State politicians are owned by the lobbyists and the special interest groups, don't give a whit about what average citizens want or need, and generally seem to rank somewhere between used car salesmen and child molesters in the public's estimation, according to the latest polling by the conservative Wisconsin Policy Research Institute.
A measly 2% of Wisconsin residents believe they can trust state government to do what is right almost all the time. Who determines what state government spends? Eighty-two percent say lobbying groups do and only 12% believe it's the voters. When asked whether the standard of ethics of members of the state legislature has changed over the last decade, only 6% think it has changed for the better, while 44% think it has gotten worse.
WPRI also asked state residents whose interests they think their elected officials represent the most – their interests, special interests or the politicians' own interests. A mere 10% think their elected officials represent the voters’ interests, while 43% think they're working for the special interests and 42% think state politicians are just looking out for their own self-interest.
WPRI concludes that "something extraordinary is happening in Wisconsin." Specifically, the group says: "Years of political neglect by their elected officials are beginning to have a serious toll on the confidence of Wisconsin residents in elected officials and their state government. The lack of optimism is seen in all aspects of life in Wisconsin today, whether it is the state’s economy, the ethics of state government and elected officials or the dominance of lobbying in the political process. Wisconsin residents are extremely unhappy and becoming more and more disconnected from their government and the state’s politics. . . . The issues of lobbying, state ethics and the state’s economy has never been more on the mind of Wisconsin residents. It would not be surprising if, in 2008, Wisconsin voters send a message that will be even louder than the one sent in 2006."
Are state lawmakers listening? Do they even care what the public thinks of them?
They'll answer these questions in January when they decide what to make of the special session on campaign reform.
8 comments:
Perhaps they are all sick and tired of you and Cory and your constant diatribe of conspiracy and cloak and dagger.
That crap went out with the end of the Cold War, which apparantly many of your fellow liberal whiner burn-outs are still fighting in Madison.
I know that I am sick of them. I laugh whenever I read their one sided arguments and bias. They do not represent my interests.
You gotta love these Internet trolls with names like "correct thinking" and "average joe." You just know they either work at the Capitol or for one of the big lobbying groups. Guys, could you be any more obvious?
Hey Anon:
No I do not work at the capitol or for a big lobbying group. Nice try. I am a middle class independent voter, who is tired of all the smear jobs done on both the right and the left. I am truly sick of Cory and Mike and their complaining, just as I am of Mark Belling. When are we going to get some independent blogs that really tell the truth, not these fake ones that are really wolves in sheep clothing. Mike and Cory are hard core liberals and tote the liberal agenda, they are far from non partisian. Funny how they never post anything negative about liberals or Demorats. I guess liberals ( I guess the new P.C. word is Progressives) are always right.
Average Joe - Go here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here and here.
And, oh yes, go here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here and here.
And that is just a very small sampling.
maybe "average joe" doesnt work at the Capital or for a big lobby group. Maybe he works for one of those astroturf outfits like all children matter. or maybe he just sees the part of wdc's work that he wants to see because he's blinded by his own bias
it's funny that "correct thinking" talks about cory liebman and mike mccabe and their constant cloak and dagger stuff. it's people like mike and cory who are trying to make sure the people with daggers can't stay hidden under cloaks.
I like your line about keeping the people with daggers uncloaked, but really Mike McCabe and Cory Liebmann shouldn't be mentioned in the same sentence. They work for very different organizations and play very different roles. To say they're the same is like saying rottweilers and bloodhounds are the same because they're both dogs.
Remarkably fuzzy and inappropriate thinking by "correct thinker" and "average joe" when they accuse the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign of being a "liberal whiner" with a "constant diatribe" of "one-sided arguments and bias" in their comments that follow this article that cites and quotes only from a recent published poll done by the far-right, Bradley Foundation funded, Wisconsin Policy Research Institute.
The Wisconsin Democracy Campaign is biased against the corruption and despoiling of our democracy, and that corruption infects both major political parties due to structural defects that cry out for significant reform. No one who is familiar with their work can say with a straight and honest face that McCabe writes and acts with partisan bias.
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