The Daily Mil

For Gov. Scott Walker, State Rep. Brett Hulsey is the gift that keeps on giving. In running against Walker’s Democratic opponent, Mary Burke, in the Aug. 12 primary, Hulsey’s antics created a sideshow that, depending on your point of view, were either refreshingly madcap or simply offensive. During the state Republican party convention in May, the rogue Democrat from Madison dropped a plan to hand out Ku Klux Klan hoods and instead dressed up like a Confederate soldier, yellow bandanna and all. He ended up winning just shy of 52,000 votes statewide, in a primary where crossover votes are possible…

Good morning, and welcome to Monday. The Archdiocese of Milwaukee and sex abuse victims are meeting with a mediator this week. The Journal Sentinel says two things are likely to happen: “Abuse survivors will undoubtedly push for more than the $3 million-plus they were offered…and the archdiocese appears reluctant to budge.” Mike Gousha wonders why there’s so little talk in this year’s governor’s race about the $680 deficit in the transportation budget on this week’s “UpFront.” Atlanta Hawks co-owner Bruce Levenson is selling the team after a racist email he sent has come to light. The Atlanta Journal-Contitution published the email, and…

What we’re reading on this Friday morning. The Journal Sentinel is reporting in a blog post that “two of Milwaukee’s insane killers” have been denied release from secure custody.  About 27,000 of the people who lost coverage when Wisconsin’s Badgercare program shrank will have a second opportunity to buy coverage through the state’s federally administered health insurance exchange, the State Journal says. A new study has debunked fears that bras increase the risk of breast cancer, according to U.S. News and World Report. More news on the new largest dinosaur ever found, the aptly named Dreadnoughtus. It appears to have…

Coffee not enough for you? Our Morning Links will get your engine started. Where can you experience Native American music and dance, see Indian ponies and eat fry bread? Indian Summer, of course — held on the Summerfest grounds this weekend (Sept. 5-7). It’s eye candy Thursday. Yahoo Style has a new website! See it here.  The Green Bay Packers start their regular season tonight, when they square off against the Seattle Seahawks. Read this if you’re already chomping at the bit. Milwaukee fast food workers are joining the national minimum wage protest today. One of the protest location is…

What about private sector unions? As the U.S. moves close to becoming a country where the majority of states prohibit mandatory union membership and dues – making each a so-called “right to work” state – questions persist as to whether Gov. Scott Walker, who vastly weakened public employee unions in the state, could do the same in the private sector. During the 2010 campaign, he rejected the idea, but as his skills in political speech have deepened, he’s grown more ambiguous. During a recall debate, Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett accused Walker of having nowhere to go on the issue: He couldn’t veto…

Before you head out with your shades in tow, check out today’s Morning Links. President Barack Obama is sending 350 more military personnel to Iraq, reports CBS.  Here’s what Duck Dynasty star, Phil Robertson, thinks about ISIS.  Here’s a White House blog covering the President’s remarks at Milwaukee’s Labor Fest. Milwaukee teachers are among the highest paid in the nation, states a new study. Walkers Point could be home to a new, two-story retail (and possibly apartment) building. General Mitchell International Airport has a shiny, renovated baggage claim area. 

We have a feeling we’re not the only ones ill-prepared for this summer’s end.  The President was in town for yesterday’s Labor Fest, and he used the opportunity to call for an increase in the minimum wage.  Tom Nardelli, Gov. Walker’s chief-of-staff during the County Executive days and former alderman, has passed away at the age of 70.  Urban Milwaukee asks, could Milwaukee be the next Ferguson?   Thirty-two teenagers escaped a detention center in Nashville.  Former House Majority leader Eric Cantor has taken a job at a 7-year-old Wall Street firm. 

What we’re reading on this Friday morning. An FBI report blasts the former head of the Milwaukee office, Teresa Carlson. We once did a Q&A with Carlson. Paul Ryan supports cutting “corporate welfare” and increasing the Earned Income Tax Credit but not raising the minimum wage to $10.10 an hour, according to the Journal Times in Racine. The LA Times describes Walker v. Burke as the tightest gubernatorial race in the country. Are scientists doing enough to analyze and share the reams of Big Data they’re collecting? Wired doesn’t think so. Meanwhile, Google engineers are attempting to develop a drone…

You have coffee. You may have some sort of edible, too, be it Cocoa Puffs or a bagel and cream cheese. What’s missing? Morning Links! President Obama is paying a visit to Milwaukee on Labor Day, according to a spokesperson for Mayor Barrett. Pewaukee Mexican restaurant Seester’s sustained damage in an early Thursday morning fire. Read more here. If you missed the “Friends” reunion on Wednesday night’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live,” you can watch it here. Diane Sawyer signed off her last “ABC World News Tonight” on Wednesday. Her replacement is David Muir, anchor of “20/20.” In happier news this morning,…

While many an armchair operative has decried Mary Burke for running a moderate and largely non-populist campaign, another within-the-margin-of-error poll shows the former businesswoman racing neck and neck with Republican Gov. Scott Walker as we head into tumultuous waters of September. While, months ago, Burke’s portrayal of herself as a jobs creator may have seemed reactionary, like trying to steal the governor’s script (of “creating jobs and moving Wisconsin forward”), a marginal question in the Marquette Poll spells trouble for the Walker camp, notwithstanding the margin of error. Is Burke beating Walker at his own favorite conversation? Interestingly, it’s not…