Three More Wisconsin Communities Vote to Amend the U.S. Constitution

Madison, WI (April 8, 2015) ­ On Tuesday, April 7th, three communities voted in favor of amending the U.S. Constitution to make clear that money is not speech and that only real people should have inalienable Constitutional rights. This would reverse the Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision, which opened the floodgates to big money in elections.

All of the referenda passed with striking majorities: Watertown (69%), Evansville (80%), and the Town of Reedsburg (63%).

This brings the total number of Wisconsin communities that have called for an amendment to 57. In total, over 2.4 million people (41% of Wisconsinites) live in these jurisdictions. Across the country, 16 state legislatures have voted for an amendment, as well as over 650 towns, villages, cities and other organizations.

After the votes were counted, Brad Geyer, the resolution campaign leader in Watertown said: “Instead of representative government serving the people, increasingly, we have corruption, conflicts of interest and bribery. A handful of people on the US Supreme Court have handed power to the highest bidders. We will overcome this corruption when people step up in enough numbers to show our leaders our true will.”

Polls have shown widespread disapproval of Citizens United across the political spectrum. According to an August 2014 poll, more than three quarters (78%) of voters feel that reducing the influence of money in politics is an important issue.

“I’m very pleased and excited that we got our message across to the people of Evansville,” said Fran Zell, campaign organizer. “We worked hard, but also the people were ready to hear our message. This movement has gained so much momentum across the state. People believing in their power to change things is the crux of the matter.”

“When will the legislators in Madison listen to the people of Wisconsin?” said Bill Waser, leader of the petition drive in the Town of Reedsburg. “I spent over 10 years in our Navy and never once did I hear at morning muster “AT&T, GM, or Walmart. How can you say that a corporation, union, or other nonprofit organization is a person? Sure, made up of people, but so is a city… is a city a person? It’s ridiculous.

Democracy is a living, breathing ideal that needs to be nourished and worked on. Now is time to right this wrong! Stand with your fellow citizens across the land and get this referendum passed in your town, village, or city. We’re here to help you.”

Move To Amend is a non-partisan, grassroots movement. For more information: http://wimta.org

Wisconsin Move To Amend Background Information:
http://wimta.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/Community-Handout-and-Messaging.pdf
http://wimta.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/Citizen-Lobbying-1-pager.pdf

The Big Impact Of Big Money

Over the weekend, Christian Schneider, right wing propagandist and columnist for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel - but I repeat myself - wrote a particularly inane insult to our intelligence by trying to claim that the unprecedented heavy flow of big money into the electoral process is nothing to fear.

Schneider starts out by claiming money isn't as important in election such as other factors, like the gerrymandering the Teapublicans are doing not only in Wisconsin, but across the country.  Of course, Schneider elides over the point that the gerrymandering wouldn't have even been possible in the first place if it weren't for the flood of Big Money that allowed them to buy the elections that put the Teapublicans in office in the first place.

Then Schneider comes up with this foolishness:

There's also the small matter that campaign spending is free speech, protected by the First Amendment. The U.S. Supreme Court has moved quickly recently in removing restrictions on political speech, but since 1976's Buckley vs. Valeo decision, it steadfastly has maintained that money is speech because "virtually every means of communicating ideas in today's mass society requires the expenditure of money."

Thus, restrictions on campaign spending restrict who can speak and how much. This leaves a select few with the resources to make a difference in campaigns; newspapers, celebrities, television stations and YouTube video creators all would enjoy a larger share of the public discourse by utilizing their built-in audiences.

Finally, Americans aren't nearly as gullible as campaign finance reformers believe them to be. We don't sit in front of our glowing tubes all night, uncritically soaking in campaign advertisements without a modicum of skepticism. Generally, people recognize ads as propaganda and process them accordingly. Whether a voter sees a television ad once or 30 times, the ad is usually taken slightly less seriously than an episode of "The Bachelor."

Oh, where to start?

First of all, money is not free speech, despite the right's fervent belief. No matter how much they clench their eyes and fists and wish it so, it just isn't and it never will be. And by limiting this flood of corporate special interest, it doesn't limits anyone's right on free speech. If anything, it levels the playing field.

And that is what the right is afraid of. They know they can't win when with their candidates when everything else is equal. They need every advantage they can get - from gerrymandering to voter suppression to the flood of Big Money.

