Boots & Sabers

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Tag: Tammy Baldwin

Tammy Baldwin Allegedly Uses Government Power for Benefit of Partner and Self

by | 0818, 30 Aug 2424 | | 0 Comments

Out government has become just a giant grift, hasn’t it?

Baldwin co-owns a $1.3 million DC penthouse condo with her partner, Wall Street private wealth management adviser Maria Brisbane but hasn’t included any of their jointly owned assets on her financial-disclosure reports — despite reporting the assets of her previous partner. In fact, Brisbane has never appeared on the senator’s reports.

The 2015 Tammy Baldwin might have objected to this arrangement.

[…]

Brisbane is the founder of Brisbane Group, whose archived website from when it was at Merrill Lynch (archived at the end of 2023) claimed to “enhance performance” by investing in “small biotechnology” companies.

Brisbane previously managed a “biotechnology mutual fund” at Merrill Lynch, where she was said to have an appreciation for cutting-edge research that informs her current investments in biotech companies. Brisbane is also on the Cancer Research and Treatment Fund board of directors, who “rapidly deploy funding to the frontlines of research.”

[…]

Baldwin said she “met privately” with US Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo to “make a final pitch” for Wisconsin to win the Phase 2 Implementation Grant as a Biohealth Tech Hub.

The Wisconsin senator’s role in securing funding for biotech companies is no secret.

Baldwin also chairs the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies, which manages appropriations for the National Institutes for Health.

In 2018, a biotech CEO thanked Baldwin for her “support” after her firm received an award from one of the relevant NIH programs. That CEO, Ayla Annac, contributed nearly $4,000 to Baldwin, including more than $1,000 in the months before and after she thanked Baldwin. Baldwin also included Annac in the Business Leaders for Tammy coalition one month before the CEO thanked the senator for her help.

This is a really simple story. Baldwin’s partner – with whom she lives and shares a life – makes a very good living advising small biotech firms and their investors. Baldwin uses her position in government to help decide which firms will receive taxpayer-funded grants, protections, favoritism, etc. When the firms Baldwin supports get a pile of money, so do the investors and the person who advised them… Brisbane.

This is an old school Chicago-style grift.

Tanny Baldwin Snubs Joe Biden

by | 1848, 2 Jul 2424 | , | 0 Comments

Can you blame her?

WASHINGTON – If Democratic Sen. Tammy Baldwin wanted to show her support for President Joe Biden following his shaky debate performance last week, she’d have her chance Friday.

But the Madison Democrat, in a tight reelection race that will help decide the balance of the Senate, will not appear with Biden when he visits her hometown later this week, according to her campaign. Instead, Baldwin will be in northeastern Wisconsin on a pre-planned statewide tour.

Her absence Friday will mark the fourth time this year that Baldwin did not appear with Biden on one of the president’s visits to the state. She last visited the president when he stopped in Superior in late January, then did not join him for his subsequent visits in March, April and May. Baldwin’s campaign noted she was in Washington during those previous visits.

To be fair, ol’ Joe won’t have any idea she’s not there anyway. Although it is telling that she supports his agenda nearly 100% of the time but still doesn’t want to be associated with him.

Biden’s and Baldwin’s actions support Hamas

by | 0721, 14 May 2424 | , , | 2 Comments

My column for the Washington County Daily News is online and in print. Here’s you go.

International affairs are inherently complicated with cross-currents of cultures, economies, religion, and philosophies in the deep ocean of history. The current war in the Gaza Strip in Israel, however, in a moment of moral clarity on which President Joe Biden and Senator Tammy Baldwin are demonstrating moral bankruptcy.

 

The fighting in the Middle East dates back to the very dawn of human civilization as a resource-rich and trading nexus of the ancient and modern world. The current war’s roots, however, are very modern.

