Frederica Freyberg:

Here is what Republican senate majority leader, Scott Fitzgerald said about the package of election bills passed this week. These bills simply seek to update Wisconsin's campaign finance laws to match ever changing technology, reflect earlier primaries and insure uniformity between the practices of Wisconsin’s polling places in small towns and larger urban areas. Most of these bills were discussed, he says, at several points during this session, and many passed with bipartisan support. I also look forward to seeing how the courts rule on the state’s voter ID law and will certainly keep the door open for a possible special session on this issue.

We move across the aisle now to get the thoughts of assembly minority leader, Representative Peter Barca, who joins us from Kenosha. Thanks very much for doing so.

Peter Barca:

Good to be with you, Frederica. Thank you so much.

Frederica Freyberg:

Tell me what your reaction is to this raft of bills having to do with elections in Wisconsin.

Peter Barca:

Well, it’s astounding. I feel like I’m back working in central Asia almost. There have been, you know, probably half a dozen bills, all of which the primary intent is to try to restrict people’s voting rights. And it does almost exactly the opposite of what Senator Fitzgerald talks about, which is trying to update laws to take advantage of technology. And it’s so ironic as Republicans talk about, you know, running government like a business. Business try to take care of their customers. They try to look at what the trends are, find out how they can best accommodate their customers. We’re trying to make it harder for our customers to vote. If you don’t mind, I’m going to read just one quote that just sums up the way I feel, from a conservative newspaper, the Appleton Post Crescent. It says that Republicans generally are the party that benefits if voter suppression efforts go forward, but these are cynical, despicable maneuvers that speak to their disrespect for voters as well as their hypocrisy about their opposition to big government interference on issues of local control. That’s from a conservative newspaper. The Beloit Daily News was equally harsh. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel editorialized it on a couple of occasions. It is practically beyond comprehension that in this day and age, we’re trying to limit local control, disrespect voters and make it harder for them to get to the polls when we should be doing exactly the opposite. I think that’s why Scott Walker right now is tied in the polls. I think people are catching on to this extreme ideological right wing agenda that just does not fit with Wisconsin in our tradition to try to have open access to the ballots and to the polls.

Frederica Freyberg:

In the end, why do you think that, as you said, the other party wants to restrict people’s voting ability?

Peter Barca:

Well, I think clearly they view that it will give them a partisan advantage, just like when they had their secretive deals to bring forward partisan redistricting. And Ironically, The Beloit Daily News juxtaposed that saying, they don’t have time for the things people want, which is nonpartisan redistricting, but they have all the time in the world, according to The Beloit Daily News. It says, The majority has all the time in the world for their own self-interest, but does not have the time of day for measures with substantial backing among the citizenry. You know, one more exhibit, if that's exhibit A, exhibit B, is the governor stated, and legislative leaders, that if we come back in the session, it will be for one thing, and that’s to further restrict voting through voter ID. We won’t come back despite the fact that we’re 37th in jobs to try to help people back to work. We won’t come back for voter– for school accountability, which the governor, Speaker Vos, continually say they’re for. But we will come back to something, you know, to feather the nest of the Republican majority to make it easier for them to win elections. What a sad commentary on where Wisconsin is at currently.

Frederica Freyberg:

So if, in fact, the voter ID law doesn’t pass muster in the courts and lands back in the legislature in special session. In your mind, could there be enough tweaks to it to make it palatable for you?

Peter Barca:

You know, they show no interest at all in trying to work together with us to try and bring forward something sensible. In every term we’ve proposed ideas, whether it’s this early voting, whether it’s voter ID, whether it’s their bill to try to make it harder for people in nursing homes to even vote. But it’s just they constantly vote as a block, and it's no for a sensible idea, whether it comes from the editorial boards or whether it comes for the Democratic majority.

Frederica Freyberg:

I need to ask you, in about a minute left, about another measure that allows lobbyists to give money to candidates April 15th as opposed to the current June 1st, because primaries are earlier now in August. How do Democrats regard that bill?

Peter Barca:

It’s, again, almost unbelievable. You know, Wisconsin has had such a wonderful tradition of clean and open government. It’s something I revere as a citizen of this state when I travel the globe with my company. It was something that was always so proud. Wisconsin, unfortunately, over the last decade or so, has gone backwards. We’ve seen legislative leaders actually go to jail. Other people under indictment, John Doe investigations with the governor. And their solution is to now allow lobbyists to hand out checks while we’re still in session? I mean, it just smells to high heavens. It doesn’t meet the values that this great state believes in, which is clean, open and transparent government.

Frederica Freyberg:

We leave it there. Representative Peter Barca, thanks very much.

Peter Barca:

Thank you. I appreciate being on the show, Frederica.