A Well-Timed Election
Consider three names living in infamy that will play a major role in state and national elections next year: Scott Walker, Paul Ryan and, oh yes, Osama bin Laden.
Let's get the least politically divisive out of the way first.
The fact that President Barack Obama was able to achieve in two years what his Republican predecessor couldn't accomplish in seven—finding and eliminating bin Laden—is boosting enthusiasm for his leadership not only among Democrats and independents, but even some Republicans.
It's true that rave reviews from the national electorate are notoriously fleeting. The first President George Bush's popularity was sky-high after the Gulf War in 1991, yet Bush lost to Bill Clinton a year later.
But the most important issue in next year's presidential election will be the nation's economy. And Obama's foreign policy triumph also coincides with increasingly bright economic news despite anti-American Republicans voting in lockstep against doing anything to ease unemployment.
A successful, popular president driving the top of the ticket will only add to the reactivated enthusiasm among Democrats and other progressives in a series of historic showdowns leading up to the national election.
For that, Democrats can thank Republican Gov. Scott Walker.
Wisconsin Democrats underestimated tea party extremists in 2010 and allowed them to give Republicans control of the governor's office and both houses of the Legislature and replace an outstanding senator, Russ Feingold, with a nonentity, Ron Johnson.
It was an open invitation to Republicans to do their worst, and they seized the opportunity.
Doing Their Worst
Walker immediately attracted national attention—and statewide dismay—by moving to destroy bargaining rights for working people and gutting state aid to education and local governments to create more unemployment instead of the 250,000 jobs he promised during his campaign.
Republican legislators aren't just jamming through every offensive law they've ever dreamed of passing, but are crafting the most extreme versions of those laws in the country.
Their photo ID voting law—part of a national Republican campaign to block voting by minorities, the poor, the elderly and college students who might vote Democratic—won't even accept student photo IDs from most Wisconsin colleges.
A dangerously irresponsible concealed carry law would allow literally anyone to carry a deadly weapon without applying for a permit or undergoing a background check.
Such extreme actions reawakened activism by appalled Democrats and independents, resulting in the largest political protests in Wisconsin history. They also set in motion a series of political events that will provide the perfect prelude to Democratic success in the 2012 fall elections.
The first will be this summer, as recall elections of six Republican state senators offer the best hope for Democrats to take back control of the state Senate and halt the most brazen excesses of Republican extremists.
The Democrats have to win only three of the Republican recalls, a goal that already looks achievable and then some.
Success this summer would provide a head start on organizing and enthusiasm for the biggest state recall of all: recalling Walker in January 2012, after he has been in office for the required full year.
The third infamous political name, Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan, will make it that much harder for Republicans to achieve success in either the recalls or the fall 2012 elections.
Some pundits immediately dragged out Ryan's name as a potential Republican candidate for Kohl's seat. That no doubt was once Ryan's ambition, but now that seems increasingly unlikely.
Ryan has been exposed as one of the most radical Republican extremists, blowing his cover not just in Wisconsin, but nationwide.
As chairman of the House Budget Committee, Ryan got his fellow Republicans to vote for a toxic budget plan that would destroy Medicare and begin laying the groundwork to start dismantling Social Security as well.
When Republicans voted for Ryan's budget plan to turn Medicare into a voucher program rapidly decreasing in value and shifting health care costs to seniors, angry seniors woke up and attacked. Ryan himself was booed in his own district.
Republicans have been publicly fleeing from Ryan's ideas ever since. Even conservative flamethrower Newt Gingrich, running for president, attacked Ryan's Medicare plan as radical, right-wing social engineering.
Most of the potential Republican candidates for Kohl's Senate seat will have to battle the taint of association with the deeply unpopular right-wing excesses of either Walker or Ryan.
Meanwhile, several Democratic heroes of the historic battle against Walker—state Sen. Jon Erpenbach and state Rep. Peter Barca come to mind—are well positioned to run against Walker in next year's recall.
And many voters in Wisconsin would welcome an opportunity to return Feingold to the Senate—or anyone else who isn't Walker or Ryan.
Absolutely delusional on all levels. First- Walker as "deeply unpopular". Insane- how does McNally account for the fact that state and local governments nationwide (even those run by Dems) are emulating Walker's actions in Wisconsin with regard to public employees and their unions? He doesn't- because it doesn't fit his cemented, illogical view of the world around him.
As for the recalls, the commonly held view among most (logically thinking) pundits is that the Dems would be lucky to be successful in two of the efforts, while Republicans can reasonably hope to win one of their recall efforts. Probable outcome- Dems net one seat, not enough to take the WI state Senate.
McNally almost seems to be implying that Walker and Ryan will run for Kohl's seat. Not a chance in hell that either one would run. Both are much more powerful where they are, and both probably have longer-term presidential aspirations. Freshman Senator status is not attractive to either man. In addition, McNally ignores many other very viable, very popular potential Republican candidates for Kohl's seat- Kanavas, Thompson, and Neumann, to name three.
