Why I Am Voting for Steve Kagen

As you probably know, I've done a lot of posts picking apart John Gard's rhetoric, which I did not find the least bit challenging. He's a career politician that manipulates phrases and half-truths into outright lies. This activity forces a good politician like Steve Kagen to take the low road and pretty soon it turns into a competition as to who can be the most negative. It doesn't take a high level of intelligence to find the truth and I hope to have provided my readers with some insight into the political process and the rhetoric that has become part of the daily lives of many of us. Like most of you, I'm tired of the seemingly endless stream of negative ads, and I feel a bit guilty of having such a negative tone on my own blog because of it.

I've taken some time to watch all 3 debates online between Steve Kagen and John Gard and one thing is sure and that is the fact that the two men running in this race are polar opposites. I cannot believe there are too many people out there that find this to be a difficult decision to make. Here is what I've gotten out of the discussions:

Social Security:

Steve Kagen - believes we can fix the problems with Social Security by raising the cap on the taxable income. Does not believe in privatization or investing Social Security dollars in the stock market.

John Gard - does not believe in privatization of Social Security. Has promised to pass a bill that would stop raiding the Social Security Trust Fund.

In 2000, George W. Bush promised to stop the raid on the Social Security Trust Fund if elected President. He had 6 years of Republican control of Congress to do just that. It never happened. Based on polling today, it is very likely Barack Obama will be the next President and Congress will be even more strongly controlled by Democrats. To think that John Gard as a freshman in Congress would be able to pass such a bill is outright laughable. Raising taxes might not be the best solution, however it seems that the only other options available are raising the retirement age or cutting benefits. It's a lose, lose, lose situation and is the likely reason why nothing has happened as of yet. Adantage Kagen.

Health Care:

Steve Kagen - has advocated for disallowing the practice of insurance companies denying coverage for those with pre-existing medical conditions. He is also pushing for community risk pools, disclosure of all prices, and reform that benefits patients and doctors, not insurance companies. Competition between insurance companies will focus on their level of service. He has vehemently opposed any plans for government takeover of our healthcare system.

John Gard - also advocates for price disclosure. He has said many times that he favors a patient-centered approach to health care and also opposes government-controlled health care.

This topic will always be a home run for Kagen because with 30 years experience in the industry, he knows the problems and has an actual plan to fix them. John Gard has shown a complete lack of knowledge on the subject and no plan to fix the problem. Just saying patient-centered is nothing but jibberish. Kagen's plan is patient-centered as well and is all-inclusive. John Gard has opposed Kagen's plan to include those with pre-existing conditions, however I highly doubt Gard would have had that same stance had he been diagnosed with cancer a month before leaving office. People are losing their jobs left and right and along with it, their insurance coverage. If you have a lapse in coverage, you risk never being able to get it again. Nobody who is living on unemployment can afford insurance. They will end up in the emergency room with bills they can't pay. This will lead to an increase in bankrupcies and leaves the doctors high and dry. Who pays for this? Those who have insurance. We are sliding down hill fast in this economy and non-action will only hurt individuals and employers and will likely result in a complete breakdown in employer-offered insurance programs.

Taxes / Spending:

Steve Kagen - believes in raising taxes on the top 1% of income earners by rolling back the tax cuts passed in 2001 and 2003 by the Bush administration. He believes in "pay-as-you-go" which means every increase in spending must be matched by an equivalent decrease somewhere else in the budget. Favors tax cuts for the middle class, putting more money in the pockets of average Americans. Campaigned in 2006 on cutting wasteful government spending, with the emphasis on "wasteful" and helped to pass a bill to force members of Congress to stand by their pork.

John Gard - favors cutting taxes across the board and cutting wasteful government spending, with the emphasis on "government". He has never mentioned specific programs that he would cut other than all earmarks.

I believe that if John Gard is going to say we need to cut taxes, he needs to specify the amount his tax cuts would remove from the federal budget and outline exactly what spending needs to be cut from the budget to bring it into balance. Gard should not tell people that their taxes will go up when it is untrue for 99% of Americans. Steve Kagen's plan will eventually balance the budget and shift the burden off the middle class. George Bush campaigned in 2000 on cutting earmarks and the President and his Congress for 6 years shot earmark spending through the roof. Again, a broken promise we've all heard before. Advantage Kagen.

Energy:

Steve Kagen - believes in doing whatever it takes to become energy independent and has advocated for everything other than oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR). He has specifically outlined measures to convert diesel trucks to natural gas, increased natural gas drilling, solar, nuclear, biomass, and wind. Congressional Democrats have allowed the ban on offshore drilling to expire. Kagen has also advocated to keep all American oil here in America.

