Ed Flynn: 99.3% NO CONFIDENCE

The results are in.

Milwaukee Police Chief Ed Flynn received a no confidence vote of 99.3% from members of the Milwaukee Police Association.

Usually, the media give a lot of weight to actions by unions. In this case, however, there seems to be an effort to minimize the significance of the vote.

No surprise there, I suppose.

Video, from FOX6 News:

In a news conference Friday morning, the police union would not announce how many officers voted. But officials says it was a majority of the force. Union President Mike Crivello said many officers were too afraid of retribution to cast their ballots.

“We all know a ‘no confidence’ vote is not binding. But there absolutely is an expectation that the mayor’s office would take great notice, the Common Council, certainly the public safety committee and more so than anybody, the Fire and Police Commission would take notice that such a large majority of the force does not have confidence in their leadership,” said Crivello.

Former Milwaukee Mayor John Norquist gave his support to Flynn.

From 620WTMJ:

A no-confidence vote of Police Chief Edward Flynn is a 'badge of honor' for the chief, according to a former Milwaukee mayor.

"You want a chief that has enough courage, and stands up for what he/she believes in," John Norquist told Newsradio 620 WTMJ. "I don't think it's a poor reflection on Ed Flynn. I think Flynn is better than any police chief I ever appointed."

I don't remember the last time Norquist publicly commented on Milwaukee politics. Who cares what he thinks? Not me.

Tom Barrett reacted to the vote in typical Barrett fashion.

“This tactic by the leadership of the Milwaukee Police Association is not surprising. At a time when the citizens of Milwaukee are dealing with the aftermath of the Red Arrow Park shooting, the MPA leadership is trying to stoke a political fire. The brave men and women of the Milwaukee Police Department and the citizens of the Milwaukee deserve better. I have complete confidence in Police Chief Flynn and the hard-working members of the rank and file.”

Blame the MPA leadership.

This is a political matter, but I don't think it's necessarily politically motivated.

Isn't it possible that Milwaukee police officers aren't satisfied with Flynn's leadership?

Something may have political ramifications but that doesn't mean it's automatically nothing more than a political stunt.

If I had been able to cast a vote, I definitely would have voted no confidence in Flynn.

He's really changed. It's as if he's giving up.