Rural MAGA Republican voters won't likely reward Gov. Tony Evers for bring high speed broadband to their communities and farms. They have to stop totally made-up issues like CRT and "wokeness.".
But Evers finally put rural community's businesses online, eventually pumping millions into their economies. And Republican candidates will try to take credit, but too late:
Gov. Evers' Task Force on Broadband Access recently released its annual report - highlighting its success in getting 387,000 homes and businesses new or improved internet access.
Kleefisch whines she has bad Internet Access? Imagine ignoring rural broadband for 8 years as Lt. Governor, and then blaming the Democratic Governor for her bad internet connection at home? It happened, captured on video, while also complaining about the garbage taught in schools. Our national educational curriculum is garbage? I have two college grads that say otherwise. Our Vos-legislative OBGYN's will also split their time guiding "exceptionalism" through our school curriculum. Big government anyone?
Kleefisch and Walker refused federal broadband money, abandoning WI rural communities for 8 years. Now she has the gall to complain about bad internet access at home, like it's Tony Evers fault who spent nearly $300 million on broadband helping red rural communities? pic.twitter.com/0VGOJj3gYf
These so-called "pro-life" Republicans have yet to act, they're on vacation. They have put at-risk expectant mothers in danger by not defining what medical procedures would be left to a physician's discretion. Without that clarification, medical care is being withheld for fear of lawsuits (tort reform is so 1990's for GOP). This is what happens when politicians play doctor.
Kleefisch's Empty Vision: The vacationing Republican Legislature isn't even thinking about a special session to define permissible treatments due to the abortion ban. Just as scary; if they did, they would be giving medical advice. Let that sink in. Kleefisch's appeal below means nothing, and she knows it:
Kleefisch thinks Vos Republicans might approve medical procedures for pregnant women. Ain't happening. Get used to the "patient/politician" relationships. And doctors, sue them. pic.twitter.com/w506a8bwW0
On NPR a few mornings ago, add another expectant mother's nightmare story that Christian nationalist politicians and the Supreme Court have unleashed on our huge population:
When politicians practice medicine, and MAGA WI GOP governor candidates brag they will make this worse...Because of Texas abortion law, her wanted pregnancy became a medical nightmare https://t.co/v46UFDkLmI
The ad below would have been considered outrageous once upon a time, not anymore:
This new commercial from Mothers Against Greg Abbott is one of the best political ads I’ve ever seen. pic.twitter.com/Eva1A8kTJG
— No Lie with Brian Tyler Cohen (@NoLieWithBTC) July 25, 2022
MAGA Republicans have fully implemented "government-controlled health care." To be clear, it's not like government provided health insurance, the kind of reform Democrats have pushed for the last 80 years. MAGA's big government takeover and intrusion on health care, education, and business is now oddly applauded by supposed "small government voters" drooling over these power grabs.
One of the most striking reasons for conservative radicalization is the total lack of accountability for making ridiculous claims and manufacturing a whole list of ridiculous culture war "threats" to real Americans.
Oddly, Republicans are never confronted or questioned about their wacky claims by their drooling voters. This in turn allows Republicans to play the victim.
At the recent GOP convention in Middleton, Ron Johnson whined that he was the victim of the media trashing his lies and outright bizarre comments. That victim mentality, victimhood, is the foundation of GQP politics now. JSOnline:
Johnson: "It’s not fun having your integrity attacked, lied about, falsely accused day in and day out. It’s not fun."
Johnson topped that tearful pout with this surreal theory that conveniently wipes clean Trump's mishandling of the COVID pandemic. Democrats "utilized" Trump incompetence...how dare they:
"There were people inside the administration who utilized the pandemic to defeat a sitting president," Johnson said.
As if there ever was a deadly GLOBAL virus (not just in the US) in the first place. The left made it up. But this is a "hard cold fact" for the right wing. Heaven forbid Democrats run on the Trump COVID debacle:
And while the convention was an angry fever-swamp of resentment, hate, and vilification for everyone not Republican, Johnson realized he had them in his manipulative hands...
"I don’t know about you, (but) aren’t you tired of the anger? Aren’t you tired of the divide?" Johnson said.
It's really obvious to everyone but sheeple WI Republicans:
Ben Wikler, chairman of the state Democratic Party, said it was ridiculous for Johnson to blame others... "I can tell that Senator Ron Johnson is tired of accountability," Wikler told reporters.
So, the gathering of happy Republicans, who are just tired of the anger and the divide, did show unity in the face of the liberal left. Like overturning the election...:
You can believe whatever you want. Of course, everybody is free to speak their mind on the right..
Vos: "We're the party of free speech, we're not the party of cancel culture."
So, cancel culture is not a part of the WI Republican Party? Wait for it...
At the convention, "cancel culture" was still a big vote getter:
Just over 36% of delegates voted to approve the resolution calling on Vos to resign or be removed from office. The resolution calling for rescinding Biden's electors, which numerous attorneys have said is not legally possible, drew support from 40% of delegates.
