Political corruption has destroyed far too many countries; we cannot let it destroy ours.
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ThrowTheRascalsOut.org
A Wisconsin Grass Roots Movement
for a major shakeup in Madison!
The Center won in 2006, and we can do it again in 2008. But let's see what we get from the Democrats. Will they pass political reform? We'll get no help from the Republicans.
In 2008 we must give the Democrats control of the state legislature. If they fail to pass campaign reform we'll show them the door as well.
This year's priority?
At the state level, the Risser-Pocan Clean Elections bill and Healthy Wisconsin. At the federal level, the Durbin-Specter-Tierney Clean Elections bill and the Conyers Medicare-for-all bill (HR676).
And, oh, I support McCain, Obama and Clinton (Chelsea), in that order.
On Healthcare, see the
Business Coalition for Single Payer
Healthcare
at
www.BusinessCoalition.net
Also see the Healthy
Wisconsin website
at www.HealthyWisconsin.net
And the Moneyed Politicians Weblog at
http://moneyedpoliticians.net
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Contact:
Jack E. Lohman
414-477-8686
All that is necessary for the triumph of evil, is for good men to do nothing.
"Politicians are like diapers. They should both be changed frequently and for the same reason."
Author unknown
Why throw them out?
Because there's hardly a good politician among them. They've mastered the art of rhetoric; telling us what we want to hear, when we want to hear it, and then going back to Madison and voting exactly as the moneyed interests want them to vote. Not the way you and I, the voters and taxpayers, want them to vote, but how the special interests who fund their elections tell them to vote.
So regardless of your party, we must have a major turnover in the state capital. We need voter-imposed term limits. Give the new ones two terms, but throw the rest out (unless they have performed well and on behalf of the voters).
Note that this site may seem harsher on Republicans, but it is based 100% on their legislative votes. It just so happens that they more than the Democrats have blocked ethics and campaign reform. Only they can change that.
If you are one of the 88% of the public -- described in a recent nonpartisan poll -- who believes that politicians vote either for personal interests or for the interests of their campaign funders, this web site is for you. If you are one of the 6% who have their representatives on a pedestal and believe they vote only on behalf of the people, well, hang it up and go watch TV.
Okay, 100% of them aren't bad and some of them are really trying. But the truth is, those numbers closely mirror the ratio of bad politicians (94%) to good politicians (6%). It is a precious few who are hard-working and deserving, and the balance have to go. We've graded them based on their reform votes. Nothing else, because nothing else really matters.
Why should you care?
Because Wisconsin is the 3rd highest taxed state in the nation, while corporations are the 3rd lowest.
Because letting private interests fund our electoral process is costing $1300 per taxpayer in government giveaways to the special interests that provide the cash.
Because health care costs are 10% higher than other states and 15% of our people have no health care at all. This is because health care interests give $1.4 million yearly in campaign contributions to block meaningful reforms and a universal health care system. They want the system kept broken.
And because 88% of you do care, and just don't know where or how to fix it. We hope to help that process. We need new blood in our state capital.
Money buys legislation. Not good legislation, because that doesn't need to be bought. For special interests to get passed bad legislation that benefits them over the taxpayers they must give campaign contributions, and that's the process that must be changed.
Importantly, Republican taxpayers didn't "win" when they voted in Republicans. The tax consequences of our moneyed political system are bi-partisan and the $1300 per taxpayer loss is to all taxpayers regardless of party.
As the private money has increased in politics, the integrity of the profession has decreased.
Also understand this: We are not going to get our politician's attention until we start affecting their jobs at the polls. We must throw them out of office, and we must start with those who have decent challengers in 2008!
Just think about the issues for a moment:
- Smoking in Daycare Centers
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When Tommy Thompson was governor it took health advocates THREE YEARS to get smoking out of daycare centers! Yeah, it's old news but it illustrates the powerful effect of payola. What should have been a no-brainer was a horrendous battle. Why? Because Thompson and the state legislature were owned and operated by Philip Morris, and the new regime still is. The tobacco giant gave Tommy $160,000 in contributions and numerous free trips to Badger ball games, South Africa and Australia (too bad they were not one-way). See www.wish-wi.org/Thompson_Trips.html
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- Campaign Reform
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Governor Jim Doyle is just as bad; perhaps even worse than Thompson. Having run on the promise of campaign finance reform, he supports a weak reform bill instead of one that will work. He likes things just as they are, thank you, and when he adds all of the cash from the gambling casinos and Adelman Travel and energy interests, he'll be sitting on an estimated at $12 million war chest that will deter all but the cash-rich Republicans from running for office.