 

When Israel came into its modern existence in 1948, the area known as the Gaza Strip was Egyptian territory and remained so for nearly 20 years. In 1967, a coalition of Egypt, Syria, and Jordan launched an unprovoked war against Israel that became known as the Six-Day War. Israel overwhelmingly won that war and seized the Gaza Strip, West Bank, and Golan Heights as the spoils of war and as a security buffer.

 

The Gaza Strip has been a part of Israel since 1967. In 2005, bowing to international pressure, Israel gave the Gaza Strip to the Gazans for them to self-govern and withdrew all forces, although Israel maintained border security for and with the Gaza Strip.

 

Promptly in 2006, the Gazans elected Hamas, an Islamist terrorist organization supported by Iran, to govern the Gaza Strip. Since 2006, Hamas has regularly launched rockets and small-scale attacks into Israel. Hamas has enjoyed widespread support by the Gazans for nearly 20 years.

 

On Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas launched a bloody attack across the border killing about 1,200 people of all ages and genders, and they took over 250 people back to Gaza as hostages. It was a bloody, bigoted, indiscriminate attack against civilians including babies and grandmothers. As bloody bodies were paraded through the streets in Gaza, the Gazans cheered. This is not the case of an unwelcome totalitarian government ruling over an innocent population. This is the case of a government acting with the overwhelming majority of their citizens supporting their barbarity.

 

Israel responded the same way I hope America would if the people of Tijuana attacked San Diego and butchered women and children. Israel fought back to eliminate the hostile threat while taking extraordinary measures to limit civilian deaths. The fact that some civilians are being killed is the direct result of Hamas’ policy to use them as human shields.

 

This is not a complicated war. Hamas is an Islamist terror group that is wantonly killing civilians from their power base and then hiding behind their own citizens when Israel pushes back. To support anything other than Israel’s right and duty to rid the world of Hamas is to support the perpetuation of hate, bigotry, murder, and terror.

 

Yet, that is where we find President Biden and Senator Baldwin. As always, we must watch what they do — not what they say. Biden has attempted to split the baby with his rhetoric vacillating between powerful support for Israel and appeasement to Hamas. His actions, however, lean heavily in favor of Hamas.

 

Biden has been calling for a ceasefire without the precondition of releasing all of the hostages which only benefits Hamas. Biden has condemned Israel for civilian casualties despite Israel’s extraordinary efforts to keep them to a minimum while Hamas pushes civilians into the fray. Last week, Biden unilaterally halted the shipment of ammunition to Israel and has threatened to halt more shipments if Israel moves to root out Hamas in their last remaining stronghold in Rafah.

 

Hamas never had a greater ally than President Biden.

 

Meanwhile, Senator Baldwin is in lock-step with Biden and Hamas providing rhetorical and legislative support whenever they need it. Baldwin has always been a loyal vote of support for whatever the Democrat leadership wants. This case is no different.

 

In a moment of crystal clear moral clarity, Biden and Baldwin have put themselves on the wrong side of history.

Senator Backbencher

by | 1924, 15 Dec 2222 | | 0 Comments

Here is my full column that ran in the Washington County Daily News this week:

Wisconsin has a long, annoying history of electing and re-electing relatively benign, but equally useless Democrat politicians. Herb Kohl, Russ Feingold, Tony Evers, virtually every mayor of Milwaukee in the modern era, and so many more were quite happy to keep their heads down, eschew controversial issues, and enjoy a light schedule. Perhaps this has never been as true as it is with Wisconsin’s current junior United States Senator, Tammy Baldwin.

 

After spending eight years in the Wisconsin Assembly without an accomplishment to her name, Democrat voters sent her to the U.S. House of Representatives where she spent fourteen years doing just as little. In 2012, Wisconsin’s voters sent her to the U.S. Senate. After six years without any accomplishments, the voters reelected her in 2018 to serve a second term. Rarely has someone risen so high having accomplished so little.

 

The last two weeks have been a good example of Baldwin’s style. She championed the so-called Defense of Marriage Act in the Senate in the lame duck session. It is a useless feel-good law since the Supreme Court has already required states to recognize same-sex marriages.

