Earlier today Governor Jim Doyle was cleared of any wrongdoing in the 2005 sale of the Kewaunee nuclear power plant. The sale of that plant became the subject of an investigation after it was revealed utility company executives had given more than $43,000 to Doyle’s re-election campaign just prior to the approval of the sale by the Wisconsin Public Service Commission. Shortly after the revelations came to light, former Attorney General Peg Lautenschlager opened an investigation into whether Governor Doyle’s office improperly influenced the Public Service Commission in its deliberations about the proposed sale of the Kewaunee power plant. This investigation became the subject of more than one attack ad against Governor Doyle during the gubernatorial race in 2006, with some citing the investigation - along with the prosecution of high-ranking state employee Georgia Thompson - serving as proof of how corrupt the Doyle administration supposedly was. Georgia Thompson’s federal conviction has since been overturned, and now we have this decision by the Wisconsin Department of Justice that there was no wrongdoing on the part of the Governor in the sale of the Kewaunee nuclear power plant.

In a statement released by the Wisconsin Department of Justice, Republican Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen cleared Governor Doyle of any wrongdoing, saying:

“After a thorough investigation, we have not found any evidence linking campaign donations to Governor Doyle to the PSC decision to approve the sale of the Kewaunee nuclear power plant. Nor did we find any evidence that the governor’s office improperly influenced the PSC decision in any way.”

I give Attorney General Van Hollen credit for doing his job and seeing this investigation through to completion, as well as for his unwillingness to make a case out of nothing.

So Democratic and Republican lawmakers are in negotiations to get a compromise state budget finished, and today’s MSJ is reporting that the eight legislative leaders working on finding a compromise state budget have pocketed $617,000 for themselves from special-interest groups and individuals in the first half of the year. What’s interesting is that of that $617,000, about $100,000 came from health care professionals, hospital executives, their statewide organizations and health care lobbyists. Now $100,000 is a lot of money, and it’s worth noting that among the hottest topics of debate and discussion among lawmakers has been the universal health care proposal offered up by Senate Democrats and vehemently opposed by Republicans. According to the article in the MJS, State Assembly Speaker Mike Huebsch, the chief budget negotiator for Republicans who control the Assembly, received about $10,500 - or just over 20% of the $49,596 his personal campaign fund raised between January and June - from doctors, other medical professionals and groups with a stake in the health care debate.

And of course, when asked about the large percentage of his campaign donations that came from folks associated with the health care industry, Huebsch said he didn’t know why those medical professionals gave that much to his campaign. Now maybe I’m crazy, but it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out what’s going on here. After all, why would Republicans dare support universal health care when that support might mean the end of the money train from the special interests in the health care industry?

So apparently, Scott Walker defines compromise as getting everything he wants, while giving up nothing in return. Right now there’s 91.5 million dollars in Federal transit aid that’s going unused (and has been unused for several years), and rather than see that money get used productively, County Exec Scott Walker would rather see the money sit if he can’t get his way. Scott Walker wants to use the money to pay for express buses, while Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett wants to use the money for streetcars. According to All Politics Watch, Mayor Barrett proposed a compromise that would use half the money for streetcars and half the money for express buses, seemingly giving both men what they wanted. Unfortunately, Scott Walker doesn’t seem to want real compromise - he’d rather just take all the money for his plan and call it a compromise.

This is just another example of Scott Walker’s utter lack of any tangible leadership qualities. Rather than work towards a real compromise that would benefit all the residents of Milwaukee County - and not just those folks who live in the suburbs - Scott Walker seems content to take his marbles and go home.

Senator Russ Feingold, a particular favorite of mine, wants to censure President Bush for both his management of the Iraq war and his “assault” against the Constitution. Senator Feingold said he soon plans to offer two censure resolutions - measures that would amount to a formal condemnation of the Republican president. The first resolution would seek to reprimand President Bush for getting the nation into war without adequate military preparation and for issuing misleading public statements. What’s interesting to note is the resolution also would cite Vice President Dick Cheney and possibly other administration officials as well. The second censure resolution would seek to censure President Bush for what Feingold says is a continuous assault against the rule of law, most notably the warrantless surveillance of American citizens.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has already said Feingold’s censure resolutions won’t see the light of day in the Senate, which really isn’t surprising, considering I’ve always believed Senator Reid lacks the balls to actually do anything to actually hold President Bush accountable for his actions. Senator Feingold’s censure resolutions are a perfect example of why I’m proud to have voted for him - because he’s not afraid to stand up for what he believes is right, even if it’s not popular. I’m proud to have a Senator who wasn’t afraid to stand up and say that the Patriot Act was a bad piece of legislation that curtailed our civil rights, and I’m proud to have a Senator who’s always been a critic of the Iraq War, even when that wasn’t a politically expedient position to take. Now if only we had 99 more Russ Feingolds in the Senate - maybe then we could get something done in Washington.

