ATF blows off Letter demanding answers about botched Milwaukee sting operation

The maddening double standard relative to the Obama administration's push for control, coupled with its silence when it comes to the off-the-chart recklessness of its own ATF just continues unabated, in large part because no one of real consequence is calling them on it. If you remember the story about the ATF's keystone cops exercise in Milwaukee a few months ago, one of the several deadly circus acts involved a machine gun being stolen from an ATF vehicle.

Various congressmen - including Rep. James Sensenbrenner (R-WI) - has been attempting to get answers. Unlike the administration's non-stop verbal exploitation of Sandy Hook, answers about the ATF operation in Milwaukee (Fast and Furious too, for that matter) are nowhere to be found.

Via Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel (h/t Sipsey Street):

Several members of Congress, from both parties, have demanded answers from the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives regarding a series of foul-ups in an undercover ATF sting in Milwaukee, exposed in a Journal Sentinel investigation.

So far they have not heard much. In a letter, the congressional members set a deadline for response for Thursday, Feb. 14. A check with several of the congressional offices indicated no response was provided, other than for the agency to acknowledge the letter was received and they are working on it.

The ATF is conducting a "top to bottom" review of the operation, an agency spokesman said last week. ATF did not respond to a call for comment Thursday.

Here is a link to that letter, which required a response by February 14th.

One day before that deadline, Sensenbrenner published an op-ed that said, in part (commentary on what I have bolded and underlined to follow):

Beyond "Fast and Furious" and the recent Milwaukee sting, ATF has had a rocky history. In 2006, ATF Director Carl Truscott resigned due to lavish spending, ethical violations, and questionable treatment of employees. The ATF needs an accountable, Senate-confirmed head just like the other law enforcement agencies under the Department of Justice.

The Obama Administration wants to pass new gun laws and give new responsibilities to the ATF, but the agency has been inept at enforcing the laws that we already have. The agency should have rigorous oversight of their operations, but the recent reports indicate the opposite is true. I look forward to hearing back from the ATF. We need to get answers on the botched Milwaukee operation with the goal of preventing other debacles in the future.

Identifying Fast and Furious as being part of a 'rocky history' is quite pathetic. Fast and Furious was a murderous operation intended to create the climate for gun control in the same way that Sandy Hook has been exploited by the administration.

The second part there is particularly weak on Sensenbrenner's part. Instead of talking about ATF's ineptitude with respect to enforcing existing gun laws, the congressman should be pointing out the blood on its hands as a result of Fast and Furious while contrasting the administration's gun control push based on the actions of a lone gunman in Connecticut.

No wonder the ATF doesn't feel like it has to answer Sensenbrenner. He doesn't seem too interested in going to the mat with them.

Audio: Today's Podcast

On today's program...

* ATF's latest flawed gun scandal... in MIlwaukee
* How's that Arab Spring thing going? Guy who helped spearhead revolution in Egypt doesn't like the result
* Texas Muslim State Capitol day in Austin

Mark Levin: Give Boehner's job to Scott Walker

After writing about the stark contrast between Speaker John Boehner and Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker, I was pleased to see that hours later, radio talk show host Mark Levin said Boehner's job should be given to Walker.

The best part? The Speaker of the House doesn't have to be a member of Congress.

Via Daily Caller:

Profiles in Courage and Fear: Scott Walker vs. John Boehner

Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker has weathered quite the storm and he's done so as a gubernatorial freshman who's actually been elected twice in his first term. When he won the first time, he did so while riding a wave of Tea Party support. He shockingly proceeded to do what most politicians do not; he did what he said he was going to do, despite an evil, Union-backed, Democratic Party attack machine's thuggish threats and behavior.

In less than one term as Governor, Scott Walker has all but changed the entire political landscape nationally, from one state. He did so with leadership; he's governed not out of fear or a need to get re-elected. He's governed based on the platform he ran on. Most important, he understands what's at stake and he is governing, logically, based on that understanding. When the union thugs came into town, Walker's fight or flight response was revealed; he chose to fight and it paid off. His state has now officially set the standard for other states. In essence, Wisconsin - behind a first term Governor - is leading the nation.

