Woe to those who make unjust laws...

Woe to those who make unjust laws
    to those who issue oppressive decrees,
² to deprive the poor of their rights
    and withhold justice from the oppressed of my people,
making widows their prey
    and robbing the fatherless.
                                                            Isaiah 10: 1-2

Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker comes to mind ( as well as the entire Republican party)  when I read these verses.

From The Center For Media and Democracy's report ALEC Exposed In Wisconsin: The Hijacking Of A State:

Before Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker ran for governor, he was a state legislator from 1993-2002, and he was an active member of ALEC. “Many of us, myself included, were part of ALEC,” he said in a 2002 interview. In addition to sponsoring ALEC’s Truth in Sentencing Bill (1997 AB 351), Walker attempted to privatize Wisconsin's prison system (1997 AB 634, 1999 AB 176, and AB 519), and sponsored early versions of anti-union legislation including “Right to Work” legislation (1993 SB 459) and “Paycheck Protection” (1997 AB 624). All these measures reflect long-standing ALEC bills and priorities.

After entering the governor’s office in 2011, Governor Walker called for the introduction of eight measures reflecting the ALEC agenda, listed as "by request of the Governor.” The first bill Walker called for upon taking office was Senate Bill 1 (which became Act 2), an “omnibus” bill that draws on numerous ALEC model bills to change liability rules and make it harder for Wisconsin families to hold corporations accountable when their products injure or kill.

When asked by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel if Governor Walker relied upon ALEC legislation when putting together this “tort reform” bill, Walker’s press secretary Cullen Werwie replied “absolutely not.” But as the bill was pending in the legislature, ALEC sent an email to Wisconsin members stating that ALEC “supports this legislation which includes numerous provisions that reflect ALEC's civil justice reform policy and model legislation.” After Act 2 became law, ALEC issued a press release commending Walker and the legislature “for their immediate attention to reforming the state’s legal system.” Walker promoted the bill as needed to free the private sector to create jobs. Today, Walker has the worst jobs record of any governor in the nation, with Wisconsin ranking 50 out of 50 states in job creation.

Other bills Governor Walker requested that incorporate parts of the ALEC agenda include: Act 1 (Health Savings Accounts), a tax break that shifts cost burdens to individual policy holders; Act 9 (Super Majority Act), which would allow a minority of legislators to block a majority vote to raise taxes (supported by Grover Norquist’s Americans for Tax Reform, a long-time ALEC member); Act 10 (the Budget Repair Bill), which stripped most public workers of their collective bargaining rights; SB 13 (the Drug Liability Act), which would bar almost all suits by Wisconsin residents if a drug or medical device kills or injures a member of their family; Act 93 (the Trespasser Responsibility Act), which limits a property owner’s liability for injuries to another; Act 22 (Telecommunications Modernization Act), which deregulates the telecommunications industry; AB 14 (Interest Rate Judgment Act), which would have reduced the interest rate on court-ordered payments for Wisconsin families injured or killed by corporations; and Act 21 (Economic Impact Statement Act), which places hurdles on promulgating regulations, including regulations to ensure cleaner water and air for Wisconsin families.

Governor Walker has signed 19 ALEC-related bills and budget provisions into law. Many of these bills contain multiple provisions drawn from the ALEC playbook. In addition, Walker has received over $406,000 in recent years in campaign contributions from ALEC member corporations. Top ALEC corporate members that have contributed to Walker include: MillerCoors ($36,055), WellPoint ($34,200), Wisconsin Public Service Corp. ($28,364), Pfizer ($26,845), and AT&T ($22,875). <sup>[49]

--courtesy sourcewatch.org
I don't even want to post his picture.</sup>
 
 Who comes to mind for you, and why?

My take on the Walker Recall results.

I was really sad to hear of  Wisconsin's Walker Recall results. Those that say the results give Walker a clear boost may not be seeing the forest for the trees. First, Walker won with 53.1% of the vote and that is a good enough margin for the candidate to prove that the people did not see the recall as the solution to the state's issues. It is not a glowing endorsement of Gov. Walker. Tom Barrett earned 46.3% of the vote. That's 162,785 votes or almost half of the citizens in a heavy turn out election that have a problem with Walker's governance. Second, those that voted opted for a balance or, in reallity, a counter-balance to Walker's autocratic rule by giving the Democrat's in the Senate a majority, albeit a slim one. It seems to me that they are giving the Govenor a chance to prove himself as a govenor of all the people, but aren't completely convinced he can do it so they gave the other party a majority in the Senate. Looks like a balancing act and not outright endorsement of one party or the other. Sound similar? That's what the American voter often does in the national elections. I offer congratulations to Govenor Walker and encourage him to try to work with the other side. He was almost ejected from his seat and has polarized his state more so than before his first election. Good luck!

My heart and prayers go to all the leadership in these trying times.......they all face terrible choices.

Wisconsin drive to force Scott Walker recall vote nears goal !!!

MILWAUKEE (Reuters) – Opponents of Wisconsin Republican Governor Scott Walker said on Thursday they have collected 94 percent of the signatures necessary to force him into a recall election next year.

The group United Wisconsin, which opposes restrictions on public sector unions signed into law by Walker earlier this year, said it now hopes to gather 720,277 signatures by January 17 to force the recall election.
The group said it had already collected 507,533 of the 540,208 signatures required to force the vote.
Their goal of more than 700,000 signatures would represent 33 percent of the 2010 general election turnout and nearly 21 percent of all Wisconsin registered voters.

The few opinion polls on a Walker recall taken so far suggest a very close vote with the state polarized between outraged Democrats and Republicans who feel he did the right thing to improve the state’s finances.
In response to the announcement by petition organizers, Republicans said they were confident Walker would survive any recall effort.
“Wisconsin voters … have zero desire to go back to the failed policies of the past,” said Ben Sparks, spokesman for the Wisconsin Republican Party.
Walker’s campaign announced that it had raised more than $5.1 million from 46,976 individual donors. “We have seen an outpouring of support for the governor and the steps he has taken during his first year in office to lay the foundation for a more successful Wisconsin,” said Walker’s communications director Ciara Matthews.
Walker, elected in 2010 with 52 percent of the vote, and a Republican-controlled legislature, passed a raft of controversial measures this year including strict limits on the power of public sector unions.
The anti-union measure triggered a fierce political backlash from Democrats and union supporters.

Republicans also passed a voter ID law opposed by Democrats and concealed carry gun legislation
Six Republican state senators faced recall last summer over their vote in favor of the union restrictions and two were recalled.
Organizers of the current effort to recall Walker have to submit the signatures to the state’s Government Accountability Board, which will then determine their validity.
GAB officials said this week they may need more than the 31 days allowed by law to finish the process.
Once the petitions are verified a date would be set for the election and Democrats would pick a candidate to oppose Walker.
Walker’s campaign on Thursday filed a lawsuit saying the process for reviewing recall petitions is illegal because it puts the onus on targeted politicians to find duplicate signatures.
In addition to Walker, as many as 17 state senators — 11 Republicans and six Democrats — and the state’s Republican lieutenant governor could face recall elections next year.
State rules allow such special votes if the lawmaker has been in office for at least one year and has not already faced recall.
Republicans hold a comfortable majority in the State House of Representatives but the political balance of the state Senate is 17 Republicans and 16 Democrats.
--courtesy Wisconsin State Journal
I'm glad to know that my mom and siblings and all my democratic friends in Wisconsin have signed the recall.