Written by Aaron Rodriguez
On January 4th, a new era began as Bishop Jerome Listecki was installed as Milwaukee's next Archbishop. The installation was a tightly restricted invitation-only ceremony reserved for influential Catholics and some political dignitaries like gubernatorial candidates Scott Walker and Tom Barrett. It did not appear, however, that Republican gubernatorial candidate Mark Neumann received an invitation to attend the ceremony. This would not be surprising since he has quickly become forgettable.
During the ceremony, Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett partook in the communion - a ritual of substantial importance for Catholics that signifies spiritual devotion to Christ. This occurs at a time when Catholic Bishops have taken an increasing role in denying pro-choice politicians the rite of communion. Why is this relevant? In the late 90s when Tom Barrett was a Wisconsin Congressman, he voted against a proposed ban on partial birth abortion; and he did this not just once, but twice. His vote opposed a bill that, if passed, would have protected unborn children from a cruel and unusual form of medical execution.
Just last November, Catholic Bishop Thomas Tobin made headlines by denying Patrick Kennedy (son of the late Ted Kennedy) communion. Bishop Tobin informed Kennedy described Kennedy as "not a good practicing Catholic."
Read more: Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett Receives Communion at Archbishop Listecki's Installation
Written by Aaron Rodriguez
Partial Birth Abortion
In the landmark decision of Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court presumed that the right of a woman's privacy trumped the right to life for the unborn. And by doing so, they etched deep clefts into the political landscape of our nation. In 2003, however, a shift occurred in the national abortion debate. Congress passed a law outlawing a particular form of abortion called "partial-birth abortion". This procedure, as depicted in the photo to the right, is performed by using a scissors to puncture a hole in the base of the baby's head. The medical practitioner then uses a suctioning unit to vacuum out the brains until the skull collapses making it easy to remove and discard. Mind you that all of this occurs when the baby is alive in the vaginal canal.
Written by ScottforGov
Welcome to Wisconsin, Let me Take Your Carpetbag
President Obama is sending in a big gun to run Tom the Taxer’s gubernatorial campaign. Mr. Barrett should hope that Obama’s involvement turns out better than it did for Corzine and Deeds.
Here is a quick backgrounder on the campaign manager for the Mayor who I am told is not sold at state fair: Mr. Hyer is originally from Viking Country, where he worked for Rybak for Mayor and Dutcher for Governor. He then moved from the land of 10,000 lakes and no fish to work on Kirsten Gillibrand’s NY CD run, Michael Nutter Philly mayor campaign, John Edwards in Nevada, and Jeanne Shaheen for NH US SEN (from which he was fired), before finally catching on with the Obama Pres campaign. Most recently, he was serving as White House liaison for the DVA.
Mr. Hyer was a Campaigns & Elections’ Politics Magazine 2008 Rising Star, and a darling of the loony left.
There is no questioning Mr. Hyer’s qualifications, but why was Barrett unable to find anyone from Wisconsin qualified to run his campaign? Every recent statewide Wisconsin campaign has included staffers from elsewhere – sometimes driven by cost, sometimes by expertise, sometimes because no one from Wisconsin will work for a candidate (Mr. Neumann, I am looking in your direction). Thompson, McCallum, Green and Doyle were all top-heavy with Wisconsinities, as is Walker’s campaign. Were the WI DEM Big Guns like Joel Brennan, Paula Zellner, Ben Nuckels, Melissa Mulliken and Stan Davis not approached, or not interested?
End Of Line.
