WRD,
Thanks so much for the encouraging comments. I've copied the speech into this email. The organizers of the event also took video of my speech and the others. The link below goes to the speech.
I hope all is well. It was good to see you and Dave last week. Have a great weekend!
- Dave
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oTBD4mdlTeQ
It has been a busy year in Madison. I was elected in a May special election, so I unfortunately missed all of the fun my colleagues had in February and March. But as I ran for office, I had the privilege of watching our men and women in the legislature face the leftist Madison mob and do exactly what they had promised on the campaign trail just months before. They promised to cut red tape. They promised to reign in spending. They promised there would be accountability in government that had been missing for years. And they promised to Open Wisconsin for Jobs and Business. And they did it all. And in the summer, I had the honor of voting with them to balance the budget for the first time in decades and never once throughout the course of the year raised taxes. We kept our promises.
And while the leftists in Madison have been beside themselves over changes to collective bargaining, one man has kept a steady hand on the tiller of state government, leading us through a national recession brought on by irresponsible policies in Washington DC and our prior state government. Our Governor, Scott Walker.
But let’s go back to the heart of why the leftists in Madison and Washington say they are so apoplectic. “Collective Bargaining” for public employees. Well, let’s see what some of the “right-wing” comments on collective bargaining for public employees has been over the years. One right-winger in history once said “The process of collective bargaining, as usually understood, cannot be transplanted into the public service”. He goes on to say that quote “I want to emphasize my conviction that militant tactics have no place” regarding the public sector. And that quote “A strike of public employees manifests nothing less than an intent on their part to prevent or obstruct the operations of Government.” When I read that quote I thought I was reading a Barry Goldwater campaign brochure, or perhaps one of William F. Buckley’s essays. But who was it? That lion of the vast right-wing conspiracy, Franklin Delano Roosevelt.
But there must be some historical quote from a conservative on collective bargaining for public employees, right? Then I found this one that said government unions quote "can mean considerable loss of control over the budget, and hence over tax rates". That one was from Ronald Reagan, right? Nope, that one came from right here in Milwaukee from our former avowed Socialist Mayor, Frank Zeidler.
Can our comrades on the left be honest? This recall election isn’t about workers’ rights. It’s about taxpayers paying for the political operations of the left in Madison and Washington DC. Over the last months we have seen municipalities saving millions upon millions of dollars while avoiding massive layoffs and ensuring their employees don’t have dramatic cuts in salary or benefits. This isn’t a radical idea, this is common-sense and fair budgeting for both workers and taxpayers. Over the past months, we have learned about school districts that over the years have overpaid millions of dollars to a single insurer because of unfair collective bargaining agreements. My friends, this isn’t collective bargaining, it is collusive bargaining! And because of Scott Walker that morally bankrupt practice has finally been ended.
And what did Scott Walker do in the face of intimidation to himself, his acquaintances, his wife and his kids? He did what he has done for his many years of public service. He stood proudly by the taxpayers of the state of Wisconsin! He stood with you. He stood with me and my wife and our four little kids. He helped to ensure my kids see a Wisconsin like the one I grew up in. A place where the American dream isn’t stifled by state government. A state where my kids won’t be paying for the reckless spending of generations before them.
We know where Scott Walker stands. And he now faces a challenge that can jeopardize all that he has done for Wisconsin families. We know where we stand. We stand with Scott. But now we need to run with Scott. And we need to make sure that our friends and neighbors and co-workers are also running with Scott. The consequences of not fighting this battle are too severe.
We did something special last year here in Wisconsin. We turned a blue state with big government liberals like Doyle, Feingold, Obey and Kagen, into a red state that elected reformers like Walker, Johnson, Ribble and Duffy. And we made sure our anchor for smaller government, Jim Sensenbrenner, and steady hand on the federal budget, Paul Ryan, were sent back to Washington , and we will do it again this year.
We respect the rule of law. When elections don’t go our way, we don’t pout and we don’t pick up our marbles and go home. We don’t ask for redo’s that cost our neighbors tens of millions of dollars. We respect the electoral process and the rule of law and we continue to do our job. But the extremists on the left do pout. They do pick up their marbles and they do run to Illinois. And if you read the papers about Illinois, it is clear they left their tired big government policies there as well.
My friends, the eyes of the nation are upon us. Governor Walker’s race isn’t just about our state, it is also about the heart of our republic and where our nation goes from here. Barack Obama and his comrades on the left see what Jimmy Carter saw in 1980. He stands before a conservative resurgence brought about by his irresponsible policies and by the reckless policies of Jim Doyle and the liberals in the legislature and in Congress. He sees a revitalization of fiscal conservatism that will put our state and nation back on track for generations and will preserve and re-invigorate the exceptional state and nation that generations of Americans have known for two centuries. But make no mistake, that movement began in Wisconsin, and can end in Wisconsin.
What will we be able to tell our kids and grandkids about the fight of 2012? Will we explain to them that we sat on our hands while the left overran our state and nation and bankrupted them with their failed big government policies. Or will we let them know that we stood with Scott Walker and helped him lead the conservative movement that put our state and nation back on track. We are making history here today my friends. And we will see this summer and this November, when the vuvuzelas are finally silenced, and the occupiers finally get a bath, that the righteous solidarity that unites US will have won this fight. God bless our great State!
Thanks so much for the encouraging comments. I've copied the speech into this email. The organizers of the event also took video of my speech and the others. The link below goes to the speech.
I hope all is well. It was good to see you and Dave last week. Have a great weekend!