Contrast Walker with the most powerful Republican Party member - based on position - in the country right now. Speaker of the House John Boehner has been in Congress ever since being elected to it in 1990. He was there during the 1994 'Contract with America.' He knows what it's like to be swept into power by a conservative movement. Boehner was there when an angry conservative American base put the Republicans in the majority. He was also the Speaker in 2006, when a fiscally irresponsible Republican Congress got the boot.

Comparing the Governor of a state with the Speaker of the House may seem like comparing apples and oranges but it's not when you're comparing the ability to lead.

Whether it's the debt ceiling debate or the Fast and Furious scandal, Boehner has become part of an establishment whose members make decisions based nearly entirely on political calculations instead of on principle; it is an establishment whose members have each others' backs instead of the backs of their bosses - the voters. The result? As Speaker, Boehner has presided over a House of Representatives - which is ultimately responsible for how much taxpayer money is spent - that has watched the national debt increase under the 112th Congress more than in all of the previous 111 Congresses combined.

Meanwhile, Scott Walker is now reaping the benefits - in his very first term - of tough decisions. He is already touting a budget surplus.

Walker has fought the unions... and won.

Boehner too, is faced with an ominous fight that, at least to this point, he seems reticent to engage in. It is a fight against lawlessness, wickedness, and corruption; it is Watergate with murder; it is Fast and Furious; and it implicates the heads of several top agencies and departments. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano, Attorney General Eric Holder, FBI Director Robert Mueller, and perhaps even the White House itself all have their hands in this cookie jar.

Boehner must know how deep the scandal goes but it has become increasingly apparent that he is the one who is holding back Oversight Committee chairman Darrell Issa from issuing the contempt citation to Eric Holder for the Attorney General's refusal to comply with a congressional subpoena. For months, Boehner attempted to portray himself as supportive of Issa's efforts and that rumors the Speaker was inhibiting those efforts were false.

We now know they were not.

During Walker's recall election victory speech, he spoke about future generations.  Here is the full quote (begins at the 1:30 mark):

...throughout our history... there have been men and women of courage who stood up and decided it was more important to look out for the future of their children and their grandchildren than their own political futures.

Don't just pay attention to what he says but also the way he says it.



Contrast that with John Boehner's most recent victory speech. It came on November 3, 2010. With the gift of hindsight, it's easier to see that the emotion Boehner seemed to be exhibiting most was fear. As Speaker, he has not sufficiently led and on election night, 2010 his fight or flight response was revealed.



About one month after that speech, Boehner spoke with Leslie Stahl of 60 Minutes and again, spoke words similar to those of Walker, excerpted above. He spoke of wanting to preserve the American dream for our children and grandchildren. Again, however, it's how he says it that is most revealing.

Boehner's fight or flight response is shown to be the opposite of Walker's.

Video: Wisconsin Democrat Cries, is a Child in Adult body

Just in case you were wondering why Democrats the country over do everything they can to win, including bussing people in from other states in a recall election, this guy has the answer. As it became apparent that Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker was going to survive his recall election, this Democrat saw the "end of Democracy" from behind his tears.

Child in adult body.

Via The Blaze:



For some reason, that reminded me of this clip from Occupy Toronto last year:

Democratic Party in Wisconsin channeling early KKK tactics?

In the late 1800's, the Democratic Party's militant arm - the KKK - forced blacks to vote Democrat or face the full wrath of the racist group. That wrath included torture and death. Fast forward to today in Wisconsin. Certainly, to compare the degree to which the Democratic Party is willing to go today vs. the late 1800's would be disingenuous but to compare the spirit of intimidation would not be.

Ann Althouse has posted a letter she received from the Greater Wisconsin Political Fund. The letter informs Democrats which voters from their party have not voted in the last two elections. Althouse explains why it was sent:

I obscured names and addresses, but be assured, this was a list of real names and addresses of people who live near me, with the information about whether they voted in the last 2 elections. This is an effort to shame and pressure people about voting, and it is truly despicable. Your vote is private, you have a right not to vote, and anyone who tries to shame and an harass you about it is violating your privacy, and the assumption that I will become active in shaming and pressuring my neighbors is repugnant.

