Should AG Lautenschlager stay or go

[sybylla]

The Beloit Daily News thinks she should go.
http://www.beloitdailynews.com/articles/2004/12/29/editorials/edit01.txt

APPARENTLY, WISCONSIN Attorney General Peg Lautenschlager just doesn't get it.

After she was convicted of drunken driving and paid a fine for misusing her state car, she refused to do the honorable thing and resign. She didn't see the irony of the state's highest law enforcement officer, being an offender herself.

Now she's talking like a candidate for re-election when her first term is up in 2006.

<snip>

It's sad. Peg Lautenschlager is not a bad person, and she hasn't done everything wrong. But in the world of politics, she's damaged goods. Democrats should convince her to step aside.

[jackster]

1. maaaaaybe....

after she pays some penance over time she could come back, but she has no business performing any service as an elected gov't official after those no-no's

[phaseolus]

2. If she does step aside....

...we should demand the same thing next time a Repub gets caught doing something similar.

IIRC Bob Kasten was a serial drunk driver, he didn't 'gracefully step aside', but he lost at the polls. And Republicans' silence regarding his conduct was deafening...

[Wisc Badger]

3. She wa also a do nothing as Federal Attorney

for the Justice Dept as a Clinton appointee. She turned a blind eye to serious coruption going on in the AA comunity in Milwaukee and on the Milwaukee common council.

[theshadow]

4. She has no chance of winning reelection.

Her "negatives" are deep and will overshadow everything else. Of course she's saying that she'll run. That's off in the future and she doesn't want to be a lame duck until then. Even a weak Republican challenger will beat her, and it could be a wingnut with an agenda.

[TheMightyFavog]

5. This explains why why she's proscecuting the Vang case herself....

She's hoping that victory in that case would help the people forget about the drunk driving incident.

[sybylla]

6. Whoa. Hadn't thought of it that way.

It did seem odd that she thought she needed to go up north and handle it herself. Some of our rural counties have very good and very experienced DA's. Seemed to me like a waste of money.

[MessiahRp]

7. I volunteered for her in 2002

while I was volunteering for Doyle but I agree Peg's done and needs to step aside. There's a few reasons that stand out to me.

1. The drunk driving fiasco has gotten well out of hand mostly because of the Republican noise machine (and their affiliates aka the Gannett newspaper companies).

2. She's going through health issues and is undergoing chemo for it. The first priority for her should be kicking her alcohol issues and getting healthy and beating cancer.

3. She seems burnt out. Last summer at the 6th CD convention she was a speaker and her speech was not too long after the drunk driving thing. Her speech was cryptic and sullen and all of us there wondered if she had an optimistic bone left in her body.

I truly think she's burnt out and if not, she'll be there shortly.

I, too believe that the Vang prosecution (which is open and shut in my book) is for publicity reasons and I believe her negative publicity hurts our chances of retaining the AG seat.

In fact I'll do one better. Her being on the ticket hurts Jim Doyle's re-election campaign... ALOT.

Doyle's already going to have a tough run against Mark Green or Tommy Thompson or whomever because Doyle hasn't really done anything overly popular in his first term. But having her on there to sway people to vote Republican straight ticket would hurt us bad.

Jim's not going to draw the christian morality vote like having Peg on there would and yes in WI there is plenty of those voters out there.

I just think we need to draw up a very strong competitor to beat her in the primaries and to clean up our office. After all a Republican as an AG who will go after big time criminals (corporate crime and such) does not exist.

Rp

[ewagner]

8. Good analysis

I saw Peg at our CD convention also and I wasn't impressed. She offered an apology but in my opinion, she was just going through the motions.....

She should step aside.

[sybylla]

9. John Nichols of the Cap Times makes a good argument for keeping Peg

http://www.madison.com/tct/opinion//index.php?ntid=23286&ntpid=9
By John Nichols
January 4, 2005

Can there be any question that the most essential official in state government at this point is Attorney General Peg Lautenschlager?

Despite all the miseries that were visited upon her in 2004 - clashes with Gov. Jim Doyle over environmental protection issues, the media frenzy that surrounded her arrest for driving while intoxicated, and a nasty bout with cancer - Lautenschlager has refused to become the cautious bureaucrat that the governor and so much of the political establishment desperately want her to be.

Instead, Lautenschlager ended 2004 on a series of high notes that signaled her determination to remain an honest player in a statehouse that offers few rewards for putting principle ahead of politics.

The attorney general has taken two steps in recent days that will distinguish the remainder of her term, and should position her as a credible contender for re-election in 2006.

<snip>

I originally posted the Beloit editorial because I think this will be an important question that Dems need to settle before we get into the swing of the election cycle. We need to be confident in our candidate or we need to encourage the Peg to move on. Either way, I think the sooner it gets worked out, the better.

So I also humbly post this counterpoint to the Beloit editorial for your consideration

on edit: spelling

[ewagner]

10. Thanks for posting

I'm still of the opinion that Peg should step aside but hearing the other side of the argument is also important.......she has a very short time span to change the subject/tone if she wants to run again. Even if she is successful, the Repubs will bludgeon her senseless with the DWI thing....it will be nasty either way.

btw: hope you're feeling better! :) :hi:

[sybylla]

11. thanks, ewagner

I hope you're feeling better as well. I've heard some pretty disconcerting rumors and I'm glad to see you're back at it.