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EDITORIAL: For governor, re-elect Doyle
In a close call, incumbent Doyle offers best way forward for Wisconsin.
LISTEN TO ALL the ads assaulting the airwaves, and one would conclude the two candidates for governor of Wisconsin - incumbent Democrat Jim Doyle and Republican challenger Rep. Mark Green - are so incompetent, corrupt, deceptive and extreme in their views that neither should be elected.
The real shame in that barrage of bullfeathers is that both men are stand-up guys, with distinguished careers in public service.
Presumably, such ugly negativism is deployed by campaign strategists because it works. Does that say something about us? We won't pay attention to positive messages, or sit still and focus long enough to absorb serious proposals about public policy. We are more easily reached and influenced by 30-second spots with simplistic and usually misleading messages. Voters should demand more - of themselves.
SO WHAT ABOUT Doyle and Green? Who are they? What will they do for Wisconsin?
Doyle certainly began the campaign as the better known of the two men. A graduate of Harvard Law School and a native of Madison, Doyle served three terms as district attorney of Dane County. After a stint in private practice he was elected attorney general of Wisconsin in 1990. He held that position until successfully running for governor in 2002.
Green grew up in Green Bay, was educated at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire and received a graduate degree at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He served six years in the Wisconsin Assembly before being elected to Congress in 1998.
Both Doyle and Green, admirably, demonstrated the depth of their commitment to others by serving as volunteers in Africa. Doyle and his wife, Jessica, worked for two years as Peace Corps teachers. Green and his wife, Sue, spent one year working in Africa.
The two men can point to their work in political office with pride. Doyle was one of Wisconsin's best and most effective attorney generals. He has demonstrated the same hard work and commitment to service as governor. Green has been an exceptional member of Wisconsin's congressional delegation, and an effective spokesman for state interests in Washington.
IT'S A CLOSE CALL - one of those rare times, actually, when either candidate is likely to do a good job - but, on balance, we believe Doyle has earned re-election. The Daily News endorses Jim Doyle for a second term as governor.
On some issues Doyle is more liberal than we'd prefer. But he is not radical, and he is not a blind partisan. For the most part Doyle has governed from the center, which is where most citizens hang their hats. Doyle is not driven by ideological purity, but by a preference for common-sense solutions to the problems of the day.
He inherited a mess upon taking office, with a budget more than $3 billion in debt. There's not much opportunity to roll out big new programs when job-one is draining the red ink. But methodically, over the past four years, Doyle has corrected many of the budget problems while finding the money to move the ball down the field in such critical areas as education and economic development. The Beloit area, in the Gateway, has been the beneficiary of some of that state assistance.
Wisconsin needs to continue setting priorities and investing in its future, promoting job creation, maintaining and building upon a quality education system, providing sound stewardship of the environment, while finding a way to get more out of government for less in this high-tax state. We think Doyle is up to the job.
HERE IN BELOIT, a final point is worth noting. The most direct influence a governor may have on this community could come when (and if) the federal government approves and recommends the plan to locate a tribal casino complex here. As it stands now, Wisconsin's governor would then have the final say.
Neither Doyle nor Green has committed, one way or the other. Both talk about respecting local sentiment and hint that they may approve the plan, if it's good for the tribes, the community and the state. For both men, that leaves plenty of wiggle room. Political obfuscation, at its best.
But here's a big difference. The Republican-controlled legislature passed a bill which, essentially, would have stripped the governor of his authority and handed final up-or-down power to members of the Assembly and Senate. It seemed pretty clear, at the time, that there were few supporters of new casino operations in the legislative majority. Doyle vetoed that bill leaving him with the same authority, for example, enjoyed by Republican Tommy Thompson when he was governor.
Green, in a meeting with the Daily News, said he favors giving legislators the final up-or-down vote. By all appearances, that would not be a propitious environment to advance Beloit's chances.
Mind you, there are no casino guarantees with Doyle. But it makes sense that it's better to deal with one decision-maker than negotiate with 33 partisan members of the Senate, and 99 partisan members of the Assembly.
