Seniority Rules

Mark Neumann contends that party insiders have thrown their support behind Scott Walker out of misguided loyalty, because Walker dropped out of the race for governor in 2006 clearing the way for Mark Green to win the Republican nomination.

It turns out Mark Neumann expected the same party loyalty be bestowed upon him by Scott Walker.

According to Wisconsin Public Radio, in March of 2009, Mark Neumann asked Scott Walker to step aside and let him run for governor in 2010. The party would be better off without a primary he reasoned, but Neumann would be delighted to have Walker run for Lt. Governor.

According to WPR: When Neumann was asked why it should be Walker who again steps aside in 2010--and not himself--Neumann talked about his age. He noted that in eight years, he’ll be 65. Walker, by contrast, is 42, roughly 14 years younger than Neumann.

Mark Neumann doesn’t want party activists to choose their Republican nominee. He wants to reserve that privilege for elite party elders like him.

No wonder he’s running as an “outsider.” Who’d want to let him in?

Neumann Votes in Election he Protested

GOP Delegate Pretends to be “locked out.”

Jeff Lauer, Kenosha County Delegate

Former Congressman Mark Neumann has again validated the decision of conservative activists to throw all of their support behind Scott Walker for Governor.

Over the last several weeks, Neumann has used sleazy and possibly illegal tactics to try and shut down the endorsement process at the Republican Party’s convention. Neumann knew his rival Scott Walker was poised to win the endorsement by an overwhelming margin and he did not want to be humiliated by a blowout defeat.

Ten days ago, Neumann announced that he would not seek the endorsement and said he wanted the state Republican Party to remove his name from the ballot. Unfortunately for Neumann, convention rules do not allow a candidate to pull out of an endorsement contest simply because he believes he’s going to lose.

Last week, Neumann invited his 50,000 Face Book fans to attend a rally outside the convention center before his speech. Neumann offered to give people free t-shirts as an incentive to attend. When he got no takers among the fans, Neumann used a school bus to transport 25 of his paid staff and volunteers to the convention center to protest the endorsement process.

Neumann had his supporters picketing outside the convention with signs that read, “I’m 4 Mark” and “Let the People Vote.” Neumann told television reporters, “Our people have been literally locked out of the convention. We did not ask to go on the convention floor we simply asked to be allowed in the door.”

But Neumann and at least one of the alleged protestors caught on television were credentialed delegates and could have waltzed into the convention center at any time. Eventually Neumann, along with his entire family, did go inside the convention center to give media interviews and address the crowd of more than 1,700 people.

After his speech, Neumann gave an on camera interview to the MacIver Center before joining the Waukesha County delegation to cast his vote in the very election he was there to protest.

Hats off to the classy conservatives inside the convention hall for not booing the walking hypocrite and big fat liar right off the stage.

Say it Aint So Lora Rae

The Democratic Party of Wisconsin drove a stake through the heart of the Republican Party today by announcing the defection of Lora Rae Anderson.

The former college Republican chair,( who nobody ever heard of before today) said she thinks the party is too extreme for moderates. She's joining the Wisconsin Democrats who are notorious for their moderate policy positions and tolerance of those who disagree with them.

Lora Rae also expressed concerns about instances of Republicans using cultural or racial slurs on their facebook pages.

I'm sure she'll be much more comfortable with the Democratic Party and its chairman Mike Tate, the man who called grassroots activists "Tea Baggers" and accused Scott Walker of sanctioning rape.

A Man’s Got to Know His Limitations

I've never viewed “gay issues” from Mark Neumann’s angle – above everyone else.

When the New York Times asked Neumann his view on gays, he didn’t answer as a Congressman from Wisconsin. He answered from the position of God. Apparently Congress was doing fine, but God had made a few mistakes the Congressman was eager to correct.

"If I was elected God for a day, homosexuality wouldn't be permitted, but nobody's electing me God."

Now, I support traditional marriage and thought the marriage amendment to the Constitution was the best government could do to support these values. I haven’t spent the time Neumann has considering God as the source of the “problem.”

Since his 1996 Times interview, Neumann has had time to reconsider. Apparently, he still thinks there are gays because God screwed up. But his ambitions no longer lead him to be the All-Powerful Lord of the Universe – too much stress. He told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

"The part about me being God for a day is the problem with that. I'm not God, don't intend to be and hope I never have that much power."

In other words, Neumann wants power, just not that much.

At least Mark Neumann and I agree on this: We both hope no one makes him God.

As for making him governor, Wisconsin already has a Governor who thinks he knows better than God and who tries to amass that kind of power.

I guess we know why Mark Neumann finds Jim Doyle’s job so appealing.

Neumann Supporters Anonymous

Since last Fall, Mark Neumann has been promising the media he would soon unveil his list of supporters from across the state. To date the only endorsements the campaign has announced are from former DOA Secretary Jim Klauser and Oklahoma Senator Tom Coburn. Klauser withdrew his support earlier this year.

Last month Neumann got tired of being asked for a list of supporters so he offered this explanation in an interview with wispolitics.com.

“They're from our Main Street visits. They're not big name people,” Neumann said. “They're normal people in the state of Wisconsin.”

According to Neumann's website, not only are Neumann supporters not big name people, they apparently don't even have last names, ---or at least not last names they're willing to share.

At the top of the Mark on Main Street webpage is this quote from Neumann:

"The folks who really matter can be found on main streets across the state."

If you scroll down the right hand side of the page, you can view a video of Mark Neumann explaining how his campaign is different from most. Below the video a series of statements from Neumann supporters --- identified only by first name and city --- rotate in a continuous loop.

Here are a few examples:

I know it is not enough to simply sit back and complain about the political situation in our state; this is why I have chosen to support Mark Neumann. - Jonathan from Pewaukee

I publicly support and endorse Mark Neumann in the 2010 Governor's race. - Allen from Wisconsin Rapids

He's not a career politician. - Daniel from Milwaukee

I think Mark will work to keep Wisconsin financially responsible while working to improve several things such as Healthcare and Education. - Stephen from Green Bay

I support Mark because of his values, and leadership he showed in Congress in the 1990's and his leadership as a businessman. - Jason from Racine

While I agree with Neumann that a candidate's most important support comes from outside political party circles, I can’t understand Neumann’s reluctance to name names. After all, I may not know Stephan from Green Bay, but I’ll bet plenty of people in Green Bay do. The whole point of listing endorsements is to gain credibility with the people who know your supporters.

And isn’t it an insult to the people who "matter the most" to hide their identity while boasting the support of a U.S. Senator from another state?

So how does a person introduce themselves at a Mark Neumann campaign event?

Hi, my name is Jason and I'm a Mark Neumann supporter.