Ed Cred

Deke Rivers wonders why Richard Nixon's son-in-law gave $10,000 to embattled Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker:

Edward Cox is always looking for a way to make a name for himself, and get more into the political game. That Cox is a centrist, and very bright for the most part makes this donation to Scott Walker all the more sad as it only underscores Cox’s desire to be playing in the arena regardless of the sewage he needs to step into.

Why he feels a need to do this is a mystery.

There is little Cox can do at this stage of his life (age 66) other than donate money, given he has no electoral track record. He seems to enjoy playing in New York politics, but there is really nowhere his attempts at making a splash will land him other than at the place he started.

There is no legacy for Cox other than his White House wedding to a president’s daughter. It has always perplexed me why everyone seems to know that except Cox himself. And he is bright enough to figure this out.

Surely Tricia Nixon had the chat with him about this matter.

Maybe Cox was trying to buy tea party cred. In 2010's New York gubernatorial election, he tilted left when the rest of the GOP was lurching right. The result: 2016 Democratic frontrunner Andrew Cuomo, New York's superstar governor.

They Want To Take A Michigander

Now a conservative think tank in the mitten wants to read professors' mail, to find out if they helped organize labor demonstrations in Wisconsin. I wonder what all these nosy parkers would do if public employees started using their personal e-mail accounts and computers.

Legitimate Inquiry Or Harassment?

The Wisconsin GOP wants to read a professor's e-mail.

Collective Sigh Of Relief

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker is blinking.

Scott Walker Is The New Nixon

So says Wisconsin blogger Deke Rivers.

Why Governments Are Going Broke

Reflecting on Wisconsin, a reader writes:

The primary purpose of public unions is to grab for their members more than they would get on the open market. (Think about that!) They do this by public strikes (which are combinations in restraint of trade) and by using the power of campaign ads to buy politicians who will spend taxpayer dollars to pay off those who can keep them in power. No wonder governments are going broke while taxpayers are paying more!

Punk'ds And Thugs

At "Caffeinated Politics" in Wisconsin, Deke Rivers compares Gov. Scott Walker to Richard Nixon for seeming to be open to the idea of sending thugs into the crowd of anti-Walker, pro-union demonstrators in Madison.

In his conversation with a blogger who was pretending to be fat cat David Koch, Walker sounded to me like someone who was parrying a bad idea with a tactical argument instead of saying to a powerful, friendly multibillionaire, "How dare you make such a disgusting suggestion?" But Rivers is right that it should probably be looked into:

I think we need to know who the “we" happen to be that work for Governor Walker that would hatch an idea about placing “troublemakers” into a protest crowd at the Capitol.

Were they trying to test the patience of all involved, including law enforcement? Who brought the idea to Walker? Why was that person not released from state service at once? Where did this idea get discussed? In the Governor’s office? The residence?

This is serious as it could have led to chaos and even bloodshed had it been put into action.

Maybe The Senators Can Help At Coffee Hour

Wisconsin churches offer sanctuary to legislators trying to avoid voting on a bill that would eliminate most of public employees' collective bargaining rights.