The Republican conspiracy swamp, where anything is possible and everything is true, is a problem of their own creation. Former Republican Jeff Flake nailed the reason why all of this shit is sticking to the wall now:
"We're changing what it means to be an elected official in a representative government...many of my colleagues will say they are simply - in going along with these conspiracy theories or buying into the big lie, that they are just representing their constituents and that that's somehow noble of them when that really runs against what representative government is supposed to be. And that's just been a cop-out for people in my party. Too many will say they're representing their constituents when they ought to tell their constituents, you're wrong. And that's a big problem when you have too many party people willing to indulge their constituents if their constituents truly believe that, when in truth, they simply reinforce these beliefs." Jeff Flake
Christian Nation Coming: Here's how Rebecca Kleefisch wants Christianity as the basis for government policy:
In arguing against same-sex civil unions, she said, "This doesn't just have roots in the Bible. This has roots in fiscal common sense."
and...
"(she was ) circulating a flier saying that, if elected, she would be "relying on the wisdom and faith she has in Jesus."
It's not a coincidence that the possible repeal of Roe v Wade sparked this response just days after. Imagine where the Christian right will be in a few years:
There's a reason I haven't blogged as much lately. After Trump, I thought there might be break from the constant 4 or 6 insane stories a day. Instead, every Republican became Trump, or worse.
What is true about Republicans, is that things will only get worse, and every punishment they can levy in legislation will spread nationwide. Which is why I am including this comment from a Trump backed candidate for state representative in Michigan, as a peek into the future:
Two amazing things that should disqualify Kleefisch as WI's next governor.
The Journal Sentinel story on the State Supreme Court's refusal to take Kleefisch's lawsuit against ballot boxes, revealed shockingly transparent hucksterism on a level never before seen.
The First jaw-dropping example: how not to raise campaign funds by milking the drop-box "controversy:"
Kleefisch has used the lawsuit as a way to raise campaign funds. She told donors shortly after she filed the lawsuit that her first legal bill came to nearly $50,000.
The Second Jaw-Dropping Example: Caught faking it...inadvertent mistake? Who Believe's this? I would normally say you can't make this stuff up, but that's exactly what Becky is doing. Here's her original stance:
Kleefisch saying she wants to rescind the heart of a law that allows elderly and disabled voters to get absentee ballots without showing a photo ID if they say they are indefinitely confined.
Exposed as a liar and opportunist, she said this?
Kleefisch for part of 2020 was listed as an indefinitely confined voter. She said she was put on the list inadvertently and had the mistake corrected when she learned of it.
The silly season already? When it comes to the upcoming 2022 governor's race, pundits love to analyze the "horserace," which again dramatically undercuts the whole reason we have elections; what are their policies.
Today's best TV news interviewers never touched the issues...WISN's Adrienne Pederson and Matt Smith, Wispolitics.com editor JR Ross, and WKOW's A.J. Bayatpour.
COVID Exposed the lack of Governing! The pandemic exposed almost every societal weakness ignored by Republicans, like depleted educational funding, refusal to deal with health care problems, and vital high-speed broadband.
Oddly, Republicans approved a $2 billion tax cut that solved nothing, I ran across this public health crisis-related article...
Kristine Coshun’s 22-year-old son Collin was on the floor, screaming, crying and vomiting repeatedly. There was nothing she could do. They ended up waiting more than 16 hours in the waiting room of Froedtert Pleasant Prairie Hospital. They never did see a doctor. Patients were being treated in hallways. The long-term lack of aid and educational incentives that could have led to more American doctors and nurses being trained and working now, and a shortage of emergency-care hospitals compared to China, which built hospitals in record time specifically to care for COVID patients.
After cult-crazy Republicans decided not to even offer a platform in 2020, they came up with a list of completely fabricated nonsensical grievances they created and now promise to fix.
Exhibit A- The Meme Candidate Rebecca Kleefisch: Dopey to the point of embarrassment, Kleefisch's meme-generated agenda plays well nowadays. And don't count on conservative voters to complain either, they're too busy bragging about how they don't have the time to follow politics.
Now more than ever, law enforcement needs to know we have their back and that their communities support them. Heartbroken for these families. https://t.co/vnZH74l1tX
It became pretty obvious Kleefisch only read the headline, like almost all Trumpian cultists.
She has their back when it comes to...COVID-related deaths?
According to the Officer Down Memorial Page, 479 officers died in 2021. The majority, 322, died from or with COVID-19. The next highest cause of death was gun-related, with 61 dying from gunfire and inadvertent gunfire. The FOP reports that 836 officers died this year from or with COVID-19, based on a compilation of news reports, which it states haven’t all been verified.
Of course, you can draw a straight line from lax gun laws to gun-related officer deaths, the second leading cause, and another problem created by firearm frenzied Republican gun cult:
According to FBI data, 70 law enforcement officers were fatally wounded in 2021, with 25 being victims of unprovoked attacks. Felonious deaths accounted for a 55.8% increase in the first 11 months of 2021, the FBI reports, with southern states reporting the most of these deaths.
In 2021, unprovoked attacks continued to outpace all other circumstances of felonious officer deaths, the FBI found.
But Becky's got their back, except in Milwaukee where Republicans continue to cut shared revenue, which directly results in cuts to the number of police officers.
