The verdict’s in….Russ Feingold broke campaign finance laws in 1998

As the U.S. Senate blocked the Russ Feingold sponsored DISCLOSE Act yesterday, many Wisconsinites don’t know  that Feingold broke the laws he championed for in 1998.

According to records obtained from the Federal Election Commission, the Feingold Campaign blatantly violated the 48 hour rule.  The rule requires all campaigns to report all contributions over $1,000 to the FEC within 48 hours.  This is in effect during the last 20 days of the election. 

Evidence in the 56 page complaint found the campaign failed to disclose 41 contributions totaling over $54,726.73.  A good chunk of the contributions came from labor union PAC’s which would be exempted from  the DISCLOSE Act if it became law.

The following are the contributions Feingold failed to report in the last 20 days of the 1998 election:

Name                                                                Date                    Amount
AFL-CIO Education Cmt’e PAC         10/15/1998        $3,000
Committee for Dem Action PAC    10/15/1998        $1,000
Polaris Industries PAC                          10/15/1998        $1,000
Retired Federal Employees PAC       10/15/1998        $5,000
Sharon Canter                                           10/15/1998        $1,000
James Crow                                                10/15/1998        $1,000
Peter Perlman                                           10/15/1998        $1,000
Ron Thorstad                                            10/15/1998        $1,000
Richard Villasenor                                  10/15/1998        $1,000
Daniel Wallach                                          10/15/1998        $1,000
Roy Zuckerberg                                        10/15/1998        $1,000
FIRSTPLUS Financial PAC                  10/16/1998        $1,000
Georgia Peach PAC                                  10/16/1998        $1,000
H. Fisk Johnson                                         10/16/1998        $1,000   
Progressive Politics Network              10/16/1998        $1,000   
Transport Workers Union PAC         10/16/1998        $2,500
Benjamin Harris                                        10/19/1998        $1,000   
Michael Spector                                         10/19/1998        $1,000
National Auto Dealers PAC                  10/19/1998        $5,000
North Central Ampi, Inc. PAC            10/19/1998        $5,000
Treasury Employees PAC                    10/19/1998        $2,000
Michael Allured                                         10/21/1998        $1,000
Mark Dayton                                               10/21/1998        $1,000
Irwin Berkley                                              10/23/1998        $1,000
Deborah Bouknight                                  10/26/1998        $1,000
Laura Chasin                                                10/26/1998        $1,000
Richard Chasin                                           10/26/1998        $1,000
Joanne Crown                                            10/26/1998        $1,000
Terrence Metvhill                                    10/26/1998        $1,000
Nancy Meyer                                              10/26/1998        $1,000
Nat’l Cmt’e to Preserve SS PAC          10/26/1998        $1,226.73-In Kind
Jonathan Soros                                           10/26/1998        $1,000
Frederick Wade                                          10/26/1998        $1,000
Marc Weiss                                                   10/26/1998        $1,000
Nancy Pinter                                                10/27/1998        $1,000
Tom Yin                                                          10/28/1998        $1,000
Ann Sperry                                                    10/29/1998        $1,000
Elizabeth F. Bragley                                   10/30/1998        $1,000
Arjay Miller                                                   10/30/1998        $1,000
Frances Miller                                               10/30/1998        $1,000
Andrea Soros                                                 10/30/1998        $1,000

There are some notable contributions that Feingold failed to disclose including  Andrea and Jonathan Soros, children of liberal billionaire George Soros.   In addition,  Feingold failed to disclose donations coming from the heir of S.C. Johnson Wax, a current member of the UW System Board of Regents, and one of the original owners of Thorstad Chevrolet in Madison. 

Also, Feingold accepted money from the defunct FIRSTPLUS Financial PAC.  FIRSTPLUS was a disgraced mortgage company that was tied to Philadelphia mobster  Nicodermo Scarfo, Jr.  In addition, Feingold accepted money from the Polaris PAC.  Polaris recently moved operations out of Wisconsin. 

Any campaign found in violation of the 48 hour rule is fined $110 plus ten percent of each contribution that violated the rule.    The Feingold Campaign accepted a settlement from the FEC in 1999 and was fined $9,000.

The evidence we presented  is what Senator Feingold doesn’t want to tell voters while he presses the Senate to pass the DISCLOSE Act.  It’s time Feingold comes clean to the voters and owns up to his own hypocrisy on campaign finance reform.   The hypocrisy that labor unions win big at the expense of stifling political free speech for the rest of us. 

The DGA’s money woes are making Wisconsin Democrats scared

Becoming the only blog in Wisconsin that has discredited Team Barrett’s rapid response attack ad on the Republican Governor’s Association, we expose the real reason why Team Barrett is in rapid response mode every time the RGA places an ad in Wisconsin.  

