Exit polls showed
President Obama leading Romney by 7 points, 51 percent to 44 percent, among those who voted in the recall election. That sug- gests Republicans have already made serious inroads in Obama’s popularity in Wiscon- sin, however. In 2008, Obama defeated then- GOP rival Sen. John McCain by 14 points. The Romney cam-
GOV. WALKER
paign reportedly plans to undertake a serious effort to wrest Wisconsin out of Democrats’ hands. But that won’t be easy, considering that the last time a Republican presidential candidate won the Badger State was Ronald Rea- gan in 1984. Eighteen percent of those who
voted for Walker in the recall said they plan to support Obama in Novem- ber. The Romney campaign considers them persuadable swing voters due
Political Wildcard A lower court judge suspended Wisconsin’s new voter-ID law as unconstitutional. But the case is currently under appeal, and if the law is reinstated for the November election, turnout could diminish among groups that tend to vote Democratic.
to their willingness to support Walker. Republicans also are buoyed by Wisconsin’s rightward tilt in 2010. Midterm voters elect- ed Walker as well as tea-party favorite GOP Sen. Ron Johnson. As one GOP opera- tive tells Newsmax: “I don’t know if we’ll win Wisconsin this fall, but we’re certainly headed in the right direction.” That “right direction”
was bolstered by a Rasmussen poll in June which put Romney squarely ahead of Obama 47 to 44 percent, compared to the previous month’s Marquette poll tally that put Obama squarely ahead by 8 points. During the recall fight, Walker was
aided by Wisconsin’s relatively low unemployment rate of 6.7 percent, compared to the national average of more than 8 percent. Ironically, that same factor may help Obama, ren-
ECONOMIC SNAPSHOT 6.7% UNEMPLOYED
1 out of 547 HOMES IN FORECLOSURE (4/12) $51,598 MEDIAN HOUSEHOLD INCOME
2010 CENSUS DEMOGRAPHICS (Figures are rounded)
2% Asian 13.7% 6% Hispanic
of population is 65 and older
86% White 6% Black AUGUST 2012 | NEWSMAX 35
dering Wisconsin voters less likely to throw out the incumbent. The stakes are high for Obama: All
of the various scenarios for how he would acquire the 270 Electoral Col- lege votes needed to win re-election assume he will triumph in Wiscon- sin. Without Wisconsin, the electoral math becomes much more difficult. A few days after winning the recall
contest, Walker told Newsmax he believes Romney can indeed emerge victorious in Wisconsin. But to do so, Walker said, Romney will have to demonstrate that he has learned the lessons of the recall. Walker encour- aged Romney to offer bold solutions, to help convince them he genuinely intends to fix the country’s problems. Walker said: “If he lays a clear con-
trast out there, there are plenty of voters, whether they believe they are Republicans or not . . . who under- stand really the path we’re on is unsus- tainable at the federal level. And I think Gov. Romney, if he has a clear, aggressive, and repetitive message, can be competitive in Wisconsin.”
Little-Known Fact That Republicans last won the Badger State in 1984 has obscured how tight the race usually is. In 2004, John Kerry won Wisconsin by about 11,000 votes — less than half a percentage point. In 2000, Al Gore beat George W. Bush there by less than 6,000 votes.
CAPITOL, MADISON
WALKER/AP IMAGES / CAPITOL/JAMES STEINBERG/PHOTO RESEARCHERS/GETTY IMAGES
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92