WI-Gov: John Mellencamp Doesn't Like Scott Walker (R) Using His Music

Give it to him John:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/...

Liberal rocker John Mellencamp wants conservative Republican Gov. Scott Walker to know he supports union rights and says Walker should think about that before using his songs on the campaign trail.

Politicians for years have been using rock songs at campaign events, and Mellencamp has found himself crossways with Walker and other candidates before.

Two years ago, Mellencamp chided Walker, who effectively ended collective bargaining for most public workers in Wisconsin, for playing his song "Small Town" at campaign rallies.

Walker was targeted for recall in 2012 by those angered over the union law, which passed despite massive protests that elicited support from other liberal musicians, including Pete Seeger, Rage Against The Machine guitarist Tom Morello, Peter Yarrow and Billy Bragg.

When Mellencamp caught wind of Walker playing "Small Town" during the recall campaign, his publicist sent Walker an email letting him know that Mellencamp supports collective bargaining and union rights.

Mellencamp took the same approach in 2008 when Republican presidential hopeful John McCain played "Our Country" on the campaign trail. Mellencamp's publicist wrote McCain's camp a letter explaining Mellencamp's liberal leanings and said he was supporting Democrat John Edwards.

In 2010, when the National Organization for Marriage played "Pink Houses" at events opposing same-sex marriage, Mellencamp also had his publicist notify the group saying he was opposed to its agenda and suggested it pick a different song to play that is more in tune with its views.

When Walker launched his re-election campaign with a series of rallies Tuesday, one of the songs played while his supporters waited for the governor was "Pink Houses." The song, first released in 1983, contains the lyrics, "Ain't that America, home of the free. Little pink houses for you and me." - Huffington Post, 4/16/14

Yeah, Walker should stop using his music, especially since he's running for a second term with no real commitment to fulfill it:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/...

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R), who is seeking a second term this year but is also considered a potential 2016 presidential candidate, isn't promising to serve a full four-year term if he's reelected.

Asked by AP about the possibility, Walker said: "I'm committed to running for governor."

Asked again, he said, "I want to be governor, and that's the only thing I've been focused on."

The comments track with what Walker told Jonathan Martin -- now of the New York Times -- last year. At the time, Walker noted that he had run for Milwaukee County executive while still in the state legislature and for governor while still serving as county executive.

This is a standard question for politicians who would have to run for president while in their current office. New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R), for instance, wouldn't commit to a full term during his 2013 reelection campaign.

It didn't hurt Christie in any measurable way, but Walker isn't as popular as Christie was during his reelection campaign. - Washington Post, 4/16/14

While Walker is thinking about his future, Mary Burke (D. WI) is concerned about Wisconsin's future:

http://www.twincities.com/...

A day after Gov. Scott Walker launched his re-election bid by highlighting a record of reforms and job growth, Democratic challenger Mary Burke painted a starkly different picture of the state's economy.

While conditions have improved since Walker took office in 2011, Burke noted Wisconsin's recovery has not kept pace with neighboring states, or the national average.

"We should be hitting the panic button on this," Burke said, seizing on a report from the Wisconsin Taxpayers Alliance showing Wisconsin's job base shrank by 1.4 percent between 2000 and 2012 while the U.S. grew by the same amount, Burke said.

Burke laid the blame for stagnant job growth at Walker's feet, mocking the four-page jobs plan at the heart of his 2010 campaign and what she called "economic development on a company-by-company basis."

But she also conceded that Wisconsin's heavy reliance on manufacturing is part of the reason job growth has lagged behind states like Minnesota.

"I believe in manufacturing," said the former Trek Bicycle executive. "I love manufacturing ... but it's not a growth sector."

Burke said Wisconsin needs to diversify its economy by encouraging entrepreneurship and developing industry clusters in which those businesses can grow.

While striking a pro-business tone, Burke made clear that she differs from Walker not only on approach to job creation but also traditional Democratic issues like environmental protection, leveling criticism at GOP legislation that eased regulations for a proposed iron mine in northern Wisconsin.

"I'm a business person," she said. "People need to have good-paying jobs, but that doesn't need to come at the expense of our environment." - La Cross Tribune, 4/17/14

Job creation has been the key issue Burke has been running on:

http://www.leadertelegram.com/...

Burke’s Invest For Success job creation plan was the main focus of her discussion with Realityworks employees Wednesday.

Burke criticized GOP Gov. Scott Walker, saying Wisconsin is lagging behind under his leadership. She pointed out that Wisconsin ranks ninth out of 10 Midwestern states in terms of job creation and 35th overall in the country.

Walker, however, asserted during a campaign stop Tuesday in Chippewa Falls that 100,000 new jobs were created in the past three years, and the state’s $3 billion deficit has transformed into a nearly $1 billion surplus. He also noted the unemployment rate is 3 percentage points lower than when he took office.

“Because of the success of our reforms, the future is looking bright,” Walker said.

Burke said her experience as an executive at Trek Bicycle has prepared her to continue moving Wisconsin in the right direction.