MEME Candidate Kleefisch #2 - CRT? Headline reading Becky can't even get the fabricated outrage right. Keep in mind, actual CRT is also another nonexistent problem she promises to solve:
Meme Candidate Kleefisch - All Meme, All the Time: Here's a disturbing clip from Upfront that sums up all the memes Kleefisch will spend 4 years focusing on:
Former Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch's bubbly, happy-go-lucky jump into the gubernatorial race is shockingly devoid of preparation. Did she not think about her pandemic response in the last two years or her support for the "Stop the Steal" insanity? Even worse, she doesn't have policy, just a list of grievances she desperately wants her base to know she'll pounce on in a heartbeat.
Kleefisch declined to say whether, as governor, she would sign a bill that made lawmakers the ultimate decider of who won an election. Kleefisch said she hadn't seen any bill language drafted proposing to give election certification powers to the legislature.
Well, isn't that a flat out lie?
Kleefisch: "An idea I have never heard discussed among legislators or even the folks I've been talking to across the state."
So, Vos-Republicans and rabid GQP Kleefisch supporters have never said anything about overturning the election, now or in the past? Uh, well...I count 3 times at least:
1. In an emergency petition filed Nov. 24 with the Wisconsin Supreme Court by the Wisconsin Voters Alliance is asking for a slate of electors who would support President Trump. The emergency petition asks the court, which is dominated 4-3 by conservatives, to void the election and order that the “choice of the Presidential Electors revert back to the State Legislature.” In December, PBS Wisconsin reported two Republican state representatives, Rep. Jeff Mursau (R-Crivitz) and Rep. David Steffen (R-Green Bay), joined a lawsuit arguing state legislatures should have the final word on certifying a state's election results. A federal judge dismissed the suit in January.
2.Days after the election, Republican Assembly Speaker RobinVos ordered an investigation into Wisconsin’s election results.
3. Republican state Rep. Joe Sanfelippo said in a Nov. 9 statement the results of that investigation could — and perhaps should — lead the state to nullify its outcome. “We need to either declare this past election null and void and hold a new election or require our Electoral College delegates to correct the injustice with their votes.”
So Kleefisch's comment should not be forgotten in this campaign:
Kleefisch said, "So I think it would probably be awfully premature for me to comment on a bill that hasn't even been drafted nor an idea that I've heard floated."
But wait, another idea just recently surfaced in the Legislature:
A new bill authored by Rep. Gary Tauchen (R-Bonduel) would picked its Electoral College delegates using a congressional district method.For Wisconsin the congressional districts are gerrymandered by Republicans to favor Republicans, five of the eight districts are held by Republicans. President Donald Trump would have received the majority of Wisconsin’s 10 votes in 2020. Six, to be precise. It would make Wisconsin a state where the winner of the popular vote does not get all — or even necessarily the most — Electoral College votes. Tauchen’s bill (LRB 0513/1).
Kleefisch Projection: Hoping Wisconsinites Just Walk Away from Voting: Every threat to freedom and liberty is actually a special part of the game plan.
Voter suppressions hoops and mazes along with losing complete faith in our voting system, is the desired end. It's here that Becky lets it slip; she doesn't want people to come out and vote. She repeats it over and over all the while calling into question the integrity our out elections. Upfront with Adrienne Pedersen did a great job of putting Kleefisch uncomfortably on the spot:
She wants to "make people feel secure and not disenfranchised?" After the Arizona audit, and Biden actually gained even more votes...it did not make a difference:
Lingerie parties have been going on for decades. So it would be crazy for WISGOP and Rebecca Kleefisch to continue to vilify Lt. Gov candidate Mandela Barnes as equal to or worse than admitted sexual assaulter Trump and a half-dozen other Republican candidates and pedophiles.
Well, from the party of adorable and proud Trump pussy grabbers, Lt. Gov/and protective mother of two daughters Rebecca Kleefisch has had enough of those sexually suggestive lingerie parties and showers. Upfront with Mike Gousha:
Kleefisch: "Mandela Barnes was the host of this crazy lingerie partyyears ago, I think why is no one talking to him how that's kinda demeaning to women, and how are women like me raising two girls supposed to talk about the state of politics in America today when someone like that is running against their mom."
Again, everyday lingerie party's have a long history...
Yet the "boys will be boys" Trumpsterites like Rebecca Kleefisch can't help but remind us how she and others in her party have normalized "locker room talk" and inappropriate aggressive behavior...
The Wisconsin Republican Party has not condemned Trump after he's made numerous derogatory comments about women, including when he referred to porn actress Stormy Daniels as "Horseface.""I won't take lectures from a Republican Party whose standard bearer today called a woman 'Horseface,'" Barnes said. Evers has been critical of Walker for supporting Brett Kavanaugh's appointment to the Supreme Court, saying he believed the woman who accused Kavanaugh of sexual assault decades ago. When a top Fox News executive was drummed out for having covered up so many sexual harassment charges that his ongoing employment was a huge legal liability, the White House snapped him up.
Scott Walker and Rebecca Kleefisch are running on the promise they will pay for and cover preexisting conditions with some kind high-risk pool that would require notoriously high premium costs, deductibles, and lifetime limits. It passed the state Assembly. There is this one big problem though...