John Gard - believes oil drilling is the single most important thing our country can do to become energy independent. While he has advocated for an all-of-the-above energy policy, he has never mentioned specifics other than his work to allow development of wind farms in Wisconsin while a member of the Wisconsin legislature.

This is one area where there is little difference between the candidates. Studies have shown that drilling in ANWR will have a minute effect on gas prices, if any, and will not have any impact for many years. These studies, which John Gard does not believe, were conducted by our own government and the statistical data can be found on the Department of Energy website. Even John McCain does not support drilling in ANWR because of it's pristine natural resources. In my research, Steve Kagen has voted only twice against oil drilling and seemingly reversed his stance based on the uproar over $4 gas a few short months ago. I find this to be an admirable quality in Kagen and shows he truly listens to the people he represents. One of Kagen's votes was against shale extraction on federal government lands, which is only profitable when the price of oil is above $130/barrel. The other was against a partial lift of the offshore drilling moratorium in June of 2007, long before gas reached $4/gallon. Advantage Kagen.

Illegal Immigration:

Steve Kagen - believes we need to protect our borders, enforce current laws more effectively, and no cutting in line for citizenship.

John Gard - believes we should contruct a border fence and not give taxpayer funded health care and housing benefits to illegal aliens.

Again, this is a topic with many false accusations. The truth of the matter is that it is already illegal to give taxpayer funded benefits to illegal aliens. Any votes concerning this topic would be redundant. Many, including Steve Kagen, believe that construction of a border fence will be ineffective and costly. Based on John Gard's tax policy, I wonder where he plans to get the money to build a border fence. I believe in investments in technology and border patrols to curb this influx, which Kagen has also supported. Advantage Kagen.

Iraq:

Steve Kagen - believes we have already won the war in Iraq and it is time to pull our resources out of that country in favor of going after the terrorists who attacked us on 9/11. Iraq now has a budget surplus and violence has been sharply reduced. If Iraq returns to the religious civil war of the past, it is not our place to be involved. Believes we are wasting money in Iraq at a time when our country is hurting economically and we should not be paying to rebuild infrastructure that we did not destroy.

John Gard - has not mentioned the war in Iraq in recent months and has no comments on his website on this topic. He has not mentioned Iraq in any debates this year. As far as I can tell, he does not even realize there is a war going on there.

I believe John Gard's failure to take a stance on the war at this time is a slap in the face to our troops that he claims to support. The last time John Gard publicly talked about Iraq was when Congressman Kagen returned from a trip to visit the troops and meet with General Petreaus. At that time Gard announced his refusal to travel there this year and blasted Kagen for saying it was impossible to tell if the troop surge of 2007 had worked. In my opinion, John Gard is dodging the Iraq issue for political reasons. At a time of war, the issue should never be on the back burner. Steve Kagen risked his life to see Iraq with his own eyes and I find that commendable. Advantage Kagen.

Abortion:

John Gard is the only one to bring up this issue and will advocate for making abortion illegal.

I believe that the Constitution protects the rights of the citizens of America. Since an unborn child is not a citizen, it is not protected by the Constitution. You become a citizen the day you have a piece of paper that says you are. Until this country starts issuing conception certificates, an unborn child is still a part of the mother and abortion is her choice only. With regard to the moral implications, it is not the duty of the government to legislate morality. However, the government can seek to educate the mothers of unborn children to curb the number of abortions in this country. Making abortion illegal will not stop abortions any more than making drugs illegal stopped drug use or placing signs on the highway have stopped people from speeding. No matter how many times life-activists call Democrats baby-killers, I have yet to meet a single person who thinks abortion is a great idea and nobody feels good about having an abortion. Advantage Kagen based on his pro-choice stance.

Conclusion:

I believe I have now stated all that I can in this race and I am leaving it at that. I'm tired of this election season and will now sit out the last 10 days in silence. I'm fortunate to not have a land-line phone and I sincerely hope that these same politicians that annoy the hell out of people on a minute-by-minute basis never use their powers to take over my cell phone. Any such attempts to include my phone should be held in a public referendum format. I will oppose it until the day that I die. My older relatives suffer on a daily basis from constant robo calls, direct mail, and TV ads. It's enough to make us all sick. Regardless of how this or any other election concludes, I sincerely hope that the scars can be healed and our representatives can go back to the business of doing what is best for the people. We are at a definining moment in American history...one we will likely talk about for the rest of our lives. But in the midst of all of this, we can certainly all agree on one thing: America will always be the greatest country on earth and I am, and always have been, proud to call myself an American.

