MILWAUKEE – Sitting in the pressroom before Friday night’s televised debate between Governor Scott Walker (R) and Mayor Tom Barrett (D) the question was: will Tom Barrett do anything to change the momentum of the race? Since emerging from a divisive primary fight on May 8 that saw him trounce Big Labor’s candidate of choice, Kathleen Falk, Barrett has been working to shift the momentum of the race to his favor. Operatives on both sides agree that with almost no independent voters left to fight over, the election comes down to voter turnout and the margin of victory will likely be unpredictable and close.

Unconfirmed reports are that early voting in the Democrat-vote rich City of Milwaukee, Barrett’s home turf, total 3,300 due largely to coordinated efforts by labor groups and community organizing outfits.

Barrett has been hammered by revised job creation numbers showing Walker’s reforms are working, and the news that his politically active wife, a public school teacher, violated Milwaukee Public Schools policies prohibiting teachers using their government email accounts for political and campaign purposes, He has been lagging in almost every poll in the race, and even his own internal polling, released without cross tabs to the public, shows him down but within the margin of error.

Out of the gate at the debate’s start, Barrett charged at Walker asserting it was the governor who started a “political civil war” in the state that led to the recall election. But for all of his aggressive tone and stance, Barrett did nothing to explain why his record as mayor of Wisconsin’s largest city shows he would lead the state in a better direction. Even while criticizing Walker for specific policy positions, Barrett was short on specifics.

Walker, never an outstanding or confrontational debater, stuck to his main theme of talking about how the reforms he championed are working. The state’s budget is balanced, property taxes slightly down, and job creation up. “[The] facts are the facts. Our reforms are working and putting people to work,” the governor declared.

The day before the debate, former SEIU head Andy Stern told POLITICO that the Democratic primary was  “a key distraction,” that “reframed the issue into a more traditional electoral issue and not one of whether the governor deserves to be recalled.”

Barrett mentioned nary a word at the debate about what he would do to undo Walker’s collective bargaining reforms. Reforms that Barrett himself took advantage of to balance the City of Milwaukee’s budget this year. “This is about workers,” Barrett said, before vaguely asserting, “I am concerned about those [collective bargaining] rights.”

Arguably, Barrett’s most noteworthy comment of the entire evening was a pitch to voters that he was not labor’s “first choice.” At a time when national Democrats are refusing to pour money or star power into the race, it has been Big Labor money that has sustained the credibility of the recall effort. Attacking the financial life-line of his own side of the race was a bold, if undisciplined, move that may not resonate well with the progressive base buoying the recall movement.

Although aggressive in his personal style, Barrett did not play big during the debate. With little to lose it would have made sense for him to go all out on Walker using the debate as a chance to create fodder for a final round of television ads and reframe the narrative in his favor. But the lack of substance that characterized his answers, and the almost rote recitation of attacking talking points didn’t spark any moment that could have given more life to his campaign.

Walker did not need to play big, and seemed to be playing it safe the entire time. His campaign must believe that if he is ahead and building momentum, there is no reason to risk a debate misstep backfire. Barrett’s missed opportunity, however, could be something that further concedes a narrow lead to Walker’s favor.

Take the world’s most paranoid/delusional Stalinist regime, add nuclear ambition and stir. Turn the whole mess over to a 29-year old who, by rights, should be playing video games in his parents’ basement; what’s the worst that could happen?

This, for starters, from the Telegraph (UK):

AFP/Getty Images

In its annual study, Amnesty International claimed that in addition to the 30 who died in purges last year, a further 200 were rounded up in January this year by the State Security Agency as Pyongyang carried out the transfer of power from Kim Jong-il, who died of an apparent heart attack in December, and his 29-year-old son, Kim Jong-un.

Of those 200, Amnesty said, some were apparently executed and the remainder were sent to political prison camps. The gulag system presently contains an estimated 200,000 people in “horrific conditions,” the group said.

North Korea has a habit of executing bureaucrats who are perceived to have failed the regime, even though they are often merely carrying out the orders of higher-ranking officials or members of the ruling family.

In 2010, Pak Nam-gi, the former head of the finance department of the Workers’ Party, was reportedly executed by firing squad for the catastrophic attempt to reform the impoverished nation’s currency. The result was rampant inflation and food shortages became even more acute.

