We just got home, and I'm behind on everything, including sleep, so this will be brief. But I just want to say how proud I am of the people of Wisconsin right now.
This morning my friend and I put in some time doing data entry for the State Senate recalls. Yeah, it's just data entry, but it felt good to be there. There's such a feeling of camaraderie, and whether people can put in a few minutes or several hours, every bit of help is appreciated, and the staff in the office makes everyone feel welcome.
We raced from there to join in for a few songs at the daily Solidarity Sing Along at the Capitol. It was outside today, because of an event inside the rotunda. These sing alongs have become an important part of my lift - probably the way many church members feel about being in the church choir. There's a wonderful young man who leads the singing, and a sign directs the public to grab a song book and join in. We had time for four or five songs before we had to run around to the other side of the square to join in the "Recount Rally." This rally was well documented by Scuba, whom I finally got to meet in person! Here's Scuba's thread
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=439x930158As we marched down to the office of the Government Accountability Board, people joined in the march, we heard the "democrabeep" from passing cars, and passersby stopped to cheer and applaud. Our favorite Capitol Police officer just happened to work his way down to where we were, and I felt a real sense of community as we listened to people talk about the need for a recount of the State Supreme Court Election, and chanted and cheered.
We ran home for about an hour to feed the dogs, make phone calls and send out a few emails, and then we picked up a couple of friends to go to join in JoAnne Kloppenburg's press conference. Unlike Prosser's "press conference" yesterday, which was for invited guests only (including the representative from the John Birch Society), JoAnne's press conference was open to all. ALL happened to include a Prosser Campaign staffer, who was being confrontational and rude, and who I thought might just explode an artery before the conference even started.
We were all nervous, not knowing whether we were there to hear JoAnne say that the difference in votes was insurmountable, or if she would say that a recount had been requested. I have to say, YES, I did start to cry when she announced that they had filed the official request for a recount of the entire state, and that the Court would determine if a hand count is necessary - with first appearances in court tomorrow. Our next Supreme Court Justice was absolutely awesome. Her prepared statement was incredibly beautiful, and more importantly, she was so thoughtful and human in answering questions - if anyone had any doubts that she is Supreme Court material, those doubts were quelled today. The Prosser staffer threw some questions out there, as though he were a member of the press, and she answered those questions with grace.
If you have the opportunity to watch the entire press conference online, please do so. I haven't been home long enough to be able to check to see where it might be available, but if I find a link before I crash, I'll post it.
But watch JoAnne Kloppenburg. Please know that she will need help. She will need us to volunteer, and she will need money to pay for the attorneys who will have to battle the Prosser camp for every vote.
But JoAnne Kloppenburg is the one hope we have to stop the crushing of Wisconsin. She has said that she will honor the voters of Wisconsin by making sure that every vote is fairly counted, and she will work to restore the our faith in the integrity of the election system in our state. Watch that press conference. THIS is who we are in Wisconsin. This is who we are in America.
edited to add link to prepared statement of press conference
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C3zf6Uoj_m8 and to add a link to Jeremy Ryan's coverage of the press conference
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WMPoJY0FK1A&feature=player_embeddedhttp://www.kloppenburgforjustice.com/SOLIDARITY
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