As always, I welcome your comments and suggestions.

John Gard Voted to Privatize Social Security

Cry baby John Gard recently sent a letter to Congressman Kagen accusing him of lying in his new TV ad. However, the fact of the matter is that Gard voted against considering a bill that would reject the privatization of Social Security. Much like Kagen, Gard too has a voting record. When John Gard votes against consideration of a bill to prevent the privatization of Social Security, it is the equivalent of voting for such a measure. Isn't that correct, John? And just like when Steve Kagen votes against allowing amendments to bills, it's the equivalent of voting against {insert topic here}. Isn't that correct, John?

Steve Kagen pulled a fast one on John Gard and has the evidence to back it up. Kagen's "lie", as Gard puts it, is no worse than all the lies John Gard himself has told. Following is taken right from the Assembly record and proves once and for all that John Gard, just like George Bush, will sell your nest egg right down the river the first chance he gets.

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Assembly Joint Resolution 32
Relating to: calling on the governors of the United States to reject plans to privatize Social Security by cutting Social Security's guaranteed benefits and diverting money out of Social Security into private investment accounts and further calling on the governors to favor repaying to the Social Security trust fund the moneys taken and spent for other purposes.

Representative Nelson moved that the rules be suspended and that Assembly Joint Resolution 32 be withdrawn from the committee on State Affairs and taken up at this time.

The question was: Shall the rules be suspended and Assembly Joint Resolution 32 be withdrawn from the committee on State Affairs and taken up at this time?

The roll was taken.

The result follows:

Ayes - Representatives Benedict, Black, Boyle, Colon, Cullen, Fields, Grigsby, Gronemus, Hebl, Hubler, Kessler, Kreuser, Krusick, Lehman, Molepske, Nelson, Parisi, Pocan, Pope-Roberts, Richards, Schneider, Seidel, Sheridan, Sherman, Shilling, Sinicki, Staskunas, Steinbrink, Toles, Travis, Turner, Van Akkeren, Vruwink, Wasserman, A. Williams, Young and Zepnick - 37.

Noes - Representatives Ainsworth, Albers, Ballweg, Davis, J. Fitzgerald, Freese, Friske, Gottlieb, Gunderson, Gundrum, Hahn, Hines, Honadel, Huebsch, Hundertmark, Jensen, Jeskewitz, Kaufert, Kerkman, Kestell, Kleefisch, Krawczyk, Kreibich, Lamb, F. Lasee, LeMahieu, Loeffelholz, Lothian, McCormick, Meyer, Montgomery, Moulton, Mursau, Musser, Nass, Nerison, Nischke, Ott, Owens, Petrowski, Pettis, Pridemore, Rhoades, Stone, Strachota, Suder, Towns, Townsend, Underheim, Van Roy, Vos, Vrakas, Vukmir, Ward, Wieckert, M. Williams, Wood, Ziegelbauer and Speaker Gard - 59.

Absent or not voting - Representatives Berceau, Bies and Gielow - 3.

Motion failed.

Source: http://nxt.legis.state.wi.us/nxt/gateway.dll/Prior%20Sessions/2005/journals05/348/459/460?f=templates$fn=document-frameset.htm$q=[field%20folio-destination-name:%27A302%27]$x=Advanced

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Just to add icing to the cake, John Gard also voted against diverting funds to pay back the Social Security trust fund. John Gard cannot be trusted and there are mountains of evidence to prove it.

John Gard Accepts Campaign Cash from NewPage

Just when you thought John Gard couldn't get any more pathetic, it was reported today that John Gard accepted over $2000 from a lobbyist that works for the company that owns NewPage, the same company that just closed 2 paper mills that once employed hundreds of people in the 8th Congressional District.

Why should anyone from this area trust someone to bring jobs back to our area when that candidate is taking money from the same people that are taking our jobs away? John Gard takes thousands of dollars from Big Oil and insurance companies. John Gard is a rat. He looks like a rat and talks like a rat. He has no place in Washington when we're trying to take the power away from lobbyists and return it to the people. If what we want is legislation that benefits the little guys and not big corporations and special interests, we have to vote for Steve Kagen. Kagen may not be Mr. Perfect, but at least he's not a stinky rat like John Gard.

Is John Gard a Pathological Liar or a Compulsive Liar?