The 30 men executed for failing to improve Pyongyang’s ties with Seoul are considered scapegoats for the new low point in inter-Korean ties.

I recently blogged about the Pudgy Young Leader’s horrible day at the amusement park. It’s horrifying to think what happened to the workers who failed to run their empty amusement park in a manner consistent with the Juche Idea.

An oldie but a goodie: ‘The Un’ vs The One
Cross-posted at my blog.

Imagine if we’d banned automobiles because all the old business models that were destroyed by them got government protection. Imagine a government that unfairly killed innovation in order to give well-connected businessmen a leg up on upstart competition. That’s what big media outlets are asking for when they come after Dish Network’s innovative DVR service. And of course, given the Obama administration’s track record of unfairly picking winners and losers, they might get what they want.

Cybersecurity update: New Jersey Democrat Felix Roque arrested for trying to break into a website trying to recall him.

I again am thankful that Joe Barton got term limited out of being Chairman when I see him being a big bully against private business. For shame. Stearns has done good work, and I can forgive an occasional mistake. But big government all the time is the norm for Barton this Congress. Primary this man please.

Another person I can forgive for his transgressions is Mike Lee, who’s making sense on spectrum on Verizon/Comcast. I wish he’d give up his Jihad against Google, but we’ll work on that.

A name that looks to become a regular in Tech at Night is Steve Scalise, who’s apparently taking Darrell Issa’s lead to reform the FCC by suspension.

WASHINGTON – The Republican National Committee (RNC) is out with a new web video “Worst Week Ever?” that summarizes a rough week for President Obama’s reelection. After doubling-down on attacking the free market and Mitt Romney’s business record, Barack Obama and his campaign team hit a brick wall when Democrat after Democrat started coming out against their tactics. He also found out on Tuesday that “uncommitted” can be a tough primary challenger. President Obama had a bad case of the Mondays-every day this week.
Web video can be viewed here.
Download the web video here.  

 
“Barack Obama had a rough week as his attacks on the free market and Governor Romney’s business record were repeatedly denounced by his fellow Democrats who found them offensive,” said RNC Chairman Reince Priebus. “It seems that everyone other than him understands the important role of private sector job creators. We can’t be too surprised by this president’s anti-business rhetoric after watching him spend three and a half years making it harder for job creators. After getting rebuked in Tuesday’s primaries, on top of almost losing to a convict the week prior, it’s clear their message just isn’t working.”
 