The Democratic Governor’s Association promised in November of 2009 to conduct a “defensive” race in Wisconsin.  However, the DGA has not been in full force because of their money woes in other states.  One proof is a recent column in a Nebraska newspaper.  The column exposes party officials in the Cornhusker State expressing their disgust for their party’s nominee along with the DGA for not spending enough money on candidate recruitment.     During the last fundraising period, the DGA was out-raised by the RGA along with having $9.2 milion dollars less cash on hand according to April 2010 fundraising reports.   Also, the proof is  in the pudding of the DGA’s failures that include wasting  money in last year’s New Jersey and Virginia Governors races along with the recent Super Tuesday primaries.  The DGA’s shoddy results come  from priortizing more money on television ad buys over diversifying their funds on not just ad buys, but candidate recrutiment along with the ground game. 

Mike Tate Watch got hold of two campaign fundraising e-mails from the Barrett Campaign making their fundraising pleas this week after the RGA placed an ad in Wisconsin.   Anyone can tell Team Barrett’s desperation for money from reading the e-mails as they do not want to admit to Wisconsin voters that one of the national campaign arms that would help Barrett out is seriously lacking on money. 

You would expect Mike Tate to put out his always extravagant press release attacking the RGA, but is he scared of the RGA’s strength nationwide while the DGA coughs up money in every other state?  Only if Phil Walzak, the Team Barrett Communications Director is doing all the messaging against the RGA.   This is a sign a part of the Democrat Party infastructure has been caught flat-footed and why the Dems are down in the polls in 28 out of 37 governor races including Wisconsin.

Barrett Campaign missed the net in its rapid response ad against the RGA.

There has been a lot of spin going around with the Republican Governor’s Association and the Barrett Campaign.  This comes from a  deceptive rapid-response ad the Barrett Camp did in response to an ad the RGA did in Colorado.

From looking at the ad  the RGA did to criticize Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper, here is the evidence that supports the RGA’s claims and discrediting Team Barrett’s rapid response ad.

Claim 1-Frontier Airlines CEO: Denver Taxes Too High.  That is true, the CEO of Frontier’s Parent company Republic Airways Brian Bedford said in The Denver Post that taxes were a major reason why Frontier moved its operations to Milwaukee.

Source: The Denver Post, November 15, 2009

Claim 2-Now a Democratic Candidate in Another State Confirms Hickenlooper’s failure.  This is the part where all the liberal groups and the Barrett Campaign is salivating about.  All the RGA did is use a Barrett Campaign ad to confirm Frontier Airlines moved to Milwaukee in which a handle of a November 10, 2009 Milwaukee Journal Sentinel appeared on the ad.  Also, the same Milwaukee Journal Sentinel article quoted Republic’s CEO that taxes were a reason why Republic moved operations out of Denver.  There was no mention of praise towards Mayor Tom Barrett whatsoever in the ad despite the Barrett ad was used by the RGA.    Just because the RGA says one thing doesn’t give Team Barrett a license to spin the truth.

These facts prove that Barrett’s Campaign was totally deceptive in its rapid response ad against the Republican Governor’s Association.  The only person we should thank for bringing 800 jobs to Milwaukee is Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper.   Hickenlooper’s loss is Wisconsin’s gain period.   This proves why in Claim #3 that John Hickenlooper is an Economic Development Machine for Milwaukee.

Phil Walzak, the Communications Director for Team Barrett may think he had it his way in a rapid-response attack.  But, if shooting rapid response ads were part of the 2010 FIFA World Cup, Walcak would be the Cristiano Ronaldo of political rapid response.

The RGA has a new ad that hits home the truth on Barrett

The good folks at the Republican Governor’s Association  has a new online video that hits home the truth on Tom Barrett, and a warning for Wisconsin Taxpayers.

The new video catches Tom Barrett looking at someones wallet meaning that he will raise your taxes. That is demonstrated by his record that he has raised taxes in the State Legislature, as Milwaukee Mayor, and as a Congressman. If you are a Wisconsin Taxpayer, you should hide your wallet after seeing this ad.  That is because Tom Barrett will be looking for your wallet to fund his sham “Putting Madison on a Diet” plan.  The plan sounds more like Madison using Dunkin’ Donuts to lose weight as a smokescreen to fund its big spending programs.

This is the ad that the Wisconsin Democrats fear seeing.

Even the DPW admits they like going to the strip club.

Mike Tate Watch listened to Graeme Zielinski’s interview on the Pat Snyder Show in which the Communications Director and former journalist  used “we’ll meet you at the strip club” reference. Zielinski also said during the interview,  “we love going to the strip club”.