It's rather ironic that Schneider, whose article was published in a newspaper, is complaining about them.  Doubling on the irony is that the corporate media, whether it is the printed page, TV or squawk radio are controlled by conservatives.  The only thing that people like Schneider or his conservative keepers could complain about is that they don't have quite full control of the message, but really, it's close enough that the difference is negligible.

Schneider's folly continues with his false assertion that the extra money flowing into elections only mean a few more television commercials.  That is only the tip of a very large iceberg.

What Schneider conveniently omits from his mewling is that the dark money that has been flowing is responsible for so much more than the saturation of the airwaves with commercials.  The money has been used to gobble up newspapers, TV stations and radio stations - especially those that might, y'know, actually report the truth.  The money is used to support the almost innumerable propaganda groups like Media Trackers, Wisconsin Reporter, WPRI, and MacIver Institute.  It is also used to help individual propagandists like Aaron Rodriguez, James Wigderson and Schneider himself.  The dark money is also used to sponsor right wing attack groups like the misnamed Americans for Prosperity, Club for Growth, Citizens for Responsible Government and Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty.

And let us not forget that it is also used to help Scott Walker avoid the consequences for his illegal politicking by first paying for his legal defense cooperation fund and then for the multitude of lawsuits meant to put a choke hold on John Doe.

By far, the greatest proof that this push for even more dark money flowing into elections is about power and not freedom of speech is that they are doing it in the first place.  People like the Koch Brothers, Sheldon Adelson and Michael Grebe - slimy as they are - are not idiots.  They would not invest billions of dollars into elections nationwide - from local to federal races - unless they felt fairly confident that they would get a nice return on their investment.  And the giveaways that Teapublicans in Wisconsin and across the country have given to these special interests is evidence that it is indeed working for them.

Heck, if it wasn't working for them, they wouldn't go to such extremes as breaking the law in order to channel their money into these political races.

If Schneider was truly interested in protecting democracy and free speech, I would urge him to get involved with the Move to Amend movement which is sweeping the nation.  That is, of course, if his corporate keepers allow him.

Chris Abele's Further Adventures In Hypocrisy

Over the weekend, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel ran an article that leaves the reader gobsmacked
with disbelief at both Chris Abele's hypocrisy and the fact that the paper left it unchallenged.

In the first part of the article, the reporter, Steve Schultze, reports that Abele, the Mitt Romney of Milwaukee County, again vetoed a resolution that would have put the Move to Amend referendum on the fall ballot.

The veto in itself is not surprising.  After illegally trying to get the Move to Amend people to pay to get their referendum on the ballot in 2012, he vetoed the resolution, waiting until it was too late for the Milwaukee County Board to override it and still get it on the ballot.

Also remember that Abele was more than willing to use his vast wealth to buy the election for county executive in 2011 and to scare off any potential opponents in 2012.  Abele also did not hesitate to throw his money, as well taxpayers money, to buy influence with Teapublicans like Joe Sanfelippo and Dale Kooyenga in Madison to get his plutocracy bill passed in the first place.

In other words, Abele is Citizens United personified.

The mind-boggling part comes with Abele's irrational rationale for his veto:

Abele said he agreed with those critical of the ruling, but not the tactic of holding a referendum. The $25,000 to $40,000 it would cost to put the measure on the ballot would be better spent on county services, he said.

National opinion polls already show that the public overwhelmingly disagrees with the Citizens United decision, Abele said.

"I believe the high court's decision corrupts the political process," Abele said in his veto message. But lobbying Congress to pass new campaign finance legislation or to call a constitutional convention would be a more effective way of reversing the high-court ruling, he said.

The gentle reader should keep in mind that Abele did not have any qualms about the cost of running a meaningless red herring referendum in April of this year to cut the pay of the county board supervisors.  Abele's referendum was meaningless because the damage to the representative government that Milwaukee County once enjoyed was already done.  The referendum was nothing but a punitive ploy by the emotionally-stunted Abele, who was more interested in lashing out at those who would oppose him rather than in good government.

Putting money into services, which should be Abele's goal anyway, is not really a big factor for him.  He has squandered millions of taxpayer dollars on paying for his courthouse fire, overpaying his cronies/aides, hiring his own personal security force and lobbying the same Teapublicans to eliminate the living wage in Wisconsin.

It is also laughable that Abele should suggest that it would be "more effective" to lobby Congress.  Perhaps it is because he is unable and unwilling to understand that poor people have rights too, but Abele should really be able to recognize that the referendum is a way of lobbying Congress, especially since it is citizen-driven.