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Excerpts from POLITICO

By: Mike Allen and Jim VandeHei
May 25, 2012
“Nothing inspires Democrats like the Barack Obama swagger – the supreme self-confidence on stage, the self-certainty in private.
“So nothing inspires more angst than when that same Obama stumbles, as he has leaving the gate in 2012.
“That’s the unmistakable reality for Democrats since Obama officially launched his re-election campaign three weeks ago. Obama, not Mitt Romney, is the one with the muddled message – and the one who often comes across as baldly political. Obama, not Romney, is the one facing blowback from his own party on the central issue of the campaign so far – Romney’s history with Bain Capital. And most remarkably, Obama, not Romney, is the one falling behind in fundraising.
“To top it off, Vice President Joe Biden has looked more like a distraction this month than the potent working-class weapon Obama needs him to be.
“National polls, which had shown Obama with a slight but steady lead over Romney through April, moved into a virtual tie this month…
“It’s impossible to overlook the early struggles of a White House and political team notorious for discipline and effectiveness. Consider the rocks that piled up in Obama’s backpack this week as he and Romney moved into the opening phase of the general-election campaign:
“Romney has surprised his many critics with a clear and consistent focus on the economy, hands down the issue of the race…
“Obama has looked unsteady. Some Democrats have watched with dismay as the focus of Obama’s public comments bounced from student loans to tax cuts for the rich to trade to Bain Capital.
“Bain has turned into pain this week. For the first time, some top Democrats are questioning the strategy coming out of the reelection campaign’s Chicago headquarters, with some agreeing with Newark Mayor Cory Booker that Obama is making it too easy to paint him as anti-business. Ed Rendell and Steve Rattner have also publicly voiced concerns, echoed by many others in private conversations. The result has been a minor, but very public, split in the party on an issue Obama’s camp hoped would tag Romney with a series of crippling labels: elitist, mean-spirited, anti-worker…
“Some key Democrats say they have been dismayed watching Obama become a divider not a uniter, trying to incite anger among women, students and older voters. It’s striking how, in private conversations with Obama advisers, they openly talk of chucking the feel-good politics of 2008 for a very conventional form of political warfare this time around. A low-grade friction has emerged among advisers on whether the hack approach is damaging the brand.
“‘This guy’s narrative is to be big,’ complained one veteran of the 2008 campaign. ‘How do you capture that in a campaign when all anybody is focused on is the daily tit-for-tat? He has to get up and out of it. … The campaign jumps so quickly into these fights that it distracts from what the president is doing’…
“After a series of promising jobs reports through the winter, the figures for the past two months were once again disappointing. That makes it harder for Obama to argue that the country is clearly headed in the right direction, and easier for Romney to contend that recovery will only come with change.
“In a Washington Post/ABC News poll this week, nearly twice as many people said they were worse off financially under Obama than said they were better off. And more than half the respondents disapproved of Obama’s handling of the economy, for the 20th poll in a row…
“Biden, who looked like he was going to be an asset with Rust Belt swing voters who have become increasingly skeptical of Obama, instead could wind up as a drag on the ticket. A USA Today/Gallup poll this week found more people viewed him unfavorably than viewed him favorably. That was the first time Biden’s numbers were underwater as vice president, with even worse numbers in swing states than the nation as a whole…
“Obama could lose the money race. He smashed fundraising records in 2008, but Romney and his allies have outraised Obama and his backers $402 million to $340 million in this cycle so far, POLITICO found in an analysis that included super PACs, party committees and the campaign.
“It’s surprising for a challenger’s side to be at parity with an incumbent, let alone ahead. But Obama has found fundraising to be harder than expected, in part because he has alienated so many financial-services executives with his rhetoric and policies…
“Romney has galvanized the right more quickly than expected, and has shown discipline in sticking to an economic message, even when gay marriage was dominating the headlines. His Boston headquarters is more confident than ever, at the same time that so many Democrats are getting the willies”
Click Here To Read The Full Article: http://bit.ly/MACmm2

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Five years ago I joined Redstate as one of the most fire-breathing conservative commenters here. I could see the Leftist train coming down the tracks as the Iraq war dragged on, with no signs of an end and George W Bush squarely in the sights (oops, did I say that?) of the Left. It made me angry, and I was bound and determined to fight it…and Redstate seemed like the place to start. As it became more apparent that Barack Obama was likely to win the nomination and the Presidency, I feared for the future of the country. It was obvious to me (and to many of us, although not all…) that his extreme radicalism was to be a dangerous and damaging thing for the nation. As I looked at Obama and his associates such as Ayers and Wright, the old adage “you can tell a man by the company he keeps” gave me a preview of the kind of President he was likely to be.

And lo, it came to pass.

As I’ve observed the actions of Obama and the Democrats and been a first-hand participant in the political realm over the last several years, I have become more and more negative about what is going on in this nation, from a variety of angles. This negativity is not solely driven by politics – it’s also cultural. The erosion of values, morality and civility is obvious. I’ve been less inclined to write/blog over time as this breakdown and my cynicism has accelerated. Part of my distress has come from a close relative who has been transformed into a leftist…and my own unabashed, outspoken and uncivil conservatism may have actually contributed to it.

For me, things came to something of a climax today. As I read the stories published as part of the “blogstorm” covering the heinous acts of Kimberlin, Brynaert and the subsequent response of people like Markos Moulitsas, I became angry and vengeful. But the more I’ve thought about these events and considered my own response, I was saddened and disgusted with myself. I’m sad that political partisanship has caused adults to become disgustingly hateful people who actually want to bring physical harm to those who disagree with them. And this partisanship and hate has begun to saturate my own thinking. As I considered the story, I imagined how wonderful it would be for them to meet some unimaginably vile death. But then it dawned on me that by thinking that way, I had become one of them. I’ve allowed this world of politics to transform me into a bitter, hateful person. As a Christian, I cannot allow this to happen.

