This outrage over outside influence has always been pointless to me. OK, so Walker got strategy pointers from a national political group. Well, they seem to have worked so perhaps he was pretty smart there. Wisconsin is connected to the rest of the country. Of course groups outside Wisconsin want to swing things here in their favor so that it helps their cause in other states and the Capitol. I am interested in finding out who the players are, but that is so I can figure out their true motives and goals. The Koch brothers and ALEC can help Walker if they like. It just tells me that Walker's goals are probably aligned with theirs.

It is all so sickening I can't even handle it. Its buying votes plain and simple. Since when is this acceptable? Now I know what some people bury their heads in the sand...to keep them from exploding.

And the unions don't? Just ask WEAC about their new $500,000 campaign of attack ads against conservatives. BOTH sides are playing dirty and I for one am sick of it and ignore them. By the way, Patch, owned by the Huffy Post is no better.IIndependent? I think not. Good thing most of the bloggers here are from the Peoples Republic Of Shorewood and have no influence on the rest of Dist 8 ! Isn'tanyone else fed up with the negastive campaigtning on BOTH sides? Time for "Adult Swim" all!

The job creators used to be hardworking men and women who lived with their own families in the same community as their employees. They had a personal vested interest in the health and vibrance of the local community and economy AS A WHOLE. Of course, they needed profit to stay in business. But they had personal benefit from re-investing some of that profit back into the company, the employees, the local community as a whole. They **EARNED** the respect of that community through hard work and seemed to care if they were regarded as "upstanding citizens" or not.

Using SC Johnson as an example- how is the recent use of cheap "temp" labor for their manufacturing operations affecting the new owners of the company, who no longer even live here? It doesn't hurt them at all. They never have to look their workers in the eye. But I would venture that it has harmed the local economy (and morale) pretty substantially. The removal of that layer of pay, health insurance, and retirement security has definitely hurt the local economy, and the local residents.

But why should the new owners care - they don't live here anymore. We are no longer their neighbors as well as employees - they have no personal stake.

There is a huge difference between impersonal organizations like ALEC, where life is a game and the score is kept in money - vs. the old style job creators we are nostalgic for. We need to be realistic about that, or our naievete will get us nowhere fast.

The point of this is that ALEC is a NATIONAL movement. They do not have Wisconsin's interests in mind. Walker is running his administration based mainly on their policies, this shows what little interest he has in helping Wisconsites. Don't believe me, read this directly from ALEC's site. Warning, it's long so people not interested in the truth probably won't read it. After you read this, you'll see how thoughtless Walker's actions have been. I understand every politician follows national groups, but the extent to which this was followed is concerning.
http://www.alec.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=State_Budget_Reform_Toolkit&Template=/CM/HTMLDisplay.cfm&ContentID=15218

Project smartALEC is looking at the connections between Wisconsin state senators, ALEC, and campaign contributions. http://demaa.org/smartALEC

This has got to be one of the most one-sided, biased articles on outside influence I have ever read. I await with much anticipation your scathing inquiries into Move-on and the groups running adds against Steitz and Darling. Also looking at the huge amounts of dues spent by WEAC (it's all about the kids!) and AFLCIO/SEIU..

Agreed that BOTH sides stink. Politics has always had it's influence peddlers. But perhaps the difference is that they used to hear from responsible people. I suspect that twenty years ago, they heard from a very different crowd than the most vocal opinionators they hear today. MANY of us lean only slightly left or right of center, yet we get drawn into this finger pointing and "they did it first" type debates - even when we despise what "our own" side did first too. But the politicians and narrow outside interests are laughing all the way to the bank.

WEAC and ALEC members are probably all in the same backroom laughing together, at us, while we do their arguing and re-directing for them.

Poltiics has always had its backroom deals, but the elected officials at least used to recognized that they were affecting real life happenings with their shenanigans. A few blowhards kept the media busy, while the ADULTS quietly, in the background, made the real decisions and compromises and got things done. It worked ok.

ALEC is all about themselves, and again, they have no LOCAL vested interest or benefit. WEAC is being exposed for who they are. ALL of these organizations are in it for themselves, and no one but their own narrow self interest. When politicians forget that the outside intersts are just that - they are no longer using EACH OTHER. The "using" becomes one sided. Politicians used to be a little more street savvy. And we pay the price for trusting any one of them.

From Sara's profile-I generally lean more conservative but like to examine both sides of the issues and learn what the driving forces are behind any given decision.

Yeah right Sara. Both sides of the issue huh? Hardly so when you wrote the article suggesting Prosser should resign after he "choked" the demo-rat justice. What exactly is the status of that? Now this clap-trap. Just admit that you are another smoke and mirrors "seminar calling" Kool Aid drinker. Where's the article about Barry's interference with the supreme court election? No word on the national union goons invading the state? How one-sided. SHAME, SHAME, SHAME, SHAME...Go get yourself some red balloons.

its not if the attack ads stink or who is running them, its that they all stink! Enouigh, run on your merits and let the public decide

You bet the ads stink. The re-call elections were supposed to be ALL about the collective bargaining priveledges that the teachers refuse to forfeit. But yet, I have not seen one ad by a flea bagging run-away demorat regarding this exact issue. Hmmmmm, wonder why?????

Once again we are looking at the unholy marriage of corporate interests and government. How disrespectful of democracy can some people be? And the legislator who couldn't even be bothered to rewrite his spoon-fed bill but cut-n-pasted it straight from the source? Shame.
To be fair, ALEC and its ilk wield far more power and influence than unions in today's world. If only they would use their influence to help our country instead of find ways to send jobs overseas and depress the wages here that remain. Time was, people could put aside their differences to serve their country. What's happening now isn't rational, unless you believe greed that greed is an addiction. Then it makes sense that like any junkie, some people will stop at nothing to get their next fix, to slake a need that never can be satisfied. And instead of resisting the greed-addicts, how many of our legislators are enabling their "habits" for the sake of campaign contributions and selling the rest of us out. When will it end? When every call center and manufacturing job is in the Third World? When no one in the lower 80% of income brackets has any disposable income left and even Chinese crap becomes too expensive? It will be frightening to see when this unpatriotic brand of addict goes into withdrawal.

