Rep Suder (R) blocks Lautenschlager from Meth hearings

[sybylla]

http://www.jsonline.com/news/state/feb05/303977.asp
Attorney general shut out
Lautenschlager wants to speak at drug hearing
By GRAEME ZIELINSKI
[email protected]
Posted: Feb. 22, 2005

"Crank" or cranky politics?

It appears a little bit of both as Attorney General Peg Lautenschlager apparently is being shut out of a Capitol hearing today addressing the growth of methamphetamine use in Wisconsin.

The Republican chairing the panel, Rep. Scott Suder (R-Abbotsford) says that Lautenschlager waited too long to ask to speak at the hearing and her late appeals amounted to grandstanding: "This is not about Peg Lautenschlager. This is about methamphetamine."

The Democratic attorney general, meanwhile, questioned Suder's assessment, saying she was puzzled that he will be denying her, but accepting the testimony of one of her subordinates: "This is not about me. This is about methamphetamine."
<snip>

Leave it to "Scooter," my reptilian representative who loves to exclaim to the adoring masses that he's sooooo bipartisan, to behave in such a partisan manner.

I think it's the epitomy of arrogance to think you can create meth legislation without asking for the testimony and advice of the experts. Yeah, the article says they invited an underling with experience, but to refuse the AG seems ridiculious. IMHO, the fact that they didn't send the invite to her in the first place and allow her to decide who should attend is quite oderiferous.

And Peg is fighting back! Go girl!

I think its time to pass this around to my Dem friends for a few highly partisan LTTEs.

[Broca]

1. I still say I come from a far darker district: Petrowski's.

But in the last district boundry change, Suder's district moved a little closer. I think most of these characters like Suder, Friske, Petrowski, etc. are churned out of some GOP cloning factory.


Suder's response:
http://thewheelerreport.com/releases/Feb05/Feb23/0223suderag.PDF

[sybylla]

2. I believe that cloning factory is called ALEC

http://www.alec.org

Suder has proposed very little legislation that hasn't come from the ALEC sh#t tank. And he's even admitted to the source on several occasions, as if it were some kind of merit badge to belong.

From a statement on their membership

With more than 2,400 members, ALEC is the nation's largest bipartisan, individual membership association of state legislators. One-third of all state legislators belong to ALEC. In addition, with more than 300 corporate and private foundation members, ALEC is one of America's most dynamic public-private partnerships. ALEC provides the private sector with a unique opportunity to have their voices heard, and perspectives appreciated. Through ALEC, legislators join with private sector to write model legislation to effectively promote the organization's mission.

No other organization today has as many valuable assets in both people and ideas, nor as many members in key decision-making positions. Among the leadership of America's state legislatures, ALEC members are an impressive presence: 32 Speakers and Speaker Pro Tems; 22 Senate Presidents and Senate President Pro Tems; 22 Senate Majority and Minority Leaders; and 30 House Majority and Minority Leaders. Individual legislators also contribute to advancing the ALEC agenda by serving on the Board of Directors, or as State Chairs, and members of State Leadership Teams.

This gist of this is that all these conservative members of state legislatures work with corporations and conservative organizations (aka private sector) to create legislation that gets introduced at the state level.

Scary stuff, huh? It's becoming clear that we are no longer a government by the people, for the people.

on edit: it's funny they call themselves bipartisan in this part of their website yet when you click on the About ALEC link, they call themselves "A bipartisan membership association for conservative state lawmakers..."

[Lisaben2619]

3. Peg got a little local press

it's the anniversary of her drunk-driving arrest and she's been willing to talk about it lately--although most reports that I've seen are more about the whole "state car scandal".
Anyway, I would guess that the Repukes hate that she's getting any attention. They seem to view even her breast cancer as being politically motivated. I've found that many elected officials are unsure of their schedules very far in advance--that pesky work they were elected to do gets in the way.

[gizmo1979]

4. they are so out of control

what kind of mandate are they working from? We need redistricting bad.