It could be that Abele is so used to just buying off politicians to get what he wants that he doesn't even understand that vast majority of citizens can't and won't do that.  More likely, he just thinks that the little people should shut up and let their superiors, like Abele, make their decisions for them.  After all, that is what Dear Leaders like Abele are for.

Sadly, Abele's hypocrisy doesn't end there.

Abele also vetoed a resolution to abolish an unfilled position in the Government Affairs Department.  The position became vacant at the end of last year when Abele summarily fired the worker in that position for no reason other than she used to work for the county board.  And this is coming from the same man who is constantly accusing the board of making everything personal and political.

Abele says he vetoed that resolution because he is suddenly concerned about being able to address citizens' issues, even though that hasn't happened in the three years he's been in office.  It is also ironic because those citizens' issues used to be addressed by the county board until he hamstrung them in his power grab.

If Chris Abele put half as much energy into be a leader as he does in this inanity and hypocrisy, we would all be better off for it.

Fortunately, despite Abele's best efforts, there are still adults in the room.

On Monday afternoon, the county board is scheduled to take up these two issues and other mistakes made by Abele.  Hopefully, they will continue to put their political differences aside and serve the public together by overriding Abele's vetoes.

Milwaukee County Might Have Second Chance at Move To Amend

On Thursday, a resolution was introduced by Milwaukee County Supervisor John Weishan that would put the Move to Amend referendum on the November ballot.  The resolution passed through committee today and will appear before the entire County Board on April 24th.

This is not the first go around for the Move to Amend referendum in Milwaukee County.

In 2012, Weishan introduced the same bill and the board passed it with veto-proof numbers. They also allocated $25,000 to pay for the cost.

But Chris Abele, the Mitt Romney of Milwaukee County, who compared voting to a Facebook poll, did not believe that the people of Milwaukee County should have their voice heard.  First, he tried to illegally extort the cost of the referendum from  people from the Move to Amend movement:

To make matters worse, Abele told the MTA folks that if they paid for the cost, he would sign it.  He originally said it would cost them $19,000 but then put down the wrong date, which would have been too late.  Since then, Abele has corrected the date but has also more than doubled the price on his signature to $39,000.

The irony and absurdity of this is almost too much to comprehend.  Abele is wanting these private citizens to pay tens of thousands of dollars to have him sign a resolution for a referendum arguing that money doesn't belong in politics.

Abele then sat on the resolution long enough that it was too late for it to be put on the ballot in that year by the time he did veto it.

The past two years have shown us why Abele did what he did. He's made it painfully obvious that he doesn't think that the people are good enough to make their own decisions and that we should be thank plutocrats like him to tell us what to do and what to think.  He also opposes it because then he wouldn't be able to buy elections, as he's trying to do in the AD 19 race.

Abele honestly thinks that because he is very wealthy - even though he came to his money by the fluke of birth - he is better than any of us peons.

It should be noted that the Move to Amend referendum was voted on in 13 Wisconsin communities on April 1 and passed in each one by resounding numbers:

• Belleville 85%
• Wauakee 79%
• DeForest 70%
• Windsor 71%
• Lake Mills 73%
• Shorewood 76%
• Whitefish Bay 65%
• Elkhorn 69%
• Delavan (Walker's "hometown") 76%
• Waterloo 61%
• Edgerton 87%
• Wauwatosa 64%
• Waukesha 69%

In fact, to the best of my knowledge, the Move to Amend referendum has not failed anywhere in the nation that it's been put on a ballot.

Call your Milwaukee County Board supervisor at 414-278-4222 and tell them to vote for the Move to Amend resolution.

Milwaukee County Voters Send Mixed Message

Last Tuesday, voters in the Milwaukee County Communities of Shorewood, Whitefish Bay and Wauwatosa Citizens United and to return democracy to the people.  The referendum passed easily in all three communities, with 76%, 65% and 64 %, respectively. had the opportunity to vote on the Move to Amend referendum, which calls for congress to pass legislation to overturn

However, these same communities also vote to approve the referendum to slash the salaries of county supervisors in half and effectively ending representative government at the county level.

Those numbers are inconsistent with themselves.

By cutting the salary to poverty wages, the only people that will be able to run are the independently wealthy or those that are being subsidized by groups like the Greater Milwaukee Committee, the Bradley Foundation or Americans for Prosperity (excuse me for repeating myself).

