June 10, 2012

"Defeated in Walker recall, Democrats vow to fight on."

At their annual convention.

And yet, in the recall, their candidate Tom Barrett, made it his central issue that he would "end the civil war in Wisconsin." We were supposed to oust Scott Walker so that the fight would end. That was always, obviously, a bogus issue. It only meant: Our side will stop fighting when we win. Did anyone fall for that?

But the Democrats, out of power, have spent the last year and a half depriving us Wisconsinites of the feeling of peace. They offered to take over as the only way to get to peace. The offer was rejected, and less than a week later, they tell us they'll keep fighting.

Now, we are headed into the election season this fall, and it is time for the political parties to gear up for a fight. Unfortunately, however, the Democrats forced us into off-season fighting that has gone on since February 2011, and we might be sick of fighting. That was Tom Barrett's theme over the last month — that we're sick of fighting.

But the Democrats are up for a fight. Or am I making too much of a Milwaukee Journal Sentinel headline? What's the evidence that Wisconsin Democrats remain bellicose? Congresswoman Tammy Baldwin (from my district) urged Wisconsin Democrats to keep fighting "our fight for Wisconsin's middle class," which "isn't a political fight, it isn't a partisan fight, it is a moral fight." (Baldwin is the near-certain Democratic candidate for the Senate seat that Herb Kohl is declining to continue to occupy.)

Nothing else sounds particularly pugnacious. Herb Kohl, Congressman Ron Kind, Party chairman Mike Tate, and Tom Barrett himself made remarks. Nothing particularly worth quoting. It sounds like they tried to minimize the significance of Scott Walker's win in the recall. Maybe people just oppose recalls. It wasn't really a mandate for Walker. We need to do a better job of getting our message out.

Is the headline justified? Obviously, the Party must fight on. That's built into the idea of a party. No vowing is involved. They didn't disband. But they sound weak — depleted by the recall fight and unready to trudge forward into the fall elections. Does anybody picture Tammy Baldwin beating Tommy Thompson for that Senate seat? Are they stoked about helping Obama win this state?

The Party needs "to do a better job of connecting with the middle-class people to make them understand that on the economic arguments, that what we are talking about is really in the best interests of everyone," said Tom Barrett, whose defeat in the recall showed that the Democratic Party in Wisconsin has no idea how to do that better job of making the assertion that it could do a better job improving life for people in this state.

They need to do a better job of impressing me that they could do a better job of getting out their message that they can do a better job.

And the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel needs to do a better job of writing headlines or a better job of collecting sentences to support the headlines they've chosen to write for whatever reason. I'd like to know what the reporter (Tom Kertscher) really thought of that convention.

I'm guessing: Wow, this is lame. This is sad. Barrett is pathetic, and everyone knows Tammy Baldwin is going to lose, but there's nothing they can do about it. And no one seems to give a damn about helping Barack Obama here after the way he treated them...

25 comments:

Aridog said...

Given that, technically, Republicans in the Wisconsin Senate lost their majority to deadlock in this recall election (unless I missed something?), won' the fight be to regain the majority in November? Since the Wisconsin legislature in not in session the temporary deaddlock is meaningless, isn't it ... but November might not be with 16 or 33 seats up for election or re-election.

BTW...we're jealous over her in Michigan, where we are one of only four states with a full time legislature, albeit a term limited one. My theory of late has been if legislatures have less time on the job, they create fewer bills and save taxpayer money. Maybe it's just me.

SGT Ted said...

The Party needs "to do a better job of connecting with the middle-class people to make them understand that on the economic arguments, that what we are talking about is really in the best interests of everyone,"

Leftwing redistributionist economics don't make things better for everyone. Thats the REAL problem. THe notion that they didn't do a good enough job explaining why is their perrenial excuse when voter reject them. IOW, to Dems, its never thier ideas that are bad, its that the voters are too dumb to understand the brilliant ideas.

Farmer said...

But the Democrats, out of power, have spent the last year and a half depriving us Wisconsinites of the feeling of peace

"Don't protest! Don't force a recall election! We don't like the way it makes us feel!"

Anonymous said...

Gotta love those fascist-loving lefties: blame whitey for everything, then act surprised when that makes some whiteys not vote for you.

But keep on blaming whitey, demanding quotas for workers who don't do as good a job as whitey, and taxing whitey to give handouts to the lazy, the criminal, and the stupid.

That won't cause a society completely supported by whitey to collapse at all!

rhhardin said...

Democrats don't like market wages.

The market pays less than the job is worth to the employer - otherwise there's no employee wanted.

And the market pays more than the job is worth to the employee - otherwise he opts not to work there.

Every market job pays both less and more, the disagreement over value being the whole basis of the economy.

The Democrats want jobs to pay more than they're worth to both sides. It can't happen without gunfire, but gunfire is the third world way, and apparently the model for the left's economy.