To be sure, the deeds of these people that have been discussed today are profoundly wrong and evil. But we cannot tempted to respond in the same way as those who oppose us. We cannot respond to hate with hate. We should pray for our enemies. In Matthew 5, Jesus (unsurprisingly) says it perfectly:

“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”

My colleagues here at Redstate have addressed the stories surrounding the Kimberlin situation in a firm, thoughtful and reasoned manner. For the most part, the problem today is me and my own heart. What I am seeking is something that was described a couple of weeks ago in an article published in USA Today. It described a desire that some in the Christian community have expressed for “a softer, less partisan way” of engaging in the public square. Granted, this is probably a thinly-veiled attempt to quiet the more outspoken pro-life and anti-homosexual-marriage contingent, but there is a sentiment within it that is (IMO) important:

From divisive rhetoric to civil dialogue. Americans in general are weary of the reactionary, angry, polemical language that stymies progress and the common good. Two-thirds of Americans believe we have a major problem with civility. More than seven in 10 agree that social behaviors are ruder than in the past.

Yep. And while this describes one aspect of the problem, I am not convinced that the solution prescribed in that article is appropriate. Efforts such as those described there are routinely co-opted by guys like Jim Wallis (mentioned in the article), who clearly have a left-leaning agenda, couched in calls for “civility”. When results of polls such as George Barna’s mentions Christians being “insensitive to others,” this tends to translate to “insensitive to others who are sympathetic to our left-leaning socio-political positions”. But there I go again – my bitterness and cynicism tend to leak into many of my lines of thinking. But maybe this is simply the wisdom that comes with years of experience with the Left.

I have no problem with civilized disagreement. And I don’t intend to pursue a path that results in compromise of principles that are clearly Biblical, so disagreement with my positions is pretty much a given. But what I do hope and pray for is that those of us on the Right (side of the argument ) will respond to evil with something other than evil and hatred. We should respond thoughtfully and in a way that heaps burning coals on the heads of our enemies.

Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord. On the contrary:

“If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.”

Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

We must not allow ourselves to be consumed by hatred and vengeance towards our enemies, as vile as they might be.

We must overcome evil with good.

Promoted from the diaries.

The 2010 election spurred hundreds of Americans to call for a change in the direction our nation was taking.  They were sick of the reckless spending of the Democrat-controlled Congress and they wanted their representative to be above the culture of corruption in Washington, D.C.   As a result, November saw 87 new Republicans elected to the House of Representatives with a mandate to enact changes to the way Washington, D.C. works.

I was proud to be one of those historic freshmen.  Over the past year and a half, I have spent my time in Congress trying my best to serve my constituents and uphold the conservative principles on which I ran.

One of those changes our freshmen class was able to achieve was to end the practice of earmarking, where legislators target federal dollars to special interest projects.  Today it is against the rules of the House of Representatives to earmark, and that is a policy my constituents and I continue to support.

Unfortunately, some in Congress, including several in my own party, have decided that taking two years off is enough time to “fix” what was wrong with earmarks.  They are encouraging the Speaker and others to bring back earmarks and use them to “grease the skids” and “help get things done.”

Some have argued that the total amount of earmarks is negligible when looking at the overall budget.  However, the real danger from special interest favors is that they can be used to influence the votes of Members so they will vote for bloated policies our nation cannot afford.

Whether it is a transportation bill that spends more of your tax dollars than is taken in by federal gas and excise taxes or annual spending bills that have grown exponentially over time, earmarks can help push bad policy over the finish line and signed into law.

By getting rid of earmarks, Members are forced to evaluate each bill on its merits.  It encourages Members to read the actual text of the legislation, determine the positives and negatives of the bill, and then make a decision based on whether the bill is in the best interests of their constituents and the country.  When earmarks are allowed, instead of reviewing the merits of a bill, Members put too much emphasis on whether a specific earmark getting passed is more important than the underlying bill.  That makes for bad public policy and expands our nation’s debt and deficits.

Many of my freshmen colleagues and I have made it clear to the Republican House leadership that a return to the failed policies of the past isn’t acceptable to us or our constituents.  We were sent to Washington to fix Congress and end earmarking, not to endorse the big spending culture of the past.  I will stand up to any effort to bring back earmarks, and I encourage Red State readers to contact their representative and ask them to do the same.