Even when Mike Tate and Graeme Zielinski rail on the RNC for spending their money at a bondage club in West Hollywood, the Dems fall into their own double talk saying they like to go to strip clubs.  We sure hoped the DPW stimulated the economy of Madison area strip clubs during convention weekend in a positive way.  Our only hope is that the Democratic Party of Wisconsin did not use DNC Chairman Tim Kaine’s credit cards at the strip club.  The DNC Chairman was the special guest for the annual convention.  If the DPW wanted to please Chairman Kaine at the strip club, then it should be done with their own credit cards and not the DNC’s.

Is Mark Neumann a closet Democrat?

The Wisconsin Policy Research Institute has a video up of Mark Neumann when being interviewed outside of the Democratic State Convention in Middleton saying he would limit outside political speech.

Mark Neumann said to the reporters:

“I think they should shut down every outside source of information in this campaign except the candidates themselves…Whether that’s not constitutional so we obviously can’t do that. But if Mark Neumann got to have what he wished, that’s what would happen, sir.”

After listening to this video, you can think Mark Neumann is a closet Democrat by having a stance similar to Chuckie Schumer, Patrick Leahy, and Russ Feingold on campaign finance reform. Neumann’s statement would make Mike Tate smiling proud on campaign finance reform in his corner.  Maybe it shows that we may have Wisconsin’s own “Benedict Arlen” Specter in Mark Neumann.

The audio of Mike Tate’s infamous conventon flap.

Thanks to the good folks at the Charlie Sykes show, we have a link to the audio of Mike Tate’s “Barack Obama flap” at the 2010 DPW State Convention.

After listening to this anyone would agree that this would rate as one of the worst Democratic convention gaffes next to Jimmy Carter’s 1980 balloon flap making Teddy Kennedy look grand.

Mike Tate Watch Salutes the Stanley Cup Champion Chicago Blackhawks

Mike Tate Watch in its series of salutes to organizations and people who do the right thing gives its salute to the Stanley Cup Champion Chicago Blackhawks.  The leaders of the Blackhawks exemplify the American Dream proving you can pick yourself up and do great things.  That is when Rocky Wirtz, the team’s owner reversed a backwards culture into a positive culture when he first took over in 2007.  After reversing his father’s backwards policies, the Hawks came from the bottom feeders of the league to winning the most prized trophy in sports, the Stanley Cup in three short years.

Rocky Wirtz and the entire Blackhawks organization resemble real American values, the same values we fight for every day at Mike Tate Watch.  We are proud fans of the Blackhawks and we salute them on their impressive Stanley Cup victory.

Tater-Tot List Profiles: Bill Brady and Jason Plummer IL Governor/Lt. Governor

The next candidate we are highlighting in our Tater-Tot list profiles is the Bill Brady-Jason Plummer ticket for Illinois Governor and Lieutenant Governor.

Brady and Plummer are not typical moderate Illinois Republicans that people have come to disapprove of.   They are a true conservative ticket that is giving people in the Land of Lincoln a reason to believe in their state again.   Bill Brady won a crowded primary in February which was demonstrated by a strong ground attack from his grassroots team.   The difference was defeating Republican-in-name-only  Kirk Dillard by less than 100 votes.   Dillard was infamous for his support of Barack Obama.   Jason Plummer won the Lieutenant Governor primary by a strong margin.

As many people in Illinois are growing tired of the politics of the Blagojevich-Quinn administration,  they are looking for a reason to believe in their state again.  Bill Brady is not from Chicago and is a business owner from Downstate Illinois who shares and lives our conservative values.  As Illinois is dealing with Gov. Pat Quinn’s ineptitude of handling the state budget, Bill Brady and Jason Plummer have used this to their advantage to sell to the voters that they represent real change.

We think Bill Brady, if elected, will be an excellent ally with other Midwest conservative governors in helping get the region to regain its economic dominance.  It is these reasons alone why the Tater-Tot List is proud to endorse Bill Brady and Jason Plummer for Illinois Governor and Lieutenant Governor.

Mike Tate’s Freudian Slip at Convention

The Democratic Party of Wisconsin Convention of 2010 will be remembered for one key moment, Mike Tate’s Freudian Slip praising Assembly Speaker Mike Sheridan for “cleaning up Barack Obama’s economic disaster”.

From all the lies along with dirty and deceptive messaging, it seems that reality has caught up to Chairman Mike Tate.  For a state convention that was full of lies and pandering, had a microphone go out, and lackluster attendance it shows the Dems are doing anything to hide this blunder of a convention. This ranks similar to when Jimmy Carter did not have the balloons drop in time during the infamous 1980 Democratic National Convention in New York City.