10/22/2008 12:41:00 PM Endorsement Hometown News Group endorses the following ballot initiatives and candidates in the November 4
District 47 State Assembly -- As a small businessman operating a livestock and grain farm near Lodi, Keith Ripp is intimately familiar with the issues impacting small businesses: Health care costs, higher taxes and energy policy.
His experience as a member of the Town of Dane Board gives him a real background dealing with tax burdens and providing leadership at the local government level -- experience his opponents Trish O'Neil and Dennis Hruby really can't duplicate.
The agricultural point of view is desperately needed in Madison -- which is the reason why we believe Keith Ripp is the right choice in District 47. Vote Ripp on Nov. 4.
District 46 Assembly -- Incumbent Gary Hebl and challenger Kathy Maves differ on a wide variety of issues, but the most important is Healthy Wisconsin, the plan which would increase taxes over $15 billion and cut family wages by 14.5 percent,
Healthy Wisconsin will turn Wisconsin into a health care welfare state while giving illegal aliens free health care almost overnight. Hebl has been on both sides of the issue with Hometown News Group reporters but Maves said she will never support it.
Another area where they differ is on a bill which will allow children younger than 12 to hunt with adult supervision -- Hebl does not favor it, and Maves does.
Hebl's positions are major differences from what Main Street voters want -- and reasons why we support Kathy Maves in District 46.
District 2 Congressional Representative -- Republican challenger Peter Theron differs with his opponent, incumbent Democrat Rep. Tammy Baldwin, on several areas, but two specifically where they disagree are health care and the recently approved $700 billion economic rescue package.
While Baldwin defends her vote, Theron said the package does not go far enough, and instead backs a holiday on the capital gains tax as well as a cut in the corporate tax rate from 35 to 25 percent.
Theron also opposes any further federal involvement in health care -- mostly because, as he contends, socialized medicine has failed everywhere it has been tried.
Baldwin told the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel that if elected, she will make a health plan for all "a top priority."
We don't need government getting involved in health care and leaving us with a Wall Street scale mess in our health care system.
Vote for Peter Theron for Congress on Nov. 4.
County referendum question: Placed on the ballot at the behest of an apparently underworked Dane County Board of Supervisors, this advisory question asks voters whether or not health care coverage legislation should be enacted by Dec. 31, 2009 guaranteeing every state resident affordable health care coverage with benefits that are substantially similar to those provided to state legislators.
First of all, that county supervisors could even gin up such a question indicates they have way too much time on their hands.
Of course state residents should have the same or better coverage than state legislators - but we believe the cost to provide that coverage would be nearly cost-prohibitive to the average taxpayer and make Healthy Wisconsin look like a short trip to the clinic.
Even though this is an advisory referendum, we urge our readers to send a message to county board members by voting NO on Nov. 4 -- hopefully ensuring that no more of these useless advisory county referendum questions appear on local ballots.
Please vote: Those of you who are casting a ballot at the polls on Nov. 4 should take the time to look around at who is working there: high school students.
By encouraging and even paying high school students to become involved in the election process as workers, they gain a much more valuable insight into the process and appreciate their power to vote more than ever before.
Shouldn't their youthful enthusiasm be rubbing off on our older generations of voters?
Of course. But there are also those who do not want to vote because they don't care about the political system.
Worse, there are those who also believe that no matter who wins, nothing will change.
As ridiculous a notion as that is, it ignores the reality that every race generates a winner, and those winners inevitably put their stamp on government, whether it is a state, Congressional or presidential office they end up in.
Having the power to put them there means you will be putting your stamp on history by casting your ballot.
You can make a difference, and make history, by casting your ballot.
And with extended voting hours and absentee balloting, citizens can no longer use the excuse of inconvenience as a reason not to vote.
So don't just sit there -- be a citizen: Cast your ballot on or before November 4, and make history.
