Brian Brawdy interview

This week I will be interviewing Brian Brawdy, survival expert and host of Liberty's Line in the Sand. Join us with your questions about preparation, survival and politics.

Wondering what's been going on with some of the other guests since they were on the show?

• Josh Tolley has had an article picked up by GCN. You can read it here.



• Alexandrea Merrell has been enrolled in God's boot camp. Read about it here.



• DR and SR continue to blog at The Maritime Sentry. (There's a link in my blogroll.)



• Suzanne Venker continues to do interviews to promote "The Flipside of Feminism".



• I haven't heard from Mr. Lynch in a bit, but I'm keeping an eye out for the sequel to "American Midnight".



• The Baron continues the excellent work he has been doing at the Gates of Vienna-also linked on my blogroll.



• Rep. Kestell continues to work towards the vision of a fiscally secure and Constitutionally correct state.



• Jake Speed did not win the special election to replace Mr. Huebtsch, but continues to work towards the restoration of the Constitution in his community.



• Ethan Hollenberger continues to be politically active and is hosting a radio show at Marquette University.



• Thomas is doing well in his first year at college and is planning a concert in May. For those who like the intro music to my show-he'll be playing that at the concert too. Come on down, hear some great music -originals and covers - and help him pay for college.

"And I say unto you my friends, Be not afraid of them that kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do." ~ Luke 12:4

A Visit to the Capital - Let's Move Forward

I had the opportunity to visit the capital last week and I have a few photos to share along with some notes about the changes I noticed from when I was down for the TEA parties the last few years and now, in (What I sincerely hope is) the aftermath of these protests. The first thing I noticed is that there were more people than usual walking around outside the building itself. Many were carrying signs and stopping to engage in conversations with those they met as they were walking. Then I crossed the street and saw my first annoying thing. The sidewalks were covered with anti Walker, anti budget repair bill and pro-union graffiti. (Thankfully in chalk, at least I'm pretty sure most of the ones I saw were in chalk.)Perhaps that why the lawns were so torn up, people must have been attempting not to smudge the artwork of their fellow protesters. Yes, I'm sure that must be it, after all, what's a few million in sod and landscaping costs compared to chalk drawings on the sidewalk reviling our legislators?

Next was a man with a bullhorn walking around and around the capital building. His comments, at that time were addressed to Governor Walker, asking him to come out and speak to the people. (As I left after my visit, his tone had changed, he was taunting the governor, calling him a coward and saying:"Hey, why don't you hold your breath for 25 minutes?" Must be some of that new civility stuff.)

Then, it was time to find which door was open. (Another change, as during and after the TEA party rallies and pretty much for all of my life, the capital has been open to the people to come and go at will through all the doors during normal hours.) As I entered, it seemed much darker than I remembered it. and then there was the next shock, a metal detector with a table and bins for all pocket contents. Okay, a reasonable precaution given the death threats to our legislators, I went through it, it wasn't a virtual strip search machine after all. The beeper went off. After a thorough search of an otherwise empty, but deep pocket and three more beeping scan results from the wand, I found the errant penny and was allowed to pass into the capital building itself.