On August 7, we here in Milwaukee County Supervisor District 8 will get to choose who will serve us as our next County Supervisor replacing Ryan McCue, who was elected Mayor of Cudahy. Two candidates emerged from the primary - Chris Kujawa and Patricia Jursik. While I wasn’t able to vote in the primary, I do have every intention of voting on August 7. I’ve been following this race closely, and I’ve decided to support Patricia Jursik. Unlike her opponent, who seems to want to do away with as much county government as possible, Patricia Jursik seems to have realistic objectives for improving the quality of life for residents of the Eighth Distric while maintaining the level of services folks have come to expect. While Jursik’s opponent Chris Kujawa has managed to rack up an impressive list of endorsements (impressive depending on who you talk to), I don’t see much on his website to warrant getting my vote. His website talks a lot about the endorsements he’s received and how members of his family have served in Cudahy’s city government, but in my opinion that’s not really what matters most when it comes to deciding who’s most qualified to serve as a County Supervisor. Sure, a long list of endorsements is impressive, but I’d rather know what a candidate stands for, and there’s not much information on Chris Kujawa’s website that tells me much about what he stands for - or what he’ll do as County Supervisor.

To be honest, I’m worried that if elected, Chris Kujawa will end up being nothing more than a “yes-man” for County Executive Scott Walker, which is the last thing the residents of the Eighth District need. We don’t need someone who’s going to continue to support Scott Walker’s mismanagement of Milwaukee County government - we need someone who’s going to work to change the status quo.

To update an entry of mine from yesterday, Milwaukee Common Council President Willie Hines has said he’s definitely out as a candidate for Milwaukee Mayor in the next election. However, Hines didn’t rule out a run in the future, saying, “It would be a joy, probably, to serve in a greater capacity, and I would welcome that opportunity.” Sheriff (and possible Mayoral candidate) David Clarke had mentioned Willie Hines as being someone he’d like to see run against Mayor Tom Barrett in the upcoming election, so I can’t help but wonder if Hines begging off for this election will give Clarke a reason to run. Personally, I’m not opposed to Sheriff Clarke running against Mayor Barrett, because I’d like to see Clarke get crushed. Sheriff Clarke’s always been one of my least favorite DINOs, and I can only hope that one of these days folks in Milwaukee are going to wake up and recognize the fact that the ‘D’ next to his name doesn’t make him a Democrat.

Getting back to Hines’ decision not to run against Mayor Barrett, I’d have to say it’s a smart decision, simply because while he’d certainly draw a good deal of support from the community, I think he’d have an increasingly difficult time raising the money that would be necessary to mount a serious challenge to Mayor Barrett.

Now I know there are some folks in Milwaukee County who think County Executive Scott Walker’s the best thing since sliced bread, but I just don’t get it. A big part of Scott Walker’s campaigns has been his constant talk about fiscal responsibility in our county government, which is why I’m so floored by reports in the MJS that multiple county departments are reporting probable year-end budget deficits, to the tune of 4.2 million dollars. Now of course Scott Walker’s first response is to call for county departments to tighten their collective belts, which leaves me to wonder what Scott Walker was doing while these multiple county departments were building budget deficits.

For someone who’s touted his record of fiscal responsibility, it seems more than a bit curious that Scott Walker’s had so much trouble balancing the county’s books year after year. After all, this isn’t the first year that there’s been a budget deficit, and while I’m sure lots of folks in Milwaukee County appreciate the fact that Scott Walker’s trying really hard not to raise taxes, I’m sure a lot of folks aren’t happy that he keeps cutting county services in order to balance the books. Here’s what Walker had to say about the budget shortfall:

Walker said all county departments should immediately halt any non-essential spending, including travel and to hold off hiring whenever possible. He also asked other elected officials to take action to save money.

