The Fall of Wisconsin

Posted on 20 June 2017 by Dan Kaufman

For than a century, Wisconsin has been known nationwide for its progressive ideas and government It famously served as a laboratory of democracy, a cradle of the labor and environmental movements, and birthplace of the Wisconsin Idea, which championed expertise in the service of the common good But following a Republican sweep of the state s government in 2010, Wisconsin s political heritage was overturned, and the state went Republican for the first time in three decades in the 2016 presidential election, elevating Donald J Trump to the presidency.The Fall of Wisconsin is a deeply reported, searing account of how the state s progressive tradition was undone and turned into a model for national conservatives bent on remaking the country Dan Kaufman, a Wisconsin native who has been covering the story for several years, traces the history of progressivism that made Wisconsin so widely admired, from the work of celebrated politicians like Robert Fighting Bob La Follette and Gaylord Nelson, to local traditions like Milwaukee s sewer socialism, to the conservationist ideas of Aldo Leopold and the state s Native American tribes Kaufman reveals how the divide and conquer strategy of Governor Scott Walker and his allies pitted Wisconsin s citizens against one another so powerful corporations and wealthy donors could effectively take control of state government As a result, laws protecting voting rights, labor unions, the environment, and public education were rapidly dismantled.Neither sentimental nor despairing, Kaufman also chronicles the remarkable efforts of citizens who are fighting to reclaim Wisconsin s progressive legacy against tremendous odds Chris Taylor, a Democratic assemblywoman exposing the national conservative infrastructure, Mike Wiggins, the head of a Chippewa tribe battling an out of state mining company, and Randy Bryce, the ironworker whose long shot challenge to Speaker of the House Paul Ryan has galvanized national resistance to Trump. New Read Kindle ePUB The Fall of Wisconsin By Dan Kaufman – kino-fada.fr This is the perfect book to give someone trying to understand what exactly happened in Wisconsin over these past thirty or so years so that a staunchly progressive and friendly state who looked after their own fell prey to a group who wanted to break that sense of community and, as Scott Walker told the national Republicans, divide and conquer the unions Well, that they did, and a whole lotand now the state is so heavily gerrymandered even majority Democrats don t ...I received a free e copy of The Fall of Wisconsin The Conservative Conquest of a Progressive Bastion and the Future of American Politics from Goodreads for my honest review.An extremely informative read Growing up in Wisco...Excellent mini view of why American Progressives need to rise up and protect democracy from moneyed interests We must stop fascism from creeping, ever so slowly, into our government No one is above the lawDidn t really acknowledge race like at all, except to quickly sweep it under the rug Thought that was a major disservice considering Milwaukee is one of most segregated cities in America And huge part of divide and conquer strate...There s hope in this book, as odd as that may sound It s a sobering overview of the dismantling of a powerful political legacy, and it highlights many battles lost, but there are tiny beacons of hope That s what will stay with me as I head to the polls today.This is an excellent book that looks at how the conservatives have systematically destroyed what was one of the most progressives states in the US It starts with a look at the ideals the state was founded up...I received a copy of this book, free, through Goodread Giveaways.Wisconsin has a long, often bipartisan, history of progressive legislation and mindset People like Robert La Follette being supported by large European immigrant communities that had suffered at the hands of authoritarianism and the acceptance, and the embracing, of unions as positive structures of working communities Wisconsin had all that But the skull duggery of moneyed interests and their long range plans, seen here mostly, I received a copy of this book, free, through Goodread Giveaways.Wisconsin has a long, often bipartisan, history of progressive legislation and mindset People like Robert La Follette being supported by large European immigrant communities that had suffered at the hands of authoritarianism and the acceptance, and the embracing, of unions as positive structures of working communities Wisconsin had all that But the skull duggery of moneyed interests and their long range plans, seen here mostly, though not only, in the figure of Scott Walker Kaufman offers a measured account of the use of divide and conquer, gerrymandering, and jumping on the bandwagon of the right wing populism that lead to the Trump win This success in Wisconsin, and in the nation is an importa...If you didn t live through it, Kaufman gives a good recounting of how Walker et al used ALEC, the Koch brothers, attacks on unions, gerrymandering and voter ID laws to turn a state with a proud progressive tradition crims...Having just moved to Wisconsin I felt like this book was the perfect crash course in Wisconsin politics I had seen the protests around Act 10 in the national news, but not having an understanding of Wisconsin s history I didn t fully appreciate how big of a turnaround it was Kaufman gives a brief history of Wisconsin s role as a progressive force in national politics and then explains how it was all turned around starting with Act 10 on up to f...The Fall of Wisconsin The Conservative Conquest of a Progressive Bastion and the Future of American Politics by Dan Kaufman is a look at how the thinking of the people of Wisconsin changed their politics I disagree with the politic views of the author but Dan Kaufman does a good job of covering the changes in Wisconsin Whether you are a Progressive or a conservative you need to see the changes in WISCONSIN TO KNOW THAT CHANGE IS Always possible and never to take anything for grant It is well The Fall of Wisconsin The Conservative Conquest of a Progressive Bastion and the Future of American Politics by Dan Kaufman is a look at how the thinking of the people of Wisco...

20 June 2017

Dan Kaufman