CCW Veto override majority for WI now?

[xenophon]

Looking at the state election results for Wisconsin, I show that it's possible to have a veto proof majority for CCW if the same Democrats who voted for concealed carry last year vote the same this year.

Republicans now hold 60 seats in the Assembly while Democrats will hold 39, which is one fewer that last session. I show that 6 Democrat reps voted for the CCW veto override last session: Gronemus, Schneider, Steinbrink, Van Akkeren, Vruwink, and Wood. Remember in the vote last year, Gary Sherman (D) flipped his vote in the override vote, and we came up short by 1 vote at 65 total votes. This year with 60 in the Assembly, if we hold those same 6 votes from last year, I tally 66 total votes which is what is needed to override Governor Doyle.


In the Senate, Republicans gained a seat and now hold a 19 total, while Democrats have 14. If the same Senate Democrats who voted for ccw override veto last year (Senators Breske, Plale, Decker, Lassa and Wirch) vote the same, they should have a 24-9 override margin. Remember in the vote last year, the Senate overrode the veto by 23-10, so we have gained and I don't worry about a Senate override having problems.

So, if my calcuations are correct, by gaining one seat in the Assembly, we don't have to depend on Gary Sherman (D) this year. But still, there is no room to lose any of our votes from last year.

After yesterday's election results, Rep Fitzgerald was quoted as saying "..the GOP would work to quickly pass bills to limit property tax increases and legalize the carrying of concealed weapons."

I hope I am correct!! Monkeyleg, your thoughts?

xenophon

 

[TrapperReady]

It's probably a toss-up at best. Since Doyle was able to get a co-sponsor of the bill to flip based on party loyalties, I'd be surprised if he wasn't able to twist more arms.

BTW, did you see that violent crime went up 18% or so in the Milwaukee suburbs? The JS article I saw had a lot of comments about "gang activity". Perhaps that might wake up some citizens in the SE corner of the state.

This time, I will follow the debates, but not via audio. I can't stomach the thought of listening to another insane rant from Frank Boyle.

 

[xenophon]

I agree about Doyle twisting arms and of course he'll target the others. But those six held up against him last year and we fair a better chance this year. At least they are on record on both votes (regular and veto override) as being with us.

I did see that article about the crime around outside Milwaukee going up 18%. That's good ammo for our Senators and Reps to use next session. The other side has always been saying that the crime rate in WI is already low, but when it's low, there is only one other direction to go, and that is up.

Boyle or not I'm gonna be watching it like a hawk, and Sherman or not we are going to charge ahead and focus all of our attention on the Reps who were with us last year. This will be our year.

xenophon

 

[Monkeyleg]

Unfortunately, Wayne Wood has retired. He and Barbara Gronemus are the only ones that I think we can depend upon 100%. Russ Decker is up for re-election '06, so he should go with us.

Breske was the first to break with Doyle, but Breske also flipped on Indian gaming and the tax freeeze to side with the governor; maybe Doyle gave him a "reprieve" on CCW. Jeff Plale was facing a potential recall election which never materialized. John Steinbrink wasn't facing a challenger in this election. Neither was Terry Van Akkeren. So, it's possible that Doyle gave those two a pass so as not to generate a challenger.

Marlin Schneider is a maverick, but is also very much a Democrat.

Julie Lassa might be reliable. I have my doubts about Vruwink, even though others said she was solid.

IOW, I don't have any warm fuzzies right now, but it's really too soon. The Republicans are going to go after the budget, the tax freeze, and maybe the Taxpayer Bill of Rights first. If they can get Doyle in a box on these, we may have a chance.

I don't believe that Doyle was relying solely on Sherman to flip. I think he had a backup in case Sherman got cold feet. Who that was, I don't know, but I have my suspicions.

At any rate, I doubt we'll see the bill brought up for a vote until next fall or so.

I hope I don't sound to pessimistic here, but it's going to take awhile to see what effect Sherman's win has on the Democrats.

 

[Skirmisher]

Voters in WI should do something to computerize voter registration. The vote results from Milwaukee were 15% higher than the registered voters in that city. One woman declared victory after 1% of the vote was in. She eventually won by 70%, but how did she know so early?

 

[Monkeyleg]

Skirmisher, the Republicans passed a bill requiring a photo ID to vote. Governor Doyle vetoed the bill. Democrats don't like laws that keep people from voting illegally.

The woman who declared victory was former state senator Gwendolynne Moore. Expect to hear and see more about her. If you thought Sheila Jackson Lee was outrageous, wait until you see Congresswoman Moore in her debut. She screams, she cries, she shouts everybody down, she throws tantrums, and anyone who opposes her is automatically called a racist. If she weren't so pathetic, she'd be entertaining.

Getting back to CCW, if anyone wonders how Sherman could have won, take a look at the Red/Blue maps for the presidential election. The Democrats went in heavily in Sherman's district for Kerry, and that spilled over into the Sherman/Linton race.

We need to rethink our strategy for next year.

 

[Standing Wolf]

...Republicans passed a bill requiring a photo ID to vote. Governor Doyle vetoed the bill.

Well, yeah, sure, but I'd guess Doyle is opposed to people having to show driving licenses to buy firearms, too, right?