Hopper and King in Politifact Wisconsin

Oshkosh was the feature of the most recent Politifact Wisconsin check.  For those unfamiliar, Politifact is comprised of Milwaukee JS reporters who examine statements made by politicians and those in power, researching the statements and then rating the accuracy on a Truth-O-Meter. Ranking include "True, Mostly True, Half True, Barely True and False. The most ridiculous falsehoods get our lowest rating, Pants on Fire."

Oshkosh hit the scene following a recent TV ad aired by the Randy Hopper Campaign.  The ad starts out nicely, claiming a connection between Hoppers work to create jobs and the continuation of manufacturing at Mercury Marine in Fond du Lac. However, the ad suddenly changes to an eerie theme, with Jess King's photo sliding onto the screen and the statement that Jess King voted to increase her pay of tax payer dollars by 63%.

Hopper's ad was given the most disgraced ranking - Pants on Fire.  Why?  Because Jess King voted against the raise.   That is about as clear as it gets.  We all expect more from a state senator.   Maybe the research team needs to study up on their researching and fact check teams.  Or, more likely, Mr. Hopper needs to do a better job campaigning on truths and not lies such as this.  He is a smart man who worked hard his rookie year down in Madison.  We even gave him an award for his strong start.  But blatant lies are highly disappointing.

But taking this a step further, consider that a common councilor, who often puts in 20 hours per week of public outreach, research, and reviewing of council packets, was paid a stipend of $2400.  The entire council payroll for a year was $17,400.  Now, we don't have an abundance of extra cash - in particular given the cuts from the state.  Council pay went up to $3750 (not a 63% increase).   At 20 hours per week of work, that comes to about $3.63 an hour. 

Check out the Politifact Article Here.  You can see the TV Ad there as well.

Posted in: Jessica King,Randy Hopper,State Politics