In other words, when having the question put to them directly, most people want big money out of government, but then turn around and open the door so that only big money can get into government.

Some days, I just can't stop shaking my head.  Is it any wonder we're in the dire straits that we are in?

Move to Amend Continues

Guest Post by Brad Geyer

On March 7th, Move to Amend of Lake Mills and Rock River hosted a public discussion with Lori Compas, executive director of the Wisconsin Business Alliance, and Republican Senator Dale Schultz. We would like to thank the 50 citizens who attended this presentation and engaged in lively discussion as well as the L.D. Fargo Library for the use of theirt facilities. The tone was one of mutual admiration and respect for the sincerity and collegial efforts of attendees and speakers.

This was a truly heart-warming political event. (I never thought there could be such a thing). It was uplifting to see Democrat and Republican leaders standing side by side answering citizen questions, showing clear appreciation and admiration for each other. They demonstrated mutual respect for all the citizens with questions, citizens who sometimes had very heated responses to recent legislative discussions and activity. It was exceptional to see Sen. Schultz attentively listening and courteously responding to a very angry citizen complaining about her perception of unfairness in a legislative hearing. He reminded us that we were all present for the same reason – to get control of politics away from monied interests and back to the people – to seek consensual outcomes – thus turning around a citizen's response from one of anger at the system to one of agreement that the system is broken and needs to be fixed.

Senator Schultz began by saying "Lori is a Democrat and I'm a Republican. What is important here tonight is we've all come together because we care about the system of government that we think ought to be propped up, reformed, and improved, because it's a wonderful thing – not because it's perfect, but because it's a wonderful thing. Then we'd be able to find the things – beliefs – that we find in common, that we unite, and that we get them done. And of course tonight I think all of us here believe that it's time to Move to Amend."

Senator Schultz went on to say: "We're talking about billionaires turning this country into a Russian-style oligarchy, where there are two dozen billionaires who BUY the whole political process." Later he commented on how this is enabled: "People who run for offices ... are pretty good people. Really, they really want to change the world – at least they start out that way, until they realize that the only way they can stay there is to make the deal with the devil – the Faustian bargain. And then they're hooked."  He emphasized how important this constitutional amendment is: "The reality is, this is so important that we must place it as the number one thing."

Lori Compas started by saying, “There are a thousand hacking at the branches of evil to one who is striking at the root. We have all of these problems in our state right now, but I think the root of those problems is money in politics. We have to get at that root. Time and again, we see our elected officials passing laws that do not seem to be in the vast interest of Wisconsinites. People who are not paying attention do not understand the full impact of those laws, until, say, they live in small quiet town in western Wisconsin and suddenly they have 50 sand trucks going through per hour. That is actually happening right now.

As someone who tries to organize small business owners, I hear that all the time [that people do not want to be involved in politics.] You may not want to get involved, but there are other people involved, and they are spending a tremendous amount of money on these issues. It is important for us to stand up for what we believe in.” Compas went on to say, “Our system is really broken. I firmly believe that money in politics is the root of the brokenness.”

Lori Compass said that she researched Move To Amend despite initial skepticism. Noting how huge corporations are controlling political decisions that hurt small businesses and small corporations as well as individuals, she now fully supports MTA and its goals. It is not possible to make progress on hundreds of issues and problems because huge corporations and extremely wealthy people are controlling the political agenda.

There was a period for questions at the end. Leslie Demuth of Waterloo asked: "About bills allowing lobbyists to give money to legislators while they are making law. And another one I believe would protect the identity of the donors to do their false, smear campaigns. – Does it make a difference when I contact my senator?"

"We've got this situation now where, as Sen. Schultz has said, the elected officials have chosen their voters. They know they're safe. They can take as many campaign donations as they want. They can vote however – you know – I mean – I hate to say it – but they can vote however they're being pressured to vote by outside interests and not really have to care what we think," Lori Compas responded.

Sen Schultz: "I absolutely believe that one person can make a difference, and that's generally how the world changes. One person just stands up and says "I'm mad as hell. I'm going to change it. ...My suggestion is pretty much personified by her [Lori Compas] – she just woke up one day and pretty much said "No, this isn't going to happen, and I'm going to do something about it.

