Hospitality
Hidden Agendas In Wisconsin Jobs Bills Replay "Budget Repair" Feint
Original Author:
(James Rowen)
Beware Walkerites bearing jobs.
And always look past the gift-wrapping.
Remember that Scott Walker began his first year as Governor by offering the infamous "Budget-Repair Bill,"
his so-called "modest proposal" which was meant to wipe out 50 years of public employee collective bargaining.
Justifying the deception, Walker
falsely claimed he had campaigned on that anti-union plan, only
admitting the truth when challenged, under oath, before a Congressional committee.
But the pattern was established.
Make stuff up, spin it and stick with it.
It was an exercise in Power Politics 101, backed by majorities in both legislative houses and a compliant, 4-3 pro-business and conservative majority on the state Supreme Court.
Original Author:
(James Rowen)
If you examine the Walker/Fitzgeralds' agenda and accomplishments [sic] to date- - the Voter ID bill locking in Republican advantages, a parade of business tax breaks, the shift of agency rule-making to the Governor's office, the management of the DNR with
a "chamber of commerce mentality," the easing of mining approvals and wetlands protections, the boosting of private school choice, the crippling of public employee unions and members' collective bargaining rights, the starving of local bus systems, outright killing of both a Madison-to-Milwaukee Amtrak extension and separate SE Wisconsin commuter train, and more - - there's only one way to interpret it:
The far right, with Walker as the front-man CEO, is re-shaping Wisconsin as a subsidiary of the private sector run by the Class "A," preferred shareholders - - the WMC, major conservative donors and Americans for Prosperity-type advocacy groups, and ALEC, which provides secretive, members-only ideological and technical guidance.
That group is rewarding itself with dividends guaranteed, across the board, by Walker, the Fitzgeralds and other compliant legislative/managers on behalf of the majority, controlling Class "A" shareholders.
Original Author:
Brian Leubitz
High Court to consider massive cuts to services and reimbursement rates.
by Brian Leubitz
The United States Supreme Court opened up its 2011-2012 term, and oh yeah, they're talking California:
The Supreme Court began a new term Monday by refereeing a major healthcare dispute to decide whether cash-strapped states like California can cut their Medicaid payments to doctors and hospitals who serve low-income patients.
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Lawyers for California and the Obama administration urged the court to rule that Medicaid is a "voluntary" effort to provide medical care for the poor and that disputes over funding should be resolved by healthcare officials in Sacramento and Washington, not by federal judges in San Francisco.
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Switch it Over
Original Author:
Brian Leubitz
Shift to local jails means big changes in some counties
by Brian Leubitz
With the realignment shift towards counties, all of a sudden the once sleepy 58 sheriff positions become a whole lot more meaningful. Sheriffs will be in charge of far more prisoners, and the one who gets the lion's share of that is Lee Baca in LA County.
The so-called "prison realignment" beginning Saturday will transfer the state's responsibility for lower-level drug offenders, thieves and other convicts to county jurisdictions.
An estimated 9,000 parolees will be added to the caseloads of the Probation Department, whose workers already oversee inmates released from county jails.
The Sheriff's Department will have to find room in its jails for an additional 7,000 inmates convicted of non-serious, non-violent and non-sexual felonies.
Gov. Jerry Brown said Thursday this sweeping overhaul of the correctional system would help the state save money, reduce the 70 percent recidivism rate, and bring the state into compliance with a U.S. Supreme Court order to ease prison overcrowding. (LA Daily News)
To be honest, you can't get a whole lot worse than the current system. We still aren't dealing with some of the underlying problems in sentencing, but baby steps I suppose.
Waukesha's County Clerk Not Criminally Charged, But...
Original Author:
(James Rowen)
The embattled Waukesha County Clerk
didn't mean to break the law when she held back some election results on the night of the State Supreme Court race, but you can't chalk up her shenanigans that night to a rookie's mistake.
She's a long-time office-holder who has been chastised for
running her office arrogantly, so we'll see if either the voters of the County or the clerk herself will make the changes that are long overdue there.
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