OUR PLACE
The August election, the one coming before the Presidential in November, must be paid attention to by everyone in Wisconsin.
The two referendums, those agreements that would go into effect if the voters across the state vote yes, would transfer all emergency funding for disasters from the governor to the legislature in Madison. Is this a partisan issue?
The governor is indeed very much a Democrat and the legislature, both House and Senate are overwhelmingly Republican, but an absolute vote of “No’ on these referendums isn’t about that. It’s about time. When the federal government releases funding for any disaster (an occurrence that is so serious, like a hurricane, tornado, or flood), the governor appeals to the feds for a disaster declaration. The legislature doesn’t do that. When the disaster is confirmed and allowed by the federal government, then the money is sent to the state, and that money is controlled and disbursed by the governor (currently). The time problem is in how U.S. state and federal governments work.
The Houses and Senates across the land are not known for immediacy. There are committees, research, and political horse-trading always going on. That all takes a lot of time. When disaster strikes and the people vitally affected by the disaster need help, those people need the help right then, not a few weeks or months later. The Republicans pushing these referendums are doing it for power and not considering either the time or that other element about the future. If these referendums are passed then the next governor, who may well be a republican, will be just as hamstrung as the current one would be if these go through.
Referendums like these must be heavily voted against. Nobody can predict, no matter how successful and comfortable things may currently be, what is going to happen tomorrow. Think about your own potential needs for help and the immediacy you might need in such an event. Vote no on these referendums.
Person of the Week
Anna Simms. The best front desk manager in the world! She’s standing in the middle of the Ridge Hotel lobby she oversees so well.
