, not reflect it.

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 14, 2005
My Daughter - Punk Rock Queen

I know nobody likes hearing lame stories about other people's kids, but a seminal event in our family occurred this morning when my two and a half year old daughter

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 06, 2005
In a sign that the standards over at Wispolitics.com are dropping at an alarming rate, they have named my little blog here as their "Blog of the Month."

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 04, 2005
The Doyle/Nichols Love Child: Cooking the Books on Gas Prices
Exactly what is price gouging “under normal circumstances?” Aren’t “extraordinary circumstances” exactly what cause gouging to be gouging? If someone doubled the price of toilet paper under normal circumstances, you’d figure out a way to get it cheaper. If someone doubled the price of toilet paper after you had downed an order of Denny's Moons Over My Hammy, that would be (the worst type of) gouging, and an extraordinarily bad circumstance all around.

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 02, 2005
Who is making all that oil money again?
It's not often I get to toot my own horn (at least not with anyone else in the house), so I'll do so now. Before all the post-Katrina indignation about gas prices and how all the evil oil companies were gouging consumers, I wrote this post, which exposed the hypocrisy of Democrats on the issue

MONDAY, OCTOBER 31, 2005
My uncle Eddie loves his job. A few times a week, he hops on a bus and rides halfway across Milwaukee to get to Pizza Hut, where he’s worked for seven years

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 25, 2005
Want Better Legislators? Pay Them More
I know, I know. This one will take a little while to explain. Maybe it’s just the contrarian in me. Then again, it is more likely the magic markers I have been sniffing.

Judy, You Got Sum 'Splainin to Do

Judy Baar Topinka is a regular at the Chicago homosexual "pride" parade. Topinka is a close friend of Illinois' leading homosexual lobby group, Equality Illinois.

I bet she never thought she would be running in a statewide primary for Governor.

And the gloves come off (click)

Topinkojevich Announces

Judy Baar Topinka -- Katy Bar the Door, impending disaster ahead.

Guess the IL establishment Republicans are still smarting over losing Lolita Dedrickson in March of 1998 to conservative Peter Fitzgerald. They dusted-off her more amusing clone.

Topinka launches race for governor

...Topinka has vocal opponents among conservative Republicans. She would also be facing wealthy opponents.

...She was joined by former Governor Jim Edgar, who was asked to run for his old job but declined. Instead, he has agreed to serve as Topinka's campaign chairman.

...She belongs to the party's establishment at a time when some Republicans are calling for a thorough house-cleaning. Her candidacy is backed, for instance, by Bob Kjellander, a member of the Republican National Committee whose lobbying firm made $800,000 by helping a bond company land a deal with the Blagojevich administration.

...Topinka also pushed unsuccessfully to let two hotel companies with political connections settle $43 million in debt to the state for just $10 million.

...Steve Rauschenberger's gubernatorial campaign has begun calling her "Topinkojevich" and arguing she would be little different from the current Democratic administration.

_____________________

Here's a golden oldie, and I suspect the same sort of predictions will appear for Judy Baar;

McLaughlin Group – 11/24/97
PREDICTIONS worth mentioning
Clift: Expanding private pensions
Buchanan : Big demand for US funds to bail out Asia.
McLaughlin: Lolita Dedrickson (R) will face Carol Mosely-Braun and win.