Rice, Cooked: Part 2

You may recall from my blog "Rice, Cooked" in May, that the Milwaukee County Board approved a preliminary plan to redistrict the county and dissect Whitefish Bay.

Part of Whitefish Bay will be added to Milwaukee's East Side district.  The other part will be added to Milwaukee's northern district.  This move effectively consolidates more power for the City of Milwaukee, redacting one suburban district.

The preliminary plan was widely panned by groups near and far.  The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel was against it, as was the NAACP, the Milwaukee Intergovernmental Cooperation Council, and Bayside, Brown Deer, Cudahy, Franklin, Fox Point, Greendale, Greenfield, River Hills and Whitefish Bay all passed official resolutions demanding the County to get public input and re-draw the districts instead of this crude hatchet job aimed at one Supervisor.

This redistricting plan will have zero effect on the balance of power and governance of Milwaukee County. Reducing the suburban voice by one will simply make the eternal suburban minority a bit smaller.  However, it should infuriate suburban citizens, especially those on the North Shore. 

Last week, to no one's surprise, the Milwaukee Supervisors voted 13-7 to approve this plan, as those 13 get to keep their jobs and punish Supervisor Rice. It's now waiting for County Executive Chris Abele to sign or veto.

Frankly, Abele would be well served if he vetoed it. He is, after all, up for re-election next year.

With Abele's approval, he guarantees 13 votes for his re-election campaign next year, from 13 thankful Supervisors.

With a veto, he gains hero status from the long list of groups who have voiced opposition, including North Shore voters and thousands of suburban voters. Even if the veto is overridden, he wins credibility as the adult in the room.

Want to weigh in? Send a short note to Chris Abele, asking him to veto this plan. He's the last hope. Write soon, though, it could be signed as early as Monday.

Milwaukee County Executive Chris Abele
Email:  countyexec@milwcnty.com

Phone: (414) 278-4211

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POLITICAL MAIL

Dear Political Action Committees:  

Thank you for the 27 pieces of mail over the past week. 

I'm pretty sure I speak for most everyone in the 8th Senate District when I say that your negative adverts go straight from our mailbox to the recycling bin. 

Thanks for supporting the US Postal Service, though.

Signed,

Everyone.

Taking a look at my mail, the PAC score is 5 to 1.

Attacking Darling: The Sierra Club, Greater Wisconsin Political Fund, We are Wisconsin, Wisconsin League of Conservation Voters
Attacking Pasch:  American Federation for Children

I may not be getting all the PAC mail, but with those numbers, it would indicate a lot of outside money flowing to Whitefish Bay's Rep. Pasch.