Further cuts can still be proposed from the floor
Color us surprised. Madison alders’ operating budget amendments were due today and none proposed cutting the police department’s budget beyond Mayor Satya’s $2 million.
Council President Sheri Carter, a good moderate, actually moved to accept a $230,528 grant to create a downtown entertainment zone police team, which would add four police officers. Alder Zach Henak co-sponsored. The amendment would basically restore Mayor Satya’s cuts to the police head count.
Madison alders’ salaries would be cut 5% from the 3.25% increase in pay built into Mayor Satya’s budget if a budget amendment proposed today is adopted. That results in a 1.75% decrease in current pay. The council president was scheduled for $17,470, the vice president $15, 448, other alders $14,357. Instead, the new salaries would be $16,597, $14,714, and $13,640.
Total savings, a grand total of $16,193. Not much, but symbolic. The amendment was proposed by Council president Sheri Carter and co-sponsored by Alders Barbara Harrington-McKinney, Zach Henak, and Paul Skidmore.
Good move, but why not cut the mayor’s scheduled pay increase while you’re at it? After all, she wants the police to cut theirs.
Alders Keith Furman and Rebecca Kemble (Progressive Dane) want to create an “Office of Community Engagement” and eliminate the council’s chief of staff position. Its incumbent is quitting anyway, fed up by the antics of this council.
Blaska’s Bottom Line: The city’s finance committee meets Monday, October 26 at 4:30 p.m. Demand a reduction in the mayor’s salary and restoration of the police departments budget. Links here.
Blaska Policy Werkes 
23 responses to “Madison alders propose no more cop cuts”
At the very least, take away her Little Debbies.
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The very MOMENT The Gotch read about a desire to have Herzonner share the pain, he knew the Caped Crusader would…um…weigh in with a well-placed barb acknowledging the obvious.
The Gotch
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No Way-(don’t want to get bit)
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[Sarcasm]How dare them suggest such a terrible thing; off with their heads![/Sarcasm]
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A “downtown entertainment zone police team”? An enterprise that requires police presence is not entertainment, but one would hope that the boarded up downtown will be restored, post pandemic. I had an errand on State St. today. The pits. Crazy vibes, graffiti, pan-handlers, harassers, homelessness…
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“I had an errand on State St. today. The pits.
Crazy vibes, graffiti, pan-handlers, harassers, homelessness…”
Sometimes less is more Serendipity; you could have just said democrats.
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THEN: Last time The Gotch was on State Street was a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away (February 19th); shortly after the broader financial markets peaked (February 12th), and before ALL Freakin’ Hale broke loose.
Parked @the State Street Capitol Parking Ramp in order to get to Paul’s Club to secure a signature T-Shirt for the 70th B-Day of my favorite BIL, whose name is, as fate would have it, Paul, after his Father.
Anywho, The Gotch silently b!tched about not only having to park way up top, but having to navigate the urine-soaked stairs up-n-down to get there-and-back.
NOW: The broader financial markets have made a dramatic recovery, (thanks, of course, to Hopey Changey), Paul’s Club is on the precipice with a gofundme.com page, and odds are one might be able to park on the 1st level of the aforementioned ramp, bypassing the olfactory…um…experience.
State Street is a story as old as time itself, a stark testament to what happens when you toss the keys to Lefty…it becomes a D卐M☭CRAT $#!THOLE (is there any other kind?)…vacant, boarded up, dying-on-the-vine, dangerous no-fly-zone.
Take a look at FREEattle & Portland; Lefty had good intentions there, am I right…..?
The Gotch
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BLAH BLAH BLAH..what does this long winded nonsense have to do with cutting the police budget. Or for that matter the two cities in Washington. P.S. Paul’s club is a dump.
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Alder’s pay cut 5%. When are we going to cut the state Rep’s and Senate. They haven’t even met in over 200 days. If they want to work part-time. Then part-time wages.
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They should get hazard pay when they try and save the statues of the heroes on the Capital grounds.
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You don’t get hazard pay when you are no where to be found.
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Why isn’t the queen surrendering her raise this year and taking a cut in addition? The council is, most departments are. She doesn’t even deserve a raise, or did the price of Twinkies go up?