Click HERE to see the letter Althouse received.

The good news is that this is a clear indication that the Democrats are desperate when it comes to Wisconsin's recall election. It also serves to peel back more of the party's mask. Unfortunately, it also demonstrates a form of lawless intimidation that differs only in degree, not intent, from what the Democrats did to prevent Republican victories after passage of the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments.

The Democratic Party deserves credit, though. It has masterfully used deceit to convince a super majority of black voters that it fights for them and that the Republican Party is the racist Party. In reality, the Democratic Party fights to exploit blacks because the Civil Rights Act prevented them from using threats of physical harm and death to intimidate them.



h/t NewsBusters

Video: Baptist Preacher uses decapitation metaphor against Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker

Perhaps Ted Nugent should call the Secret Service's tip line and direct them to Springfield, IL, the site of an appearance by Wisconsin's Governor, Scott Walker. Not far from where Walker was, there was a union rally where members were being whipped up into a frenzy by the likes of Rev. T. Ray McJunkins and William McNary.

An allegory is a visual symbol representing an abstract idea. The allegory used by McJunkins was so abstract that, one could argue, Scott Walker was being compared to a Philistine (Palestinian) and union members to Jews. Here, he exhorts the union thugs to compare Scott Walker to Goliath and themselves to David, who decapitated Goliath.

Yes, David was Jewish and for what it's worth, Walker has been the underdog in this fight; he's had to go up against the Obama-backed unions. How is Walker compared to Goliath?

These people are insane. That's how.



Via EAGNews, h/t Free Republic:

Video: Looks like we've found another Dhimmi Mayor

There is simply no way I can any longer accept that political leaders are ignorant of the intentions of the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) specifically or the larger Muslim Brotherhood in general. We have long since reached the point where it's safe to say that such leaders are either corrupt or cowardly. The ignorant card has long been maxed out.

Even if the mayor of Brookfield, WI - Steven Ponto - is just ignorant, he's nefarious BECAUSE he's ignorant. In essence, he's defending the Islamic Society of Milwaukee and is betraying his oath for some reason other than honor.

Via Shoebat:

Video: The Man who should be President

Politicians who say all the right things and do all the wrong things are in abundance but what about those who do the right things? The words of such people are nice but are almost rendered insignificant because actions speak louder than words.

Enter Wisconsin governor, Scott Walker, who has a message for Washington politicians: Grow a pair.

Sheer awesomeness, via Daily Caller:



I wonder if he had Speaker John Boehner in mind.

Here is Boehner as House Minority leader in 2009, when he had no real power to stop Obamacare. He could talk as tough as he wanted and in the end, it really didn't matter:



Here is Boehner shortly after the 2010 election, when it became apparent he would have the power he lacked in 2009. It would have been nice to seem him just as angry at a time when he could actually do something about it. Instead, we got this:

Governor Scott Walker Recall: Cigs for Sigs

Consider this a harbinger for 2012. We've already seen Ohio voters reject Governor John Kasich's attempt to reign in collective bargaining. Now, Occupy Milwaukee protesters have been caught offering underaged teens packs of cigarettes in exchange for their signatures on recall petitions for Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker. No, really. Via Media Trackers:

On the evening of November 17th a number of Occupy protesters in Milwaukee gathered on a bridge over I-43 as part of a nationwide effort to draw attention to the Occupy movement’s agenda. The protesters succeeded in shutting down the bridge for several hours during rush hour causing traffic snarls and generating media attention. In a memorable moment, Milwaukee Police Chief Ed Flynn refused to mass arrest the protesters saying, “they can sit and freeze their butts off.” A mass arrest was what protesters wanted. 

In the midst of the larger story, another side drama seems to have been unfolding. The bridge protest was held a mere three days into the official period to circulate petitions to force a recall of Governor Scott Walker. Lately, Walker recall supporters have moved to make the Occupy movement an extension of the recall Walker effort and on the bridge recall petitions were circulated among protesters. 

