Wisconsin Follies
Prelude
Background
As the afternoon of April 7th began, reports came in that Prosser had recouped 244 votes from one county after its results had been double checked and verified. Some consternation amongst the Democratic faithful ensued, but when reports started coming in about how, in other counties, Kloppenburg had gained small numbers of net votes during the double-checking process -- yet more than enough in total to overcome the 244 that Prosser gained elsewhere -- there was calm in Mudville again.
Then all hell broke loose as unsubstantiated reports that Prosser has gain 7500 votes in a single county came in. Discounted at first as absurd, it later became clear that the reports were true, if not quite accurately reported. Turns out that for whatever reason, the county in question had failed to total an entire city's (population 40,000) results on election night in a heavily Republican area. Indeed, nearly 14,000 votes had never been tallied, resulting in a net gain for Prosser of about 7500.
And so, unless some equally absurd occurence happens in the next few days, Prosser will have won the Wisconsin Supreme Court race by about a spread of 1/2%.
In other news, another Wisconsin Senator will be recalled. Senator Randy Hopper, last seen without his wife (who signed the recall petition) and last heard denying that he had arranged to give his mistress a cushy State of Wisconsin position (which she got), is the target of the second recall petition to be submitted.
In yet more Wisconsin you can't make this stuff up news:
Brian Deschane has decided to resign altogether rather than accept a demotion to the $64,728-per-year job he started out in, sources tell the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. The resignation comes after a minor uproar over the 27-year-old, who has no college degree, little experience, and two drunken driving convictions-yet landed a swift promotion to an $81,500 management job in the Walker administration. His father is a lobbyist for a state builders' group that made a big donation to Walker's campaign.
Those damned Republicans and their sweet-sweet government jobs.
Background
As the afternoon of April 7th began, reports came in that Prosser had recouped 244 votes from one county after its results had been double checked and verified. Some consternation amongst the Democratic faithful ensued, but when reports started coming in about how, in other counties, Kloppenburg had gained small numbers of net votes during the double-checking process -- yet more than enough in total to overcome the 244 that Prosser gained elsewhere -- there was calm in Mudville again.
Then all hell broke loose as unsubstantiated reports that Prosser has gain 7500 votes in a single county came in. Discounted at first as absurd, it later became clear that the reports were true, if not quite accurately reported. Turns out that for whatever reason, the county in question had failed to total an entire city's (population 40,000) results on election night in a heavily Republican area. Indeed, nearly 14,000 votes had never been tallied, resulting in a net gain for Prosser of about 7500.
And so, unless some equally absurd occurence happens in the next few days, Prosser will have won the Wisconsin Supreme Court race by about a spread of 1/2%.
In other news, another Wisconsin Senator will be recalled. Senator Randy Hopper, last seen without his wife (who signed the recall petition) and last heard denying that he had arranged to give his mistress a cushy State of Wisconsin position (which she got), is the target of the second recall petition to be submitted.
In yet more Wisconsin you can't make this stuff up news:
Brian Deschane has decided to resign altogether rather than accept a demotion to the $64,728-per-year job he started out in, sources tell the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. The resignation comes after a minor uproar over the 27-year-old, who has no college degree, little experience, and two drunken driving convictions-yet landed a swift promotion to an $81,500 management job in the Walker administration. His father is a lobbyist for a state builders' group that made a big donation to Walker's campaign.
Those damned Republicans and their sweet-sweet government jobs.