The hallway seemed unusually dim as did the rotunda chamber. All the usual lights appeared to be on and it was a sunny day, yet the hallways branching off the rotunda seemed dark and forbidding. Most with velvet ropes across them, not truly blocking, but definitely giving the impression that people weren't welcome to go that way. The capital has always been a rather solemn place for me to visit, but not like this. I don't know if it was some adjustments to the regular lighting, the obvious police presence throughout the building, the attitude of the other people inside the building or what, but it seemed very forbidding and dark, not at all like the capital I was used to. In the center of the rotunda chamber there were people laying out fliers in a circle as though someone on one of the other floors would be photographing them even though I was informed that the upper levels were closed to visitors at this time. As I looked around for the hallway leading to Representative Kestell's office, I saw a man sitting on the floor chatting cheerfully with the woman beside him. At his side was a sign saying he was on a hunger strike until the bill was thrown out or something. It said he was on day 11. He seemed awfully cheerful for someone who had gone without food for 11 days, but I often feel better when I'm fasting, so maybe he does too. In any case, I don't think that's going to work, since I hadn't seen or heard anything about someone on a hunger strike at all. I found Rep. Kestell's office fairly quickly and was greeted by Sara Mikolajczak, one of Rep. Kestell's staffers. I had been running late, so I had the opportunity to chat with this delightful young woman for a few minutes while Rep. Kestell finished up a meeting. She was able to confirm many of the more disturbing things I had heard about or read about the protest. (Things like the smell, the noise, the overall nastiness of the protesters towards anyone on the opposing side.) She showed me the budget and said that they expected it to get just as bad when the time for the vote on that comes around. We talked about the difficulty of removing the signs and tape from the many different, old and rare types of marble used in the capital building. Then I was able to see Rep. Kestell. I asked how he was doing and whether or not he was rethinking his career in public service. He said that he didn't think there was a single legislator on either side of the debate that hadn't been wondering if they really wanted to have this job after watching the behavior of these protesters over the past weeks. In my opinion, that is one of the biggest challenges that has come out of all this. How can we get good people to run for and hold office if the citizens are going to behave like spoiled little brats when they don't get their own way? When former Governor Doyle was in office, and doing some really egregious things, conservatives did not come and tear up the capital. Conservative citizens and legislators did not attempt to hold the entire state hostage. We did the right thing. The people contacted their legislators, expressed their opinions and voted in the next election. Conservative legislators held their noses and voted against horrible bills that they knew would pass anyway because that was their job. That is the way it is supposed to work. No disrupting offices with constant drumming, no pounding on doors and windows and certainly no spitting on those who have been elected to serve us. That is not how a REPUBLIC works. but then, perhaps the protesters can be forgiven, since they clearly believe we live, not in a republic, but in a democracy-poor things. Perhaps they'll learn some manners when they become informed about the difference between the two and why a republic is better. Then we talked about the fiscal issues facing the state. Rep. Kestell expressed great respect for the budget office, saying that the head of it treats having accurate numbers almost as a religion. This man will not fudge the numbers for anyone and he has been trying to get the legislature to cut spending for a number of years now with no luck. Now we are at the tipping point and all the hard decisions have to be made now, because no one was willing to make any of them earlier. He expressed a confidence that both the budget repair bill and the budget, while cutting a number of things that people will not like, are the right thing to do to get WI into a place from which we can start addressing some of the more serious and larger issues that face us. State Sovereignty education and health care came up as a few of those areas.

He then urged me to share the facts with people. Because we cannot continue to spend like we have been and no amount of protesting will make money fall from the sky. Nor will any amount of protesting about fiscal realities relieve us of the burdens placed on our economy by the hoops we are jumping through to get money from Washington.

The bottom line is that many of the demands placed on us, as a state, by Washington are costly and ineffective. In other words, my grandmother was right when she used to say that government money always costs you more than you get. The feds give us money(our own money) for our schools and other things - as long as we jump through their hoops and don't squawk about how much of the money that we could have had for our schools is going, instead, to the layers and layers of bureaucrats who spend their time thinking up ways to prevent us from getting more of our own money to put towards our schools. (And this, when the federal government has no Constitutional authority to have anything to do with the education of our children. That is supposed to be left to the state and local levels.)

After thanking Rep. Kestell and his staffers, I went to see Sen. Leibham, but he wasn't in. So I left a note on the sign in sheet and thanked his staffers for their service. Then I went to visit Sen. Grothman. Now Sen. Grothman is not from my district, but I felt so bad upon viewing the video of him being mobbed that I felt I must visit him and thank him for his service, particularly. Sen Grothman has been a staunch supporter of conservative values, fiscal responsibility and Constitutional government for many years and he deserved better from the citizens of WI than to be mobbed like that. Public sector union members aren't all thugs(Although, I now think a goodly number more than I would have ever credited before this protest began are very badly behaved indeed.)and the taxpayers are not robber barons out to enslave the "poor little union workers. (Who are apparently unable to stand up to their employers without unions-although they can take days off from work and engage in medical fraud and other less savory activities to defend their wish to have someone else to do it for them.How does that work?) I think it's time for us to remember that we are all in this together. "We must hang together or we will assuredly hang separately" if we cannot get our state back onto solid fiscal ground. If we can do this, then we can assert ourselves as a state and really make the changes that need to be made to make our state what it needs to be as our federal government runs amok and courts hyperinflation and ruin. Let's get our own house in order and then go after Washington. Because it's not about who's in the oval office or the legislature so much as it is about sustaining our nation. The time for hard decisions is now. Let's make them and move forward. That is our state motto as embodied by the statue of Lady Forward on the top of our capital building is it not?

