Sunday, April 13, 2014

AFSCME Serves Crow To Abele At Dem Dinner

Saturday night was the annual Democrats' Founders Day Dinner.  I did not attend it this year, but it sounds like it was interesting.

Despite the claims by Mike Tate, Chair of the DPW, that he is a supporter of public sector workers, he had the union-busting wannabe Emperor Chris Abele as one of the speakers at the dinner.

At first I was a bit surprised and rather disappointed by this news.  After all, not only is Abele a horrible public speaker (he sounds like a sheep with indigestion) but he's as much a Democrat as David Clarke.  After all, Abele has:

Like I said, at first I was surprised.  But then I figured that Abele just tossed Tate a check for the opportunity to bleat at the audience so Tate just threw his party's base and his own party members under the bus.

Showing his disdain for his "fellow" Democrats and for visiting Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley, Abele showed up in soiled jeans and a rumpled shirt.  When he went on stage to bleat how wonderful he thought he was, the Emperor was caught up short.

AFSCME was in the house and representing!

The union had signs at the ready and this was the sight to see:



Some of the signs that were being held up during Abele's bleating:




It was reported that Abele rushed through his speech and hastily left the podium to only a smattering of applause.

It's not surprising that Abele was caught off guard.  He has surrounded himself with only yes men and people that are enamored with the vast wealth he got from his father.  Because of this, Abele actually thinks he is well-liked.  

A good healthy meal of crow would do him good.

23 comments:

  1. Mike Tate cannot be THAT incompetent as to choose a UNION BUSTER as a speaker at the annual Founder's Day dinner.

    When are rank and file Democrats going to throw the IDIOT Mike Tate out of office?

    What's next Mike, having Scott Walker as the keynote speaker at the Democratic Party convention? What an IDIOT.

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    1. I'm not an Abele fan, but keep your reporting real. Some of what you wrote is simply nonsense from an unnamed source, known as only "it was reported." or lies. I was there. Abele didn't do a hasty speech. He went along at a leisurely pace, probably taking a good 10 minutes, which was about what everyone got except Governor O'Malley who got more as he was the keynote speaker. The "smattering of applause" is totally false. The crowd didn't go wild when he started or was done, but it was the average applause they'd give to anyone. Pete Barca, Gwen Moore, Mary Burke, and especially Martin O'Malley got standing ovations.

      You also previously reported that Tate couldn't fill the room so Abele had to throw him a check to cover the expenses. I don't know if he gave him a check to speak, but I seriously doubt it. The place was so packed you could barely move. I estimate 350 -400 people with tables - I'm sure they made their expenses and much more. Between the $1500 per table fee and plus the sponsorships, I'm sure they did fine.

      I think you'd do us a better service as a reporter than and then gives us your opinion versus just making up stuff to fit your opinion. By the way, I am a fan of yours but I favor accuracy over banner waving.

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    2. Actually, Moore and Burke got standing ovations, so your accounting isn't accurate. And my reports came from more than one independent source. In fact, I wasn't even aware of what was going on until I was alerted to it.

      None of which changes the facts that Tate still needs to explain why he gave mic time to someone like Abele.

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  2. Same thing happened here in my 2012 primary with DINO Jim Brey. I got no support from the part and money and effort was then squandered in a futile attempt to repaint Pro Act 10, Pro Life, Anti-union, anti-clean water, anti-marriage equality Brey as an actual Democrat. That effort could have been put into trying to pull out a narrow race like Jessica King's where a few more votes could have made the difference. With Tate and the majority of the Madison leadership just putting on the donkey suit is good enough.

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  3. the democrats could fuck up a one clown circus. mike tate is that one clown

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  4. Bernie, thanks for your words here and your efforts back in 2012.

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  5. By comparison, the Dane County Dems have passed resolutions in the last few months against Abele's and the GOP Legislature's attempts to override Milwaukee and Dane County's living wage ordinances, and urging the DPW to run candidates in EVERY district in the state this November (no sure thing). As the exchange in Jeff Simpson's post last week shows, there's a definite disconnect between what party leadership wants to do, and what the people on the ground are feeling. And it's not helping either side.

    My suggestion- help the candidates who deserve it, and don't help the ones who don't deserve it. And if the party is assisting the bums, you don't need to help them either. The DPW leadership understands that money and effort talks, and they'll follow where the base is going, if they give a crap about the future of the party and their jobs.

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  6. Jake, thanks.

    IMHO, Tate and the rest are more loyal to the national Democratic party than Wisconsin. They want to make it as easy as possible for HRC/or whomever the Dem nominee for President is in '16 to run right.

    As Capper's covered, Abele's giving Walker huge cover by NOT demanding ALL of his secret emails. For those keeping score at home, that's Abele and Mike Tate running to the RIGHT of the Journal Sentinel editorial board for more than a year.

    "Release the emails from the John Doe investigation"

    http://www.jsonline.com/news/opinion/release-the-emails-from-the-john-doe-investigation-2294lov-197665821.html

    Do Tate/Abele/national Democratic party think it's easier for a corporate Dem to win Wisconsin's 10 votes in the electoral college if Walker's still governor? That's the way it looks to me, which is why your advice above is so sound. Hope I'm wrong.