 

Fresh off that emotional high, Baldwin has authored a bill that would use taxpayer dollars to fund a $350 million annual grant program to pay for travel expenses for women who have to travel to get an abortion. It is a bill that is as offensive as it is unserious.

 

The bill comes in the wake of the landmark Supreme Court case that consigned the regulation of abortion to the states. Baldwin wants federal taxpayers to pay for travel costs for women who live in states that have chosen strict restrictions on killing babies to travel to states that are more willing to kill babies. Let us take the bill at face value.

 

First, consider how morally offensive it is to force taxpayers who oppose abortion to pay for women to travel to get one. For many of us, abortion is the act of killing a child. It is an atrocity. Baldwin’s bill would force a substantial plurality, if not a majority, of taxpayers to pay for something that fundamentally violates their conscience. It is one thing to allow something that others find morally abhorrent. It is quite another to make them pay for it.

 

Second, liberals like Baldwin have long asserted that on the issue of abortion, they want the government to not be involved. Yet Baldwin would have abortionists and abortion facilitators apply to the federal government to pay for expenses. Surely, if there is to be any serious attempt to prevent fraud, the women traveling to get an abortion would have to be identified and verified before federal funds are distributed, right? Does Baldwin consider it good public policy for the federal government to collect the names of women getting abortions? Would not the IRS need to know that they received material income so that it could be appropriately taxed?

 

Third, Baldwin completely ignores the rights of state voters to regulate abortion as they see fit. While Baldwin may disagree with how some states restrict abortion, it is not the role of the federal government or taxpayers to pay people to travel to states where the laws are to her personal liking. By that same logic, there should be a federal program to bus people to the marijuana dispensaries of Michigan or the heroin dens of California.

 

Finally, consider how unserious this bill is in the face of all of the problems currently facing our nation. Wisconsinites are suffering under the weight of inflation. Heating bills are way up as the winter is just getting started. Housing, food, clothing, fuel, medical care, and almost everything else that people need are far more expensive than they were even a year ago as their paychecks are not keeping up.

 

The southern border is awash with a soft invasion of people from all over the world. China is choking supply chains. Russia is rattling their nuclear saber. There is a rabid assault on free speech by government and business elites. Economic inequity continues to surge as billionaires consolidate wealth. Left unchecked, the national debt will destabilize our nation and the entitlements upon which many Americans rely are on the brink of insolvency.

 

With all of that going on, Baldwin is spending her time trying to get taxpayers to pay the travel expenses of women to get abortions. Wisconsin deserves better.

Senator Backbencher

by | 0738, 13 Dec 2222 | | 8 Comments

My column for the Washinton County Daily News is online and in print. Here’s a part:

Wisconsin has a long, annoying history of electing and re-electing relatively benign, but equally useless Democrat politicians. Herb Kohl, Russ Feingold, Tony Evers, virtually every mayor of Milwaukee in the modern era, and so many more were quite happy to keep their heads down, eschew controversial issues, and enjoy a light schedule. Perhaps this has never been as true as it is with Wisconsin’s current junior United States Senator, Tammy Baldwin.

 

After spending eight years in the Wisconsin Assembly without an accomplishment to her name, Democrat voters sent her to the U.S. House of Representatives where she spent fourteen years doing just as little. In 2012, Wisconsin’s voters sent her to the U.S. Senate. After six years without any accomplishments, the voters reelected her in 2018 to serve a second term. Rarely has someone risen so high having accomplished so little.

 

[…]

 

Fresh off that emotional high, Baldwin has authored a bill that would use taxpayer dollars to fund a $350 million annual grant program to pay for travel expenses for women who have to travel to get an abortion. It is a bill that is as offensive as it is unserious.