To keep things the same, the state would have to spend (state) tax dollars on pre-existing conditions because federal subsidies would be gone.
Now for the kicker: Walker says, trust him...the details and costs will be hammered out after the election...no problem right?
Dangerous if Evers doesn't provide Gas Tax Details: In what I would call a jaw-dropping moment of hypocrisy and a revealing bit of projection, Kleefisch made an unusual demand of Tony Evers on the gas tax; give us a dollar amount. Then Kleefisch successfully slipped in the name 'Nancy Pelosi" while ironically bringing up the ACA health care bill to make my followup point:
Kleefisch: "He says he's not going to be specific until after the inauguration. That's basically like Nancy Pelosi's well you can read it after it's been passed. I think that's really dangerous that we're supposed to elect someone and then we'll find out his policy view later."
Dangerous if Walker doesn't provide Preexisting Condition Details? NOPE. Kleefisch not only doesn't provide the Walker administrations "policy views" on preexisting conditions but when asked by Mike Gousha if insurance companies would have to cover prescription drugs, she doesn't even know what's in the Assembly bill that passed. Again, you can't make this stuff up, and Republican voters don't care:
Kleefisch: "I would have to look at the bill language that is going to be passed...I can't guarantee what the Senate will pass and the Assembly will pass when he calls the extra session is going to be identical..."
Beautiful. It's time again for Walker to put Kleefisch in hiding till after the election.
And thanks to the Republicans ever-changing Rube Goldberg like "private-for-profit" health care system, it'll be getting even more complicated, especially in Wisconsin. Expect to see politicians like Scott Walker, Rebecca Kleefisch, and Brad Schimel pose for holy pictures after giving people something that looks like coverage for pre-existing conditions, but isn't really.
Covering Pre-existing Condition could mean Many Different things: As described in the WPR audio report by Shawn Johnson:
Experts say such a state protection is unlikely to work without the other safeguards provided right now by the federal law known as Obamacare. "It's like trying to replace a dam in a river with a couple of rocks," said Karen Pollitz, a senior fellow at the Kaiser Family Foundation in Washington, D.C. "The bad behavior will just kind of go around the barrier that you put up."
1. It would mean the elimination of other ACA protections; 2. Insurance companies offer major medical coverage as opposed to policies that might only cover a few doctor's office visits per year. 3. Eliminate federal subsidies designed to make such plans affordable. 4. Nadereh Pourat, the associate director of the UCLA Center for Policy Research, said insurance companies could once again impose lifetime limits on the most expensive customers, like cancer patients. "People used to hit the limit and then nobody would insure them anymore," ... the state bill Walker supports would not prevent those lifetime caps on insurance.
AG Brad Schimel is leading the lawsuit to repeal ObamaCare, knowing it will get rid of coverage for pre-existing conditions:
Schimel conceded (it) would end protections for people with preexisting conditions.
"Without the individual mandate it all fails. It's not going to be able to stand. We've asked the court to stay Obamacare across the board."
While Walker supporters love the idea of killing ObamaCare's coverage for pre-existing conditions, they can't help applauding Walker's plan to provide more complicated and costly high-risk pools no one can afford.
Democratic gubernatorial candidate and State Superintendent Tony Evers is challenging Walker to pull out of the lawsuit:
"Scott Walker, if you're watching, I have a challenge for you. If you want to protect the millions of Wisconsinites with a pre-existing condition, drop Wisconsin from this lawsuit today because actions speak louder than empty political promises."
Lt. Gov. Kleefisch backs Walker's doublespeak on pre-existing conditions, and brags about how ObamaCare is already covering pre-existing conditions...?:
In her ad, Kleefisch said she was “shocked” that Evers and his allies would argue Walker wants to end the protections. “Today in Wisconsin, people with pre-existing conditions are already covered,” Kleefisch said, without noting that they are covered only because of the national law Walker opposes. “And as long as Scott and I are in office, they always will be.”
Yup, both Walker and Kleefisch love to brag about replacing the same reinsurance money their own party and Trump repealed. Thanks for saving us from your own policies?
Kleefisch called Obamacare an "abomination" and touted Walker's $200 million plan to stabilize insurance prices for individuals who get coverage through the Obamacare marketplaces.
No Urgency over Insurance denying coverage for Pre-Existing Conditions? Kleefisch digs her hole a little deeper with this out-of-touch gem:
Asked why Walker and Republicans haven't yet passed a bill to protect people with preexisting conditions in the eight years that they've controlled the Legislature, Kleefisch said it was a matter of urgency. "Before this, there was not the ACA lawsuit and therefore the issue of urgency," she said. "It was not an immediate need."
Making Sick People an even More Profitable Business: There's no free lunch for Americans with diabetes, cancer, Alzheimer's, heart problems, arthritis, old age...they all have to pay more. That's capitalism at its most immoral best.
White nationalism...no big deal? Not for Lilly white Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch, who made an amazingly shocking admission in a recent tweet about black Democratic Lt. Gov. candidate Mandela Barnes; tiki torch carrying white nationalism no big deal. That goes along with the Trumpian meme; Black Lives Matter is a terrorist group and kneeling players support them.