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    1. I seem to think along the lines of what you just expressed, that the DPW higher-ups are following the national party directive, regardless of Wisconsin's unique situation.
      People in Wisconsin apparently are politically polarized, with not much in the middle. SKW has only been able to get away with some of his agenda by having the majority in Assembly and Senate. Being a volunteer canvasser in 2012, I saw that Jessica King was behind on name recognition, and she had little backup from the state party in getting her name out there to voters. Her 600 vote loss paved the way for majority rule for the SKW/Tea Party agenda.
      Yes, Abele has run cover for SKW by not pressuring for the release of the John Doe records. Let's not let them hijack the JD2 proceedings.
      The DPW had better get its act together because the state convention is only two months away and the general election is only seven months from now.
      There will be a large turnover in seats, and Wisconsin Democrats have a vast trove of knowledge of what Fitzwalkerstan has done to ruin the great reputation our State once had. No Republican in any race should go unchallenged. Effort and true convictions go a long way in taking over for the corrupting effects of big money. People will need to be informed enough to find the inspiration to vote for a reasoned, concrete cause.
      What's happened so far with our party has been like waking up to a cold bowl of oatmeal.


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    2. I'm worried that's exactly the plan, John. That the national Dems are trying to have Walker still be Guv in 2015-16, so the dimwit runs for president and look so bad doing so that he becomes a total joke inside all of Wisconsin (like he is in the thinking parts of the state), and then Dems roll in the 2016 presidential election.

      But I have to live here in the meantime, and the damage that guy would cause as an absentee governor from 2015-19 would set this state back decades. I refuse to allow that to happen.

      So we have to upset the DC Dems' plan, and restore Wisconsin without their help. On a related note, why does the DCCC send anti-Duffy and Ribble stuff out, but won't go after the very vulnerable and disliked Paul Ryan?

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  7. It's understandable why no one wants to primary the son of a billionaire, Abele, in '14. He's use that money to buy incredible opposition research and the risk of being ostracized by the rest of the Democratic party is very high.

    One possible option for folks committed to collective bargaining is to run a "write-in" campaign against Abele. It's the same process as running a candidate, we just don't have one. Direct mail, outdoor, internet ads, all highly targeted to Milwaukee County can point out the fact that Abele's in the wrong party. Sure, we congratulate him on being pro-choice and pro LGBT, but after that he's still a Republican.
    What we should "write-in" is a good question. AbeleisaRepublican?

    I don't know.

    Would not casting a primary vote for County Exec (but of course voting in all the other races) in the primary be a better option? I'm open to that.

    Another way to look at this strategy is as a warm-up for the general in November. The GOP will run someone for County Exec, we won't want to vote for them.

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    1. Abele's up for re-election in 2016, and he won't be the Dem candidate because it's a "non-partisan" position, which means another Dem could easily run against him. Could even work out that way in the general election.

      In fact, why not make it so?

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  8. Yes, yes, Tate is bad. Tate is out of touch. Tate is a moron. So how come he didn't get booted out last summer? Perfect opportunity. Much like with the loud gnashing of teeth over the Burke campaign, reasonable Democrats are left wondering who else will step forward? Burke stepped forward. Tate continued to step forward. Anyone else? This blog is interesting always and often inspired when it comes to take-down's. Not so great, though, at proffering solutions.

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    1. Hmm. Where did you see me write about Burke. This post is about Abele, in case you missed it.

      And you also miss that, as any organizer could tell you, that the first steps are to educated and organize. That is what the union did Saturday night and what I did by reporting it.

      Now, if you really want me to write about Tate and Burke, I can. But you'd better have another candidate ready.

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    2. we actually write about solutions all of the time, but nice diss and dodge

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    3. One of you indicates you have no solution while they other states you write about solutions all the time. Which is it? Clearly at least one of you is dying to get in on the comments above or write an entirely new hit post. So do it already.

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    4. Never. Talk big much?

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    5. Ah, you just did it again.

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    6. Tell the truth. Burke was BROUGHT forward after people like Mark Harris and Kathleen Vinehout were openly encouraged not to.

      And many of us don't get the chance to go to party conventions and vote for the DPW chair. For example, I was getting married the weekend of the last one, and unlike poetical hacks like you, my real life takes precedence.

      Your comments illustrate why the DPW is in serious danger of being an elite club instead of a party of the people. And it's why Dems lose in state elections when they have no business doing so

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  9. What was Tate/DPW thinking?

    Which shall rule, wealth or man? The elephant in the room is the corruption by the money in our political system. Which Abele understands the money, he does not seem to understand democracy.

    In 2012, Abele vetoed the County Board's effort to ask the people if they agree that unions and corporations are not people... and money is not speech. (Part of an effort by local citizens, Move to Amend activists [http://wimta.org/] and others to fight the corruption by the money.)

    Activists fighting to get referendum on November ballot | WISN 12
    http://www.wisn.com/news/south-east-wisconsin/milwaukee/Activists-fighting-to-get-referendum-on-November-ballot/16288702

    To Abele the opinion of the people is about as significant as "a Facebook poll."

    Chris Abele, Milwaukee County Executive, Vetos Move To Amend Referendum
    http://getmoneyoutofpolitics.wordpress.com/2012/08/31/chris-abele-milwaukee-county-executive-vetos-move-to-amend-referendum/

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