Political Heat

Justices should be removed from the Court after a period of 14 years President Donald Trump has nominated 10th Circuit Court Judge Neil Gorsuch to replace the seat vacated by the late Antonin Scalia on the U.S. Supreme Court. Although former President Barack Obama had named a different nominee, Merrick Garland, to fill the seat, Senate Republicans stalled and obstructed any vote for Garland. And even when it looked as though Hillary Clinton would be the next president, some GOP Senators suggested continuing their obstruction , indefinitely keeping the Supreme Court at eight justices. Now, however, Republicans are singing a different tune, and suggesting that they could implement the so-called “nuclear option” if Democrats dare to filibuster Gorsuch’s appointment. How things have changed. But I don’t want to talk about Gorsuch in this posting. Rather, I want to talk about the necessary change we need to make to our Supreme Court – eliminating the lifetime appointments tha...

The duty of the press is to inform the public when the president or his administration lies, even about the silliest of matters It seems that whenever conservatives say stupid things that get reported on, their first inclination is to blame the messenger. Crowd sizes, Obama's 1st inauguration vs Trump's That’s exactly what they’re doing following the first full weekend of Donald Trump’s presidency. Trump’s press secretary, Sean Spicer, was adamant about promulgating many falsehoods in his first meeting with the press, including saying that the size of Trump’s inauguration crowds were the largest ever, prompting many in the media to point out that, no, they were not. It is important for the press to report on the facts, even on something as silly as the size of one’s inauguration crowds. If our leaders are willing to misinform and lie on a matter as simple as that, the people ought to be made aware of it. But some took the reporting of false information as media ...

Reasoned dissent is beautiful – resist the urge to become complacent in the age of Trump I woke up this morning feeling lousy. And yes, it has everything to do with the inauguration of Donald Trump. The past eight years of Barack Obama haven’t been perfect. Obstruction from Republicans made it nearly impossible for some of his proposals to even get consideration. But the Affordable Care Act, commonly called Obamacare, cleared the path for many to get access to insurance (and to receive health care that they actually paid for). Gains in the LGBT community were also achieved, including the right for gay and lesbian couples to marry the person they love. Obama saved the auto industry, and his stimulus package ensured that America, teetering on the edge of economic collapse when he was inaugurated, would instead recover. And recover we did. We have had 75 straight months of jobs growth under Obama’s watch, amounting to more than 15.6 million private sector jobs being created dur...

Sheriff Clarke’s actions are bullyish, and it’s time he recognize who’s really throwing a tantrum over his latest controversy To: Sheriff David Clarke The badge you wear, the position you currently hold, is one of honor. Members of the law enforcement community deserve our utmost respect, for they put their lives on the line every day to ensure that our communities are safe places to reside in. Those who serve in leadership roles within law enforcement, who give officers the direction and inspiration to serve day-in and day-out, similarly deserve to be recognized for their valor. Sadly, you dishonor your position with your petty actions and narcissistic attitudes, utilizing aspects of your office to further your own selfish needs. I can think of a plethora of examples – one particular incident comes to mind when you blatantly suggested that Republicans should use terrorist events in Paris to further their political aims – but your latest action exemplifies exactly why you ar...

Redistricting reform, similar to the Iowa model, is needed in Wisconsin When the Denver Broncos won Super Bowl 50 last year, they were awarded no major privileges in deciding how games in the NFL would be played the following season. They didn’t get to make any scheduling or rule changes simply because they were the victors. And nor should they have been given these privileges. Giving a successful franchise like the Super Bowl Champion-Denver Broncos the opportunity to change the scheduling or the rules would allow them the chance to bend them in a way that could favor their team in the next year. Though that’d make for compelling television, it wouldn’t be fair to 31 other NFL teams (OK, maybe it’d be karmic-payback to the Patriots, but I digress). Rightfully, the NFL requires all rule changes to go through a Competition Committee who analyzes suggestions from all teams, decides upon the best ideas and submits them for all 32 clubs to decide whether they merit incorporating o...

The gas tax needs to be considered Nobody likes paying taxes. When you get your pay stub, and the amount of taxes withheld is looked at, there is a small part of you that understands the necessity of being taxed at the rate that you are. And when you pay your property taxes, you do so understanding that the money you pay goes to funding your community’s services and projects. But paying taxes hurts nonetheless, and it’s understandable that people do so begrudgingly. There are probably fewer things that people hate about government than paying taxes (including seeing tax dollars misspent). Yet paying for toll roads would probably be one of them, a proposal that some Republicans in Wisconsin are leaning toward in order to raise revenues for a dwindling transportation fund. If you’re like me, you probably abhor this idea. Paying to drive on a publicly funded roadway is annoying. The roads should belong to everyone, and there shouldn’t be a “user fee” just to access them. ...

Embrace leftist economics. Endorse election reforms. And create a message of unity. We’re are less than ten days away from President-elect Donald Trump becoming the 45th President of the United States. His tenure, if it’s anything remotely like how he ran his campaign, will be riddled with controversies and disastrous policy initiatives. Democrats will be on the defense against Trump and the GOP. But their defense cannot become a campaign of “no, no, no” like the Republicans did during President Barack Obama’s time in office. That method worked in some places, to be sure, but it won’t energize everyday Americans to support our causes. If we really want to take the wind out of Trump’s sails, and derail what little political capital he does have, we need to take a more proactive approach. Here’s how Democrats can come back and win – against Trump’s policies, and electorally in the years ahead. Embrace leftist economic policies.  Bernie Sanders did remarkably well with co...

Frequent criticisms of UW courses exposes Sen. Nass's crusade against free thought State Sen. Steve Nass's continual threats of budget cuts to the University of Wisconsin for just about any educational course that doesn't abide by his personal opinions has possibly set up a new form of McCarthyism in the state – or should we call it "Nass-ism" now? My political cartoon, crudely drawn of course (click to enlarge). Enjoy.

Threatening university with cuts results in suppression of free exchange of ideas  It has been my personal observation that most men who are critical of studies on masculinity are themselves fearful of the change it might imply, of what conclusions may be drawn that could upset their status as the supposedly dominant gender in society. State Sen. Steve Nass seems to fit with that description. His recent criticism over the University of Wisconsin class that examines masculinity is riddled with downright rage over the topic. Nass is clearly fearful and resentful of what the class could come represent to a new generation of men on campus, evidenced in an email he recently wrote to colleagues: Our liberal friends in the Ivory Towers cite research into men with masculinity and the link this has in males being responsible for “harm, oppression and dominance.” The goal of the UW-Madison six-week program is to fix male participants “self-destructive behaviors that impair their abi...

A progressive candidate who is willing to engage conservative minds would be seen as brave – and would be respected throughout the state Progressives in Wisconsin need a candidate that is both a proponent of leftist policies as well as someone who isn’t so “in your face” about it. Hear me out on this, because this strategy has worked – for conservatives. Scott Walker, himself a far-right gubernatorial leader, was seen as a “nice guy” before he ran for the state’s highest office. His conservative views weren’t hidden, easily accessible for those willing to look for them. I can even remember that centrists and even some left-of-center Democrats tended to think, “well, this guy isn’t that bad” while he was running. Truth be told, Gov. Walker has possibly been the worst governor our state has ever had. Unfortunately for modern politics, much of what gets you elected isn’t policy arguments or five point plans . Those are important, of course, and shouldn’t be dismissed completely....