(all views are mine)
I don't have time to write a bunch, just a few snippets from the ground here. Turnout appears to be record everywhere. I got one of the few remaining parking spots at my polling place at 8:00 am in a city of 8000. That is a good sign. I went to my local grocery store with my sticker "I Voted" and several conversations erupted about when people are voting... the excitement is palpable and the weather is gorgeous, which always favors dems.
A friend in Milwaukee says that they may drive cars around with megaphones blasting "You Must VOTE"! Jesse Jackson told folks there that MLK and other civil rights workers did their part, we must do ours...if Milwaukeans show up for Barrett like they did for Obama - Barrett will win handily...
We are doing our part in our own cities in the North too, we've canvassed our city door knocking the last week, and today we do it all again asking people if they've voted yet. If you do it in the correct frame of mind (reminding yourself that this is how democracy and civil rights are kept and won) then it is very exciting. One elderly woman on my turf is voting for only the 2nd time in her life after her out-of-state nephew called her and encouraged her to vote for Barrett. After speaking with her at length, she said that she will insist that her 5 adult children vote as well (none of them have ever voted). I went to her house again this morning to see if anyone needed a ride and they were all sleeping in. However, a friend of theirs was mulling around outside and I think I convinced him to vote. I'm going back there after I rest a bit. People will canvass until poll closing at 8 pm.
I haven't seen ANY Walker canvassers (that is more of a progressive thing) but the ads, flyers and phone calls are overwhelming. A friend of mine recorded this PHONE call yesterday from a republican caller who was promoting Scott Walker.
Finally, we all knew it was coming, but the first hints of voter fraud have already surfaced on the part of major GOP PACS sending in hundreds of absentee ballots...even though they accuse the dems of voter fraud...the entire rationale behind the Voter ID laws.
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Ann Nichols
Lynette Stark
Chicago Guy
Daniel Geery
Desnee Flakes
Chauncey DeVega
Salon.com
Comments
Above is the link for the reported voter fraud in this election. I wasn't able to link it above in the article.
Below is the link for the voter suppression tactics used in last summer's recall elections.
http://open.salon.com/blog/y_heron/2011/07/15/wi_right_to_life_and_voter_suppression_listen_to_interview
r
GOOD LUCK, WISCONSIN, and GOOD LUCK TOM BARRETT!
I'm trying to keep calm and stay away from any sight with GOP troll comments, or I'll look like I'm a hundred and two by the end of the day. I'm so keyed up and I don't even LIVE in Wisconsin! But I'm glad to hear that early signs are promising.
But know this, Heidi. I admire you so much and I'm so proud of the part you and your husband played in all this!
I hope the results will be what we're all hoping for today!
RATED
You and the people who volunteered and did everything you could to spotlight the working people of WI are truly inspiring. It is absolutely amazing that with Barrett being outspent 7 to 1 this race is so close. No matter which way it goes, this shows how scary it is now with outside money flooding in through Super Pacs.
r./
:)
That phon call really is indicative of GOP craziness, isn't it?
R
If this helps push anyone towards common sense and Barrett's win---please use it!
http://open.salon.com/blog/chicago_guy/2012/06/04/talking_wisconsin_union
Hang in there!!!
ON WISCONSIN
other words
FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT!!!
I saw on fb that Keith Ellison took a bus or more out there to canvas but I knew nothing in advance. The man sends me three emails a day asking for money. You'd think he could have mentioned that - it could have made a difference for me.
Win, loose or draw, Heidi, I'm proud to know you.
This has been a long, drawn-0ut struggle and Heidi you're one of the true heroes in all this. You're not likely to get a medal or your name in lights or anything like that, but for the rest of your life you'll know that you have indeed made a difference. And it doesn't get any better than that.
We will keep standing up for what is right ~ livable wages, family sustaining jobs, healthcare for the poor, workers having a voice at the table, emphasis on education, and the wealthy sharing the sacrifice during a bad economy rather than taking from those with less while giving to those with more.
Thank-you OS for sharing this last 17 months with us. Your attention has been encouraging and has given me purpose.
This is not the end, only the beginning.
@Deborah Young: I don't believe what you say about the wrong side of history for one MINUTE. As the late great Molly Ivins said: 'Freedom fighters don't always win, but they are always right.'"
Walker lied before being elected, and has divided a once good and progressive state. I sure as hell don't call that being on the GOOD side of history.
