Thursday, October 4, 2012
3:24 PM
Pocan, Kohl, Baldwin fire up crowd ahead of Obama
U.S. Rep. Tammy Baldwin, who just came off her own U.S. Senate debate with Tommy Thompson last Friday, joked with the crowd about statements he had made while being taped at a Tea Party event in June. She began decrying "the debate" in which the GOP candidate pushed tax cuts for billionaires and millionaires.
"And then, in his ultimate etch-a-sketch moment, he pretends he never said that," Baldwin said. "He never meant that. he denies in public the very things he was caught on tape saying in private. Oh wait, you all think I'm talking about last night? I'm talking about my debate with Tommy Thompson."
She argued that both debates showed a "clear contrast" between the candidates, saying that Obama has fought for "investment in education and innovation" for the country's future. She also touted her introduction of the so-called "Buffett Rule," which mandates a base tax rate for millionaires.
"We believe, that if we're going to prosper, everyone has to have a fair shot and everyone has to do their fair share," Baldwin said.
Retiring U.S. Sen. Herb Kohl also addressed the crowd, focusing on the need to preserve the educational opportunities available in the United States and Wisconsin. He also pushed the crowd to vote for current U.S. Rep. Tammy Baldwin as his successor.
"When I ran back in 88 and since then I promised the people of Wisconsin that I would be nobody's senator but yours," Kohl said. "And I registered it and had a patent on it. But now, I'm prepared to pass that on to Tammy Baldwin. I can promise you that Tammy will be nobody's senator but yours."
2nd CD candidate Mark Pocan told the crowd that they have a "personal decision" in 33 days to either move the country forward or backward. After contrasting the plans of Mitt Romney, Paul Ryan and Tommy Thompson with their Dem opponents, Pocan took a shot at the candidates' plans to "fix" Medicare.
"How many of you have a dog?" Pocan said. "You know what it means to fix something, right? Things don't work the same and you go through a lot of pain in the process. We don't need to fix things GOP style, lets protect and preserve Medicare and Social Security."
All three Dems were introduced by Madison Mayor Paul Soglin.
-- By Jason Smathers
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