"And the LORD said unto Moses, Wherefore criest thou unto me? speak unto the children of Israel, that they go forward: But lift thou up thy rod, and stretch out thine hand over the sea, and divide it: and the children of Israel shall go on dry ground through the midst of the sea."~ Exodus 14:15-16

Senator Leibham Explains His Vote

I know that there are many still wondering what those who voted for the budget repair bill were thinking. (As though fiscal responsibility wasn't a good enough reason.) there are also those claiming, that because a judge issued an injunction to the implementation of the budget repair bill, that laws were broken to pass that bill into law. As I pointed out in the post "Not One Penny For Tribute" it is unlikely that any laws were broken.

The point of this post is not to address the legal nonsense that will surely go on for far too long and cost WI taxpayers yet more money, but rather to share the reasoning of one of the Senators who voted to pass this bill for those who still don't understand that WI is broke and that means there must be cuts somewhere. I am sharing Sen. Leibham's "Capital Connection" column. Rep. Kestell called into my radio show and the link to listen that or download it is on the player on the side of the page.

Capitol Connection

By State Senator Joe Leibham

February 24, 2011

~ Information on Senate Bill 11 ~


Governor Scott Walker has unveiled a proposal that seeks to provide local government elected officials (city council members, school board members, etc.) with the authority to make decisions regarding most issues related to the people they employ. In addition, the plan would specifically require most government employees, including myself, to pay a greater portion of health care premium costs and half of the annual contribution to pension/retirement plans. Governor Walker believes these changes are necessary so that state and local elected officials will have all the tools needed to best manage upcoming budgets that will receive less state aid due to our ongoing budget crisis and economic slow down.

Without a doubt, the Governor’s proposal (officially known as Special Session Senate Bill 11) has created an historic level of interest and concern. It has been an amazing week as tens of thousands of citizens from our state (and now on a daily basis – more and more people from across the nation) have decided to participate in the law making process by sharing input with their government, protesting or demonstrating in public rallies. While things have gotten a little intense at times, overall this has been a positive experience.

The amount of input provided to me and questions asked has also been amazing. Thousands of district residents have called, e-mailed, or visited with me personally to discuss the bill, ask questions, and share their thoughts both in support and opposition. While I have tried my hardest to return calls, meet with people personally, and respond to e-mails, the sheer volume has been a challenge to manage. I appreciate everyone’s patience as I work to read and respond while managing all of my legislative responsibilities.

Many of the contacts have included questions about the bill. In an effort to provide answers, below I have attempted to summarize the major questions raised and provide factual information regarding specific provisions in the bill:

Will existing public employee contracts be impacted by the provisions in this bill? Existing employee contracts cannot and will not be impacted by the bill. The provisions included in the bill will only go into effect after an existing contract comes to an end.

What is required in the bill regarding contributions to state pension plans? State, school district, and municipal employees that are members of the Wisconsin Retirement System (WRS) would be required to contribute 50% of their annual pension payment. The payment amount for WRS employees is estimated to be 5.8% of salary in 2011.

What is required in the bill regarding contributions for health insurance? State employees would be required to pay at least 12.6 percent of the average cost of annual health insurance premiums. Local employers participating in the Public Employers Group Health Insurance Plan would be prohibited from paying more than 88% of the lowest cost plan. Local government employers who use other health insurance plans or are self-insured would be able to set the contribution rate and the subject would be prohibited from the process of collective bargaining.

Will legislators and the Governor be required to participate in these changes to health care and pension contributions? All elected officials including legislators and the Governor will be required as of April 1, 2011 to make these contributions for health care and pensions. For elected officials the pension contribution is estimated to be 6.65% of salary in 2011.

Will public employees still be allowed to form unions? Public employees will still be allowed to form unions. An annual vote will be required to maintain certification as a union, and dues would be collected by the unions, not by the employer.

What will happen to the process of collective bargaining? The process of collective bargaining would continue for the establishment of the base wage for represented public employees.

Will there be caps on base pay? Base wage increases could not exceed increases in the consumer price index (CPI) unless approved by a referendum.