Oh, and somewhere in Becky's brain, this made sense; white nationalism = tonsillectomies?
...like killing ObamaCare is not like dying without health insurance.
I should note that like all conservative policy, Kleefisch's claim is based on anecdotal, second-hand information that's often made up, or what conspiratorial Republicans like to call "facts."
Asked Monday if she had seen Barnes kneeling during the national anthem or had seen evidence of him kneeling, she answered, “What I mentioned was that people had told me this.” She did not say who those people were.
“It was at an event that we both attended at the opening of State Fair Park at the Wisconsin State Fair, during the playing of the national anthem. As I always do, I was looking at the flag with my hand over my heart.”
Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett made the more logical conclusion, racism:
Barrett said he believes the allegations are "racially tinged." "Here in the state they've perfected the dog whistle," Barrett said. He added that the only difference is at the national level President Donald Trump instead uses a "circus whistle."
BREAKING: Race bating Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch caught lying, has to apologize:
She backed off of her claim Tuesday, a day after she tried to stick by it. "I have to believe him and I have to apologize for something I was told," Kleefisch said on WTMJ-AM (620).
Gubernatorial candidate and State Superintendent Tony Evers had cancer and beat it.
But his opinion on the need for health care reform doesn't matter as much as Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch's own cancer success story that depended on taxpayer money, or her fiction about covering pre-existing conditions via AB 365 that prevents insurers from using pre-existing conditions for both denying coverages or setting rates. It's not a sure thing, and you could call it an unpaid mandate. Worse still, insurers will just raise their rates for the heck of it anyway...no free lunch guys?
Don't take it from me, here's reporter Dave Weigel:
Absolute strangest story in politics right now is GOP govs suing to kill the popular parts of Obamacare while insisting they will pass state legislation to restore the popular parts of Obamacare. https://t.co/o3yTx2BjfB
In her ad, Kleefisch said she was “shocked” that Evers and his allies would argue Walker wants to end the protections. “Today in Wisconsin, people with pre-existing conditions are already covered,” Kleefisch said, without noting that they are covered only because of the national law Walker opposes. “And as long as Scott and I are in office, they always will be.”
Kleefisch is talking about reestablishing those expensive high-risk pools, which created long waiting lists and sent everyone else to nearby ER's, which only increased premiums for those who had already had insurance. It's what Walker and Kleefisch say was "a model for the country":
1. It was called the Health Insurance Risk Sharing Plan, or HIRSP. A Wisconsin insurance industry representative called it a model for the country during the Wisconsin Health News event. 2. The HIRSP ended in 2014 because the ACA was put in place. 3. As of 2015, the state had about 852,000 adults with pre-existing conditions that could have prevented them from getting insurance before the health law, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation. 4. At its peak, HIRSP covered 22,333 people, according to the Legislative Fiscal Bureau. 5. "If we’re talking about the population today, it’s 10 times that amount. So we can’t just plug and play a solution of the past," said Nancy Wenzel, CEO of the Wisconsin Association of Health Plans, at the forum.
But the outright lies and misinformation by the Walker administration is getting even more breathtaking now. Let's dissect the hypocrisy and ridiculous claims made by Rebecca Kleefisch, who appeared on WKOW's Capitol City Sunday:
1. Kleefisch: "But knowing you have a pre-existing condition makes you feel a little bit threatened." Reality: Insulting isn't it? Minimizing our pain or disease as "a little bit threatened." Really? 2. Kleefisch: "There is a fear among folks that have pre-existing conditions that politicians will intercede where they ought not...or still, make sure they don't have access to that care."Reality: Oh, you mean like interceding Republican politicians trying to repeal the ACA? And please, point out how politicians would make sure we "don't have access"? Outrageously stupid nonsensical fear-mongering claim. 3. Kleefisch: "...that's not that part of ObamaCare that's dangerous to people like me with pre-existing conditions. There are a bunch of additional things that leads to longer wait times, as we've all seen higher premium costs..." Reality: Higher premium costs is a given in a private insurance market, but is made worse with denial of coverage, the Walker/Kleefisch plan. But from my own experience, after a number of medical problems in my family, we experienced no waiting periods, none! We're talking toe infection, appendectomy, hernias, and joint pain. This is an outdated myth that we cannot accept anymore.
From October 10, 2010, Kleefisch decided to make this an issue as well, so nothing like repeating a successful formula. Reporters may have forgotten, but haven't:
AP: Wisconsin Republican lieutenant governor candidate Rebecca Kleefisch, diagnosed with cancer a month ago, touts the treatments she received under her state-subsidized insurance plan at the same time she rails against government-run health care in a new television ad.
In the ad Kleefisch doesn't mention that her cancer treatments were paid for through the state-subsidized health insurance plan of her husband, state Rep. Joel Kleefisch, a Republican from Oconomowoc. Kleefisch pays $85 per month for her health insurance with the rest of the cost, $1,722, paid by the state.
NOTE: What? Kleefisch says the government shouldn't get involved in telling insurers to cover oral chemo treatments, but then reverses course and says the government should get involved by telling insurers to cover pre-existing conditions.
