The groundhog did not see her shadow this morning.  But Wisconsin Republicans are seeing shadows:  the shadow of democracy frowning at their plundering of public employees, the shadow of an electorate that said that 30 days of Scott Walker was just about enough and a year is more than enough, the shadow of a million signatures from people that want a change, now.  

I want to thank everyone, the hundreds of Columbia County citizens that helped get 17,000 signatures in Columbia County (nearly a third of the entire population.)   And a special shout out to the folks in Columbus who on the first of November had no organization, no headquarters, and no plan; they collected 5,000 signatures in sixty days and in their spare time worked on the successful Scott Fitzgerald recall, something that no one ever thought had a chance.  

On a percentage basis, our 17,000 signatures seems to have been the best in the state.  We can all take pride in leading the state in turning Scott Walker and his cronies back.  We've seen that last year's successful Senate recalls have already slowed the Walker machine; now it's time to stop it in its tracks.  Scott Walker has been flitting about the country grabbing his rich friends by the lapels and raising millions of dollars, dollars he and his cronies will turn into an endless stream of television commercials.  They're figuring $30 million worth of ads ought to do it.  And while Democrats and their allies will have to buy television time as well, it will be our efforts on the ground, going door to door, talking to our family, our friends, our neighbors, our focus and our purpose that will unseat Scott Walker.  

Now is the time to get ourselves rested, prepared, organized and motivated.  We'll start with a membership meeting on Thursday February 9 at the Columbus library (corner of Dickason and James, one block west of the traffic light) at 6:30pm.  Your notice on this meeting is late because Mary Arnold (again, one of those Columbus folks) had to persuade the Columbus library board that a meeting of a political party in the library posed no threat to the republic.  We have a lot to talk about, to get ready for and we want to hear from you.  Please join us next Thursday.  

Our membership meeting for March will be our annual Jefferson-Jackson Dinner and Silent Auction, our spring fundraiser on Saturday March 24.  We'll once again gather at the Northern Edge in Lodi, this year to hear from retired Representative David Obey who represented northern Wisconsin in Congress for over forty years and showed the nation over that period that progressive values are practical, necessary and meaningful.  We'll also take some time this year to express our appreciation to everyone who volunteered in any capacity in the past yearTickets are $30 if purchased in advance, $40 at the door.  This event is great fun and a great time to catch up; we like talking about politics.  Please consider a donation for the silent auction as well (contact Charles Bradley atscbradleyjr@gmail.com)  We especially like politically themed items, but any item and any service will work  Be creative!  You should receive the mailer for the dinner later this month; if you don't please let us know right away and we'll get you signed up.  The Columbia County Democrats rely on this and other fundraisers for headquarters, equipment and mailings, so please join us.  If you won't be able to make it, you can also donate to the Columbia County Democrats at Act Blue 

We have a busy and challenging year ahead of us.  Let's not forget that the local election season starts this month with school board and county board primaries, with elections in April.  You'll find a number of Columbia County citizens with progressive ideas have been inspired by the events of the past year to run for local office.  Take a few minutes to find out who's running in your district, make sure you support them and make sure you vote.  These are typically small turnout elections and a few votes make a big difference.  One of the best way to inoculate ourselves against a Walker type takeover in the future is to make sure we have local officials that value and implement progressive policies.  

Democratically yours,

Ray Frey

Chair

Scott Walker and the Republican Legislature have stopped pretending. Not satisfied with hollowing out the paychecks of public employees, kicking thousands of Wisconsin families off Badger Care, denying the vote to thousands and selling off public assets to their rich cronies, they've begun dismantling the best public education system in America and repealing fifty years of progressive environmental legislation. And still found time for the crazy. You can now buy a six-pack at six in the morning and head directly to the Wisconsin Assembly with your Smith and Wesson. It's time. It's time for Scott Walker to go. 

On November 15 you and your fellow citizens will start the petition drive to recall Scott Walker. We have sixty days to collect over 600,000 signatures. We will need thousands of volunteers to collect signatures. We'll need 7000 signatures in Columbia County. We won't be able to collect them if you aren't willing to stand on a cold street, knock on doors and talk to your neighbors and friends about why Wisconsin can't have three more years of Scott Walker. We need you. 