What will happen to items like overtime, premium pay, merit pay performance pay, pay schedules and automatic pay progressions? These items will be determined by the local employer (school board, local municipality, county board, etc.).

What will happen to various workplace rules that are currently bargained for collectively? At the local level these items will be managed and approved by the local employer. For state employees, work place rules would be developed by Office of State Employment Relations and approved by the legislature’s Joint Committee on Employment Relations.

What workplace protections will remain for public employees after passage of the bill? Wisconsin’s Civil Service System (WCSS) will not be changed by the bill. WCSS is a system for hiring, retaining, and promoting employees based on an objective assessment of their qualifications and ability to do their work. The system that has been in place since 1905 is grounded on two cornerstones: hiring decisions are merit based, and removal from service must be based on just cause. An employee cannot be discharged, suspended, or demoted except for just cause. The system includes two processes under which a public employee can pursue a grievance against their employer. The first is through the Wisconsin Employment Relations Commission and is found in Wisconsin Stats s. 230.44. You can view this statute by visiting: http://nxt.legis.state.wi.us/nxt/gateway.dll?f=templates&fn=default.htm&d=stats&jd=230.44

Matters which affect an employee’s condition of employment are covered by a grievance procedure found in chapter ER 46 of the Wisconsin Administrative Code: http://nxt.legis.state.wi.us/nxt/gateway.dll?f=templates&fn=default.htm&vid=WI:Default&d=code&jd=ch.%20er%2046

In addition, the bill now requires, per an amendment I sponsored, that a local government employer either adopt the WCSS or establish a grievance system that covers at least all of the following: (a) a grievance procedure that addresses employee terminations; (b) employee discipline; and (c) workplace safety.

If a local governmental unit creates a grievance procedure under these provisions, the procedure must contain at least all of the following elements: (a) a written document specifying the process that a grievant and an employer must follow; (b) a hearing before an impartial hearing officer; and (c) an appeal process in which the highest level of appeal is the governing body of the local governmental unit.



Are law enforcement officers exempt from the provisions of the bill? Fire fighters, law enforcement officers, and members of the State Patrol are exempted from the provisions in the bill.

How many votes will be required to vote this bill out of the Senate? The state constitution requires twenty (3/5’s of the total members) senators present for the vote to take place, but only 17 votes (a simply majority of the total members) for the bill to pass.

As the legislative process and deliberation continues on this bill, I am hopeful this factual information will be helpful.


It is an honor representing the residents of the 9th District in the State Senate!


Sincerely,



Joe Leibham
State Senator
9th District

"And the Lord said, Who then is that faithful and wise steward, whom his lord shall make ruler over his household, to give them their portion of meat in due season?
"~ Luke 12:32

Legislative Terrorism

Update: The senate has stripped the collective bargaining measures out of Gov. Walker's budget repair bill. They then voted to eliminate the right to collective bargaining established in 1953(I think)for public employees.(Or at least this is how it was explained by one person) As this does not have a fiscal impact, they did not need 20 to vote on it. This measure will now go to the Assembly and if it passes there, they can go back and pass the budget repair bill.

That's what those 14 AWOL WI Senators are doing. They are engaging in Legislative Terrorism. Think that's too harsh? I do not. There were plenty of votes under Governor Doyle that were hard for conservatives to swallow, but they voted.

They did not run off and hold the entire state hostage to their whims. If you listen to today's radio show(see the player on the sidebar), you will hear Rep. Steve Kestell setting a standard of graciousness that is seldom seen in today's world. Even in WI. He is still willing to credit those missing legislators with the character to come back on their own. This, after he has spent weeks surrounded by protesters using obscenity and spitting on him because of the actions of these Senators.

They should be ashamed to share a building with this man. For that matter, the governor himself has been gracious in his descriptions of public employees. Taking the time to make note of all the state employees who have been showing up to do their jobs.

I'm hearing about compromise coming. That is unacceptable. It may be that our legislators are fearful for themselves and their families. Given the behavior they have seen demonstrated at the capital over the past weeks, that is a legitimate concern. If that is the case, I would urge our legitimate legislators to let us know. Let the people of WI be held to a higher standard.

There was a story about a German officer asking a young boy where the bodyguard of the Danish king was as he took his daily promenade. The boy was said to have replied that the king's bodyguard was every man, woman and child in Denmark.

