Jay Weber Show transcript 1-7-25
So- do you understand what Gov Evers is trying to do with this ‘change in the rules’ that would allow voters both create-and repeal- state laws without legislative involvement?
Evers has said that he’s going to include this idea, again, in his next budget proposal, and republican leaders are already saying it’s a non-starter. They will strike it out of any final budget bill before they pass it.
But do people understand what Evers is trying to do?
He’s trying to find a way for WI Dems to sidestep a republican control of the state legislature that has stretched for more than a decade, yes.
But he’s also trying to turn us into ‘California’, with a system in which ‘any’ and ‘every’ activist group can clutter our ballots with ‘any’ and ‘every’ extreme and nutty idea they want to- so long as they can get enough signatures for it to be put on the ballot.
When you hear talk about California, you’ll often hear about ‘proposition ten’ or ‘prop fifteen’ etc.
Well, those are the most recent nutty, extreme idea that the left wing activists out there have managed to get on the ballot.
Evers and the left can sell this as ‘democracy in action’ or ‘an avenue for more direct voter participation’...
But it’s not
These slimmer majorities are not yet ‘so thin’ that Vos or LeMahieu will really need to compromise with democrats if they don’t want to.
The dirty little secret in Madison is that -in truth-all sorts of things still pass on bipartisan votes.... because many, many things that these lawmakers do aren’t at all controversial.
And so, I believe it is still correct to say ‘most’ bills pass with bipartisan votes.
But the big stuff like the budget? No.
Not when the democrat’s ideas are so, so distant from what the republican’s ideas are.Gov Evers is staring at a 4.5-billion-dollar budget surplus that a decade of responsible, republican budgets has created-
And he by God, by Allah, and by Satan, refuses to return that money to the taxpayers he took it from. Republicans want to return it to the people it was taken from- in excess- of what was needed to run an already bloated state government.
Evers will not allow it.
GOP lawmakers are supposed to roll over to that? Or let democrats dream up new ways to spend it?
No.
It won’t happen.
But if you want an example of how Evers thinks this ‘direct ballot vote’ would work- he cites as examples...
Well...republicans are ignoring the will of the people and won’t legalize marijuana.... Or implement gun control.... or repeal the 1849 abortion ban...or quote...increase funding for public schools.
Sincerely.
Evers include increase funding for public schools even though GOP lawmakers have. Have. Every budget since the act ten budget. Republicans-have-increased funding for public schools!
But Evers and the left could dream up all sorts of new ways to trick taxpayers with slickly marketed ballot initiatives to spend even more.
Why? Would anyone who considers themselves fiscally conservative or even a moderate or democrat who wants to keep government in check.... support this?
Cuz you really want to be able to smoke pot legally here.
Come on.
Then Evers claimed this: if GOP lawmakers are going to try to legislate by constitutional amendment, they should give Wisconsinites the same opportunity that 26 other states have.
That is the dumbest statement Evers has made in the last six months.
What he’s talking about is how republican lawmakers over the years-have- put a few things on the ballot by following a longer process- and gotten them into place because going the traditional legislative route would have had Evers vetoing them.
But the process had them passing the amendment through two consecutive legislative sessions before it went to a statewide referendum to take effect.
There was a longer-and in fact ‘delayed’ process that allowed for public input, hearings, a two-step voting process in legislative bodies that held at least slightly different sets of members.
It is- more work- to get a constitutional amendment put in front of the voters for the legislature. Not less work.
Having some activist slobs collect some signatures and plop just about anything onto the ballot- because the law forces us to- is foolish.
And if other states want to do it that way- let em.
Why would we want to create an avenue which-either side of the extremes- could get their ‘direct ballot measures in front of the people?
It might sound good in theory- but
For every valuable or reasonable offering-there’d be 15 or 20 that would be just insane or stupid ideas-and at least some of them would pass- given how some of our elections go.
So, it’s legal to sucker-punch republicans now? Just in public? Or anywhere?
Yeah... I didn’t understand that question.
So, Wisconsin has a law that says all women must go topless, now? I voted wrong on that one, but shouldn’t we really have an age limit, or a weight restriction, on that one? It says, ‘all women’? Really? -
Aanndd....here come the misogynist emails. So, I’ll end there.
photo credit: Getty Images
audio version of the segment here > Evers looking to clear the way for liberal kooks
