If you spent any time following events in Wisconsin last year, you will know Peter Barca.
Democratic State Rep. Peter Barca stood up on March 9th, 2011 and explained to the Republican Senate Majority Leader that the conference committee meeting they are attending was convened in violation of Wisconsin's open meeting laws. The Majority Leader ignored Rep. Barca and the committee voted to approve a modified bill that stripped public workers of most of their collective bargaining rights.
Rep. Barca, the Minority Leader in the State Assembly, has continued to fight for decency, justice, and the rule of law as the Republican leadership rammed billed after bill through the legislature, often after secret, closed meetings that excluded Democrats, or with no debate.
A lot of Wisconsinites would like to see Peter Barca enter the race to replace Governor Scott Walker in the upcoming recall election. So far, three Democrats have taken formal steps to run in the primary scheduled for May 8th - Kathleen Falk, Kathleen Vinehout, and Doug La Follette. In addition, Democrat Tom Barrett, who lost to Scott Walker in 2010 after running what many consider to be an uninspired campaign, is almost certain to enter the recall race after the April 3rd regular election where he is running for another term as mayor of Milwaukee.
Barca has emerged as the choice of many of the grass roots volunteers who have fueled the Wisconsin uprising over the past year, but Barca is apparently leaning toward not running. He will probably announce one way or the other this week, but he seems to be intimidated by the money flowing into the campaigns of some of the other candidates and feels he might not be able to compete.
We need him in the race. The voters of Wisconsin need real choices. Kathleen Falk is the choice of the leaders of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin and has received early endorsements from labor unions and other groups. Tom Barrett is the choice of national Democratic Party insiders like Rahm Emanuel. State Senator Kathleen Vinehout has, so far, failed to ignite a lot of passion for her candidacy but she is probably the second choice of many who would support Barca.
Please contact Rep. Barca's office and encourage him to run for Governor. We need someone in the race who can speak from the experience of having been in the middle of it all.
Rep. Peter Barca
Madison Office
Room 201 West
State Capitol
P.O. Box 8952
Madison, WI 53708
Telephone
(608) 266-5504 Or
(888) 534-0064
Twitter account: @PeterWBarca
Facebook Page: http://www.facebook.com/...
Email
pbarca7@gmail.com
pbarca7@yahoo.com
Rep. Barca is also a Daily Kos user and has posted some diaries and comments over the past year. You can send him a Daily Kos message, too. Here is what I wrote to him:
Dear Rep. Barca,
I'm sure you already know there will be a lot of grass roots support for you if you choose to run for governor. I also know you've been getting hundreds of phone calls and emails encouraging you to run.
I've heard you might be a little intimidated by the money flowing in to the campaigns of Kathleen Falk and Tom Barrett. Don't worry about the money. Enough money will be there if you just continue to do what you've been doing for the past year: Speak the truth to the big money interests and stand up for the rule of law. More importantly, you will have the support of thousands of us who have devoted over a year of our lives winning fights that others said could not be won. We are battle tested. WE KNOW HOW TO FIGHT AND WE KNOW HOW TO WIN!
Both Kathleen Falk and Tom Barrett have a lot of financial support, but they stayed safely on the sidelines when action was needed. Kathleen Vinehout made a bold and courageous move when she joined the other Democratic Senators and left the state to delay passage of Act 10, but you were the one who literally stood up to the Fitzgerald brothers and said what so many of us wanted to say and what we knew was true, "This is a violation of law!"
We need you in the race. I'll support whoever wins the primary but I, like tens of thousands of Wisconsinites, want to be able to cast at least one ballot for someone who was there when it counted, who stood up for democracy. Please run for governor. That iconic image of you standing up in the conference committee meeting is already destined for the history books. Let's make more history. Trust the people. We can do it.