 

The bill comes in the wake of the landmark Supreme Court case that consigned the regulation of abortion to the states. Baldwin wants federal taxpayers to pay for travel costs for women who live in states that have chosen strict restrictions on killing babies to travel to states that are more willing to kill babies. Let us take the bill at face value.

Senator Baldwin Proposes Travel Fund for Aborters

by | 2027, 9 Dec 2222 | | 10 Comments

This is where Baldwin’s priorities lie – making taxpayers pay travel expenses for people to get abortions. Where is she on the raging inflation, weakening global status, open border, or any other of the issues that actually impact Wisconsinites? Nowhere…

A bill introduced Thursday by Wisconsin U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin seeks to establish a four-year, $350 million annual government grant program that would help support women in Wisconsin and across the country who have to travel long distances to get an abortion.

 

The bill would allow non-profit and community-based organizations to apply for federal funding that can go toward the cost of travel, lodging, child care, translation services, meals and other logistical support associated with obtaining abortion services.

Baldwin’s Blueprint for Success

by | 0838, 18 Feb 1919 | | 41 Comments

Ha.

Instead, Baldwin, D-Madison, says her resounding re-election victory last fall is a blueprint for other Democrats to win the pivotal swing state of Wisconsin in the 2020 presidential race.

Let’s see… be a gay woman running in a pale blue state in an off-year, wave election. Got it.

So. Much. Winning.

by | 0724, 10 Oct 1818 | , | 3 Comments

Here is my full column that ran in the Washington County Daily News yesterday.

If there is an October surprise in the making, it may be that despite prophecies of a blue wave, President Donald Trump and the rest of the Republican Party are having a winning October.

The month began with news that the United States had come to a trade agreement with Canada and Mexico to replace the North American Free Trade Act. Overall, NAFTA had been a tremendous success. Since taking effect in 1994, trade between the three nations quadrupled and had a positive impact on America’s economic growth. Meanwhile, Americans benefited from lower consumer prices and access to less expensive labor.

But every agreement has a downside. That less expensive labor depressed wages in America and the nation lost a lot of manufacturing and textile jobs to Mexico. When Trump ran for office, he promised to renegotiate NAFTA to get a better deal for Americans and he has done just that.

The new trade deal that is to replace NAFTA is called the USMCA. It is not a wholesale restructuring of the NAFTA. In fact, it keeps in place many of the best parts of NAFTA, but it also makes some significant changes to the benefit of the United States. One of those changes is of particular importance to Wisconsinites as it opens up Canada’s dairy market to American milk.

A few days after the USMCA was announced, the Bureau of Labor Statistics released its report that the nation’s unemployment rate dropped to 3.7 percent in August. That marks the third month in a row that the national unemployment rate has been below 4 percent. The reason is simple: The American economy is booming. There is no reason to not be working in America if one is able. We are in a state of full employment.

Then, just six days into October, President Trump’s second nominee for the Supreme Court was sworn into office. Brett Kavanaugh is one of the most qualified justices to ever be appointed to the Supreme Court. With a Yale law degree, a distinguished career in the private and public sectors, and more than a decade as a judge on the second most important appeals court in the country, Kavanaugh’s legal pedigree is pristine.

During his many years on the bench, he gained a reputation as a fair, smart, thoughtful and reasonable judge who was respected by people of all political persuasions. Perhaps most importantly, Kavanaugh is a proven judicial conservative who upholds the Constitution and respects the limited role of the court. His rulings over the years demonstrate a keen understanding of the Constitution, civil rights, separation of powers and bedrock legal principles like people being innocent until proven guilty.

Once again, President Trump kept his promise to appoint judicial conservatives to the courts and Senate Republicans followed through by confirming his appointment. Justice Kavanaugh solidifies a majority of judicial conservatives on the Supreme Court.

Perhaps all of this good news is why President Trump’s approval rating surged to 51 percent in the Rasmussen poll and is his highest rating in that poll since March of 2017.