How can you make a difference? You have to realize that most of the people who run for office, whether they are Republican or Democrat, are pretty good people. Really, they really want to change the world. At least they start out that way until they realize that the only way they can stay there is to make the deal with the devil – the Faustian bargain. And then they're hooked. And then – it's a dilemma – what do you do?

I think that the answer is you have to say to people that this process is supposed to work. You have to be a good citizen. You have to know the process. I know how it's changed. And here are some specific examples. You can talk about Move to Amend. You can talk about redistricting. And you can say 'Where are you on these issues?' And no, you don't accept 'I'm OK with that." [When you talk to your representatives]

You don't accept 'What was that.' You don't accept 'Well, I'm for it.' You accept 'I'm for it," and then you quickly say 'and what can I expect from your for leadership?' And 'How will you report back?' That's what you have to do. You have to demand leadership. And then you have to tell people 'You want to know what? If there was ever a case for being a single issue voter, defending the process that serves all of us, certainly is a candidate for that. And I want you to know I'm paying attention and I'm doing everything I can to educate my neighbors.'

As a guy who stood for election 12 times, that's a message that rings very loud and very clear. And if we get enough people moving in that direction, the political class will finds its way to the front of the parade. Believe me."

Kirk Lund, leader for Lake Mills Move To Amend brought up the coming March 31 presentation featuring David Cobb of the national Move To Amend organization in the L.D. Fargo Public Library in Lake Mills.

The purpose of the event was to engage local citizens in discussion of the ways in which unregulated big money in politics negatively impacts our important issues. This is relevant preparation for the April 1 ballot referendum, which will ask City of Lake Mills and Town of Waterloo residents if they want a U.S. constitutional amendment stating "Corporations are not people and money is not speech," to reverse the effect of the 2010 U.S. Supreme Court decision in the Citizens United case.

We would like Wisconsin to join the 16 states that have called on the U.S. Congress to reverse the Citizens United decision of 2010 and add to the 28 Wisconsin communities that have officially called for an amendment through resolutions and referenda. In addition to local actions there are also bills in the Wisconsin State Assembly and Senate supporting an amendment.

The bills read:

“We stand with the Move to Amend campaign and communities across the country to support passage of an amendment to the United States Constitution stating:

1. Only human beings — not corporations, limited liability companies, unions, nonprofit organizations or similar associations and corporate entities — are endowed with constitutional rights, and, 2. Money is not speech, and therefore, regulating political contributions and spending is not equivalent to limiting political speech.

Be it further resolved, that we hereby instruct our state and federal representatives to enact resolutions and legislation to advance this effort.”

If you live in the City of Lake Mills, Town of Waterloo, or the Cities of Edgerton, Elkhorn, Delavan, Waukesha, or Wauwatosa, or in the Village of Shorewood, Whitefish Bay, Waunakee, De Forest, or Belleville, or in the Town of Windsor, please vote "YES" on April 1, to help us regain control of our government that is supposed to be "of, by, and for the People."

Daniel Fary, Fort Atkinson and Brad Geyer, Jefferson

Rock River Affiliate-Move To Amend (Jefferson and Walworth Counties)

For more information...
Website:

 http://wimta.org/

Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Wisconsin-Move-To-Amend/569078933112051

Move to Amend

Special Guest Post By Bradley Geyer:

When the Sons of Liberty dumped the tea into Boston Harbor in 1773; it was not just in protest of taxation, but also a protest of the monopoly power and corruption between the government and a huge corporation: the East Indies Company.

People should be represented, not just the big money. The big money drowns out the voices of almost all Americans. Most of us now have taxation without representation, government where we are not represented. Local control will continue to disappear, and small business put more and more at a competitive disadvantage. In our constitutional republic, the elected official’s duty is to work for and represent the people: all the people, not just the highest bidders.

If money is free speech and political contributions cannot be limited, how can we regulate bribery, undue influence or conflicts of interest? We the People and the states have lost the power and the ability to regulate the corruption by the money in our government through a Supreme Court exceeding its authority. On January 21^st, 2010; the US Supreme Court decided the Citizen’s United v. Federal Election Commission bringing together over 100 years of legal decisions and inventing new powers for artificial entities such as corporations and unions.