After hearing John Gard tell provable lies for over 2 years now in two campaigns that have been almost impossible to ignore, one has to wonder what is truly wrong with him. Are John Gard's lies pathological or compulsive? Either way, there is absolutely something wrong with someone who cannot tell the truth. The following is taken from a website that summarizes the two conditions.

Pathological Liar

A pathological liar is usually defined as someone who lies incessantly to get their way and does so with little concern for others. Pathological lying is often viewed as coping mechanism developed in early childhood and it is often associated with some other type of mental health disorder. A pathological liar is often goal-oriented (i.e., lying is focused - it is done to get one's way). Pathological liars have little regard or respect for the rights and feelings of others. A pathological liar often comes across as being manipulative, cunning and self-centered.

Compulsive Liar

A compulsive liar is defined as someone who lies out of habit. Lying is their normal and reflexive way of responding to questions. Compulsive liars bend the truth about everything, large and small. For a compulsive liar, telling the truth is very awkward and uncomfortable while lying feels right. Compulsive lying is usually thought to develop in early childhood, due to being placed in an environment where lying was necessary. For the most part, compulsive liars are not overly manipulative and cunning (see, Pathological Liar), rather they simply lie out of habit - an automatic response which is hard to break and one that takes its toll on a relationship.

After reading these definitions, it is my opinion that John Gard is a pathological liar. He is certainly lying to get his own way and his lying is targeted at Steve Kagen. John Gard feels better about himself when he puts down others. His lies show a complete disrespect for Kagen and for the constituents he seeks to represent. His attitude in his commercials and in his debates is demeaning to those watching and reinforces the idea that he is manipulative, cunning, and self-centered. John Gard likely has a mental disorder that developed early in life that causes him to do this. I certainly hope that he seeks help for his disorder after this election. I would imagine this constant lying takes a toll on his family life as well.

My heart truly goes out to those who cannot tell fact from fiction, and have chosen to support someone who cannot be trusted. I sincerely hope that John Gard is not trying to take advantage of a society, which he believes is too ignorant to find the truth. When liars begin to believe their own lies, then all hope is lost.

Fact Check John Gard

I just discovered a website today that refutes John Gard's lies in his campaign materials and ads.

For the facts about Steve Kagen's votes and policies visit http://factcheckgard.com/

It appears to be an offshoot of Kagen's campaign and shows just how pathetic John Gard is. If Americans want change, one thing is sure and that is change will not come from the unemployed career politician John Gard. Call John Gard at (920) 544-8155 and tell him to get a job and stop cluttering the airwaves and your mailbox with his lies.

Gard's Website Still Lying about Gas Prices

Today, October 12, 2008, John Gard's website is continuing to perpetuate a lie about gas prices. Here is the image that is displayed today:



However, gas hasn't been as high as $3.71 a gallon for several weeks. If Gard is going to display that image on his website, the least he could do is update it daily. Today, I saw gas as low as $2.98, which is only 65 cents higher than when Kagen took office. If Gard is trying to prove a point here, he has failed. Now that gas prices are proving to be less and less of an issue every day, Gard is left with nothing but mud-slinging and lies to try to get a job. John Gard is a failure and has no place in Washington at a time when we need leaders who will get the job done for US.

UPDATE 10/13: Amazing! Today the graphic is mysteriously gone from Gard's website. If only he could retract all of the other lies he's told.

Gas Below $3...Thank You Democrats!

Today I noticed gas dropped below $3 for the first time in many many months. Now, the title to this post is just a joke as a response to all of the conservative bloggers who blamed Democrats for $4 gas just a few short months ago. I guess if it is the Democrats who caused the high gas prices, it only stands to reason that you can also give them credit for lower prices. However, there are two chances that you will hear any of these bloggers make such an assertion....slim and none.

Obviously that is all foolishness, just like it was in mid-summer. Gas prices are driven by many market factors, which Democrats had absolutely nothing to do with when the gas prices went high. In addition, the Democrats are not responsible for the lower prices either. Nothing has transpired in the past 2 years in Congress that would cause gas to drop over a dollar per gallon in a few short months.

Another thing you will never hear the Republicans admit is that now that the price of oil is below $90 per barrel, it is no longer economical to do any drilling in shale or other very expensive methods of oil extraction. Congress can authorize all the drilling in the country but no oil company is going to do any drilling that causes them to lose money.

John Gard Lies about Social Security Trust Fund

Desperate John Gard is back at it with more lies in his new TV ad. He accuses Congressman Steve Kagen of raiding the Social Security Trust Fund. This is just a pathetic attempt to rehash a lie that has been told by both Democrats and Republicans for many years, even though it has no merit.