If the mainstream media has any decency at all, they need to urge a display of graciousness on the part of all WI citizens towards our legislators. Voluntarily restrict your communication with your legislators to their office hours and do not go to their homes. Call their offices, e-mail their official e-mails and send letters to their offices, but leave them alone at home.

Further, if you are a friend or neighbor of a legislator, keep a sharp eye out for them, their families and their property.

When I heard that people had been spitting on MY Rep., I was shocked and appalled. I want to believe that only out of state hooligans would have done such a thing, but I realize that I'm probably wrong. And even if I am correct, what is wrong in the nation that this would be an acceptable method of communicating with a legislator anywhere? If you don't agree with a legislator, you do NOT spit on them, that's what elections are for.

We are better than this Wisconsin, we have to be. And if we are not, it's time to bring our game up until we are.

Not one penny for tribute, and that's all a compromise would be, tribute to an unconscionable and despicable act on the part of these 14 Senators and all the union hooligans that protested in such a disrespectful manner over these past weeks.

"That which is altogether just shalt thou follow, that thou mayest live, and inherit the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee." ~Deut 16:20

It Depends on Where You Are When You Ask...

That's what I said when I was asked how people in Wisconsin really feel about Scott Walker and what he's doing with the budget.

I said that because, as former governor Lee Dreyfus once said, Madison is "68 square miles surrounded by reality." So, the opinions of the people in Madison, or even Milwaukee, are not necessarily reflective of the opinions of the people in the rest of the state. (No, as a matter of fact, the rest of us do NOT want to pay for your train-you want it-you pony up the money yourself.)

I know that there are polls showing increasing disapproval of Gov. Walker and I thought those polls were in need of some balance. I saw a billboard that pretty well sums up the attitude of many up here in Kestell country. (I wouldn't presume to say everyone-because the teachers union members and their compatriots up here clearly-if you read my other posts- oppose him.)

So in the interest of balance, here is the billboard. Enjoy.

At least that's the post I was working on when I heard the Governor Walker had decided to compromise. So, who is representing the taxpayers in those contracts now? Congratulations, you've just taught the communists that they don't have to play by the rules.

I am disgusted. Texas, Oklahoma and Utah are beginning to look good. ( I would pick Alaska, myself, but my husband thinks it's too cold here.)

I feel betrayed. But maybe I'm jumping the gun here. I'll be calling my legislators and the governor's office tomorrow. I hope this is just a reporter, hoping for a scoop, behaving badly with privileged information.

Update: This morning,(3/9/2011) I called the governor's office to ask about reports of compromise on the part of Governor Walker. Tristan(an aide I assume) informed me, that, as far as he knows, the governor has no intention of compromising. I expressed my approval and asked that he relay my message of absolutely no compromise to Governor Walker. If we allow this sort of shenanigan to prevail, then we have no business calling ourselves a republic. Giving in to "pay for play" democrats who refuse to do their jobs and union thugs from across the country would be anathema to the vision of our founders and the continued existence of our status as a sovereign state.

If I went to work one day and found that my employer wanted me to do the most disagreeable job at the business, would I be justified in throwing a hissy fit, walking off the job-while still insisting that I be paid- and having my union send in people to vandalize the business and harass the other employees who are trying to do their jobs? Of course not. I should be fired for such behavior. And the union should be disbanded or heavily penalized. And yet, that is exactly what these 14 Senators have done. Add in that they have accepted rather a lot of union money to get elected and the true picture becomes even clearer. I say Illinois can have them. They should resign if they are not willing to represent their constituents above their campaign donors.


"When they have a matter, they come unto me; and I judge between one and another, and I do make them know the statutes of God, and his laws.

"And Moses' father in law said unto him, The thing that thou doest is not good.

Thou wilt surely wear away, both thou, and this people that is with thee: for this thing is too heavy for thee; thou art not able to perform it thyself alone.

Hearken now unto my voice, I will give thee counsel, and God shall be with thee: Be thou for the people to God-ward, that thou mayest bring the causes unto God:

And thou shalt teach them ordinances and laws, and shalt shew them the way wherein they must walk, and the work that they must do.

Moreover thou shalt provide out of all the people able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness; and place such over them, to be rulers of thousands, and rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens: "~ Exodus 18:16-21