An anonymous individual attending the protest captured on camera some potentially disturbing tactics used by the Occupy/Recall Walker petition circulators. The video (posted below) and pictures show a young female signing a recall petition and taking a cigarette offered to her by a person standing near the petition. The individual who recorded the video and took the pictures could not be reached for comment on Saturday evening. 

In order for the incident to be a bribe, the cigarette would have had to be offered in consideration for the signature on the recall petition. Wisconsin law does not prohibit anyone from offering something of consideration in exchange for a signature on a recall petition. However, it is illegal to bribe someone in regards to voting. In 2000 the infamous “smokes for votes” scandal caught a Democratic operative handing out cigarettes to Milwaukee’s homeless in exchange for their vote in the presidential election, and earlier this year Wisconsin Jobs Now! came under scrutiny for their tactic of offering minority voters a barbecue chicken dinner if they voted early in a local state Senate recall election.

Here is the video:


h/t GWP

Video: Is Journal-Sentinel Interview Herman Cain's 'Rick Perry' Moment?

Two unfortunate and noteworthy gaffes from Herman Cain here. In much the same way that Rick Perry's gaffe in last week's debate was made worse because of his reputation for not doing well in debates, the way Cain seemed to draw a blank in response to a question about Libya was made worse because of his reputation for not having a firm grasp on foreign policy issues. In this exchange with Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reporters, Cain has two painful moments. The first comes right off the bat when he's asked whether public sector employees should have the right to collectively bargain. He actually answered, "yes." Frankly, it doesn't matter what was said after that. The fight in Wisconsin showed that the issue of public sector unions is a very sensitive one for the conservative base that Cain needs passionately in his camp to secure the nomination.

As for the Libya question, I got the sense in watching this that it wasn't so much about Cain not having an opinion about how Obama handled the removal of Gadhafi as it was a matter of his wanting to be overly careful about how he expressed his opinion. At the beginning, one is left to conclude one of two things. Either Cain is exhausted and the sexual harassment allegations are wearing on him OR he doesn't have a coherent position on Libya. Toward the end of this clip, he does lay out some issues of concern but he avoids associating the rebels there with either the Muslim Brotherhood or al-Qaeda. Cain knows of these entities quite well, which leads me to believe he decided to be too safe with his answers instead of saying what he believed.

When pressed about what he would have done vs. how Obama handled it, Cain could have drawn a clear line of distinction by saying that the removal of Gadhafi led to the planting of an al-Qaeda flag atop the Benghazi courthouse. Instead, he came across as ignorant or unwilling to express a strong view.

This was not good.



Here is the entire interview:



h/t Hot Air

Video: Good Guys win another one in Wisconsin

This battle took place in New Berlin, WI. Just to set this up, the guys in the red shirts are the Unionistas who showed up en masse at a school board meeting to protest changes to the school district's handbook. However, the red shirts ran into a taxpayer buzz saw they weren't expecting. Stick with the entire video because you will find yourself pumping your fist at the end. This may be a small battle in the larger war against teachers unions in particular and public sector unions in general but it does clearly demonstrate that when taxpayers show support for government officials who want to do the right thing, those government officials appreciate that support.

Via Verum Serum:

Psssst. Scott Walker's Cuts in Wisconsin are Working

At this point, anyone on the left that continues to attack Wisconsin governor Scott Walker is one of two things: a lemming or someone so completely prideful that they're unwilling to admit the truth. Walker's plan is working. The public sector is being forced to balance its books in Wisconsin and it is doing so successfully. The best part? There was no substantial cut in services. In fact, some schools have actually - are you sitting down - decided to look at meritocracy and paying teachers based on performance in order to make up the difference.

Christian Schneider at NRO has more. Check out the reaction of Walker's Democrat opponent in the last election, Tom Barrett, who is also Milwaukee's mayor:

Recently, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel noted that under Walker’s plan to require greater health-care and pension contributions from government employees, the City of Milwaukee actually comes out $11 million ahead — contravening Mayor Tom Barrett’s March prediction that Walker’s budget “just makes our structural deficit explode.” Barrett, who lost to Walker in the 2010 Wisconsin gubernatorial election, refuses to give the governor any credit for helping him balance his city’s books, instead complaining that Walker’s plan to curb collective bargaining went too far.

