Imaginary Wisconsin needs Laws Restricting Absentee Voting Hours.

Absentee voting has taken a bizarre surreal turn, thanks to big government Republicans living in imaginary Wisconsin. I have little doubt Republicans will somehow restrict absentee voting hours statewide, but it’s their missteps that have betrayed them, and their attempt to suppress voting.

For instance, did you know supposed "cheap" rural taxpayers didn't want to pay for expanded absentee voting hours? Well, many of them didn't know that either. In fact, rural areas have expanded hours and special weekend times too. But no one told our now embarrassed Republican legislators.

Walker Republicans fabricated a war between rural and urban areas over absentee voting hours, saying rural areas can’t afford to expand hours.

Even though it’s a choice made locally, to spend the money or not, our big government authoritarians are trying to convince people that it’s unfair to country folk to make that choice. So they drafted a law limiting hours.

That when the law ran into a buzz saw of complaints from rural and urban communities alike.

Damage control is out of Control: Our supposed grand supporters of “local control” and opponents of “one size fits all” big government regulations are proving to be big liars on both fronts. 

Embarrassed Republicans are now playing the blame game, and it’s not pretty or smart:

Republican Sen. Mary Lazich: “Despite statements by a Milwaukee talk show radio host, I never once shot down, killed, voted against, or held up Assembly Bill 54 (AB 54) relating to the standardization of times for voting by absentee ballots in person. The bill is not a senate bill. I expressed that it is unfair that some voters have much more opportunity to vote than other voters. I explained that the bill needed some work and was not ready for prime time.

The reality? 

The proposal could be even more vexing for clerks in small towns, who often work part-time and at the convenience of local residents, said Richard Stadelman, executive director of the Wisconsin Towns Association … it's not unusual for small-town clerks to open their offices on nights and weekends to accommodate in-person absentee voting. He said his group opposes the bill as written.

Lazich supports a statewide restriction on absentee voting that matches a fictional problem rural areas have when it comes to accommodating voters after hours and on weekends.

Republicans may not like any of the laws passed by Democrats to solve real problems, but writing laws that apply to problems seen in some imaginary world? We've got a big problem.