Nothing lasts forever. The economy is great and Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell predicts that unemployment and inflation will remain low through 2020, but things can change quickly. And while the Supreme Court now has a majority of judicial conservatives, not even Supreme Court justices are immortal.

If there is one thing that could disrupt the positive direction that America is moving, it would be for the Democrats to gain control of the U.S. Senate. We have all come to understand over the past few weeks that the Democratic Party is untethered from any traditional norms of civility, honesty and even decency. They will stop at nothing to oppose President Trump even if it means burning down the country in the process.

We saw this behavior from Wisconsin’s own Sen. Tammy Baldwin. Less than 48 hours after Trump announced the nomination of Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court, Baldwin announced that she would not vote for his confirmation. This was a radical break from traditional senatorial behavior to reject a nominee without researching him, learning about him, or even speaking to him. And although Baldwin admitted her opposition, almost all of the Democrats in the Senate had made the same decision. The brouhaha that Democrats manufactured over the last few weeks was not designed to change any minds. It was designed to attempt to rationalize the Democrats’ predetermined opposition to the American people.

Baldwin’s behavior reveals the larger psychosis currently infecting the Democratic Party. Their single- minded effort to #resist President Trump has become the only real plank in their platform.

If Senator Baldwin is reelected and Democrats take control of the Senate, will they vote down the USMCA to punish Trump even if it means Wisconsin’s dairy farmers will pay the price? Of course they will. Will they oppose every judicial appointment Trump makes — even when those appointments are eminently qualified? There is no doubt. Will Baldwin and her peers prevent Trump’s deregulation that has been a boon to American businesses? Absolutely. Will Baldwin and her peers seek to impose higher taxes and socialized health care? They have already said that they will.

There is something that Wisconsin voters can do this November to support and promote this economic and judicial renaissance we are enjoying. They can vote Tammy Baldwin out of office and replace her with a woman who will fight for Wisconsin’s interests — Leah Vukmir.

So. Much. Winning.

by | 0900, 9 Oct 1818 | , | 5 Comments

My column for the Washington County Daily News is out today. It’s also in the Waukesha Freeman, from what I hear. Here’s a taste.

If there is one thing that could disrupt the positive direction that America is moving, it would be for the Democrats to gain control of the U.S. Senate. We have all come to understand over the past few weeks that the Democratic Party is untethered from any traditional norms of civility, honesty and even decency. They will stop at nothing to oppose President Trump even if it means burning down the country in the process.

We saw this behavior from Wisconsin’s own Sen. Tammy Baldwin. Less than 48 hours after Trump announced the nomination of Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court, Baldwin announced that she would not vote for his confirmation. This was a radical break from traditional senatorial behavior to reject a nominee without researching him, learning about him, or even speaking to him. And although Baldwin admitted her opposition, almost all of the Democrats in the Senate had made the same decision. The brouhaha that Democrats manufactured over the last few weeks was not designed to change any minds. It was designed to attempt to rationalize the Democrats’ predetermined opposition to the American people.

Baldwin’s behavior reveals the larger psychosis currently infecting the Democratic Party. Their single- minded effort to #resist President Trump has become the only real plank in their platform.

Baldwin’s tragic record of inaction

by | 0722, 15 Aug 1818 | | 2 Comments

Now that we’re through the primary, here’s my full column from the Washington County Daily News.

At the writing of this column, we do not yet know who the Republicans will select to challenge incumbent U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin in November. What we do know is that Leah Vukmir and Kevin Nicholson would both be a tremendous improvement over Baldwin. Irrespective of which Republican moves forward to challenge Senator Baldwin, all Republicans must unite quickly if they are to unseat a sitting Democratic senator in what looks to be a strong year for Democrats.

In her lengthy career in politics, Sen. Baldwin has a curious record that is almost completely barren of accomplishment. Baldwin’s passion for inactivity has led to her only accomplishment of note — sitting idly by when she could have done something to stop the opioid abuses at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Tomah.

