LETTER: Base your vote on character

To the Telegram:

When leaving the State Fair on Aug. 15, 2009, Tom Barrett heard a woman’s screams for help. When he went to her aid, her 22-year-old assailant attacked him. His efforts won him praise for saving the woman and other bystanders from injury. It is because he is that kind of person, one who cares about everyone’s wellbeing, that he has been elected mayor of Milwaukee three times by wide majorities. He came to be mayor after practicing law as a private attorney, working as a bank examiner, serving in the Wisconsin State Legislature and the U.S. House of Representatives. His training includes degrees in economics and law from UW Madison. If elected governor, Barrett has promised to create jobs, bring people together and end the dissension that has dominated Wisconsin politics.

His impeccable character, experience and training demonstrate that he can and will keep those promises to Wisconsin citizens.

A recently released video serves to define Gov. Scott Walter, why we have public unrest and what will happen if he is re-elected June 5.

In the video, he clearly stated his intent is to use “divide and conquer” to reduce workers’ rights. Eliminating collective bargaining for public employees is only the first step. This approach to governance is the reason for the historic demonstrations and the bad national publicity Wisconsin has received since he was elected.

Public workers clearly did not wish to spend their time marching in Madison or launching a recall election campaign to remove him from office. However, they had promised to forgo wages to help solve a budget deficit problem. They could see his intent was to destroy workers’ rights and their economic future. At the same time, he was cutting their pay he was cutting taxes for wealthy corporations and fighting federal government efforts to create jobs and improve health care in Wisconsin.

Governor Walker seems to be an ideologue with a fixation on money and power. During his senior year at Marquette University, he quit to work fulltime for IBM as a computer software salesman. As a Milwaukee County executive, he repeatedly cut county workers’ wages. This and recent tax breaks given to corporations are why some of the nation’s wealthiest people, most from outside Wisconsin, have handed him unlimited campaign funds. Some of this money has been set aside as a defense fund. An investigation is presently underway to determine if public resources were used illegally when he was a Milwaukee County executive. He still has unlimited resources to attack Tom Barrett and for an expensive TV campaign to mislead voters.

The facts are we have lost jobs, the quality of public services, women’s rights and our reputation as a great place to work and live with Scott Walker as governor.

Bill Swenson,

Superior

Tags: opinion, letters