How about that meritocracy idea?

Yet many governments are putting the collective-bargaining rollback to good use. In suburban Milwaukee, the Brown Deer school district is implementing a plan to allow performance pay for its best teachers. “No Wisconsin public-school district has ever had the opportunity in any of our lifetimes to even think about these things,” said Brown Deer Public Schools finance director Emily Koczela in an interview with a local television station. “We’re looking at understanding what effective teaching is, how to measure it in the children’s point of view, and how to reward teachers that consistently turn in a performance that’s better than the norm,” added Koczela.

One of the arguments against Obamacare and health insurance reform was that we should allow open markets across state lines. Here is that idea being applied to a school district. Go figure, making insurance companies compete for business.

In Appleton, the collective-bargaining reforms allowed the school district there to save $3 million by bidding for health care on the open market. Previously, the district had been required to purchase health insurance from WEA Trust, which is affiliated with the state’s largest teachers’ union. When the Appleton School District put their health-insurance contract up for bid, WEA Trust magically lowered their rates, saying they would match any competitor’s price — a sign they had been fleecing local taxpayers for years.

As Schneider points out, this is all being done through the right kind of 'shared sacrifice.'

Read it all.

Video: Must-See Report on Wisconsin Recall Elections

MacIver Institute was on the ground in Wisconsin throughout the day yesterday and captured some interesting video. Of particular interest to everyone should be the amount of money spent by outside Democrat groups to garner the votes necessary to win three of the six recall elections, which would have given the Democrats control of the Wisconsin state senate. As it is, Democrats lost that battle by one vote, only winning two. Another interesting get on this video was the filming of 'Get Out the Vote' (GOTV) van drivers who stood over the shoulders of passengers they brought to the polls. The best / worst part? The 'We Are Wisconsin' observers are from Washington, D.C. and Virginia.



h/t Verum Serum, which is also reporting that Democrats are already crying foul, saying that Waukesha County Clerk Kathy Nickolaus, tampered with the votes.

Shameless doesn't even BEGIN to describe these whackos.

Democrats Lose Recall Efforts in Wisconsin

There were six Republican state senators in Wisconsin up for a recall election yesterday, August 9th. The Democrats needed to win three of those elections in order to gain control of the state senate; they won two. The effort was an attempt to stop Governor Rick Walker's push to end the collective bargaining rights of public sector unions. These were the most expensive elections in state history and much of the money came from outside interest groups. In short, Governor Walker and the state of Wisconsin beat back an attempt by strong, national pro-union forces, backed by the Obama administration.

"Resist we much."
- Al Sharpton

Via Wisconsin State Journal:

After tens of millions of dollars spent by outside interest groups, dozens of attack ads and exhaustive get-out-the-vote efforts, Democrats on Tuesday fell short of their goal of taking control of the state Senate and stopping the agenda of Gov. Scott Walker.

Republicans won four of six recall races, meaning the party still holds a narrow 17-16 majority in the Senate — at least until next week, when Sens. Robert Wirch, D-Pleasant Prairie, and Jim Holperin, D-Conover face their own recall elections. A third Democrat, Sen. Dave Hansen, D-Green Bay, easily survived a recall attempt last month.

Sens. Robert Cowles, R-Green Bay, Sheila Harsdorf, R-River Falls, Luther Olsen, R-Ripon, and Alberta Darling, R-River Hills, successfully defended their seats Tuesday.

Challengers state Rep. Jennifer Shilling, D-La Crosse, and Jessica King unseated incumbent state Sens. Dan Kapanke, R-La Crosse, and Randy Hopper, R-Fond du Lac.

Going into Tuesday, Republicans controlled the body 19-14, so Democrats needed to win at least three seats and hold onto two more next week to take over.

