t's budget time in Wisconsin. And you know what that means. The governor proposes and the legislature disposes: reportedly preparing to remove 545 items from Evers' plan. (During the last budget cycle two years ago, the legislature removed about 391 items.) In the crosshairs are the proposed 12-week paid family and medical leave program, legalization of recreational and medicinal marijuana, hiring additional mental health providers in schools, and much more. Tax rates, too, are coming in for their share of struggle. Evers wants to reduce the tax rates "by 10% for individuals earning $100,000 or less a year and married filers making $150,000 or less." Republicans plan to strip out that proposal and focus "their efforts on flattening the state’s more than 110-year-old income tax." The Wisconsin State Journal published an extensive article on the push and pull between the governor's proposed budget and the legislature's plan to strip huge chunks of it out. It contains a long list, though of course not an exhaustive one, of the Republican's likely cuts. The more you know, the more there is to dislike.
We still have no word on when the special election to replace Dan Knodl, the former representative of the 24th Assembly District, will be held. We do know, from an email he has sent to his constituents — and to me even though I am no longer his constituent since the new election maps assigned me to the 10th Assembly District — that at the end of his last Assembly floor session "my colleagues gave me a nice sendoff by unanimously messaging me over to the Senate." I have no idea what "messaging" someone over to the Senate could possibly mean, but he could be sworn in during the next scheduled Senate floor session. Or not. Maybe he's just enjoying a rest from his light record as a legislator? Who knows. According to the Senate's online calendar, though, the next Floorperiod is May 16-18, and he could take his seat then, setting the machinery of a special election in motion.
On the national scene, last week's news covered the Dominion lawsuit, Tucker Carlson and Don Lemon's departures from their respective cable news networks, and TFG's mounting legal woes. This week, the press seems to be preoccupied by the ethical morass some justices at the Supreme Court seem to have created and the E. Jean Carroll suit. The New York Times has of course provided lots of details about the relationship between Justice Thomas and his billionaire buddy Harlan Crow. And they've also discussed Justice Gorsuch's sale of property to the CEO of a prominent international law firm with plenty of business before the court. Plus the unreported income from commissions Chief Justice Roberts' wife was paid.
But the story most worth your time to read, and which is "gifted" to you so you can pierce the paywall, takes a close look at the relationship between the conservative justices and their sweetheart deals with the Scalia School of Law at George Mason University. "The documents [the Times reviewed] show how Scalia Law has offered the justices a safe space in a polarized Washington — an academic cocoon filled with friends and former clerks, where their legal views are celebrated, they are given top pay and treated to teaching trips abroad, and their personal needs are anticipated, from lunch orders to, in Justice Gorsuch’s case, house hunting." If these arrangements weren't verging on open bribery, the idea of providing a "safe space" for the justices' conservative thinking might almost be funny.
E. Jean Carroll's litigation has turned out to be strikingly interesting. She has now endured several days of testimony and cross-examination with what has been described as poise and good humor. The latest revelation from her testimony: that George Conway (erstwhile GOP lawyer, soon-to-be former husband of Kellyanne Conway, and Never Trumper) encouraged her to file the suit. The Guardian has a good article about the ongoing trial.
Looking ahead to the punditry we will endure during the endless 2024 election, which has of course already begun, Doug Sosnik, who was a senior advisor to President Clinton and who regularly writes political memos, has a relatively new piece out that goes into great detail about what he and others are calling "the diploma divide." Sosnik writes "educational attainment has increasingly played a dominant role in voting. This has led to a political realignment, with the base shifting for both political parties." He goes on to say that "educational sorting has made the vast majority of states no longer politically competitive. It is the battleground states in the middle - where education levels are neither disproportionately high nor low - that will decide the 2024 presidential election." Eight states, his analysis shows, will determine the outcome of the presidential election: "Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Nevada, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin."
This is a rather hodgepodge version of the newsletter. So let me end with something completely different and yet relevant to the national debt ceiling "debate" we must endure. In the April 30 edition of Middle Wisconsin, an online magazine, Dave Svetlik has two articles — SEEMS OBVIOUS – PART ONE and SEEMS OBVIOUS PART TWO — that take a rather jaunty look at how the country makes its money. Seriously: not earns but creates. He begins PART TWO with a brief recap of PART ONE: "So, we know the US Government is the creator, the source, of the nation’s money. We know the US Government always has money of its own (for Heaven’s sake it creates the money). We know the US Government can never run out of money. There, the review of Part One is done. Thank God!" And then he goes on to poke holes in the very notion that the United States government would ever need to borrow money in the first place. Now I was never any good at economic theory so I'm sure there's some snappy rejoinder a serious economist could make. But it's a fun read and some food for thought.
Bay Bridge Restorative Justice Series, 6:30 - 8:00pm
Untied Methodist Church of Whitefish Bay, 819 E Silver Spring Dr, WFB
Healing the Survivor and Community with Janine Geske, Director of the Andrew Center of Restorative Justice and Distinguished Professor of Law at Marquette University of Law School. She will discuss how restorative justice can bring healing to victims and survivors and repair relationships and communities impacted by crime. Sponsored by: Bay Bridge Wisconsin; United Methodist Church of Whitefish Bay; MICAH; WISDOM; EXPO; The Community; From the Same Dust, a Baha'i Group, Bay Shore Lutheran Church, Christ Church Episcopal, Congregation Sinai, Interfaith Conference of Greater Milwaukee, Interfaith Restorative Practices Coalition. LIVESTREAM will be available.