The truth about the Social Security Trust fund is that it is the difference between what Social Security takes in and what it pays out. The Social Security Administration currently takes that difference and purchases Treasury Bonds. It boils down to an IOU from the government to itself. To stop raiding the Trust Fund would mean to order the SSA to actually keep the money in an account or a private investment. While that may sound like a good idea in theory, it simply is not practical.

In 2006, the Trust Fund gained $189 Billion in assets. In 2007, it was $190 Billion. This was money that went right back into the Treasury. Therefore, to stop raiding the trust fund would mean to cut those amounts from the budget or raise taxes to make up the difference. I would love to see Gard slash over $190 Billion dollars from the budget. His idea is ludicrous and it's why nobody brings it up anymore unless they are desperate, pathetic, losers who think they can lie their way into office.

That said, it would be impossible not to vote to raid the Trust Fund unless Steve Kagen voted against every bill that spends money. It's a foolish accusation that only a fool would make. With this ad, John Gard is either telling you that he doesn't understand the way the government works or he thinks you are too stupid to find out the truth. He once again insults the intelligence of northeast Wisconsin voters with this pathetic lie. Send John Gard back to the unemployment line, where he belongs.

John Gard Lies about Poll Numbers

Well, there was part of me that always doubted that John Gard's poll numbers were accurate. I mean he lies constantly...why would I expect him to be truthful with polls? Today, Roll Call released their own independent poll numbers. But I want to first take you back 14 days to another Roll Call article that states this:

September 23, 2008: Freshman Rep. Steve Kagen (D) is headed toward a second tight race against former Assembly Speaker John Gard (R). According to polling from Gard’s campaign, Kagen has a narrow 1-point lead over him.

Yet, the article in Roll Call today paints a different picture when the polling is not done by a client of the John Gard campaign. Kagen is beating Gard 54% to 43%, an 11% difference which is outside the margin of error. The full results of the poll can be seen here.

As you can see, you get all of the details you want instead of just some raw numbers. I bet if you looked at Gard's detail, you would find it was heavily slanted to Republican voters. In this poll, more than double the respondents considered themselves conservative over liberal. 28% call themselves Republicans and 31% consider themselves Democrats.

Have you had enough of John Gard's lies yet? With a month until election day, I'm sure there will be plenty more where that came from. He will be even more desperate with this news. Why doesn't Gard follow in the footsteps of his fearless leader and just tell everyone his opponent is a terrorist? As pathetic as John Gard is, I wouldn't put it past him. It's time for the voters to tell John Gard to get a job and stop lying to them.

Biden v Palin : The Battle of the Gaffes

I have been paying close attention to the pre-debate debate today on the national news, which seems to be dubbing this debate to be the "battle of the gaffes." Joe Biden has had a history of colorful statements during his tenure on Capitol hill and many are expecting a few tonight. Sarah Palin is also expected to make some gaffes based on the few interviews she's given since hitting the national scene.

This is a clear difference here. So far I've seen Joe Biden making a historically inaccurate comment and also calling Palin "good looking" while on the campaign trail. Well, if that's the best the Republicans and the media can come up with, I'm not expecting any momentous comments from Biden tonight.

Palin, on the other hand, comes across as a complete idiot with no knowledge of the issues facing America. She reads whatever news her "advisers" give her and she cannot even name one source of news she uses. She can't name a single Supreme Court case she does not agree with other than Roe v Wade. She thinks that Alaska's proximity to Russia is foreign policy experience and believes the war in Iraq is an act of God. Palin has been cooped up in the bubble that is Alaska and has never experienced the reality that is the rest of America and the world.

If you want change, I believe Palin and her father-figure John McCain will bring it to you. But they won't bring the change that America is looking for. They will make George Bush's 8 year long gaffe feel like an amusement park ride. They will give more tax breaks to those that don't need them and send our country plummeting into the gutter. If you think things are getting bad now, imagine 4 more years of poor economic policies and war without end.

If you've known anyone in their mid-70s with a history of cancer, you know what I'm saying. Each of these candidates has to be ready to step into the White House at a moment's notice. If you want to talk about the 3 AM wake-up call, just think about Palin's response:

-- "Madam President, what are our options for response to an imminent attack from Iran?"

-- Palin: "I'll find ya some and bring em to ya."

If that doesn't call into question John McCain's judgment, I don't know what does. The choice in this election is clear and it is Obama-Biden.