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There are only two kinds of campaign money, public and private. The difference between them is that private money requires a quid pro quo, where taxpayer assets must be returned to the giver. And it is to the tune of $1300 per taxpayer per year. That's a lot to pay for a corrupt political system.
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See www.wisdc.org/pr101205.php and www.wisdc.org/big02doyle10.html.
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See also Lohman's testimony on AB626 at www.ThrowTheRascalsOut.org/testimony_ab626.htm
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- Health Care Reform
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Because the health care industry gives $1.4 million per year to our senate and assembly members, universal health care has not seen the light of day in Wisconsin. For the same amount of money we spend today on hospitals and physician visits we could have a health care system that eliminates the bureaucratic waste and cover 100% of the people instead of the 85% we cover today. But money works wonders. A Medicare-for-all system would allow us to select our doctor and hospital just as we do today, but have only one company administer the paperwork (for 10%) rather than 400 insurance companies with all of their complexities and inefficiencies at a cost of 31%. For more information see www.ThrowTheRascalsOut.org/health_care.htm and www.WiCleanElections.org/SinglePayerMyths.pdf.
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Voter-Owned Elections
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If politicians are to be beholden to their funders, those funders should be the taxpayers. Look, the special interests are contributing about $5 per taxpayer per year to fund the legislative and gubernatorial elections, and in return they receive about $1300 per taxpayer in the form of tax breaks, state subsidies and no-bid contracts.
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As taxpayers, let's pay that $5 ourselves and eliminate the $1300 in giveaways. That's called voter-owned elections, or in Arizona and Maine they call it Clean Money Clean Elections. For more on this system see www.WiCleanElections.org
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Road Contractors
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Remember when legislators were crunching every taxpayer service they could to reduce the budget deficit a couple years ago? Heartwarming, wasn't it? Did you also know that at the very same time they were ADDING $70 million to the road contractor's budget? That's what campaign contributions can do for an industry. Some roads are needed and some are not, but taxpayers pay through the nose for the latter.
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One good example was the Highway 45 and Good Hope Interchange. Yes, it needed repaving. But for 10-to-20 times the expense they totally redesigned and rebuilt it. The Appleton Avenue exit that was on the left is now on the right, but we have the same two northbound lanes and same two southbound lanes that we began with. Some call it progress; I call it payola.
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If you need more convincing see Wisconsin Democracy Campaign's reports at:
Latest GraftTax report -- Original GraftTax report -- Follow-up reports -- A summary of all reports -- And see how much cash your representative and senator receives in campaign contributions. Also see the Wisconsin Commerce Department giveaways that are driving your taxes through the roof.
And finally, click Senate or Assembly to see if your representative has a challenger that you can support.
But don't just support the challengers, rally your friends and social groups to join in ousting the incumbents.
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Worth Noting: "Not since the robber-baron era have income and wealth been as concentrated as they are today. This doesn't threaten shareholders; after all, most shares are held by the wealthy. It threatens democracy, as the wealthy uses their fortunes to bankroll politicians who tilt public policies in the direction of the wealthy -- by, say, reducing their taxes and cutting public services for everyone else. It also threatens our economy, as more and more investment decisions are made by fewer and fewer people, and as the middle class loses its capacity to pay for the goods and services the economy produces." -- Robert B. Reich, The American Prospect, April 2007
Disclaimer: This site is independent of all candidates and parties, who may agree or not agree with its contents.
Disclosure: I am a center-right Republican that voted for Bush twice (though at this point I wish I could have a do-over). But the Republicans look worse here because they are/were in power and the party blocking reform. Next year it may be the Democrats taking center stage. Were I to have a political choice it would be for a strong third-party reform candidate in all seats. I do not like our very costly and ineffective duopoly. Jack Lohman
See Lohman's complete disclosure HERE.