In the summer of 2014, Sen. Baldwin was quietly passed an inspection report by the VA inspector general from a friendly administration looking to give her a heads up. The report detailed a history and pattern of prescription drug abuses at the Tomah center that dated back to 2011 whereby powerful opioids and other drugs were handed out with impunity. Not only did the behavior endanger the lives of the veterans, but it was a conduit for opioids to be funneled onto the streets.

Sen. Baldwin ignored the report. She did not do anythingabout it. For months, the whistleblower and veteran Ryan Honl vigorously pushed Baldwin’s office to do something. He called and emailed her office asking her to take action on the VA inspector general’s report. Still Baldwin did nothing. The pleas from her constituent fell on deaf ears.

One must remember how little effort it would have taken Sen. Baldwin to do something on behalf of the veterans being drugged in Tomah. At the time, President BarackObama was in office and the secretary of VeteransAffairs is a member of the president’s cabinet.

A simple phone call or letter from a Democratic senator to a member of a Democratic administration would have carried a lot of weight. Still Baldwin did nothing.

It was not until January 2015 that Sen. Baldwin finally decided to act. Wisconsin news outlets began to run the story of a 35-year-old Marine Corps veteran who died of an overdose while an inpatient at the Tomah facility. Those news reports also shared details of the inspector general’s report — the same report that Baldwin had in her possession for months — regarding the incredible amount of opioids flowing out of Tomah.

Then, and only then, Sen. Baldwin acted. She called for an investigation. Baldwin knew of the abuses at the Tomah VA Medical Center for months. She was badgered by a constituent and veteran to do something. But neither her conscience, concern for veterans or pleas from constituents compelled her to act. The only thing that got Sen. Baldwin’s attention was a news story that was unfavorable to her. At least we now know what it takes to get Sen. Baldwin to do something on behalf of her constituents. It takes the media running a story involving her.

Wisconsin deserves better. Wisconsin deserves a senator who will dive into the thicket of Washington politics and fight like a Badger for the people of Wisconsin. Sen. Baldwin has had six years — four of which were during the presidency of President Barack Obama — to deliver results for her constituents. The only measurable result has been the tragic consequences of her dithering.

Baldwin’s tragic record of inaction

by | 1008, 14 Aug 1818 | | 2 Comments

My column in the Washington County Daily News today looks ahead to the general election and how Senator Baldwin’s record of inaction has not been harmless. Here’s a taste:

Then, and only then, Sen. Baldwin acted. She called for an investigation. Baldwin knew of the abuses at the Tomah VA Medical Center for months. She was badgered by a constituent and veteran to do something. But neither her conscience, concern for veterans or pleas from constituents compelled her to act. The only thing that got Sen. Baldwin’s attention was a news story that was unfavorable to her. At least we now know what it takes to get Sen. Baldwin to do something on behalf of her constituents. It takes the media running a story involving her.

Baldwin Not Worried About Massive Tax Increases

by | 0818, 6 Aug 1818 | | 5 Comments

Eh… whatever. It’s not like she’ll be forced into the socialized healthcare system.

Appearing Sunday on the “UpFront with Mike Gousha” television talk show, Baldwin said she wasn’t worried by the big price tag.

 […]

She admitted that a single-payer health care system would mean significant tax increases, but said it would also mean no more premiums.

“Prior to the Affordable Care Act, half of all U.S. bankruptcies had a health-care related cause. That’s a system that is broken,” she said.

Wasn’t Obamacare, which Baldwin supported and voted for, supposed to fix healthcare? It didn’t. It made it worse. But NOW we’re supposed to think that she has the answer?
No thanks. I trust people far more than I trust politicians. Let the market work.

Go Pack Go Act

by | 0923, 19 Jul 1818 | , | 6 Comments

It must be an election year. Senator Baldwin has shaken off her characteristic lethargy to address this terribly important issue with a mandate from the federal government on media providers. Because… you know… the fact that some Wisconsinites are inconvenienced when they try to watch the Packers requires a federal regulation /sarcasm.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin today introduced the Go Pack Go Act to make sure all Wisconsinites, no matter where they live across the state, can watch Green Bay Packers game broadcasts.