Saturday, May 13
5th CD Dems Convention, 1:00pm
Jackson Area Community Center, N165 W20330 Hickory Lane, Jackson
The Democratic Party of Wisconsin 5th Congressional District is holding its annual convention on Saturday. Registration opens at 1pm. The Convention convenes at 2pm. Please RSVP by ordering your tickets ($20 each). Questions? Please email [email protected] or call 414-491-4544.
Stand for Peace, 12:00 - 1:00pm
Wisconsin and Prospect (by orange sunburst), Milwaukee
Stand for Peace demonstrates for peace at a different intersection in Milwaukee County every Saturday. This week we will focus on Palestinian rights Join us.
Monday, May 15
DPMC Monthly Membership Meeting, 6:00 - 7:30pm
734 N. 26th Street, Milwaukee
The Democratic Party of Milwaukee County is focused on empowering citizens with the tools they need to improve our communities. We must join our friends and neighbors in electing leaders that we believe in. We’re ready to win, but we need your help to do it. Let’s get to work! Join us for our fifth membership meeting of 2023!
EVENTS
Tuesday, May 02
Special Election for Milwaukee County Supervisory District 14, 7:00am - 8:00pm
Your polling place
Visit MyVote.WI.gov to check to see if you reside in this District. Please go to Vote411.org to see the candidate’s responses to non partisan questions from the League of Women Voters of Milwaukee County. The Democratic Party has endorsed Caroline Gómez-Tom. So be a voter!
Election Integrity Leading Up to 2024, 12:00 - 1:00pm
Virtual
As a battleground state, elections in Wisconsin are drawing increased interest at both the state and national level. Campaign spending has increased dramatically, notably from out-of-state sources. This conversational program with former county clerk and retired Republican State Senator Kathy Bernier and Secure Democracy Policy Director Samantha Buckley will take and 'outside in/inside out' look at some of the unique issues surrounding Wisconsin elections. It will be moderated by veteran journalist and editor John Smalley. Register here.
Get Out the Vote for Caroline Gómez-Tom, 2:00 - 8:00pm
2999 S Delaware St, Milwaukee
Come join us as we help get the vote out for Caroline Gómez-Tom for Milwaukee County Supervisor! We will be launching canvasses at 2pm and 5pm from the Milwaukee County Democratic Party office in Bay View. Sign up.
Wednesday, May 03
Drinking Liberally Waukesha, 6:30 - 8:00pm
Raised Grain, 1725 Dolphin Dr Ste Bb, Waukesha
Join us for our May meeting! We have so many topics we can chat about from the reelection campaigns for President Biden and Senator Baldwin to more school board craziness. The weather currently looks like it might be too chilly outside, so meet again at the back tables in the taproom at 6:30pm.
Saturday, May 06
Stand for Peace, 12:00 - 1:00pm
Layton and Howell, Milwaukee
Stand for Peace demonstrates for peace at a different intersection in Milwaukee County every Saturday. Join us.
Sunday, May 07
Wisconsin 6th Congressional District Democrats, 10:00am - 3:30pm
La Sure's Banquet Hall, 3125 S. Washburn St., Oshkosh
We are pleased to announce that LT. Governor Sara Rodriguez, AD 55 Representative Lori Palmeri and AD 23 Representative Deborah Andraca will be our speakers We will also have elections for 6th CD officers: Chair, 1st Vice Chair,2nd Vice Chair, Secretary and Treasurer along with 6th CD State Administration Representative and alternative. Here is the ACTBLUE link. Hope to see you there.
Monday, May 08
North Shore Fair Maps, 7:00 - 8:30pm
Online
At our May meeting, Matt Rothschild (Wisconsin Democracy Campaign) unpacks the world of political "dark money." Then we discuss what we can do about it. We also welcome Iuscely (Cely) Flores and Beverlly Speers, who took command of the Fair Maps Coalition May 1st! Sign up to attend.
Tuesday, May 09
Bay Bridge Restorative Justice Series, 6:30 - 8:00pm
Untied Methodist Church of Whitefish Bay, 819 E Silver Spring Dr, WFB
Healing the Survivor and Community with Janine Geske, Director of the Andrew Center of Restorative Justice and Distinguished Professor of Law at Marquette University of Law School. She will discuss how restorative justice can bring healing to victims and survivors and repair relationships and communities impacted by crime. Sponsored by: Bay Bridge Wisconsin; United Methodist Church of Whitefish Bay; MICAH; WISDOM; EXPO; The Community; From the Same Dust, a Baha'i Group, Bay Shore Lutheran Church, Christ Church Episcopal, Congregation Sinai, Interfaith Conference of Greater Milwaukee, Interfaith Restorative Practices Coalition. LIVESTREAM will be available.
Saturday, May 13
5th CD Dems Convention, 1:00pm
Jackson Area Community Center, N165 W20330 Hickory Lane, Jackson
The Democratic Party of Wisconsin 5th Congressional District is holding its annual convention on Saturday. Registration opens at 1pm. The Convention convenes at 2pm. Please RSVP by ordering your tickets ($20 each). Questions? Please email [email protected] or call 414-491-4544.
Stand for Peace, 12:00 - 1:00pm
Wisconsin and Prospect (by orange sunburst), Milwaukee
Stand for Peace demonstrates for peace at a different intersection in Milwaukee County every Saturday. This week we will focus on Palestinian rights Join us.
Monday, May 15
DPMC Monthly Membership Meeting, 6:00 - 7:30pm
734 N. 26th Street, Milwaukee
The Democratic Party of Milwaukee County is focused on empowering citizens with the tools they need to improve our communities. We must join our friends and neighbors in electing leaders that we believe in. We’re ready to win, but we need your help to do it. Let’s get to work! Join us for our fifth membership meeting of 2023!
other important links
Become a Member of Grassroots North Shore
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