But here's why Kleefisch's cancer tear jerker is so vacuous:
In an even more bizarre moment, someone who actually took the oral version to treat her own cancer, Lt Gov. Kleefisch opposes the mandate, on the premise her ideology dictates a free market solution. WKOW:
Keefisch: "We obviously want to encourage free enterprise and free markets, but on the other hand, Oral chemotherapy is something that is up and coming in the medical world, and we're hoping, obviously that more insurance companies will cover it."
Money or your Life? So says Rep. Joel Kleefisch: But it doesn't apply to his wife and Lt. Governor. Joel Kleefisch puts insurer costs over saving lives: FromChannel3000:
Joel Kleefisch comes at the issue from a personal perspective. His wife, Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch, used oral and IV chemo to fight colon cancer in 2010. But he has questions over the cost of an insurance mandate. "It is my hope and prayer that anybody who would need this type of chemotherapy would be able to receive it, no doubt," said Kleefisch. "That does not eliminate the difficult question for who is going to pay for it."
One of the biggest remaining Scott Walker campaign talking points (his now
climbing unemployment numbers may become a real problem), has been the rising income levels in Wisconsin. That's a lie based on more deception, which we're finding out now is a useful tool used to buildup the GOP voter roles.
PolitiFact reveals what the news media failed to research themselves:
Census Bureau officials say that while the Current
Population Survey is fine for the national picture, a separate survey with a
larger sample size -- the American Community Survey -- provides the best
picture of what is happening at the state level. Walker and the New York Post
article are both citing data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s Current Population
Survey, He pointed to data from the Current Population Survey. But the data
considered more accurate -- from the American Community Survey -- showed the
opposite We rate statements that contain some element of truth but
ignore critical facts that would give a different impression as Mostly False.
It's another tool for our "some element of truth" presidential wannabe Scott Walker. See Walker's current "False" and "Mostly False" ratings pictured here.
Speaking of tools, former news talking head Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch is also getting into the act, trying to muddy up Walker's disastrous jobs numbers. :
Kleefisch said she takes issue with
that reporting (on jobs) … (which) focused on Wisconsin ranking 35th nationally
and 10th of 10 Midwestern states in private-sector job growth rate in ... Walker's first four-year term.
"It's based on the speed with which jobs are created in comparison to
neighbors as opposed to the actual number of jobs created," she said.
"So I think you're going to see the governor trying to explain that … in
order for people to understand that a ranking and a rate are two separate
things and help people to get why Wisconsin has fully recovered from the recession.
I wonder how that convoluted and intentional muddying of
the facts works for states like Minnesota or Illinois? There's a reason why Walker is focusing in on Michigan. PolitiFact might want to check before they get too much mileage out of it.
One more look at "not" plagiarism, the mindless reason why "stand with Walker" voters hate Mary Burke.
It appears the biggest most important slogan used by Scott Walker was plagiarized from one of his biggest supporters and a former Democratic governor:
WSJ: On her campaign website, Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch says she
is “widely credited” with coming up with the phrase, “Wisconsin is Open for Business.”
So did Kleefisch engage in “plagiarism,” the same tag that Republicans have
hung on Democratic gubernatorial candidate Mary Burke over her jobs plan? Kleefisch
sidestepped the question, saying you can find “open for business” signs in any
home-improvement store. “I don’t think the idea of ‘open for business’ ... is something that any
politician would ever have claimed to have invented,” she said. But the
biography section of her campaign website reads: “Widely credited for coining
the phrase, ‘Wisconsin is Open for Business.’
Oops. Both Kleefisch and Walker appear to have plagiarized others,
including super villain and the guy Walker can’t stop blaming for everything,
former Gov. Jim Doyle:
But her boss, Gov. Scott Walker, used the exact phrase in
his inaugural address Jan. 3, 2011: “And as your governor, I make this pledge:
Wisconsin is open for business. Even earlier, former Democratic Gov. Jim Doyle
was quoted using the precise phrasing in
2005. And Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce, a major backer of the
campaign of Kleefisch and Walker, used the identical phrase in an advertising
campaign more than a decade ago. Moreover, variations on the phrase have been
used by politicians and states — including New
Jersey, Texas,Virginia and West
Virginia — to describe their own pro-business policies for at least
two decades.
The article went on to say the debate was silly, quoting a
few university professors, but isn't that what should have been said before
Republicans got so much mileage out it?
You may have heard, Republicans appeal to their voters intelligence, not their emotions. Give us all a huge frigging break.
The phony outrage over DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz is so over the top, surprisingly promoted by the press, that I can't sit back and just shake my head. This is what the conservative tea party "stand with Walker" base needed to get out to vote and donate money; phony livid outrage.
Thanks to the media, like jsonline, picking up on the WISGOP mindless talking point:
She did? Domestic violence...really? I immediately thought of a Flintstones metaphor, where cavemen dragged women by their hair. But leave it to the right wing losers who have nothing else run on but a created pile of phony outrage. Here's Schultz's quote:
"Scott Walker has given women the back of his hand. I know that is stark. I know that is direct. But that is reality. What Republican tea party extremists like Scott Walker are doing is they are grabbing us by the hair and pulling us back. And that's unacceptable. It is not going to happen on our watch."