We will have a recall headquarters in Portage, 216 W Wisconsin, the same location as the Recall Olsen HQ. Amanda Hall of Lodi will serve as our field organizer (her duties extend a bit beyond Columbia County) and is already on the job. Though we're already experienced in the recall business, you'll want to stop by for training before the 15th. Trainings at the HQ will be held Thursday November 3 at 6:30pm and Sunday November 13 at 2:00pm. If you have a group that will be working together on petitions, the training can come to you. Give Amanda a call at319. 331.9052 or email her at amandah@wisdems.org. And please start filling in your calendar with times that you can collect signatures. 

The Columbia County Democrats will be holding the November membership meeting on November 17 6:30pm at the Poynette Municipal Building. We'll be electing the 2012 officers, reviewing resolutions (send yours in) and updating everyone on the Walker recall. Please join us. 

Please be sure your membership is current (renew at www.wisdems.org) With this prolonged election season, the Columbia County Democrats will need your financial support more than ever. It's easy to do at ActBlue.

Democratically yours,


Ray Frey
Chair

Fellow Democrats

We're thirteen months and two days from the 2012 election with at least four elections in the meantime. That does not include a possible recall of Scott Walker, which would add possibly another two elections. Despite widespread unhappiness with Walker's policies, it remains uncertain whether a recall effort will go ahead and remains even less certain when a recall would get underway. Activists and Democrats remain in discussion about the pros and cons of timing a recall effort. Those in favor on starting earliest (recall would begin on November 5 and result in early spring election) expect the passionate volunteers who worked so hard and so long in the Senate recall efforts would jump start a Walker recall. Additionally an early recall would reduce voter confusion. Those advocating a later recall (beginning in February or later with summer/fall election) feel that a statewide recall requiring a million signatures and 100,000 volunteers will need more time, money and organization than currently in place. They also want to make sure that a recall election would not occur at the same time as the Republican presidential primary. The Columbia County Democrats have not endorsed any of the alternatives, but we plan to be involved throughout any recall process. We'll want to see Columbia County produce 10,000 signatures on recall petitions. This will require a huge volunteer effort and a substantial amount of money (Please contribute on ActBlue). We'll have more details when we know more. In the meantime, please let us know your views on the best time for a Walker recall by taking a quick survey here.

The survey also includes a question about the issues that are most important to you. We're asking now because it's time to start developing resolutions for the 2012 Democratic state platform. Though that platform won't be finalized until next June, the process starts now, beginning with county parties and wending its way through congressional district (CD) conventions before resolutions arrive at next year's state Democratic convention. While no Democratic candidate at any level has ever endorsed every single item, the state platform stands as a fundamental statement of our priorities and values. It stands as what it means to say "I support the Democratic party." It represents your chance to tell the world what it means to be a Democrat, not what party leaders or candidates or the media think it means. We will start with the introduction of resolutions at the October membership meeting. We can entertain as many as we want, but can submit only ten to the CD convention. They must be 100 words or less and have a "Whereas... Therefore" format, though formatting is less important than well thought ideas at the beginning. The survey includes a request for your feedback on the basic priorities the Columbia County resolutions should be addressing. Please take a moment to complete the short survey. 

Things you should know:

October membership meeting
Thursday October 13 6:30pm Portage Library
Meeting includes nomination of 2012 officers, introduction of resolutions and presentation by Neil Rainford, AFSCME, on the impact of the Walker budget on public employees, responses, and strategies for upcoming elections, Please join us for this important meeting which will include updates on the Walker recall efforts and next year's election efforts.

Camp Wellstone
October 21-23 Eau Claire
The premier training for political activists comes back to Wisconsin. It consumes an entire weekend but is worth every minute if you have any interest in getting good at politics, particularly if you have an interest in running for office (and we hope you do.) If you're a member, the Columbia County Democrats will cover your tuition. More information here.

Membership

If you are not already a member of the Wisconsin/Columbia County Democratic Party, you can join the team here. 

Democratically yours,


Ray Frey, Chair
r.frey.65@gmail.com