Another faultline has recently opened up in the maybe too big, big tent Democratic Party (imagine the fault line is opening up under a circus –this metaphor is actually really good, shut up.) On the one hand, you have reasonable, empathetic people who understand that the unhoused and housing insecure among us deserve dignified treatment, kindless –and housing, if it’s wanted.

This edition:

Democrats Do Spend Public Money on Actual Public Services

Democrats Don’t Imprison People for Mental Illness

Sometimes all you need to do with a bad law is ignore it –pretend it doesn’t exist, and its power might just go away. Often this is as simple as jaywalking across a badly designed street, but it can also be done with something as seemingly toothy as a commandment from the state legislature and Governor Tony Evers.

This edition:

Democrats Do Refuse to Follow Fascist Laws

Democrats Don’t Commit Fraud (Again!) for Charter Schools

There are two very different types of Democrats in Milwaukee politics. Corporate and Populist. Corporate Democrats' policies usually profit, or at least do not upset the interests financially backing them. Populist Democrats instead seek deep systemic change. They prioritize results and real impact over appearing ‘bipartisan.’ Taking power away from private interests and returning it to the general public is their driving motivation.

If “frequently votes for Democrats” is the qualification, Wisconsin Assembly District 19 candidate Jarrod Anderson isn’t much of a Democrat at all.

Everyone with a brain and a heart knew that inviting the Republican National Convention to Milwaukee was a bad idea. We were promised an economic boon and safety (for the fascist attendees, at least.) We’ve gotten shuttered stores and put up checkpoints out of a shitty World War II film. And now a loved and well-known member of our community is dead – at the hand of out-of-state police who shouldn’t be “working” outside of the state-mandated “safety zone.”

Public financing is complicated, in part because some people would rather not have any public financing at all. If it were as simple as Milwaukee collecting tax revenue then spending that  revenue on public infrastructure, the Milwaukee Public School (MPS) district might not be in the godawful mess it’s in –unfortunately, the reality is complicated and stupid, just like most bureaucracies.

This edition:

Democrats Do Defend Public Education

Democrats Don't Commit Fraud to Privatize Schools

We think there’s utility in giving even the most morally bereft, psychotically moderate Dem power player a point when they occasionally do something right. And even our closest, most reliable allies should be held accountable when they fuck up. With that, we bring you Democrat Dos and Don'ts: a semi-regular feature highlighting the good dogs/gallants/ballers and the bad dogs/goofuses/scrubs in (mostly!) Milwaukee politics.

This edition:

Democrats Do Oppose War and Genocide

Democrats Don’t Invite Fascists to Visit