- Dave
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oTBD4mdlTeQ
It has been a busy year in Madison. I was elected in a May special election, so I unfortunately missed all of the fun my colleagues had in February and March. But as I ran for office, I had the privilege of watching our men and women in the legislature face the leftist Madison mob and do exactly what they had promised on the campaign trail just months before. They promised to cut red tape. They promised to reign in spending. They promised there would be accountability in government that had been missing for years. And they promised to Open Wisconsin for Jobs and Business. And they did it all. And in the summer, I had the honor of voting with them to balance the budget for the first time in decades and never once throughout the course of the year raised taxes. We kept our promises.
And while the leftists in Madison have been beside themselves over changes to collective bargaining, one man has kept a steady hand on the tiller of state government, leading us through a national recession brought on by irresponsible policies in Washington DC and our prior state government. Our Governor, Scott Walker.
But let’s go back to the heart of why the leftists in Madison and Washington say they are so apoplectic. “Collective Bargaining” for public employees. Well, let’s see what some of the “right-wing” comments on collective bargaining for public employees has been over the years. One right-winger in history once said “The process of collective bargaining, as usually understood, cannot be transplanted into the public service”. He goes on to say that quote “I want to emphasize my conviction that militant tactics have no place” regarding the public sector. And that quote “A strike of public employees manifests nothing less than an intent on their part to prevent or obstruct the operations of Government.” When I read that quote I thought I was reading a Barry Goldwater campaign brochure, or perhaps one of William F. Buckley’s essays. But who was it? That lion of the vast right-wing conspiracy, Franklin Delano Roosevelt.
But there must be some historical quote from a conservative on collective bargaining for public employees, right? Then I found this one that said government unions quote "can mean considerable loss of control over the budget, and hence over tax rates". That one was from Ronald Reagan, right? Nope, that one came from right here in Milwaukee from our former avowed Socialist Mayor, Frank Zeidler.
Can our comrades on the left be honest? This recall election isn’t about workers’ rights. It’s about taxpayers paying for the political operations of the left in Madison and Washington DC. Over the last months we have seen municipalities saving millions upon millions of dollars while avoiding massive layoffs and ensuring their employees don’t have dramatic cuts in salary or benefits. This isn’t a radical idea, this is common-sense and fair budgeting for both workers and taxpayers. Over the past months, we have learned about school districts that over the years have overpaid millions of dollars to a single insurer because of unfair collective bargaining agreements. My friends, this isn’t collective bargaining, it is collusive bargaining! And because of Scott Walker that morally bankrupt practice has finally been ended.
And what did Scott Walker do in the face of intimidation to himself, his acquaintances, his wife and his kids? He did what he has done for his many years of public service. He stood proudly by the taxpayers of the state of Wisconsin! He stood with you. He stood with me and my wife and our four little kids. He helped to ensure my kids see a Wisconsin like the one I grew up in. A place where the American dream isn’t stifled by state government. A state where my kids won’t be paying for the reckless spending of generations before them.
We know where Scott Walker stands. And he now faces a challenge that can jeopardize all that he has done for Wisconsin families. We know where we stand. We stand with Scott. But now we need to run with Scott. And we need to make sure that our friends and neighbors and co-workers are also running with Scott. The consequences of not fighting this battle are too severe.
We did something special last year here in Wisconsin. We turned a blue state with big government liberals like Doyle, Feingold, Obey and Kagen, into a red state that elected reformers like Walker, Johnson, Ribble and Duffy. And we made sure our anchor for smaller government, Jim Sensenbrenner, and steady hand on the federal budget, Paul Ryan, were sent back to Washington , and we will do it again this year.
We respect the rule of law. When elections don’t go our way, we don’t pout and we don’t pick up our marbles and go home. We don’t ask for redo’s that cost our neighbors tens of millions of dollars. We respect the electoral process and the rule of law and we continue to do our job. But the extremists on the left do pout. They do pick up their marbles and they do run to Illinois. And if you read the papers about Illinois, it is clear they left their tired big government policies there as well.
My friends, the eyes of the nation are upon us. Governor Walker’s race isn’t just about our state, it is also about the heart of our republic and where our nation goes from here. Barack Obama and his comrades on the left see what Jimmy Carter saw in 1980. He stands before a conservative resurgence brought about by his irresponsible policies and by the reckless policies of Jim Doyle and the liberals in the legislature and in Congress. He sees a revitalization of fiscal conservatism that will put our state and nation back on track for generations and will preserve and re-invigorate the exceptional state and nation that generations of Americans have known for two centuries. But make no mistake, that movement began in Wisconsin, and can end in Wisconsin.
What will we be able to tell our kids and grandkids about the fight of 2012? Will we explain to them that we sat on our hands while the left overran our state and nation and bankrupted them with their failed big government policies. Or will we let them know that we stood with Scott Walker and helped him lead the conservative movement that put our state and nation back on track. We are making history here today my friends. And we will see this summer and this November, when the vuvuzelas are finally silenced, and the occupiers finally get a bath, that the righteous solidarity that unites US will have won this fight. God bless our great State!
--
Dave Craig
Candidate for the 83rd Assembly District
Friends of Dave Craig
PO Box 323
Big Bend, WI 53103
262-424-4499
http://www.votedavecraig.com/
Dave Craig
Candidate for the 83rd Assembly District
Friends of Dave Craig
PO Box 323
Big Bend, WI 53103
262-424-4499
http://www.votedavecraig.com/
Paid for by Friends of Dave Craig, Brian Lauer, Treasurer