"The revolution has not occurred," said UW-Milwaukee political science professor Mordecai Lee, a former Democratic lawmaker. "The proletariat did not take over the streets."

The two Republican senators who lost should run for higher office. These are the type of people who belong in the halls of congress. They voted without regard for the next election.

It's hard for incumbent Republicans to resist the urge to do so but resist they much.

Sorry, I know I put this video on the last post but I can't resist and resist I much not.

Black on White Hate Crimes at Wisconsin Fair

As people were exiting the Wisconsin State Fair, mobs of black people began attacking white people for no reason, according to multiple reports. This story has not been widely reported but you can bet your last dime that had the situation been reversed - whites attacking blacks - it would have been shouted from the rooftops of the liberal media establishment. Incidentally, the multiple members of that media establishment are white and had any of them attended the Wisconsin State Fair, would have been targets.

Via WTMJ:

WEST ALLIS - Witnesses tell Newsradio 620 WTMJ and TODAY'S TMJ4 of a mob of young people attacking innocent fair-goers at the end of the opening night of State Fair, with some callers claiming a racially-charged scene.

Milwaukee Police confirmed there were assaults outside the fair.

Witnesses' accounts claim everything from dozens to hundreds of young black people beating white people as they left State Fair Thursday night.

Authorities have not given official estimates of the number of people involved in the attacks.

"It looked like they were just going after white guys, white people," said Norb Roffers of Wind Lake in an interview with Newsradio 620 WTMJ. He left the State Fair Entrance near the corner of South 84th Street and West Schlinger Avenue in West Allis.

"They were attacking everybody for no reason whatsoever."

"It was 100% racial," claimed Eric, an Iraq war veteran from St. Francis who says young people beat on his car.

"I had a black couple on my right side, and these black kids were running in between all the cars, and they were pounding on my doors and trying to open up doors on my car, and they didn't do one thing to this black couple that was in this car next to us. They just kept walking right past their car. They were looking in everybody's windshield as they were running by, seeing who was white and who was black. Guarantee it."

What are the chances that any of these thugs get charged with hate crimes? Hold your breath. Here is a WTMJ news report:



h/t GWP

Wisconsin Economy Growing, Union Thugs Conspicuously Silent

Well, it looks like Governor Scott Walker continues to win the battle for Wisconsin. Private sector job growth is taking place in the liberal state of Wisconsin, not because of liberal policies but because liberal policies were rejected. It didn't take long either. The biggest reason for the increase in the private sector growth had to do with - wait for it - government workers being let go who then had to find jobs elsewhere. Guess where they found them. The private sector. For the first time, many of these workers will probably feel better at the end of their work day.

Via JS Online:

Wisconsin bucked a lackluster national trend in June and added an estimated 12,900 private-sector jobs from May to June, representing the largest single-month gain of private sector jobs since September 2003.

Hailing "incredibly good news," Gov. Scott Walker took the unusual step of traveling to Milwaukee to present the state's latest monthly unemployment report in person. Some of the good news stems from the policies of his 6-month-old Republican administration, he said, but added that the overall business climate or "motivation" was also a factor that worked in the economy's favor.

Citing the latest data, which Wisconsin receives from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Walker noted that Wisconsin effectively created half of the net new jobs in the nation last month, which was an abysmal month for national job creation.

Total net new jobs in Wisconsin last month rose 9,500 because a continued decline in government employment offset some of the gains of the private-sector job creation. That compares to an equivalent national figure of 18,000, which derives from net new U.S. private-sector growth of 57,000 jobs minus the drop of 39,000 in government payrolls.

This is what we call opportunity cost. When government workers are let go, not only do expenditures go down but those workers end up actually paying taxes from their jobs in the private sector, which increase government revenues.

h/t GWP

Wisconsin Liberal Loses Election by 7000 Votes, wants Recount

The following example provides the perfect microcosm for what's wrong with liberalism. The recent election for Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice shows incumbent Republican David Prosser up by more than 7,000 votes. Liberal challenger Joanne Kloppenburg wants a recount. As a percentage of the overall vote, Kloppenburg lost by .5% but the number is still significant. The day after the April 5th election, Kloppenburg declared victory, which is a key aspect to the video below. Then, several thousand votes were found not to have been counted. Yes, they benefited Prosser but when such things happen to the Democrats, votes aren't found to not have been counted; they're just 'found.'