One more reason, in our view, the nod goes to Doyle.
LISTEN TO ALL the ads assaulting the airwaves, and one would conclude the two candidates for governor of Wisconsin - incumbent Democrat Jim Doyle and Republican challenger Rep. Mark Green - are so incompetent, corrupt, deceptive and extreme in their views that neither should be elected.
The real shame in that barrage of bullfeathers is that both men are stand-up guys, with distinguished careers in public service.
Presumably, such ugly negativism is deployed by campaign strategists because it works. Does that say something about us? We won't pay attention to positive messages, or sit still and focus long enough to absorb serious proposals about public policy. We are more easily reached and influenced by 30-second spots with simplistic and usually misleading messages. Voters should demand more - of themselves.
SO WHAT ABOUT Doyle and Green? Who are they? What will they do for Wisconsin?
Doyle certainly began the campaign as the better known of the two men. A graduate of Harvard Law School and a native of Madison, Doyle served three terms as district attorney of Dane County. After a stint in private practice he was elected attorney general of Wisconsin in 1990. He held that position until successfully running for governor in 2002.
Green grew up in Green Bay, was educated at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire and received a graduate degree at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He served six years in the Wisconsin Assembly before being elected to Congress in 1998.
Both Doyle and Green, admirably, demonstrated the depth of their commitment to others by serving as volunteers in Africa. Doyle and his wife, Jessica, worked for two years as Peace Corps teachers. Green and his wife, Sue, spent one year working in Africa.
The two men can point to their work in political office with pride. Doyle was one of Wisconsin's best and most effective attorney generals. He has demonstrated the same hard work and commitment to service as governor. Green has been an exceptional member of Wisconsin's congressional delegation, and an effective spokesman for state interests in Washington.
IT'S A CLOSE CALL - one of those rare times, actually, when either candidate is likely to do a good job - but, on balance, we believe Doyle has earned re-election. The Daily News endorses Jim Doyle for a second term as governor.
On some issues Doyle is more liberal than we'd prefer. But he is not radical, and he is not a blind partisan. For the most part Doyle has governed from the center, which is where most citizens hang their hats. Doyle is not driven by ideological purity, but by a preference for common-sense solutions to the problems of the day.
He inherited a mess upon taking office, with a budget more than $3 billion in debt. There's not much opportunity to roll out big new programs when job-one is draining the red ink. But methodically, over the past four years, Doyle has corrected many of the budget problems while finding the money to move the ball down the field in such critical areas as education and economic development. The Beloit area, in the Gateway, has been the beneficiary of some of that state assistance.
Wisconsin needs to continue setting priorities and investing in its future, promoting job creation, maintaining and building upon a quality education system, providing sound stewardship of the environment, while finding a way to get more out of government for less in this high-tax state. We think Doyle is up to the job.
HERE IN BELOIT, a final point is worth noting. The most direct influence a governor may have on this community could come when (and if) the federal government approves and recommends the plan to locate a tribal casino complex here. As it stands now, Wisconsin's governor would then have the final say.
Neither Doyle nor Green has committed, one way or the other. Both talk about respecting local sentiment and hint that they may approve the plan, if it's good for the tribes, the community and the state. For both men, that leaves plenty of wiggle room. Political obfuscation, at its best.
But here's a big difference. The Republican-controlled legislature passed a bill which, essentially, would have stripped the governor of his authority and handed final up-or-down power to members of the Assembly and Senate. It seemed pretty clear, at the time, that there were few supporters of new casino operations in the legislative majority. Doyle vetoed that bill leaving him with the same authority, for example, enjoyed by Republican Tommy Thompson when he was governor.
Green, in a meeting with the Daily News, said he favors giving legislators the final up-or-down vote. By all appearances, that would not be a propitious environment to advance Beloit's chances.
Mind you, there are no casino guarantees with Doyle. But it makes sense that it's better to deal with one decision-maker than negotiate with 33 partisan members of the Senate, and 99 partisan members of the Assembly.
One more reason, in our view, the nod goes to Doyle.
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