PAGE 8 - INTER-COUNTY LEADER - NEWS SECTION - A - MARCH 30, 2016
C O N V E R S A T I O N S
Since 1933
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Candidate responds, clarifies I would like to respond to some statements published in last week’s profiles of candidates running for the Polk County Board of Supervisors. “She (Kathryn Kienholz) says that her opponent (Chris Nelson) would not be good for the county.” My response: I believe I would be great for the county because I bring exactly what Kienholz wants, a balance of good development to expand our economy and conservation tactics to keep our lakes and river ways clean. I have been implementing proper mitigation for
all lakeshore projects for the past 16 years and will continue to push the environmental preservation along with economic growth. “He (Chris Nelson) wants to work to get a WITC facility in the county.” My response: I want to make clear that I want to bring a WITC facility to Polk County but not on the additional dime of the residents. In 2013, we paid WITC $4,975,000 in taxes to help them expand their campuses in other counties. In 2015, we paid WITC $1,525,900 to do the same thing. It is time that our tax dollars stop going to other counties to further their expansions and keep our tax dollars in house to promote ours. With the amount of money we send out to educational facilities, we
deserve to have one more local and accessible for our students. “He (Chris Nelson) wants to talk to Rep. Adam Jarchow and Sen. Sheila Harsdorf and tell them, ‘You must fight for us.’ Nelson says he wants to use leverage by working with them and asking them, ‘How can you help us?’” My response: I believe Jarchow and Harsdorf are both fighting for us already and are doing an outstanding job. I support both of them and want to continue working together to tackle future issues. Chris Nelson Town of Milltown
POLITICAL LETTERS Letters to the editor regarding political races should be limited to 400 words (longer letters may be published at the discretion of the editor), should contain no personal attacks and if endorsing a candidate should state an issue or issues as to why the writer favors that candidate. The same applies when being critical of a candidate - it must be based on issues. Letter writers should provide sources for their claims. We reserve the right to limit publication to one letter per person or group per month. We may not publish some letters if we feel an organized campaign is attempting to flood the opinion pages with letters for a particular candidate and likewise, we will not publish letters that make serious charges against a candidate, especially close to election day, when there is a limited opportunity for us to fact check the claims or for the candidate to respond. Since the Leader is published once a week, some letters may be published on our website and not in our printed edition, in an attempt to allow for timely response. We urge writers to keep the discussion civil. Any letter deemed as a personal attack or nasty in general won’t be published. - Editor
LETTER FROM THE EDITOR
The process evolves ... or does it? This year’s spring election will
either see a record number of us going to the polls next Tuesday ... or just the opposite. If the incredibly entertaining and sometimes irritating and insulting presidential race gets more people involved, then there is something to take away from the mess. In researching historical information last week for a story on JFK’s brief visit to Northwest Wisconsin during the 1960 primary election - perhaps the last successful presidential candidate to travel our back roads - it was interesting to see a vintage front page of a Virginia newspaper which included the following headlines: “Hubert Calls Jack Little Boy” and “Stop Kennedy Movement is Shrugged Off.” There was name-calling and movements to stop candidates in 1960 and it can be assumed in other presidential races over the years. How soon we hope to forget. Kennedy has been described by historians as a candidate who went “over the heads of the backroom bosses” and played directly to his popularity with voters, characterizing himself as the underdog, and avoiding debates with the fast- and smooth-talking Hubert Humphrey. He didn’t have to beg for money, as his father bankrolled much of
the campaign to the point of suspicion and allegations of vote buying in Virginia and Chicago. There was dodging of rumors and accusations of questionable behavior. History has not been kind to Kennedy’s reputation and it’s likely he would have not survived as a candidate today. Or perhaps he would have thrived. It’s unfair to compare candidates from now and nearly 60 years ago but there’s plenty of similarities in the overall process ... if anyone cares. 2016 offers its own brand of drama. Gov. Scott Walker and Congressman Paul Ryan are on a speculative list of potential candidates for the GOP ticket. That’s how sketchy this political year has become. It should be particularly interesting to see how voters in our area not only turn out but how they vote. How many local Tea Party followers are anxious to cast a bal-
lot for Ted Cruz and how many in general will back Donald Trump? We need to implement our own exit poll. Hopefully not overlooked are the local contests for county board, school board, village board and state Supreme Court. We’ve attempted to educate our readers as to where the contested races are and where the candidates stand. Our website contains a link to information on the state Supreme Court candidates as well as a list of local contested races as outlined in earlier print issues. This week we follow up with local candidate profiles. And there are no letters to the editor pertaining to Tuesday’s election aside from one letter - in accordance with our policy stating our letters section in this - the final issue prior to the election - is reserved for candidates themselves wishing to clarify or respond to information previously published here about their stances on issues. Our website (leadernewsroom. com) will be the forum between now and Tuesday for any candidate wishing to respond or clarify their views. Take time to take part in the process on Tuesday. And gratitude goes out to those local candidates who, with little noise, are taking on an important role and serving their communities by simply running. - Gary King
The Inter-County Leader was established in 1933 by the Inter-County Cooperative Publishing Association. Read about the cooperative’s history at iccpaonline.com
WHERE TO WRITE President Barack Obama 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. Washington, D.C. 20500 whitehouse.gov/contact/ Gov. Scott Walker Wisconsin State Capitol Madison, WI 53707 transition@wisconsin.gov Congressman Sean Duffy (7th District) 1208 Longworth House Office Building Washington, D.C. 20510 PH: 202-225-3365 U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin 1 Russell Courtyard Washington, D.C. 20510 202-224-5653 FAX: 202-25-6942 Rep. Adam Jarchow (28th District) Room 19 North, State Capitol. P.O. Box 8952, Madison, WI 53708 608-267-2365 • 888-529-0028 FAX: 608-282-3628 rep.Jarchow@legis.state.wi.us Rep. Romaine Quinn (75th District) Room 7 West, State Capitol P.O. Box 8953, Madison, WI 53708 608-266-2519 • 888-534-0075 rep.Quinn@legis.wisconsin.gov U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson 2 Russell Courtyard Washington, D.C. 20510 202-224-5323 Sen. Janet Bewley (25th District) Room 126 South, State Capitol P.O. Box 7882, Madison, WI 53707 608-266-3510 sen.Bewley@legis.state.wi.us Sen. Sheila Harsdorf (10th District) State Capitol, P.O. Box 7882 Madison, WI 53707 608-266-7745 • 715-232-1390 Toll-free - 800-862-1092 sen.harsdorf@legis.state.wi.us Rep. Nick Milroy (73rd District) Room 8 North, State Capitol P.O. Box 8953, Madison 53708 rep.milroy@legis.state.wi.us
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JOE HELLER
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