Lawton bails out of Wis. governor's race

[elocs]

http://lacrossetribune.com/news/state-and-regional/article_f2e6f000-c24c-11de-870d-001cc4c002e0.html

MADISON - Democratic Lt. Gov. Barbara Lawton is stopping her campaign for governor and will not run.

Lawton released an e-mail to supporters today saying that she will not run because of "very personal reasons.'' The message did not go into further detail and her campaign spokesman did not immediately return a message seeking comment.

Lawton was the most prominent Democrat to have declared their candidacy to replace incumbent Gov. Jim Doyle, who announced in August that he would not seek a third term. Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett has been considering running but has not yet announced.

The most prominent Republican candidates include Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker and former U.S. Rep. Mark Neumann.

[dembotoz]

1. oh no

was looking forward to working for her.
other choices leave me cold.

[undeterred]

2. Oh, I am so sorry.

I hope she's ok.

[undeterred]

3. Obama team likes Barrett for governor

As Mayor Tom Barrett dilly-dallies over whether he should run for governor next year, he now must take this into consideration: The White House badly wants him to enter the race for Wisconsin's top job. They want to keep Wisconsin in Democratic hands," said one top adviser to Barrett. "They see Tom as the best way to do that."

Certainly, it doesn't hurt that Barrett was one of the first Democrats in the state to get behind President Barack Obama. He even drove to Iowa with his son last year to campaign for Obama in Dubuque and Des Moines during the primary.

So close is the tie between the two that Obama and Vice President Joe Biden each called the veteran Milwaukee Democrat while he was in the hospital two months ago recovering from an assault near State Fair Park, an incident that drew national headlines.

But the president's team isn't leaning on Barrett to run just because of some personal fondness for the guy, say those close to the mayor. Instead, White House officials have been privy to some private poll numbers that show Barrett beating either of the two main Republican contenders, Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker or former U.S. Rep. Mark Neumann.

http://www.jsonline.com/watchdog/noquarter/65957092.html

I wonder if Lawton was pressured to drop out of the race for Governor... and I wonder if she will still be Lt. Governor.

[dembotoz]

4. this is not going to sit well with many of my friends in the party

will they vote for barrett
prob yes considering the alternatives on the repub side

will they work for barrett
yeah prob

will they work HARD for barrett
that is the question

[Massacure]

5. What's wrong with Barrett?

He got beat up trying to help somebody. That's got to say something about his character...

[PeaceNikki]

6. I, for one, like Barrett quite a bit.

And I hope he runs.

[dembotoz]

8. barrett will do i guess

and that is the problem

he will do

Lawton had me excited.....

[Dinger]

7. I Think She Was Pressured

And it's happened before. I'll just stop right there. I'm sorry to hear this. I'm about to go on a discrimination rant.

[ewagner]

9. Heard on the radio

this morning that Falk "won't rule out" running......

Barrett is okay as far as I'm concerned I just hope we can go united instead of forming another circular firing squad.

[TheMightyFavog]

11. Dammit, Falk ruined one election for us already.

Can't she leave well enough alone?

[Dinger]

12. No Shit

she sure did. doyle didn't help either.

[Jackpine Radical]

23. Ruined two elections, by my count.

She got Doyle past Barrett in '82 by dividing the anti-Doyle vote.

[undeterred]

10. Lawton talks about decision to drop out

Published : Tuesday, 27 Oct 2009, 10:32 AM CDT

By SCOTT BAUER, Associated Press Writer
MADISON (AP) - Democratic Lt. Gov. Barbara Lawton broke her silence Tuesday about why she abruptly dropped out of the governor's race, denying rumors that she had been pressured by the White House to leave or that she was ill.

Lawton, in an exclusive interview with The Associated Press, reiterated that her decision to leave was a personal one reached with her husband, two adult children and other family members.

"It's a very personal decision," she said in the phone interview. "I actually don't want to comment further on it. ... I'm proud of what we did and I'm disappointed to end it and I'm excited about life ahead."

Lawton ruled out a run for lieutenant governor, a post she's held since 2002, and said a future campaign was "highly unlikely."

Lawton did address rumors that have run rampant since her three paragraph e-mail announcing her departure from the race was sent to supporters and posted on her campaign Web site Monday morning. She did not speak publicly all day Monday, her Capitol office was closed, and her campaign staff did not return phone calls.