True. Oh, I forgot, I'm outraged. Don't take my word for it, check out this ridiculous response by our would be governor (if Walker becomes president), Lt Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch:
Republican Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch, who said she was "shocked" that domestic violence language was used to discuss political disagreements. "I think the remarks were absolutely hideous and the motive behind them was despicable," Kleefisch said.
Dumb? Of course. A reference to domestic violence? Thank you WISGOP/Scott Walker Campaign for saying it was.
ALEC exec and State Rep. Leah Vukmir even asked Mary Burke to denounce Schulz's statement, who, oops, came out with a very clear comment a few minutes after the the phony outrage surfaced on Wednesday:
Burke campaign: "That's not the type of language that Mary Burke would use, or has used, to point out the clear differences in this contest. There is plenty that she and Governor Walker disagree on — but those disagreements can and should be pointed out respectfully."
Maybe the Republicans will ask Rep. Ron Kind, Mark Pocan and President Obama to also denounce. Oh, that's coming? See if you've heard this before:
Walker campaign spokeswoman Alleigh Marre told reporters that Burke's statement didn't go far enough and that she should be asked why she stopped short of denouncing the comments and asking the Congresswoman to apologize.
God this pathetic. Look at the national coverage over nothing, this trumped up piece of WISGOP lunacy:
"I shouldn't have used the words I used. But that shouldn't detract from the broader point that I was making that Scott Walker's policies have been bad for Wisconsin women, whether it's mandating ultrasounds, repealing an equal pay law, or rejecting federal funding for preventative health care, Walker's record speaks for itself."
As on person commented:
In other News............
1) Right-wing republicans are "outraged?" Big deal - For them it is a
way of life!
2) Scott Walker is raising money? Scott Walker is ALWAYS RAISING MONEY! Slow
news day?
Republican Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch wants the free market to decide if oral chemo therapy should be included in all Wisconsin insurance policies, the same kind of treatment she received through husband Rep. Joel Kleefisch's government provided health insurance plan.
And she's not alone. While conservatives have criticized government bureaucrats for supposedly getting between a doctor and their patient with rationed care, their beloved free market insurance companies are allowed to ration care to save money.
GOP Rationing Okay: At what is more than a glimpse into what Republican free market health insurance will look like, rationed care is rationalized as a good thing now, because it will save insurers money and get rid of those nasty government mandates. Small government = no mandates/lost lives. From WKOW's Greg Neuwmann:
This denial of coverage is a direct result of Republican opposition to "mandates." Yes, this is how far Republicans will go to prove their purity of purpose! This bizarre story first appeared in Nov. 2011, when Rebecca Kleefisch stated point blank that residents of Wisconsin should be treated differently than someone married to a state legislator. She's "hoping" more insurance companies will cover the drug. Oh, and you'll love the insurance industry rep justifying the cost savings and threatening higher premiums if there's a mandate:
The elitist attitude shines through in the Kleefisch comments below:
Yesterdays poll results
Keefisch: "We obviously want to encourage free
enterprise and free markets, but on the other hand, Oral chemotherapy is
something that is up and coming in the medical world, and we're hoping,
obviously that more insurance companies will cover it." Kleefisch comes at the issue from a personal perspective.
His wife, Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch, used oral and IV chemo to fight colon
cancer in 2010. But he (Rep. Joel Kleefisch) has questions over the cost of an insurance mandate. "It is my hope and prayer that anybody who would need this type of
chemotherapy would be able to receive it, no doubt," said Kleefisch.
"That does not eliminate the difficult question for who is going to pay
for it."
Rep. Joel Kleefisch is actually weighing out whether we should save lives or keep costs down. And these guys say Democrats want to ration care?
1. An email from Kelly Teelin, a paralegal at GOP go-to law
firm Michael Best & Friedrich, forwarded a joke email picturing four dogs
the writer said were set to receive public assistance because they “are mixed
in color, unemployed, lazy, can’t speak English and have no frigging clue who
their Daddys are.” “That is hilarious. And so true!” Rindfleisch replied. 2. A supporter of lieutenant governor candidate Brett Davis scorned fellow
Republican Rebecca Kleefisch, also vying for the job, after attempting to sneak
a look at one of her fundraisers. “Rebecca was at the door inside greeting,”
wrote Kathleen Kiernan … “She (Kleefisch) said, well maybe I can win you over.
(YUK!...don’t hold your breath)… I cannot see how anyone can take this woman
seriously.” 3. Rindfleisch wrote an email to Walker campaign manager Keith Gilkes calling
Kleefisch “the bane of your existance,” adding, “I’m REALLY beginning to
dislike her.” 4.Walker suggested that the county fire a doctor who was hired at the county
mental health center without officials knowing she was a former thong model. “Apparently
she’s competent, but even the Medical Director is dismayed that she has a
varied life,” Nardelli said, who worried the “suggestive” photos meant the
doctor had “a checkered past.” Walker replied, “Get rid of the MD asap.” 5. Walker’s staffers had harsh words for Mark Neumann, his
rival in the GOP
gubernatorial primary.“This is so ridiculous that the only person talking about it
is mark neumann,” McLaughlin wrote of one proposal. “There should be mandatory
drug testing for people who want to run for governor and you can quote me on
that.” 6. In another email, top adviser Jim Villa responded to an
email about Neumann delivering signatures against the health care bill, “Is
someone going to explain to knucklehead that governor is a state position?” 7. Rindfleisch emailed Gilkes about jokingly wanting to take
out Mike Tate, chairman of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin. “How do you not
blow a nut with all the lies that the democrats put out,” Rindfleisch wrote.