Congresswoman Sandy Adams represents Florida’s 24th district

We’re going to get into Barack Obama’s spending habits, very bad week, and a whole lot more today. Yes, I’ll even get into Brett Kimberlin.

You can listen live tonight on the WSB live stream and call in at 1-800-WSB-TALK.

Consider this an open thread.

Ted Cruz is firing back at David DewCrist.

Listen to the voices on this youtube video at Lee Stranahan’s website and tell me if they sound similar.

What you are listening to is the recording of someone pulling what is known as SWATting; someone spoofing your phone number and calling in a false report to police with the caller ID tracing back to the victim of SWATting. This time, the call was done at the expense of blogger Patterico in July of 2011.

Here’s the frightening story.

At 12:35 a.m. on July 1, 2011, sheriff’s deputies pounded on my front door and rang my doorbell. They shouted for me to open the door and come out with my hands up.

When I opened the door, deputies pointed guns at me and ordered me to put my hands in the air. I had a cell phone in my hand. Fortunately, they did not mistake it for a gun.

They ordered me to turn around and put my hands behind my back. They handcuffed me. They shouted questions at me: IS THERE ANYONE ELSE IN THE HOUSE? and WHERE ARE THEY? and ARE THEY ALIVE?

I told them: Yes, my wife and my children are in the house. They’re upstairs in their bedrooms, sleeping. Of course they’re alive.

Deputies led me down the street to a patrol car parked about 2-3 houses away. At least one neighbor was watching out of her window as I was placed, handcuffed, in the back of the patrol car. I saw numerous patrol cars on my quiet street. There was a police helicopter flying overhead, shining a spotlight down on us as I walked towards the patrol car. Several neighbors later told us the helicopter woke them up. I saw a fire engine and an ambulance. A neighbor later told me they had a HazMat vehicle out on the street as well.

Meanwhile, police rushed into my home. They woke up my wife, led her downstairs and to the front porch, frisked her, and asked her where the children were. Then police ordered her to stand on the front porch with her hands against the wall while they entered my children’s bedrooms to make sure they were alive.

The call that sent deputies to my home was a hoax. Someone had pretended to be me. They called the police to say I had shot my wife. The sheriff’s deputies who arrived at my front door believed they were about to confront an armed man who had just shot his wife. I don’t blame the police for any of their actions. But I blame the person who made the call.

Because I could have been killed.

The weirdest part of the whole thing was that I halfway expected this might happen. Because I was not the first one it had happened to.

As noted in the video, the likely culprit is a man named Ron Brynaert who’d been harassing Patterico already and who’s voice sounds indistinguishable from the SWATter on the 911 call. According to Patterico, Brynaert had a very specific reason for wanting to cause so much trouble for him and his family:

Brynaert explicitly connected his desire to do violence to me to his defense of Brett Kimberlin. The night he threatened me and my wife, Brynaert defended Kimberlin in a long series of tweets pointing out alleged holes in the case against Kimberlin. Brynaert said I was slandering Kimberlin:

And if Brynaert existed to defend the criminal Brett Kimberlin, Patterico was a rich target for him:

All of these things have happened to me and other critics of Brett Kimberlin since July 2011. The harassment has been relentless and has occurred almost every day. It would literally take a book to catalogue it all. What you read in this post, incredibly, is only part of it.

Why target me? Well, I first wrote about Brett Kimberlin in October 2010, after getting a call from Andrew Breitbart. Andrew told me that his site was going to publish a post about a domestic terrorist named Brett Kimberlin. The story sounded interesting, and I published a post about Kimberlin shortly after the Breitbart post (penned by Mandy Nagy aka Liberty Chick) was published.

The next day, Kimberlin threatened to sue me. He said: “I have filed over a hundred lawsuits and another one will be no sweat for me. On the other hand, it will cost you a lot of time and money and for what.” I asked him to identify any specific falsehoods in my post and he did not. I published subsequent posts about topics like Kimberlin’s alleged murderous plots to escape from prison and exact revenge on his enemies and an examination of his non-profits’ tax returns. In February 2011, I talked about stalkerish intimidation tactics used by Kimberlin and his business partner, Brad Friedman of the “Brad Blog.”

It’s fair to say I have been one of Brett Kimberlin’s least favorite people in the world for a good long time now.

There’s much, much more. Read the whole story here.