People came together to form government. Government, with our powers creates corporate charters, incorporated unions, and other artificial entities. The powers and privileges of artificial entities need to be spelled out legislatively they are not unalienable rights as listed in the Constitution.
Money is given in expectation of action by elected officials. If an elected official does not deliver, they will see the money change direction and support a challenger that will replace them. We each have a voice, and that voice should not be made more powerful with each additional dollar we spend. 99.9% of us contribute $200 or less to candidates, political action committees (PACs), and parties. No one should own our elected officials. They need to serve all of in mind, not just the interests of a few powerful and connected individuals.

The“Money Out, Voters In” Wisconsin Coalition and Move To Amend is pushing for ballot question for all of the people of Wisconsin:

Do you agree that... “Only human beings—not corporations, unions, nonprofit organizations, or similar associations—are endowed with constitutional rights, and Money is not speech, and therefore limiting political contributions and spending is not equivalent to restricting political speech?"

Support a statewide vote by the people, sign here:
http://wimta.org/please-help/let-the-people-decide/

Join the fight against corruption by the money:http://wimta.org/contact-us/

Wisconsin Move To Amend – Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Wisconsin-Move-To-Amend/569078933112051

Move To Amend Movement Keeps Growing

As was previously reported, Move to Amend, the grassroots group that is fighting to have the Citizens

United ruling wiped out, and its allies were collecting signatures to have a referendum put on the ballot in Waukesha.  I am pleased to announce that the group was again successful, turning in more than 4,200 signatures and these have been certified by the Waukesha City Clerk.

But they aren't done yet!

On Monday, the City of Milwaukee's Judiciary and Legislation Committee will consider the resolution.  The resolution is being sponsored by Aldermen Tony Zielinski, Nik Kovac, José G.Pérez  and Ashanti Hamilton.

If the resolution passes in Milwaukee, it will be the fourth municipality in Milwaukee County - joining Whitefish Bay, Shorewood and Wauwatosa - to do so.

Obviously, the question is why it's just not a countywide referendum.

Well, that's because Milwaukee County Emperor opposes the referendum.  He doesn't feel that the citizenry should have a say in their lives or their rulers.  In fact, to show how whacked Abele is, he actually tried to extort money from Move to Amend to have it on the ballot.

Tell me how progressive he is again. It's real easy to forget.

Move to Amend Still On The Move To Amend

Move to Amend is a grassroots organization that is sweeping the nation with a groundswell of support whose intent is to get Congress to pass a law overturning Citizens United by labeling people as people and corporations and corporations.

Locally, the have succeeded in getting enough petitions signed to have it on the ballots in Wauwatosa, Shorewood and Whitefish Bay.

On Wednesday, October 9th, they will be submitting their petitions for Scott Walker's base of Waukesha:

Also on Wednesday, there will be a meeting in Fond du Lac at the Fond du Lac Public Library, 32 Sheboygan Street (map) from 6:00-7:30 pm.

It should be noted that not one of these cities ever tried once to charge Move to Amend to put their referendum on the ballot like Chris Abele did when they tried to do it for Milwaukee County as a whole.

And with the likes of Scott Walker and Chris Abele and now Mary Burke, we need to have Citizens United overturned more than ever.

Two More Milwaukee County Communities To Vote On Citizens United Referendum

I just received this email from our friends at Grassroots North Shore:

Please join campaign lead, Shirley Horowitz, and volunteers as they turn over the Move to

Amend petitions to village officials.  in Whitefish Bay where we needed 1090 signatures for the referendum we will be handing in 1380 signatures.  Next in Shorewood where we needed 1060 signatures we will be submitting 1220.

Thank you to all who circulated and signed petitions.  Look for referendums on the Spring ballot.

Grassroots North Shore
http://www.grassrootsnorthshore.com/

That's three Milwaukee County communities that are going to have their voices heard.

For other Milwaukee County citizens to be heard, they will have to go about to get petitions signed and have their communities put this on their ballots.

Of course, as I recently pointed out, all of this time, effort and money could have been saved if Milwaukee County Emperor Chris Abele hadn't sided with the corporations, oligarchs and plutocrats.

Kenosha County Pushes For Citizens United Overturn

The Kenosha County Board passed a resolution to urge state and federal lawmakers to pass a law to
overturn Citizens United:

The Kenosha County Board approved a resolution Tuesday night directing state and federal lawmakers to work to overturn the Citizens United Supreme Court decisiion. 

The resolution, introduced by Supervisors Rick Dodge and Mike Underhill, aims to curtail what the authors described as “an explosion of money being spent by large corporate, union and association interests in an effort to directly influence elections in a way which would most benefit them.”