That silence, and the unexpectedness of the decision, led to widespread rumors about why Lawton would bail on the race after she was so anxious to enter it. She's talked about running for governor for years and announced her candidacy on the same day in August that Gov. Jim Doyle, also a Democrat, announced he would not seek a third term.

Lawton said she had not spoken with anyone in the White House or in Congress about leaving the race. "The White House did not contact me," she said.

Because her e-mail on Monday said she was leaving due to "very personal reasons," many wondered if she were sick. "I am in good health," Lawton said Tuesday.

Lawton also denied that she got out due to poor fundraising, saying "things were going well." When asked how much money she had raised in the 10 weeks of her campaign, Lawton said she did not have the figures and they didn't matter now that she had dropped out.

Lawton, 58, also addressed rumors that her decision to drop out was due to trouble with her marriage. "Those are the grossest rumors," she said. "I was deeply offended. We are about to celebrate our 36th wedding anniversary. We have a wonderful family who are very much a part of the life decisions. It was an outrageous, crude extraordinary rumor."

Lawton said she understands that people struggle with trying to comprehend what she means by it being a "personal decision."

"A decision to run for office is a very personal decision and a family decision," she said. Because it is such a personal decision, Lawton said she has not encouraged any other Democrats to get into the race and does not intend to lobby anyone to do it.

Lawton's departure from the race leaves the Democrats with no major announced candidate. U.S. Rep. Ron Kind bowed out in September and Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett is still deciding.

Pressure on Barrett to get in is growing. Barrett on Monday said he expected to make a decision soon and that Lawton's depature points to the need for a candidate to emerge quickly. He also did not deny reports that he had been contacted by officials with the White House about running.

The governor's race is wide open next year for the first time in 28 years and despite Lawton's departure, Democratic Party leaders have said they expect there to be many candidates.

A pair of Republicans - Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker and former U.S. Rep. Mark Neumann - have been running for months.

http://www.fox11online.com/dpp/news/wis_ap_madison_lawton_talks_200910271031_rev1

This doesn't add up. :shrug:

[Dinger]

13. Some asshole From Green Bay Tried To Start A Rumor & Had To Retract It

fucking idiot. I won't dignify it by mentioning it, but google it if you want. I hope she sues the fuck out of this asshole.

[undeterred]

14. I heard it and I don't believe it.

This smells like Doyle and the good ol' boys deciding they know whats best for Wisconsin. Doyle meddled in the AG election and we ended up with Van Hollen.

Barrett will run for sure. Nothing against Barrett, but we should have had a choice of strong candidates.

[Dinger]

15. And I Don't Like Coronations Either

The white House could have kept their distance, ay least until late in the primaries or after, but they sort of preempted that. I don't like it either.
And doyle did fuck up the AG election; you are absolutely correct.

Edited to add, I like Barrett too, a lot in fact. I have not made up my mind who I like. Something does not smell right here. I think it will come out too.

[undeterred]

16. There aren't really that many other people who can raise

the huge amount of money needed to run a statewide race and win. There are some good Democrats in our state legislature who could be Governor, but you have to have enough visibility to raise the support. And its a bad year for raising money.

[ewagner]

18. Agree 100% n/t

[midnight]

17. What are the big issues for this race? Economy? Has Scott Walker improved

the economy for Milwaukee co.? Or has he caused the county more hardships? It will be interesting to see the direction the issues take this race.....

[Jimbo S]

21. I think THE big issue will be the budget

A lot of people didn't care for the way Doyle handled matters - nickel and diming through fees, shifting money around. Whoever the Republicans nominate, that person will be the clear choice for those voters who prefer budget cuts.

[undeterred]

19. John Nichols: Lawton’s exit a serious blow for Democrats

Democratic Party of Wisconsin Chairman Mike Tate did his very, most sincere, super-duper, honest-to-goodness best to put the news that Lt. Gov. Barbara Lawton was quitting the 2010 gubernatorial race in a good light.

But as capable as Tate may be of placing the best spin on things, his response to Lawton's Monday announcement that she was leaving the race "for very personal reasons" did not inspire confidence.