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel is giving Kloppenburg the official eye-roll and reporting that the recount she's demanding is unnecessarily costly at a time when costs are a big concern everywhere:

JoAnne Kloppenburg certainly had the right to ask for a statewide recount on Wednesday.

But we had hoped that she wouldn't - and the state would be better off if she hadn't.

We understand the motivation. The final county-by-county canvassing of the state Supreme Court election revealed that Justice David Prosser won a narrow victory, a reflection of how polarizing the new governor and his policies have become. The heat generated by the controversy over those policies most likely spurred the significant turnout for a spring nonpartisan election and a 7,316-vote win for Prosser - less than 0.5% of the 1.5 million votes cast.

That's slim, but it's not likely that a statewide recount will change the outcome. Were it a margin in the hundreds of votes, perhaps, but Kloppenburg has to recognize that it's not.

Here is video of Kloppenburg announcing her intention to carry forward with the recount. The best part of this video - hands down - occurs at around the 1:40 mark when a reporter asks her if she still thinks she won the election. The ensuing pause was so long, you could have played the entire Jeopardy song - twice!

Wow.



h/t Hot Air

Video: Leftist Thugs Boo During National Anthem in Madison, WI

The Tea Party won the day in Madison, WI with respect to the collective bargaining debate. The final nail in the coffin appears to have been Prosser's re-election to the state Supreme Court. Perhaps that's why the leftist thugs who showed up at the Madison Tea Party were in such a rotten mood, so rotten in fact that they booed during the national anthem. In a display of how slow they are to catch onto what they were doing, the entire song was almost over before they changed gears and began singing. Take note of the complete disrespect shown for the Star Spangled Banner by this gaggle of whack jobs.

Via Breitbart:

Paul Krugman Loses his Conscience in Three Months

Within hours of the Gabrielle Giffords shooting on January 8th, the New York Times's Paul Krugman blamed that shooting on the 'rhetoric' of Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh, and Sarah Palin. He also insinuated a motive that proved not to exist. Krugman pointed to Palin's 'crosshairs' map that highlighted congressional races that needed attention and used logic that said Giffords could have been a target of the Tea Party because she didn't lose in November.

That was THEN and THIS is now. It took Krugman just a bit more than three months to encourage the left to engage in 'uncivil' discourse.

Last week, President Obama offered a spirited defense of his party’s values — in effect, of the legacy of the New Deal and the Great Society. Immediately thereafter, as always happens when Democrats take a stand, the civility police came out in force. The president, we were told, was being too partisan; he needs to treat his opponents with respect; he should have lunch with them, and work out a consensus.

That’s a bad idea. Equally important, it’s an undemocratic idea.

Then Krugman goes Alinsky on the Heritage Foundation, singling the organization out in much the same way the Koch brothers were singled out in Wisconsin. Krugman then ends his call to incivility thusly:

Sorry to be cynical, but right now “bipartisan” is usually code for assembling some conservative Democrats and ultraconservative Republicans — all of them with close ties to the wealthy, and many who are wealthy themselves — and having them proclaim that low taxes on high incomes and drastic cuts in social insurance are the only possible solution.

This would be a corrupt, undemocratic way to make decisions about the shape of our society even if those involved really were wise men with a deep grasp of the issues. It’s much worse when many of those at the table are the sort of people who solicit and believe the kind of policy analyses that the Heritage Foundation supplies.

So let’s not be civil. Instead, let’s have a frank discussion of our differences. In particular, if Democrats believe that Republicans are talking cruel nonsense, they should say so — and take their case to the voters.

In Krugman's defense, the left has shown that it doesn't need much of a reason to engage in thuggish behavior and incivility. Here is a case in point:



That said, this dose of hypocrisy from Krugman could choke a donkey.

h/t Weasel Zippers