He blamed the worsening budget picture on unexpected increases in juvenile corrections placements, needed hiring of additional staff at the county’s mental health complex and a decline in revenue from real estate fees.

It’s typical of Scott Walker to point fingers at everyone but himself, because apparently the buck doesn’t stop with County Executive Scott Walker when it comes to balancing the county’s budget. I just hope folks in Milwaukee County will wake up and choose someone else to serve as County Executive, because we deserve better than what we’ve gotten from Scott Walker.

So according to campaign finance reports, Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett has raised more than $1 million and has more than $600,000 in the bank. According to the article, Mayor Barrett’s campaign has also released some results of a poll conducted earlier this year that shows Mayor Barrett with a 66% favorability rating and 71% of respondents saying Barrett is doing a good job. With just over four months until the official nomination period begins, it’ll be interesting to see if any serious contenders to Mayor Barrett emerge. No doubt some folks are going to be scared off by his fundraising totals, but I’d be willing to venture a guess that there’ll still be no shortage of candidates seeking to knock Mayor Barrett out of office.

Any list of potential contenders to Mayor Barrett has to start with everyone’s favorite Milwaukee County Sheriff, “Democrat” David Clarke. I use the term “Democrat” loosely when it comes to Sheriff Clarke, only because he’s Democrat out of convenience, not because of his beliefs. According to everything I’ve read, Clarke’s been poo-pooing a possible run against Mayor Barrett, but I tend to believe his ego’s too big for him to sit this one out. If he were smart, he’d sit this election out, simply because he’s not likely to finish much better this time than he did in 2003, when he finished third. Another likely contender is Milwaukee Alderman Bob Donovan, a man who never met a camera he didn’t want to spend some time talking to. I suppose that’s the nature of a politician, but Bob Donovan just strikes me as being more snake oil salesman and less public servant, and I honestly believe it’s just a matter of time before he’s caught doing something illegal/immoral/improper.

I’m sure there’ll be some less obvious folks who run to try and oust Mayor Barrett, but I really don’t think anyone stands a chance of beating Tom Barrett. Milwaukee loves its incumbent Mayors, and Tom Barrett has done about as well as anyone could have expected since taking office. If I still lived in Milwaukee, I know I’d cast my vote for Tom Barrett.

I came across an interesting article in today’s MSJ about the “Healthy Wisconsin” universal healthcare proposal that’s been included in the state budget by Senate Democrats. What’s interesting about the article is that it talks about how the proposal came into being, more specifically the fact that it’s modeled in large part on the ideas of Alain Enthoven, a retired retired professor at Stanford University who specializes in health care economics. Enthoven’s ideas focus on how to use market forces to lower costs and expand coverage. In other words, health care providers would compete to offer the most cost-effective, high-quality health care, and those providers that offered the highest quality and most cost-effective care would be rewarded with more patients. According to the article:

They (market forces) would require restructuring the health care system in a way that eliminates existing incentives that reward hospitals and doctors for providing more care as opposed to efficient care.

What a novel concept…rewarding health care providers for providing efficient care, as opposed to simply providing more care. The proposed plan would force health plans to compete on cost and quality, which in theory should cause doctors and hospitals to become more efficient, providing better care at lower costs.

What’s interesting to note is that Enthoven isn’t a fan of a single-payer universal health care system, stating, “The government often gets it wrong in setting prices.” As I understand it, the “Healthy Wisconsin” proposal wouldn’t be a single-payer system, but rather a system much like the current state employees health care plan. The current state employees health care plan allows employees the option of choosing their own health care provider from a list of approved providers who have met certain benchmarks for quality and efficiency of service. It’s a nice plan, and I appreciate being given the option of choosing the health care provider I feel is best suited to my needs and those of my family.

I know Republicans in the Assembly and Senate are frothing at the mouth in their opposition to the “Healthy Wisconsin” proposal, and while I can appreciate their concerns about higher taxes, this is a plan that makes sense, isn’t “socialized medicine” as some Republicans are so fond of labeling almost all universal health care proposals, and will ultimately benefit each and every resident of the state.