State Sen. Ted Kanavas, (R-Brookfield), accuses Waukesha City Mayor Larry Nelson of "collaborating" with Democrats on the Great Lakes Compact bill.
That's the pathetic foot-stomping of a bad loser, as the bi-partisan vote in the State Senate to pass the long-delayed Compact was 26-6. After this, do we identify Kanavas as (R-Sour Grapes)?
But ask yourself: is the atmosphere at the State Capitol really this poisoned?
That the "collaboration" piece of "regional collaboration" has become such an obscenity, with its seditious overtones?
Or that State Sen. Mary Lazich, (R-New Berlin), would have what is reported as a shrieking fit, too?
Here, by the way, is Nelson's statement in support of the Compact, which Nelson correctly says gives Waukesha its best chance at obtaining Lake Michigan water.
Read it for yourself and see if it merits Kanavas' partisan tounge-lashing - - especially aimed at a local elected official, Nelson, who holds a non-partisan office.
Here's what's really going on - - and I laid this out just a few hours ago in this blog posting to call attention to the Republicans' having turned the Great Lakes Compact into a partisan charade.
It is Kanavas' GOP Assembly colleagues, as well as New Berlin's very own Mary Lazich who are obstructing the Compact in the legislature, and despite their Waukesha electoral base - - are blocking Waukesha and New Berlin's orderly application for Great Lakes waters under federal law and the Compact, a new multi-state and international agreement.
Talk about the politics of self-destruction!
And it is Lazich and others in the GOP-controlled Assembly who are working closely - - dare one say, "collaborating" - - with legislators in Ohio labeled the "lunatic fringe" by the Cleveland Plain Dealer who are trying render the Compact useless, and leave the Great Lakes unprotected.
These partisan Republicans need to tamp down their partisan proclivities and get busy representing Waukesha County, the State of Wisconsin, and in a role rarely handed to local and state officials - - the once-in-a-liftime opportunity to represent the planet and its threatened, finite water resources in the Great Lakes.
A partisan issue? Au contraire!
ReplyDeleteThe effort to pass the Compact in the Senate was very ably and very passionately led by Senator Robert Cowles, (R--Green Bay) and supported by EIGHT Senate Republicans. That's two more Senate Republicans than Senator Kanavas and his Gang of Noes.
Actually, it doesn't surprise that Sen Kanavas voted No. On Conservation Lobby Day this year, his aide told a group of ten constituents that Sen Kanavas did not support any Compact--strong, weak, or indifferent.
What is very disappointing is Senator Kanavas now turning his anger on Mayor Larry Nelson for doing what the Mayor of Waukesha should do--try to negotiate for a fair opportunity to apply for the use of Great Lakes water for his City, which he was elected--as a non-partisan--to run.
Shame on Lazich, Kanavas and the rest of the Gang of Noes for selling out their districts, their many constituents who urged them to support the Compact, and the state of Wisconsin by working to arrange side deals with other states. And for working (in secret) with in-state groups opposed to any Compact whatsoever.
You could almost respect their positions as a difference of opinion if any of them had brought any positive ideas, language, or other efforts to the table. But they did not (with the exception of Senator Kedzie who chaired the Compact Committee). Instead, they worked in secret to kill the Compact and now blame their failure on partisan politics.
Will the real leaders please step?
oh for heavens sakes. Lasee voted for the compact. And he's way, way up there among the extreme right wing fringe of the Republican party.
ReplyDeletebtw . . . how much in campaign contributions do folks like Lazich get from developers?
One of the best results issuing from yesterday's vote was the message sent to the rest of the Great Lakes states: that the "one-state veto" faux concern is NOT a Wisconsin and Ohio issue. It is a red herring being used to divert attention from and discredit a pretty good Great Lakes Compact by a very small fringe element of rogue Wisconsin and Ohio legislators.
ReplyDeleteWill someone please put these two on You Tube?