“Invest For Success is based on my actual experience creating jobs with Trek Bicycle,” she said. “It is a plan not only that I am running my campaign on, but it’s what I’m going to do as governor from day one.”

A key aspect of the plan focuses on redesigning the high school education structure. She said more “career and technology education” focus in schools and products like the GuideWELD helmet, which can train welders more quickly and at a lower cost, are steps in the right direction toward making students more career ready.

“We know that the jobs that will be created in the future, something like 70 percent of them, require education post high school, and yet our education system has not changed to be able to be a leader in this, and we need to make sure Wisconsin is leading and not lagging behind,” Burke said. - Leader-Telegram, 4/17/14

And it makes alot of sense that Burke is focusing on jobs and economic growth:

http://www.jsonline.com/...

Between now and election day, Walker's record will get close scrutiny. There is a lot to talk about. From neutering Wisconsin's public employee unions to cutting taxes to tort reform to job creation to refusing Medicaid dollars to axing a high-speed train, Walker was an activist, unapologetic conservative during his first term. For about half the state's voters, he's an ideal leader. For about half, he's a disaster.

Burke, a Democrat and former Trek Bicycle Corp. executive, will make much of Walker's pledge to create 250,000 private-sector jobs during his first term, a milestone that the state will not reach by election day. Sluggish job growth remains a major concern statewide.

And there are specific problems in Milwaukee that demand attention. The candidates should focus on them as well.

Milwaukee has many strengths: its cultural institutions, its solid downtown, its neighborhoods, its grass-roots leadership. But it's also a city where far too many people aren't working, where far too many people are uneducated and where far too many face dreary, unhealthy lives stuck in poverty. It is a city where children suffer. That needs to change.

Milwaukee needs more jobs, more help dealing with the crushing weight of foreclosed homes. It needs adequate funding for its streets. It needs a hand redeveloping old industrial properties and returning them to productive use. It needs better access to health care.

Strengthening Milwaukee strengthens Wisconsin. The candidates must show that they understand that. They should offer reasonable prescriptions that focus more on policy than on politics. - Journal Sentinel, 4/15/14

By the way, I really liked this quote about Burke:

http://host.madison.com/...

Allen Sperry remembers the way one of his Harvard classmates described their mutual friend from Wisconsin.

"He said, 'If I was living in a log cabin on the prairie and we were being attacked by bandits, the one person I'd want with me is Mary Burke,'" recalls Sperry, now a New York investor.

"She would have a baby in one hand and a gun in another," he jokes.

Sperry's take on Burke, the presumed Democratic nominee for governor, contrasts starkly with the image constructed of her by allies of her opponent. Supporters of Gov. Scott Walker have sought to portray the "Madison millionaire," as they refer to Burke, as spineless and incompetent.

Even many of those inclined to support Burke worry that her campaign is boring and wimpy. She has barely mentioned the fact that Walker's staff has been the subject of at least two investigations, the first of which led to three of his close aides being convicted of ethics offenses.

Wisconsinites still haven't formed much of an opinion of Burke, a current member of the Madison School Board who spent two years, from 2005 to 2007, as secretary of commerce under former Gov. Jim Doyle. Her resume also includes 12 years, during two different stints, as an executive at Trek Bicycle, the company her father founded in the 1970s.

Still, a poll conducted at the end of March by Marquette University Law School indicated that most Wisconsin voters are unfamiliar with the presumed Democratic nominee. That's not particularly surprising; it is still early in the race and Burke's campaign has barely begun to run ads, which is how many casual voters are introduced to candidates.

But among those who have dealt with the 54-year-old Madisonian as a businesswoman, philanthropist and public servant, the overwhelming response is positive. They describe her as a tireless worker, a humble and generous friend and, above all, extremely smart and analytical. Even those who have pushed to get a candidate to challenge her in a Democratic primary express respect for her, suggesting she may be winning over her detractors from the left. - The Capital Times, 4/16/14

And potential presidential candidate, Gov. Martin O'Malley (D. MD), has been lending a hand to Burke's campaign:

After spending last week in Wisconsin speaking at the Founder's Day, I just had to thank all those Wisconsin Democrats who are doing the right thing, and standing up and fighting for their state.

If Wisconsin Democrats are successful like I know they can be, their state can turn the corner. They can create jobs, and educate their children, all while ensuring that seniors and those who need help the most aren't left by the wayside.

I wanted to share this video with you about all that's been done in Maryland and how much Wisconsin can accomplish with Mary Burke as governor. Click here to watch the video, and then chip in to help Wisconsin Democrats stand up and stop Scott Walker once and for all.

https://secure.actblue.com/...

Together we can move Wisconsin and our nation forward. But we can only do that if we are united and ready to defeat reckless Tea Party radicals like Scott Walker and other Tea Party governors.

Wisconsin can only move forward if we stand together. Can you click here and donate today?

https://secure.actblue.com/...

Thanks,

Martin

Click here to donate to Burke's campaign:
https://secure.actblue.com/...