"As lieutenant governor, Barbara Lawton's commitment to Wisconsin families has been untiring. Over the past seven years she has worked in innovative ways to create jobs, conserve our environmental resources, promote the arts and catalyze progress for women. Lt. Gov. Lawton will surely continue to be a leader for Wisconsinites throughout the remaining 14 months of her term, and we thank her for her dedicated service to our state," Tate declared, lavishing more praise on Lawton than she had ever enjoyed from Democratic Party insiders when she was a prospective candidate.

Now that Lawton is leaving the race - after months of being dismissed and discouraged by Democratic insiders associated with the administration and political team of outgoing Gov. Jim Doyle - Democrats who actually worry about retaining the governor's office next year are suddenly waking up to the fact that they might have made a serious mistake. While they never liked the lieutenant governor's independent streak or her progressive politics, the savvier of the top Democrats recognize that the lieutenant governor was precisely the sort of high-profile contender the party needed in a contest that suddenly seems unsettlingly empty - and potentially disastrous for a party that has pretty much dominated state politics since former Republican Gov. Tommy Thompson left the scene in 2001.

Of course, Tate was not saying that. It was his job to talk up the party. And he did his best.

"We look forward to a competitive governor's race and a robust debate - one that will hold Scott Walker, Mark Neumann and any other Republican candidates accountable for their records of failure," said the young party chair as his aides hustled to set up interviews where he could propel the hopeful spin. "One thing is for certain - last fall, the people of Wisconsin chose the Democratic Party to lead our state through the worst economic downturn in two generations, and Wisconsinites will once again look to Democrats for leadership next November."

If those words read a little more hopeful than certain, well, that's because the party has entered the wilderness when it comes to the 2010 race. Doyle's determination to define the contest to replace him - or, more precisely, to define Lawton out of it - has left the party looking weak and hollow.

Yes, of course, Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett may run for the Democratic nod he lost to Doyle in 2002. Doyle, whose administration famously rejected Barrett backers as potential appointees, is now talking up the mayor. But Barrett's Hamlet act has not helped the mayor or the party; he's been too slow and uncertain about making the gubernatorial race that Lawton was so ready and willing to run.

To be sure, Barrett's an appealing figure. He's an affable progressive who earned high marks as one of the first big-city mayors in the country to endorse Barack Obama for the 2008 Democratic presidential nod. But that won't be enough to unite a party that, with Lawton's exit, has taken a far more serious blow than most top Democrats recognize. Lawton's appeal was to the grass-roots party activists who actually do the hard work of campaigning, and to the base constituencies that must turn out in high numbers to win those campaigns.

If Barrett does run, he will have his work cut out for him. He won't just have to catch up with Republican front-runner Scott Walker, who is running a smart, muscular campaign. Barrett will have to begin by patching together a divided and increasingly dysfunctional Democratic Party, which just chewed up and spat out a statewide official who had worked tirelessly - and largely thanklessly - to keep disparate factions and individuals working with one another.

Barrett, or whoever the Democratic nominee in 2010 turns out to be, will have to restore the unity and confidence of a party that, just a year ago, seemed so very unified and confident. Step one: Call Barbara Lawton and get her on board. Even if she is no longer a candidate, Lawton retains the residue of grass-roots goodwill that Democrats must tap to be competitive in 2010.

http://host.madison.com/ct/news/opinion/column/john_nichols/article_dfcda634-341f-5e06-aead-3cc0a10ba82d.html

[dembotoz]

20. that about sums it up

[undeterred]

22. For Barbara Lawton I would have put in some serious campaign effort.

For Doyle, I picked up a free yard sign and stuck it in the lawn.

[wintoursghost]

24. Complain to FCC about Jerry Bader

This is about a radio station, that uses a public license- which we provide, to report biased and intimidating smears.
WTAQ needs to be held accountable. Hit them where it hurts..question the license, and why they allowed this to be broadcast.
You can read the offensive comments by Googling "Jerry Bader Lawton"

Complaints to the FCC () are:
http://esupport.fcc.gov/complaints.htm

The above takes you to file a complaint online.

You can phone the FCC and file a compaint.
1-888-225-5322)

Federal Communications Commission
Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau
Consumer Complaints
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Washington, D.C. 20554