They join several communities and more than one third of the states to pass a Move to Amend type of legislation.

The Milwaukee County Board had passed a resolution to have a referendum on this as opposed to arbitrarily setting this policy.

Milwaukee County Emperor Chris Abele said that people voting was similar to a Facebook poll and then tried to illegally charge the Move to Amend activists nearly $20,000 to put the referendum on the ballot.  When the activists refused to cave in to his extortion, Abele sat on the resolution, vetoing it only after it was too late to get the referendum on the ballot.

Move to Amend and other civic groups have started working one community at a time to get the referendum on the ballot.  They have already succeeded in Wauwatosa and are nearly there in Shorewood.

Ironically, Abele claimed to have vetoed the resolution because it would cost too much to let the people have a voice.  Now that they are having to do it community by community, it's going to cost taxpayers more than if the county had done it last year.

This is what Abele calls efficiency.  I call it idiocy.

Grassroot Groups To Deliver Anti-Citizens United Petitions in Wauwatosa

Hot off the inbox, the folks from Move to Amend and Grassroots Tosa will be at the Wauwatosa's City Clerk's office at 9 am on Wednesday morning to turn in petitions containing 4,300 signatures of people that want a referendum on the ballot.  From their press release:

WAUWATOSA - Move To Amend – Southeastern Wisconsin, United Wisconsin, and Grassroots Tosa will be available to speak with members of the press on Wednesday, July 10th at 9 a.m. outside to offices of the Wauwatosa City Clerk to discuss the successful completion of the 60-day petition campaign and submission of over 4,300 petition signatures calling for a referendum to be placed on the next ballot in Wauwatosa calling for the reversal of the 2010 U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Citizens United. Only a little over 3600 signatures were required.

WHO: Erik Kirkstein, United Wisconsin Political Director, Mary Laan, Chair, Move To Amend – Southeastern Wisconsin, members of Grassroots Tosa

WHAT: Press event discussing the completion of the Wauwatosa petition drive and submission of over 4,300 signatures calling for a referendum

WHEN: 9 a.m. Wednesday, July 10th

WHERE: Wauwatosa City Clerk’s office, 7725 W North Ave, Wauwatosa

The person most upset by this news will be Chris Abele, who thinks that people exercising their right to vote is like a Facebook poll.  He does find it so tedious and annoying when the little people want their voices to be heard in government.  Don't they know he has plutocrats to pander to?

Want To Reverse Citizens United? Here How You Can Help!

As the rest of the nation is passing referendum after referendum calling for the
Constitution to be amended so that Citizens United can no longer harm our country, we in Milwaukee County have not been so lucky.

We have a county executive emperor who thinks that referendums are like Facebook polls.  Unless they are red herring referendums to distract from his overreaching power grab.

Despite Abele's corruption, United Wisconsin, along with the Grassroots Tosa and Move to Amend, is still working to reverse Citizens United:

Across the state, the grassroots campaign to restore our democracy and reverse Citizens United is heating up, and United Wisconsin is leading the charge!  

United Wisconsin is kicking off petition drives to pass local referendums in cities and towns across Wisconsin, and is launching petition drives right now in Southeastern Wisconsin – starting with the City of Wauwatosa, followed by Shorewood and Whitefish Bay this July – and many more to come.  (Click here to email our organizer if you are interested in getting involved in the Shorewood/Whitefish Bay campaign.)

Each Saturday, United Wisconsin’s volunteer office located at 7028 W North Ave in Wauwatosa (Right next to Tosa Nails and Spa) is open from 10am to 4pm, and will be hosting door-to-door canvasses and petition signature gathering at stationary locations along with our partners Grassroots Tosa and Move To Amend-Milwaukee to collect the signatures needed to put the referendum on the ballot! 

We need people like you who care about stopping the takeover of our democracy by special interests to help us put Wauwatosa on record calling for the reversal of theCitizens United ruling, which gave corporations the same rights as people, and said that unlimited spending on elections is “free speech.”

The only way we can put an end to corporate rule is for YOU to take action. 

Sign up with us below at a day and time that works for you to meet at our volunteer office at 7028 W North Ave in Wauwatosa (Right next to Tosa Nails and Spa). We have all the supplies you need, and after a brief training, you will be out making the difference!

Be sure you stop by the Wauwatosa Public Library between 9:30am-4:30 Monday through Friday to sign the petition!

Sign up today!