It's not the end-all that Walker wasn't thrown out. There were many issues at play there. What is important is that he did not get away with his dirty tactics. Yes, he held his seat, but at what cost? What counts is that people stood up for those people that Walker would like to see tossed on the garbage heap and forgotten - the poor, the sick, the old, and the working class. What happened in WI will have a positive impact on politics going forward. I pray it helps bring about the demise of Citizens United!!! Thank you Heidi!
"In terms of strict numbers, Walker spent some $30 million; Barrett and the unions spent $25 million. That’s not a 7-to-1 differential. And when you add in unions’ inherent advantage in ground game, you’re talking about a better-than-even split for Barrett.
Scott Walker won last night because he is a good governor. He didn’t win because of a money advantage, even though Wisconsin rules heavily favor incumbent politicians who are recalled (they can raise unlimited contributions from individuals after recall petitions are filed, whereas opponents cannot take more than $10,000 from individuals). The media’s attempt to pass this election off as a win for big money simply doesn’t hold water."
A record $64 million was poured into this recall election by super PACs, much of the money coming from OUT-OF-STATE conservatives who supported Walker.
~msnbc
http://www.jsonline.com/news/statepolitics/walker-to-meet-with-cabinet-on-jobs-8i5mapa-157488605.html
I really appreciate the supportive comments so much ~ thank-you!
"If you're grieving our loss last night, please keep this in mind:
Every great leader in history...every great movement that defined America...they were all the underdog. They were all not supposed to win. They all went through times when they doubted and when it looked like everything they had risked was wasted. They all were told, even by some on their own side, to quit and accept reality. And they all kept going, undaunted...
General Washington, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Sojourner Truth, Frederick Douglas, Eugene V. Debs, Crazy Horse, Caesar Chavez, Nelson Mandela, Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr., Freedom Riders...and, of course, Jesus.
I'm a history teacher. I know that there are always shades of gray. But I will never support an ideology that would take from those in need to give to those who aren't. They can argue all they want that it is economically responsible and necessary...it is morally corrupt and inexcusable. There are shades of gray...but there is also right and wrong. This time, we're right. Therefore, I believe we have a responsibility, like those who went before us, not to give up. We'll take steps back, sure, but only to learn and regroup. And don't forget that we pushed back enough to regain the senate, not a small feat. I don't know about you, but I find great strength in now knowing that when I do step forward, again and again, I won't be alone. I'll be with you and with all those before us. We owe them.
As my sons know, it's quite simple really (in Star Wars): Would you rather fight for the empire or the rebel alliance?"
Scott
"I am only one, but I am one. I cannot do everything, but I can do something."
I'll go with Scanner and say how proud we are of Wisconsin for holding the elected accountable, for insisting on government being responsive to its constituencies, and for demanding that government remain transparent. Let’s hope we all appreciate that we live in a country that allows recalls, referenda, and initiatives. Wisconsin has just conducted an experiment in direct democracy that voters in few other countries can enjoy.
However, I have wondered about the plan of those who chose to recall Governor Walker, just as I wondered about the plan of those who earlier chose to recall members of the legislature. Was there ever a well-defined, highly specified plan offered as an alternative to the actions taken by Walker? Or, was it simply that lost benefits were to be restored and the rich taxed to close the budget gap?
Again, had your team won the governorship, would there have been someone who would have hit the ground running to a well known destination, or would it have been like the dog chasing the car who was about to take a bite out of the rotating tire?
I listened to a debate between Walker and Barret and didn’t hear much from Walker other than “moving forward” and from Barret other than the potential corruption associated with the “John Doe” investigation. That debate was not impressive.
The whole letter is excellent, good on Scott! But those are my favorite parts. I believe it's never a mistake to stick up for yourselves and your state. I'm sure George Washington had some really low moods at Valley Forge, himself.
"The Arc of history is long, but it bends toward justice" as Martin Luther King said. And when the moment of Scott Walker's reckoning comes, may he feel even worse than we do, now.
Read the above link. This a an unsung hero of the progressive movement and an ironic battle won, in the war we are currently battling.
Please don't listen to the mainstream media on the failure of Wisconsin. Both liberal and conservative news alike will report about our futile attempt to right the wrongs of big money.
Everyone from John Stewart to FOX commentators will tout the success of Scott Walker and his allies. But trying to get back, what we've lost through Citizen's United and the most powerful money that our democracy has ever encountered will take slow, steady, constant pressure of thousands and thousands of regular people. We've done that. We have taken back our STATE SENATE which will provide a crucial balance to any more destruction...and we will never again allow a Tea Party candidate to run unopposed in our state. Keep putting one foot in front of the other.