“It makes me wanna get Villa’s uncle mike to make mike tate disappear.”
Sounds like a nice offer from a professional prostitute, doesn't it? Well, that’s Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch, in a very private moment, in the throws of making love to business.
WSJ: “We want to know how we can love you more.” Kleefisch told the group of about 30 executives, managers, accountants and others during the 1-hour, 40-minute session … business operators argued — sometimes forcefully — for lower taxes and more financial incentives for commercial interests.
“Free market?” What free market? Companies are getting favors no single voter can get for themselves or their families.
Never before will you see business so needy, so vulnerable, and so victimized by their own government and social obligations. In the closed door meeting presented below, corporate greed didn't hold back.
Kleefisch didn’t intend for video her staff shot at the
Beloit meeting to be released to the public. But the State Journal requested
the footage under the state Open Records Law. Kleefisch said she doesn’t think
the video is a public record, but she released it anyway to avoid further
distractions.
Ending State Competition for Business: Yes, it would be extraordinary for the federal government to stop competitive bidding between states to attract businesses, but whose paying for what is easily considered corporate welfare? The American public, who has had to make up for every tax credit and grant handed out to "free market" private businesses. And it should stop now.
ABC Supply Victim Scott Bianchini:
ABC Supply Inc.’s owner is billionaire Diane Hendricks, who
has been among Walker’s top campaign donors. ABC’s tax director, Scott
Bianchini, said the state should stop disclosing how much residents pay in
taxes, saying the information is used for “sabotage.” Contacted Thursday, he wouldn’t
say if he was referring to 2012 newspaper reports indicating Hendricks paid no
taxes in 2010 because of a change in her company’s structure.
How did you like the "open government" in air quotes? Guess what, it looks like Republicans hate open government, big surprise.
Walker/Republicans Serve Business, not Voters: This example of corporate "entitlement" is so extreme, how could it not result in a few less Republicans after the midterms:
ABC Supply's Scott Bianchini again, blatantly looking for a cash handout with no accountability:
Bianchini told Kleefisch that tax credits for businesses are
too stingy because some can only be applied to taxes owed to the state. The
state should pay the credits in cash to companies that didn’t earn enough to
have tax bills, Bianchini said. “That company needs that money that year,”
Bianchini said. “This is going to require Wisconsin to take a chance on the
people they are asking to come into the state.”
Normally the credit can't be used until certain benchmarks are met. Bianchini's suggestion is insanely greedy, eliminating benchmarks:
Businesses get to influence government privately, while
citizens have to expose themselves at public meetings with their tax reform
suggestions. How tone deaf do you have to be to not have a problem with that?
How special: According to Scott Walker and Lt. Gov. Rebecca
Kleefisch, the common folk in Wisconsin will soon get a chance to give their
input on tax reform out in the open, where reporters can document every word.
But the Walker Authority meetings set up with business
leaders? That’s a private affair, so these truly “hardworking taxpayers” (that’s
how Walker described them), can “speak freely without worrying about what they
have to say.” Offended yet?
Make special note of the Walker Authority’s not so subtle
suggestions that we shouldn't be alarmed, it’s just “standard procedure,” and
it will “continue” to be like this. Oh really? Post Crescent:
The first in a series of round table discussions touted by
Gov. Scott Walker as a way to gather information about possible tax reforms
from “hardworking taxpayers” was closed to the public until it was nearly over,
a move described as standard procedure that will continue. Walker, in a Tuesday
press release, touted the Beloit round table the meetings are an “outstanding
opportunity for the hardworking taxpayers to voice their opinions and offer
suggestions on Wisconsin’s tax climate.”
Don’t bother checking your email or mail box any time soon, folks. This unabashed arrogance continues:
But the Beloit event, as well as two similar ones scheduled
for next week in Superior and Eau Claire, are by invite only and will not be
open to the general public, said Kleefisch’s chief of staff, Casey Himebauch. “The
majority of the event is closed to the press to allow the participants to speak
freely without worrying about what they have to say. This is just standard
operating procedure. Future roundtables will follow the same format. The public
will have a chance for input later, Himebauch said.
My god how condescending does an administration have to be
before the public gets pissed off?
Scot Ross, leader of the advocacy group One Wisconsin Now … filed
an open records request to obtain a copy of video
shot of the meeting by a member of Kleefisch’s staff. The Beloit Daily News
reported that Kleefisch said the video would not be made public because it was
recorded for internal purposes.
“Lt. Gov. Kleefisch videotaped a meeting at which she acted
in her official capacity and, along with another member of Gov. Walker’s
cabinet, discussed state policy that affects every single Wisconsin resident,”
Ross said. “She … ought to be ashamed of her efforts to hide the open record of
the event from the public.”