Currently, Green Bay Packers fans in 13 Wisconsin counties are assigned to an out-of-state local TV market, in either Minnesota or Michigan, which means these Wisconsin households get Minnesota Vikings or Detroit Lions games, not Packers games, when those teams are playing at the same time.

“Every Packers fan across our state should be able to watch Packers games,” said Senator Baldwin. “My Go Pack Go Act would give Packers fans in every Wisconsin county the opportunity to watch Packers games and cheer on our beloved green and gold.”

[…]

Senator Baldwin’s Go Pack Go Act would require cable, satellite and other video providers to provide their Wisconsin subscribers with access to programming from the broadcast television stations in a Wisconsin media market.

Baldwin Won’t Vote for Kavanaugh

by | 1409, 12 Jul 1818 | | 5 Comments

I’m shocked. SHOCKED!

U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin says she’ll oppose President Donald Trump’s nominee for the U.S. Supreme Court, Brett Kavanaugh, citing his views on health care and abortion rights.

“The people of Wisconsin need a fair, impartial and independent Supreme Court Justice who will stand up for them, not for powerful special interests. I don’t have confidence that Judge Kavanaugh would be that justice,” Baldwin, D-Madison, wrote in a Facebook post Thursday.

Baldwin’s opposition is not surprising. Kavanaugh has yet to have any Democratic senators pledge support for his confirmation, though a few remain undecided — and most have come out strongly opposed.

Brennan Confirmed For Appeals Court

by | 0655, 11 May 1818 | , | 22 Comments

Finally.

WASHINGTON – Milwaukee lawyer Michael Brennan was confirmed for a key federal judgeship Thursday, filling the oldest appellate vacancy in the country but deepening a partisan schism in the U.S. Senate over judges.

Brennan will take a seat on the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago that has stood open since 2010 amid a bitter political standoff.

He was confirmed 49-46 with only Republican votes, over the objections of Democrat Tammy Baldwin, Wisconsin’s junior senator.

That has typically been enough to sink a nomination in recent years, because senators from both parties have enjoyed an effective veto over the selection of federal judges from their home states, a tradition known as the “blue slip.”

Outside of party loyalty, there was no rational reason for Baldwin’s intransigence.

Baldwin Votes Against Qualified SOS

by | 2052, 26 Apr 1818 | , , | 6 Comments

Well, there’s an incoherent rationalization.

But Baldwin, D-Madison, said Tuesday the nation needs a secretary of state that is “committed to using American diplomatic leadership to solve problems, protect our national security interests and advance human rights.”

“After meeting with Mr. Pompeo, I don’t have confidence that he shares this commitment and I am concerned that he is inclined to choose military force as a first option over diplomatic solutions to the many challenges we face around the world,” she wrote on Twitter.

So based on a conversation, Baldwin thinks that Pompeo might prefer military action instead of diplomacy in some future unnamed conflict.

Uh huh. That’s not even enough of a fig leaf to cover a toe.

Sen.Tammy Baldwin to face a tough re-election

by | 0633, 19 Sep 1717 | , | 1 Comment

My column for the Washington County Daily News is online. Here you go:

The next big election is 14 months away, but the electoral combatants are already sallying onto the field. Wisconsin Sen. Tammy Baldwin will be seeking her second term and the liberal backbencher is facing a formidable challenge.

Baldwin’s resume is notable for its remarkable lack of achievement. Born and bred in the belly of liberal Madison, Baldwin was first elected to the Dane County Board during law school in 1986. She graduated from law school in 1989, worked as a lawyer for three years, and then became a full time politician in 1992 when she was elected to the Wisconsin Assembly. In 1998, Baldwin was sent by Madison to Washington as their representative in the House of Representatives, and was then swept into the U.S. Senate by the Obama wave in 2012.

