Here's hoping that Blue Wave hits Wisconsin tomorrow...
The Blue Wave in Wisconsin started when we elected Rebecca Dallet to the Wisconsin Supreme Court.
National attention is being paid to Wisconsin’s primary on Tuesday due to the actions of Governor Scott Walker over the past eight years. All are aware of the harsh conservative policy choices he marshaled through the legislature, the divisive tone it set for the state, and the relentless political ambition that determines his every move. With a very energized and determined electorate ready to make changes in the state the questions come down to how large the voter turnout will be, and who will the Democratic nominee be to tackle Walker?
But as The New York Times writes the election will also be more than just the selection of partisan nominees. Perhaps more than any other state election in the past eight years this time the outcome has to do with the tone of our politics, and will define who we are.
In Wisconsin, almost eight years into a Walker administration, voters are split over more than just politics. Wisconsin has veered sharply to the right under Mr. Walker and in the Trump era after a long history of widely varying ideologies and leaders: Robert M. La Follette, the famed progressive leader; Gaylord A. Nelson, the founder of Earth Day; William Proxmire, the crusader against government waste and corruption; but also Joseph R. McCarthy, who led the anti-Communist hunt of the 1950s. Where else could Ron Johnson, the conservative Tea Party senator, hold office at the same time as Tammy Baldwin, the liberal senator and that chamber’s first openly gay member?
Much is at stake for Democrats in November. Losing Ms. Baldwin’s seat would mark an end of any real sense that Wisconsin remains purple, and that possibility has stirred more urgency for both parties. On the flip side, the prospect of regaining some measure of influence — if not the governor’s job, then control of the State Senate — would give Democrats a stake in state policy that they have been all but excluded from since Mr. Walker arrived.
The newspapers this Sunday morning reflect the mood of the state. Volunteers from various gubernatorial campaigns are knocking on doors all over the litmus where I live. The conversations of all passersby are talking about Tuesday. There is a general excitement with high expectations and also a very real and deep yearning for a better tomorrow for our state and those who live here.
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