Daniel Bice and the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "willing partners" in the Democrat-Union-Media Complex, dropped an October surprise a couple of days ago - news of a "SUPER-SECRET REPORT."
I kid you not - a "SUPER-SECRET REPORT."
County finances on brink, report says
Bice writes:
Milwaukee County government is in such dire financial shape that state lawmakers should push through legislation that would allow it and other local governments to file for bankruptcy.
That's one of several recommendations included in a super-secret report drafted by the Greater Milwaukee Committee last month. This group of movers and shakers has decided to hold off releasing the details until after next month's election.
But a copy of the report's draft executive summary obtained by No Quarter shows the powerful committee is looking to recommend doing away with the elected county executive's post, slicing county worker benefits and spinning off the zoo, the bus system, the parks and much else under separate commissions.
If these dramatic steps - or something like them - aren't taken county government will collapse, the draft report suggests. In fact, in just six years, the report estimates, the county's pension and health care obligations will eat up every dollar raised through the county tax levy.
"The short-term 'solutions' and one-time 'fixes' have been exhausted," it says. "Without real reform, the County will be forced to eliminate whole areas of service to our community."
The report also puts it this way:
"If we don't make changes today, the future looks grim. Parks will close, bus routes will end and families in distress will not get the help they need. Our Milwaukee will grow smaller and smaller as people and companies leave."
A summary of the "SUPER-SECRET REPORT" just happened to land in the hands of Dan Bice three weeks before the election.
Isn't that amazing?
What a coinky-dink!
We need some investigative reporting here.
Who put the "SUPER-SECRET REPORT" in Bice's hands?
How did "No Quarter" obtain it?
There's no question that this is meant to damage Scott Walker, Milwaukee County Executive, in his race against Tom Barrett for governor of Wisconsin.
We know it came from someone on Team Barrett.
My question for Bice: When did you obtain the "SUPER-SECRET REPORT"?
According to "a Milwaukee PR executive who sits on the committee," H. Carl Mueller, "the group has been working on the plan for many months."
So when did Bice obtain it and from whom?
Of course, we should look for the union label when it comes to the delivery of the "SUPER-SECRET REPORT."
...Members of the 32-member committee - composed of business leaders with ties to Republicans and Democrats - decided jointly at their September meeting to sit on the recommendations for a couple of months.
For one, Mueller said, the group wasn't done working on the recommendations, though he acknowledged that most of the recent changes amount to fine-tuning the details. The panel hopes to present its ideas to civic and business groups before officially releasing the report.
But there were other factors taken into consideration as well.
"We don't want this to become some sort of political football during the fall election campaigns," said Mueller, who generally is supportive of Democrats.
"Given that we've been at this for a year, it doesn't make a big difference to us whether it is (released) this month or next month as far as what we're trying to accomplish," he continued. "But we are mindful of the fact that we're in the thick of a very hard-fought political campaign."
Did Grebe have a hand in making sure the report - which could be used against Walker - didn't come out before the Nov. 2 election?
"It's a fair question," Grebe said Friday.
But it was Julia Taylor, president of the committee, who recommended delaying release of the report, Grebe said. He then presented it to the full board, which agreed.
"The group - and it truly was a group decision - felt this report would get lost in the commotion of the election year, and it would be more effective for us to release after the election," Grebe said.
Mueller added that Grebe has been very careful about not mixing his roles. Besides, Mueller noted, the committee has several members close to Barrett, including lawyer Marc Marotta, a former top aide to Democratic Gov. Jim Doyle, and Jill Morin of Kahler Slater Architects. Mueller said no one used their political affiliations to influence the direction of the draft report.
"They don't bring politics into that meeting," Mueller said. "They're really focused on, 'How do we get this to happen in the best way possible?' "
Not surprisingly, Barrett's campaign jumped at the chance to use the draft recommendations as "a stunning indictment" of Walker's eight years at the county's helm.
The "SUPER-SECRET REPORT" is no longer under wraps.
SURPRISE!
Oh, yes.
"Barrett's campaign jumped at the chance to use the draft recommendations as 'a stunning indictment' of Walker's eight years at the county's helm."
Imagine that! "A stunning indictment" of Walker's eight years has surfaced, and Barrett's campaign had no idea of the report's existence.
Of course not!
But Phil Walzak was poised to jump.
Sure.
Actually, I think Walker should jump. If not for Walker at Milwaukee County's helm, the county would be in far, far worse shape.
...Walker said the draft recommendations are consistent with what he has been saying since he was first elected county CEO in 2002.
Specifically, the GOP nominee said he has repeatedly said the county's wages and benefits are out of control and need to be reined in. He even suggested the business committee didn't go far enough in its recommendations for improving the county's condition.
"We made it better," Walker said Friday. "But I've suggested for the last couple of years that when you have the only county in the state that is fully incorporated, a better long-term solution is to eliminate that extra layer and find a replacement for that."
Exactly.
Then, there's this:
Neither campaign had seen a copy of the draft summary until shown one Friday.
I think that all depends on what the meaning of "campaign" is.
Did Barrett's union allies see it before Friday?
Did Bice see it before Friday?
We know without a doubt that Democrats Greater Milwaukee Committee members Marc Marotta and Jill Morin saw it.
This October surprise is a bust.
We know Tom Barrett's record and we know Scott Walker's record.
Our only hope to climb out of this fiscal mess is to put Scott Walker, the reform candidate, in office as governor of Wisconsin.
"SUPER-SECRET REPORT" - What a joke!
___________________
Statement from GMC President Julia Taylor
Released October 11, 2010:
The Greater Milwaukee Committee has been closely monitoring the fiscal and structural challenges facing Milwaukee County. As part of that effort, we commissioned an in-depth study and report by the Public Policy Forum, which was publicly released earlier this year.
Over the last few months, the GMC has been working to bring together a broad-based coalition to identify solutions to the challenges identified in the report. The initial recommendations of the Initiative have not been officially released because it remains in draft form. It is being reviewed, discussed and altered based upon feedback from a broad cross-section of community leaders, advocacy organizations and elected officials.
It is important to clarify that there are no additional reports or details that are not public. The draft recommendations were developed based upon findings from a series of Public Policy Forum reports. All of these reports are public and the recommendations that have been circulated are not an executive summary or overview of a larger report.
We will continue to meet with business, civic and community leaders, to get feedback on the recommendations and ask for support and commitment to the coalition.
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