I made it into the paper:

http://www.wisinfo.com/postcrescent/news/archive/local_17403683.shtml

Petri is interviewed in the end of the article. Here's a quote:

"He said he has pushed the direct student loan program and he was an original Republican sponsor of national charter school legislation."

I guess he doesn't read the paper much if he is wants to point out his leadership in Charter Schools:

Data from the U.S. Department of Education find children in charter schools under-performing those in public schools.
http://www.npr.org/features/feature.php?wfId=3856701

Bad News on the Charter Front
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/08/18/opinion/18wed1.html

Almost one-third of Minnesota's charter schools are regularly violating state law by failing to turn in financial audits on time
http://www.startribune.com/stories/462/4925069.html

Charter schools earn no A's Traditional public schools in area did better on official report cards
http://www.mlive.com/news/aanews/index.ssf?/base/news-9/1092408174200980.xml

National data publicized this week showing that the performance of charter schools largely lags behind that of regular public schools, even when taking into account race, income and geography
http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/news/9436669.htm?1c

The state of California has shut down a private company that runs some 60 charter schools.
http://www.npr.org/features/feature.php?wfId=3855681



Petri represents Wisconsin on the committee overseeing education, yet I understand his daughter has never attended either a public school, or a school in Wisconsin.

I am a product of the Wisconsin Public School System. I am proud of the education I received at Princeton Public Schools. It gave me a sense of intellectual curiosity that has kept me learning for a lifetime.

-jef-

- "American military forces in Iraq will operate under American command." - President Bush 5/24/04
http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2004/05/20040524-10.html

- "as a matter of U.S. sovereignty, American troops must never serve under United Nations command" - 2000 Republican Party Platform Endorsed by President Bush
http://www.fpa.org/topics_info2414/topics_info_show.htm?doc_id=43593

- regarding the problem of Moqtada Sadr and his militia, that a Marine spokesman says, "We'll continue operations as the prime minister [Ayad Allawi] sees fit."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A9781-2004Aug17.html

But it is OK to put them Under Iraqi command?

FBI Tracks Potential GOP Protesters
FBI, New York Police Track People They Say Might Cause Trouble at the Republican Convention

http://abcnews.go.com/wire/Politics/ap20040816_1394.html

Remember this - we are wasting time investigating American protest groups. If there is an incident at the Republican Convention, did we really do everything possible to avoid it?

Is this ignoring flight schools all over again?

Not to mention how this tramples on the right to free speech and to assemble. It is counter-productive to the war on terror.

-jef-

It is a great time to be a Democrat in the 6th District!

Hello! I wanted to make sure that everyone knew about the many upcoming events in the next week or so here in the Fox Valley & the Lakefront!

It is very important that we support our local parties, as I’m sure everyone knows, but it is also important to support the other county parties as well. Plus, what a great way to meet other Democrats!

I have traveled all over the area in the last two months. And whether I was in Sheboygan, Fond du Lac, Two Rivers, Waupaca, Manitowoc, Menasha, Neenah, Plymouth, Watertown, Appleton, Oshkosh (get it….?), I can tell you that Wisconsin is full of great Democrats.

So, here is a quick overview of some upcoming events, please attend as many as possible. I’ll be at all of them, so come talk to me, and meet other like-minded people! I have included websites where I have them, or call/email me for more info:

August 20, 7:00 - $7.50
Beer & Cheese Night Fundraiser (need we say more?)
Manitowoc County Democrats
Cabin 2, Lincoln Park – Manitowoc
www.mantydems.com

August 21, 1:00 - $7.50
Corn Roast Fundraiser (best corn roast in Wisconsin!)
Winnebago County Democrats
Winnebago County Park – Hwy 76 & Y
Shelter-house 1, Oshkosh
www.focol.org/wdparty/

August 21, 2:00
Office Opening (chips, dip & Feingold, too!)
Fond du Lac County Democrats
23 S Main St, Fond du Lac
www.fdldems.com

August 23, 5:00 – $7.50
Corn Roast Fundraiser(best corn roast in Wisconsin!)
Outagamie County Democrats
Sunset Park, Kimberly
www.outagamiedems.org

August 24, 5:30
Brat Fry (come for a Wisconsin original!)
Calumet County Democrats
Eagles Club - 1041 E Chestnut St, Chilton


August 28, 12:00 Noon
Sounds by the Sundial (12 Bands, beer & burgers!)
Organized by the Winnebago County Democratic Party
Grand Opera Square, Oshkosh
Call Bill Schwulst for details – 920.642.3642

All of these are going to be great! Please come on out, meet and support your local democrat efforts.