Yes, and airbags were "too expensive and no one will be able to afford cars if we are required to put them in". And regulations reducing dumping of raw sewage and industrial waste (remember when Lake Erie caught fire?) were "too stringent and all industry would go out of business because there is no way that American ingenuity could possibly overcome something like this and make it better". Certainly, we could all look forward more cheerfully to our old age, if only we could go back to how it was 20 years ago, when it was much, much more cost effective to run a nursing home when "that's just how it is - bedsores and wet sheets, stinking rooms and no one notices if you fall".

"Outlawing" things is not the answer. But if those in charge cannot be relied upon to act responsibly, then some amount of regulation can make things better. For Everyone.

Nursing home standards - created jobs because people were needed to provide proper care. Requirement for airbags - created a whole new industry manufacturing and transporting those parts (and new ad revenue). Requiring toxic waste to be isolated and properly transported - Waste Management / Veolia have a pretty sound business model - job creation and retention in many ways. Someone is driving all those trucks. And buildng the landfills. And of course, the accountants who manage all that. Moderate regulation, phased in and based on principle, not politics, will often help the economy more than hurt it.

Is this where the Waukesha Patch is politically? Really? Pretending that a magazine article by the associate editor of the Communist oops, I mean Capitol Times is a fair and balanced piece of investigative journalism and presenting this article here as "news"? Then releasing this "news article" to all the local Patches around Wisconsin in advance of the recall elections? Go see if the Shepherd is hiring.

She is writing an article about something that is all over the news. She is not giving her opinion and I have no idea where she stands politically. This is the topic and you all have your undies in a bunch because deep down you KNOW its wrong. You cant justify it without sounding like a heartless arse. So you attack the writer or Nichols or the publication. Do you think that we are to take your opinions seriously when you do little more than call names?? You call the CT communists....and I can't even write what I think of Fox. Are these annoying digs necessary? I realize it sends out a rush of endorphins as soon as you push SUBMIT. But come on, it doesn't last long and it makes you look silly.

I try to stay away from commenting here or anywhere about politics anymore because it is useless. Were over here and your over there. Our sides won't meet. We can see that in Washington. Our country has been split and sacrificed for money and power. And the whole thing makes me sick!! This back and forth will solve NOTHING. Your "side" is never going to think that taxes are good if it helps those in need. My side will never think we should become a government-less society. Our sensibilities and senses of right and wrong are diametrically opposite. And while discussion can be useful, entertaining or theraputic...the chance of someone (someone who takes the time to type out their opinion for strangers) changing their mind is nil. So why bother with snarky ribs and name calling?

When I said you know its wrong - I want to edit that...You dont know its wrong. I fully believe that you people (see, those little digs are nasty, right?) think it is perfectly ok for everyone to think only of themselves. You just dont want to verbally admit that you dont give a %^$# about anyone...that it is every man, woman, child and invalid for themselves. You know that our society is too politically correct for you to be honest about your feelings about poor people, black people, gay people, etc....so you make excuses for these people you secretly admire simply because they are holding down the very people you secretly despise.

Note - By YOU I mean people on your right winged, tea party, extremist side (I wont even say republican because this new take over is NOT republican)

There...now yell all you want...deny all you want...I am going back into my liberal hole full of kool aid so I can drown out all the BS...

Heather, while I disagree wiith almost all your politics, I do so enjoy your writing and sarcasm !

http://host.madison.com/news/national/government-and-politics/article_836f65ed-48c9-5df5-812c-36dc213cf67f.html

As a blog or Op-Ed piece this article would be fine. As a news article it's a fail.

From today's Journal :

" in Milwaukee, the biggest ad spender is We Are Wisconsin, a coalition of union groups with a huge amount of national union money to spend on the recall elections".

Hmmm...." national union money" . Think Patch will run a story on this? I don't think so. Patch = Pasch

Why is it, now that the union thugs and flamming liberals have been exposed a conservative group comes along and is worst than the Devil. Scott Walker, history will prove, saved us from the BS being kicked around in other states and Washington. The credit cards are full America. The first step is to cut them up, and then REDUCE ALL YOUR SPENDING.

I happen to agree with 90% of what's be accomplished though, I think it could have been done with a might more finanse". We, as a Nation, our broke. We can either bit the bullet and fix it or get ready to bow to the Emperor of China instead of our Flag. Believe me, China is planning to take us over someday. Look at the air force progress, navy and weaponries. Wake up Flammers its time to live as a Nation like you have to keep your house!!!

ALEC is a fine organization. ALEC was created because liberal activists, had built a network of idea mills at the state level across America; conservatives had to do the same. I recommend it, its work, and its staff to all people in America.

I don't really get it why so many are upset by this ALEC article. For those who look beyond the surface and do a significant amount of political research, this information comes as no surprise. ALEC has been around for quite some time and their influence has been growing. The only way to stop their influence and "play for pay" tactics is to replace their minions representing us in the state legislature.

http://news.racinepost.com/2010/01/mason-proposal-removes-toxins-from.html

See the Dems never have outside influences write their legislation. HA

For more on the inner workings of ALEC in developing model legislation, see the article at http://host.madison.com/ct/news/opinion/column/article_f4e6bc0f-d3d3-5141-ac31-72b82e9c7482.html