Mayor Dave for Mayor Blog

Last night, we had a well-attended event at the home of Maureen and Steve Busalacchi. Maureen is an advocate for smoke-free work places, and we had a lot of support there from the smoke-free and health care communities.

I’m especially proud of our record on smoking. Our smoke-free ordinance went into effect a year and a half ago, and we know that bartenders, musicians and patrons are not being exposed to the many dangers of secondhand smoke. We also know that the industry is stronger than ever.

In fact, last weekend I got a chance to introduce The Gomers at their tenth anniversary show at the High Noon Saloon. The place was packed with people of all ages, including some young parents there for “Gomeroke” who told me they’d never be there if the smoking ban hadn’t passed. But now they got a chance to sing with the band, and they didn’t have to breath secondhand smoke to have such a terrific experience. (I “sang” with Peter Leidy and full back up from The Gomers myself, and it was a great experience for me, if not for the audience.)

Now, Governor Jim Doyle has said he’ll take our ordinance statewide, and that’s a good thing. But if the Legislature tries to weaken the Governor’s proposal and go backwards on Madison’s ordinance, I’ll fight it as hard as I can. My opponents have been opposed to the smoking ban in the past, and it’s a safe assumption that they would not fight an effort to weaken it. The difference between my opponents and me on this issue is as clear as the air in Madison bars.

Saturday was a good day on the old campaign trail. I spoke at a packed meeting of neighbors at the Elvehjem Neighborhood Association meeting on the East Side, then I knocked on doors in the neighborhoods around Olbrich Park, stopped in at Kipp’s Home Cooking in the shadow of Camp Randall Stadium for a bowl of hot Texas chili, visited with more voters on Yuma Drive on the West Side and ended the day at the annual “Blue Cheese” party at the home of a friend on Dickinson Street.

The highlight of my day was a conversation I had with a retired Madison firefighter and his wife at their kitchen table after they took pity on me and invited me in from the cold. We spent a very pleasant time talking about all kinds of city issues.

Sometimes people tell me they can’t believe how long the days are during the campaign, but I don’t look at it that way. I’m having a great time and the truth is that an average Saturday as Mayor isn’t all that different from yesterday’s activities. Staying in touch means getting around and listening to people and when that comes with a hot bowl of chili, so much the better.

I’m happy to report that in the last 24 hours we’ve picked up several new endorsements. Democracy for Wisconsin, a group of progressive Democratic Party activists – many of whom came together around Howard Dean’s presidential campaign – voted to endorse me at their meeting last night.

The Sierra Club has also endorsed my candidacy. The Sierra Club named Madison a “Cool City” last year citing my efforts to reduce global climate change through our Green Capitol City initiative (pdf).

These are in addition to the endorsements I’ve already received from many labor unions including AFSCME, the South Central Wisconsin Federation of Labor, the United Brotherhood of Electrical Workers and the Operating Engineers, and from the Dane County Democratic Party and the College Democrats of Madison.

Last night we had our first full blown mayoral debate. It was sponsored by Progressive Dane and held at the Warner Park Community Center. The forum was very thoughtfully organized with a mix of serious questions and some “lightening round” questions to help keep things light and interesting. For example I was asked about my favorite coffee shop – Michelangelo’s.

On the serious side, I was struck by one of my opponents who went off on my work to protect more then 250 acres of land associated with the Cherokee Marsh, only minutes away from where the forum was held. This is the largest city conservation purchase in three decades or more, but my opponent called the Marsh “swampland.” Actually, this conservation purchase was two years in the making, and it is the result of the dedicated work of my office, city staff, the Friends of Cherokee Marsh and the developer, who, to his credit, agreed to work with us on this project. It’s another example of how we’ve made progress by bringing people together. My opponent might have figured that out had he taken the time to research it, but I guess he was swamped.

Welcome to my blog. This blog is another opportunity for me to provide you up to date information about the campaign – issues, campaign events, opportunities to volunteer and more. It’s also a chance for you to give me feedback on issues, events you think I should attend, or whatever else is on your mind.

For too long politics has been negative and one-sided. But in this campaign, we think politics can be about sharing information, listening to different points of view and having some fun. Unveiling this blog is just one way to help make that a reality. So thanks for stopping by, and I hope you visit often!

~Mayor Dave