It is difficult to serve in public office for more than 30 years, get elected to higher offices, and not have a single achievement to one’s credit, but Tammy Baldwin has accomplished that incredible feat. The secret to Baldwin’s success is that she is gay and a liberal’s liberal who reliably supports every leftist idea proffered. This attracts gobs of money from every liberal/socialist/Marxist PAC and activist group throughout the nation.

Most recently, she gave her fullthroated support to complete socialist health care in the failure of Obamacare. This is particularly ironic given that Baldwin callously ignored repeated cries for help from abuse taking place at the Tomah VA Medical Center. Why would anyone want to hand over more control of our healthcare to politicians like Tammy Baldwin?

Without Obama on the ballot next year, Baldwin is vulnerable to a credible challenge. So far, two formidable and well-funded Republicans are vying for the opportunity to be the senator that Wisconsin deserves. There is still time for more candidates to enter the fray, but the window is closing.

Kevin Nicholson is a Marine combat veteran who now works in the private sector. Nicholson defines himself as a social and fiscal conservative who is pro-life, pro-Second Amendment, pro-strong national security, etc. Running for office for the first time, Nicholson relishes his status as an outsider who can attack the liberal redoubts in Washington.

Nicholson does, however, have a nagging problem in his resume. He used to be a vocal, activist Democrat. When he was in college, Nicholson served as the chairman of the College Democrats and was eventually the national president for the College Democrats of America. At that time, he was pro-choice and spoke at the 2000 Democratic National Convention.

Of course, Nicholson would not be the first person to convert from liberalism to conservatism with the advancement of age, life experience and wisdom. Some of the best-known, thoughtful, and stalwart conservatives in the nation used to be liberals.

The other Republican seeking to challenge Tammy Baldwin has no such history to overcome. Wisconsin State Senator Leah Vukmir has been a proven, reliable, accomplished conservative Republican for more than a decade. Vukmir is a registered nurse who worked as a nurse for more than 20 years before running for the Wisconsin Assembly in 2002 to replace Scott Walker. Vukmir was then elected to the State Senate in 2010.

Vukmir has been one of the driving forces in the Wisconsin conservative movement for her entire tenure in office. She has been instrumental in advancing school choice, tax reform, education reform, healthcare reform and every other pillar of the conservative agenda. It is difficult to name a conservative issue in which Vukmir was not a staunch defender and advocate. All the while, Vukmir has maintained her career as a registered nurse.

While I don’t doubt the sincerity of Nicholson’s conservative conversion, there is no need to put it to its first political test in the crucible of Washington when there is already a proven conservative candidate in Leah Vukmir. She has been a granite conservative throughout all of the tempests in Madison and would serve Wisconsin well in the U.S. Senate.

Uihlein Backing Nicholson

by | 0930, 14 Jul 1717 | | 1 Comment

Eh..

Illinois businessman Richard Uihlein has now donated a total of $3.5 million toward a super PAC supporting Republican Kevin Nicholson’s potential campaign for Wisconsin’s U.S. Senate seat.

Uihlein, who is one of the nation’s biggest Republican donors, founded the Pleasant Prairie-based Uline company.

He gave $2 million earlier this year to start the super PAC “Solutions for Wisconsin.” A spokesman said Uihlein donated another $1.5 million last quarter.

So far, Uihlein is the super PAC’s only donor.

Solutions for Wisconsin is focused exclusively on supporting the potential U.S. Senate bid of Kevin Nicholson, a Marine veteran, businessman and former Democrat.

“I strongly encourage others to support this effort and avoid a repeat of 2012’s divisive Republican primary,” Uihlein said in a statement released Wednesday.

While I appreciate Uihlein being willing to seriously support an effort to defeat Senator Baldin, his choice of candidate leaves something to be desired. Could he put his money behind a real Republican instead?

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