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Al Brown | Tracking the Seasons
If you can't stand the heat …
It has often been said "You can't have your cake and eat it too."
Sadly, in today's political climate, once you've been elected to a public office, you've got your constituent "cake" or base.
It takes more than a bright smile, shaking of hands and kissing of babies to be a good, long-term politician. It requires happy, supportive constituents.
That brings us to the reason for a recent meeting held at the clubhouse of the Watertown Conservation Club in Watertown.
The subject of the meeting was Gov. Jim Doyle's recent veto of Assembly Bill 138, which would have restored the appointment authority of the DNR Secretary to the Natural Resources Board.
The reason for the meeting was the desire to remove, as much as possible, the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) from Wisconsin's political landscape this year.
The vetoed bill could still become law, but would require a two-thirds vote in each house to override the veto (66 votes in the Assembly and 22 votes in the Senate).
In order for AB 138 to become law, the governor's veto must be overridden by the end of the legislative session in April, which means concerned Wisconsinites don't have much time to waste.
The main reason behind the Watertown meeting was to learn where Rep. Joel Kleefisch, (R-Oconomowoc) of Assembly District 38 stood on the matter, a structural appointment change that would make the DNR secretary more accountable to the public than to the sitting governor.
Among those trying to get a clear "yes" or "no" from Kleefisch were Jack Nissen of Dousman, president of the Wisconsin Wildlife Federation; John Wagner and Mike Rynearson, both Oconomowoc residents and WWF District 8 directors; Tobias Kowalski of Sun Prairie, WWF District 7 director; and Bill Heiden, representing the 280 members of the Oconomowoc Sportsman's Club.
Though Nissen's and the others' questions were pointed - How do you intend to vote on AB 138? - Kleefisch's responses were nebulous, for the most part: "To be honest, I haven't made up my mind."
After continued probing for a clear-cut answer, Kleefisch said he could easily tell the group one thing now, though when it comes to the final vote, he would still "vote his conscience."
The questioning came to an abrupt end when Kleefisch looked at his watch and announced "My wife is at a meeting, and I have to pick up our daughters at choir practice."
Meeting over; that's politics.
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Posted Wednesday, Feb. 10 |
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