Feingold For Governor: Scott Walker & WI GOP’s War On Good Beer - EmptyWheel

[WillyT]

I'm fairly certain this isn't official... yet... (The Feingold Running For Gov Part...)

Feingold For Governor: Scott Walker & WI GOP’s War On Good Beer
By: bmaz - EmptyWheel
Friday June 17, 2011 5:36 pm

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I don’t know what the fine Cheese and Brat heads up in Wisconsin did to piss off the political gods, but they have been blighted. It was bad enough to cause national outrage and solidarity when extreme right wing movement conservative Governor Scott Walker and the crazed GOP majorities in the state legislature started attacking the working men and women of Wisconsin’s unions, teachers, cops and firefighters. But now they have gone a bridge too damn far.

And that is why I am supporting Russ Feingold in a recall election against Walker, and you should too.

Scott Walker and the Wisconsin Republicans are declaring war on quality craft beer. From ThinkProgress:

Tucked into Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker’s (R) much-discussed budget was a little-noticed provision to overhaul the state’s regulation of the beer industry. In a state long associated with beer, the provision will make it much more difficult for the Wisconsin’s burgeoning craft breweries to operate and expand their business by barring them from selling directly to restaurants and liquor stores, and preventing them from selling their own product onsite.

The new provision treats craft brewers — the 60 of whom make up just 5 percent of the beer market in Wisconsin — like corporate mega-brewers, forcing them to use a wholesale distributor to market their product. Under the provision, it would be illegal, for instance, for a small brewer located near a restaurant to walk next door to deliver a case of beer. They’ll have to hire a middle man to do it instead.

And, so, what corporate moneyed hacks are Walker and the Wisconsin GOP blowing this time? From OpenMarket.Org:

The biggest backer of the bill is SABMiller, or as it is known in the US, MillerCoors. They have been pushing the measure, they say, in order to protect the vitality of Wisconsin beer in the face of a hostile invasion from their main national competitor, AB InBev, aka Anheuser-Busch. InBev has reportedly begun a nationwide campaign to purchase distributors in many states, something that MillerCoors says threatens all other brewers’ ability to get their beers in bars and on shelves. That’s the line that MillerCoors is peddling, but craft brewers in Wisconsin say they, and their ever increasing presence in the beer market, is the true target of the proposal.

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More: http://emptywheel.firedoglake.com/2011/06/17/feingold-for-governor-scott-walker-wi-gops-war-on-good-beer/

:toast:

:beer:

:kick:

[Pharaoh]

1. Walker promised to create jobs

and this is how he does it? By putting small breweries out of business and canceling a 800 million dollar gift for high speed rail from the federal Government. This guy is obviously Satan's spawn.

[elocs]

2. Personally, I would rather see Feingold run for governor.

I know there are those who want him to run for Senate, but the governorship is a new field for him to conquer. As far as the Senate goes he's been there, done that. He would be our one and only governor as opposed to 1 of 100 senators.

[Pharaoh]

4. Erpenbach for Governor

Fiengold can do us more good in the senate, and wipe Ron Johnson's ass who stole his seat with millions of corporate money.

[elocs]

9. "Erpenbach", to which most people in Wisconsin would ask, "who?"

We will need somebody with a well known name in all the state to beat Walker next year, in 6 months. That will be the only good way to defeat him.

I still believe that if Feingold runs for anything that he would run for the governorship because it would be a new field for him to conquer. Whoever runs as the Democrat for the Senate will not be running against an incumbent. If Tommy wants to give it a try he will find he is not conservative enough for today's Republicans.

[provis99]

3. Feingold is a loser from yesteryear.

We need new blood, not failed politicians.

[Pharaoh]

5. Loser?

Yeah right, :eyes:

[murielm99]

6. Screw around with the beer and anger the badger?

YOU LOSER!

I can't wait until they recall his butt.

BTW, this has been posted before, about the craft beers.

http://upload.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=439x1275662

[Aerows]

7. Damn

They literally DO NOT CARE about Wisconsin, they only care about getting Coors money. Coors has been notorious for supporting ultra-right wing causes. Now they want to destroy other people's livelihoods. Small businesses employ people, and competition is supposed to be a good thing.

[customerserviceguy]

8. The money flowing around Big Beer is enormous

I'm not in the least surprised that it's being used to buy politicians.

If any of you have streaming Netflix, there's a documentary called "Beer Wars" out there that you need to see if you care at all about craft beer.