As there are updates, I will post them to my website – www.jef4wi.com. Click on Events for more details.

This is a great year to be a Democrat. Why? People want to be Democrats this year. We just need to give them a reason why. Please, grab your fence-sitting friends and bring them out!

Get a-hold of me at anytime!

-jef-

Here's a neat link:

http://www.opensecrets.org/politicians/expendetail.asp?CID=N00004426&cycle=2002&name=Anne+Petri%2C+Washington%2C+DC

This is an expenditure that Tom Petri made to his wife from his campaign. Nothing illegal or anything, just interesting.

You see, by law you have to put where the person lives. Tom Petri's campaign considers her address as in Washington DC, not Fond du Lac, WI.

Shouldn't their own campaign consider them Wisconsin residents if they are representing us?

-jef-

My post for today is simply someone else's words, but they are important to remember - never let anyone intimidate you not to vote.....

If you feel you are, contact your local party, we will help.

August 16, 2004

Suppress the Vote?
By BOB HERBERT
The big story out of Florida over the weekend was the tragic devastation caused by Hurricane Charley. But there's another story from Florida that deserves our attention.
State police officers have gone into the homes of elderly black voters in Orlando and interrogated them as part of an odd "investigation" that has frightened many voters, intimidated elderly volunteers and thrown a chill over efforts to get out the black vote in November.

The officers, from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, which reports to Gov. Jeb Bush, say they are investigating allegations of voter fraud that came up during the Orlando mayoral election in March.

Officials refused to discuss details of the investigation, other than to say that absentee ballots are involved. They said they had no idea when the investigation might end, and acknowledged that it may continue right through the presidential election.

"We did a preliminary inquiry into those allegations and then we concluded that there was enough evidence to follow through with a full criminal investigation," said Geo Morales, a spokesman for the Department of Law Enforcement.

The state police officers, armed and in plain clothes, have questioned dozens of voters in their homes. Some of those questioned have been volunteers in get-out-the-vote campaigns.
I asked Mr. Morales in a telephone conversation to tell me what criminal activity had taken place.

"I can't talk about that," he said.

I asked if all the people interrogated were black.

"Well, mainly it was a black neighborhood we were looking at - yes,'' he said.

He also said, "Most of them were elderly."

When I asked why, he said, "That's just the people we selected out of a random sample to interview."

Back in the bad old days, some decades ago, when Southern whites used every imaginable form of chicanery to prevent blacks from voting, blacks often fought back by creating voters leagues, which were organizations that helped to register, educate and encourage black voters. It became a tradition that continues in many places, including Florida, today.

Not surprisingly, many of the elderly black voters who found themselves face to face with state police officers in Orlando are members of the Orlando League of Voters, which has been very successful in mobilizing the city's black vote.

The president of the Orlando League of Voters is Ezzie Thomas, who is 73 years old. With his demonstrated ability to deliver the black vote in Orlando, Mr. Thomas is a tempting target for supporters of George W. Bush in a state in which the black vote may well spell the difference between victory and defeat.

The vile smell of voter suppression is all over this so-called investigation by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.

Joseph Egan, an Orlando lawyer who represents Mr. Thomas, said: "The Voters League has workers who go into the community to do voter registration, drive people to the polls and help with absentee ballots. They are elderly women mostly. They get paid like $100 for four or five months' work, just to offset things like the cost of their gas. They see this political activity as an important contribution to their community. Some of the people in the community had never cast a ballot until the league came to their door and encouraged them to vote."

Now, said Mr. Egan, the fear generated by state police officers going into people's homes as part of an ongoing criminal investigation related to voting is threatening to undo much of the good work of the league. He said, "One woman asked me, 'Am I going to go to jail now because I voted by absentee ballot?' "

According to Mr. Egan, "People who have voted by absentee ballot for years are refusing to allow campaign workers to come to their homes. And volunteers who have participated for years in assisting people, particularly the elderly or handicapped, are scared and don't want to risk a criminal investigation."

Florida is a state that's very much in play in the presidential election, with some polls showing John Kerry in the lead. A heavy-handed state police investigation that throws a blanket of fear over thousands of black voters can only help President Bush.

The long and ugly tradition of suppressing the black vote is alive and thriving in the Sunshine State.