Finally, remember that Wisconsin voters were more than happy to kick Feingold to the curb. Feingold, whose signature legislation was found to be unconsitutional. Feingold, who cannot point to one vote that has really advanced Wisconsin in stature or affluence. Feingold, whose "maverick" votes have had little if any effect on the actual outcome of those bills (see the Patriot Act- it's easy to vote against a bill you KNOW will pass easily). Feingold, who is so deeply enmeshed in the Democratic Washington machine that his self-defined "maverick" status is a joke.
Yeah- I'm sure that Wisconsin voters are just dying to put the guy they voted out of Washington last year right back in. Not likely.
Welcome to "McNally's World", where up is down, in is out, and to vote someone out of office is to love him deeply...
Haven't been to Wisconsin lately or maybe never have you. Welcome to the new Wisconsin order. We were had and now we are mad. Visit us in July the heigth of the tourist/recall season. Thanks to Walker and Ryan the Republican label has taken on a new and uglier meaning. BTW Ryan is staying where he's at because that's his only option and even that option is fading fast.
Who is delusional? The way Mcnally accounts for "the fact that state and local governments nationwide" are following Walker's political suicide (as thought by most "logically thinking") people is that it benifits only the few wealthiest people in the nation. If you are not one of these, which I assume you are not, then you have been brainwashed. Get a clue. Walker and the other national clowns who think that breaking up unions and taking away collective bargaining will help create jobs and fill a budget gap primarily created by conservative right wing policies are not the smartest cookies---oh, wait, maybe they are smart. They have the ability to brainwash people like PolitcalPygmalic into thinking that these are policies that will benefit everyone.
"As for the recalls, the commonly held view among most (logically thinking)" voters is that the Dems will retake the Senate. Why? Because thankfully not all Wisconsinites are right winged nuts like those they mistakenly voted in. Elections have consequences, which is why we have recall elections. This is also why the republicans, Darling especially, are instituting the voter ID bill. That way they can successfully keep many locially thinking voters from exercising their constitutional right to vote. If we don't retake the senate, then it will be because of the voter ID bill.
Walker and Ryan are not powerfull or popular. That is a media myth created and paid for by--Surprise- the wealthiest people in America--once again you have been brainwased. If they were really that powerful and popular then why was Ryan booed in his own district? Why are senior citizens banding together nationaly to protect medicare and get rid of Ryan's stupid plan? Because they to are capable of thinking logically.
Who is delusional? The right wing republican think tanks that were mistakenly given political power--and you are still the minority.
PolitcalPygmalic-
Glad there are some smart people here. I hate all these liberals that just wana crawl into our lives and tell us what to do and then take our money too! they call it taxes... ha, I call it slavery. They best know, we have rights (2nd amendment)! leave us alone!
I gota job. I worked hard for my job and it pays me good! I don't care about these liberals wanting to create jobs with my tax money. how bout them jobless create their own jobs! And I hate these whinners who say "ooo I had a job and I was making blah blah blah thousand a year, then I got laid off." SHUT UP! YOU DESERVED IT! I ain't never gona loose my job because I work harder then anyone else.
Joel does not know how to put out a message in an objective way. Like all the polarized, divisive writers on here, there is a hard right message, and a hard left message. Neither one will serve 100% of americans, both only want to serve there own hard-core group at the expense of the others (and the apathetic moderates).
The pundits complained about GM's systemic problem, the State of Wisconsin's systemic problems, and others. Not once has anyone pointed out the systemic problem of capitalism, even when it is working well.
In a perfect capitalist world, the insurance companies would take customers premium payments, and all would by secure and solid enough that they would never make a claim payment. Tell me how that stays "balanced"? Money is moving one way, and that is up, never down.
In a perfect world, no business would go out of business. There would be no lay-offs, no liquidations of assets. Businesses would make profit, meaning they take more value in than what they give back. Money is moving one way, and that is up, never down.
Realize that in a "perfect world", the movers and shakers make money, at the expense of the market. Winners are always balanced by losers, or they could not be winners. Can never have everybody come out a winner.
The only reason we as an American society could make it with some many winners and so few losers, was that the customers could take out a loan, spending would hand profit money to the winners today, postponing payback until tomorrow. (In checks, that's called "kiting" is illegal) Seems to work as long as there is someone outside the system investing deposit dollars into the banks, so the banks can lend. When the outside investors no longer have the money, the game stops.
Who were those outside investors? The rest of the world, and our own savers thinking their money is safe due to FDIC. What pays off FDIC? Taxpayers, again, just postponing until tomorrow, so long as revenues still exist. But, there will never be enough new revenue to let all the investors cash out as winners.
Sounds like Bernie Madoff.
We are in a game that cannot be won, so it is up to the minority wealthy groups to con the rest of us to give up our last dollar, the very dollar we need to start fresh after the lords of the castle have raised up their drawbridge.