Fight we much, as Sharpton puts it.

Unknown said...

Loss of Senate not decided yet.

CWJ said...

Geez Farmer,

That was lame as well as cheap.

Michael said...

Why not use the coming months to gather recall signatures for to-be-determined Republican's who win? The name of the recallee can be filled in later. That is the way progressive democracy works.

Ann Althouse said...

@The Farmer You're failing to see the material about how Barrett ran on the issue of restoring peace. There's hypocrisy over this "feeling of peace." They deprived us of it, they wanted us to want it and to want them (because they could deliver it, by stopping depriving us of it), and then when we said we didn't want them, and Scott Walker, our choice for governor, himself took up the peace and reconciliation banner, they spoke of continuing to fight. I'm calling bullshit.

Paco Wové said...

The Farmer's tractor only turns left.

Paddy O said...

New tag: Democrats are like Loki

Paddy O said...

"We don't like the way it makes us feel!"

That was the entire message of the protests and the recall! Moreover, they were subsidized feelings, as the state had to pay for cleanup and the election.

More accurate Republicans: "Our feelings are less expensive to you!"

Bartender Cabbie said...

How could anyone get behind a movement that had a love affair with communist imagery? That Blue Fist thing was right out of the Soviet playbook.

Brian Brown said...

That Blue Fist thing was right out of the Soviet playbook.

A lot of them on Twitter had a red fist.

Funny, if Democrats don't embrace communist ideas, why are they always using the same slogans and imagery?

Tom Spaulding said...

"Don't protest! Don't force a recall election! We don't like the way it makes us feel!"

Wow. Didn't you repeatedly whine about how unfair it was to lump "you and your family and friends" who voted for Barrett in with "lazy union thugs" the other night...because you didn't like the way it made you feeeeel?

Yes, you did.

Mary Beth said...

If Romney wins WI, will there be blowback on the people who led the recall? Will Barrett be the scapegoat?

SGT Ted said...

@The Farmer You're failing to see the material about how Barrett ran on the issue of restoring peace. There's hypocrisy over this "feeling of peace." They deprived us of it, they wanted us to want it and to want them (because they could deliver it, by stopping depriving us of it), and then when we said we didn't want them, and Scott Walker, our choice for governor, himself took up the peace and reconciliation banner, they spoke of continuing to fight. I'm calling bullshit.

It is also the false "peace" offered by leftist criminal thugs and Mafioso types the world over.

Do it THEIR way, give in to THEIR demands, or they will see to it that there is no peace for anybody.

edutcher said...

The Demos define peace the way they define bipartisanship and civility - it's what happens when we get what we want and the Republicans act like they're happy about it.

Mary Beth said...

If Romney wins WI

That's looking less and less iffy.

Michael Barone's column explains why Michael Reagan was so upbeat about even CA.

Bushman of the Kohlrabi said...

Can't wait until the Republicans start running campaign ads featuring Tammy in her blue fist t-shirt.

Goju said...

There is something about the behavior of the Dems that seems familar, but I couldn't quite put my finger on it. Then is struck me. The beatings they have taken have left them suffering from repeated concussion syndrome.

Explains it perfectly. Maybe they should just sit on the bench for a while til cleared by doctors.

Fen said...

"...to make them understand ..."

Is that the actual quote? Wow. Just wow.

yashu said...

"whores," knock it off with the "whitey" crap. IMO you're either a moby or a jerk.

tiger said...

1) When the Left/Dems lose it's ALWAYS because they didn't get out their message/were out-spent. It's NEVER because they have terrible ideas. There is a collective delusion and massive denial with the Left; their ideas are rejected and they refuse to admit to the real reason.

2) As for not protesting enough as that guy wrote on Friday (Rothman?): the vast majority of people are sick of the protests. If there had been more I think Walker would have gotten 60%+ of the vote.

The people who truly deserve to have 'Shame!Shame!Shame!' chanted at them are the Left for their massive disruption of the Capitol and the Gang of 14 who deserted their posts; their direlection(sp) of duty changed nothing.

tiger said...

And one more:

Why is it that the Dems/Left are the ONLY ones who can 'bring us together' and 'stop the civil/class war' and 'heal the wounds'?

They are the ones who started the civil/class war and caused the wounds they now claim they can heal.

I think that people are finally startting to see this for the propaganda it is.

Aridog said...

@tiger ... your conclusion appears to be the same as that of our hostess, see her comment at 8:48AM in response to a comment making light of it all.

I'd add that the Dem/Progressive strategy is identical, for the most part, with the Cloward–Piven strategy. Stir up class rife, highlight income inequality, rouse rabble, overload the system with financial support burdens in order to crush it, thus forcing everyone to seek a national government centralized solution .... by those who instigated and agitated for troubles in the first place. They have to power to cease agitation, voilĂ '!