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The downtown depresses me. I have to drive through it on almost a daily basis. All the boarded up windows on State St. and the Capitol Square. The homeless passed out on business stoops.
Sucks.
This once vibrant city is just a shell of its former self.
This is not a statement from a conservative or liberal point of view, it is a statement of FACT!
It is what it is.
I loved what the downtown used to be. The cafe’s, the coffee shops, the bars, the fun and frivolity of being downtown and mixing with and interacting with all sorts of people from all different backgrounds and walks of life.
Gone, all gone.
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Once upon a time there was an “American” culture. Whether you were talking about mariachis in Austin or the Harlem music scene, the Grand Ole Opry or John Phillip Sousa marches, a county rodeo in Oklahoma or Derby Day at Churchill Downs, the Fourth of July or Thanksgiving, they were all “American”. Black “Americans” changed the musical WORLD, (rock-n-roll, blues, Motown), the Stones and Beatles came HERE to play “American” music. From coast to coast, hundreds of thousands of place-names bear witness of our shared history ( Native “American”, Latin “American”, and prominent people of note, both locally and nationally, of all nationalities). Our politics were always contentious, but “generally” not deadly. We resented the world WATCHING our squabbles, let alone JOINING IN!! We had a history and a culture, (warts and all), that bound us together. We didn’t embrace every facet of it, but we accepted it, and claimed it as our own. The envy of the world. ———NOW there is a malignant ideology that seeks to “cancel” it all, and turn us into various “tribes”. They want to take “The Great Melting Pot” and distill us down into our most basic elements. ——-(what’s my point?)———BILL, once upon a time there was a “Madison” culture ………… (another one bites the dust)
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“Once upon a time there was an ‘American’ culture.”
Hurley, WI’s beloved Dago Days was replaced by Festival Italiano to placate weepy, imbecilic donut makers and other despicable Lefties.
The Gotch
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One fun thing about “State street” is that there are so many jokes to tell about the Willy Wonka’s oompa-loompa’s , Idiocracy , Toddler-town , minds that created it all. And all the , what is called “ART” of it . That’s what we do when my (adult)children visit . Their isn’t any “hate” coming from us , just amusement, and pity. The MASKS that say “I can’t breathe” (?) That , too, is a a cause for laughing (with tears in our eyes) at the stunning idiocy of it all.
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what does your post have to do with police cuts?
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The “powers” hate REAL “grassroots” native culture, ESPECIALLY when there was a foundation that is based on common respect, and adherence to mutual understandings , “Good fences make good neighbors” etc, ;based on (in The USA) our Constitution, Bill of Rights ,and Gov structure of checks, and balances (long gone, exchanged for banker beads, and blankets). This American Culture was organic (the bulwark of our Constitution generally disabusing abuse by factions), and had a People (of all races, creeds, backgrounds) who respected this. The PEOPLE, not the weasel, extortionist, and parasites, The People had the education to have earned their individual Self-respect in following the Wisdom that “there is no such thing as a free lunch”, and that interference in other countries/neighbors houses invited the same, “justified” .This all comes crashing in on it’s self when the PEOPLE become the enemy of their own countries, and those at the tippy-top (not their puppet politicians who were Bailed-out, or blackmailed, or just cold-bloodedly greedy) have their alligience with each other ONLY. Witness the destruction of the indigenous people (that the “left” used to shed crocodile tears for) in Scandinavia, Ireland, Poland etc by these monied “generals” (Monopolist favored children of wrath) and their “virtuous” minion, in their quest for the Global OLIGARCHAL Collectivism…They say the “Victor” get’s to write the history, well, they also write the present everyday on MSM and Minion “alt” media.
Here is a scandinavian Norks speaking : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_50-uDHgXHI
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So, my cat sits in my lap a lot these days. I think because I am home so much and he finds it comforting. I find it comforting too. There is so much distressing news. Yes, I agree, that the mayor should take a pay cut. The saved money should go into a State Street fund or a fund for the police. I feel for Paul’s Club. Their Gofundme isn’t doing as well as many that I have seen for downtown businesses.
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“Downtown entertainment zone”?!? That’s rich. Take a look at downtown Madison and ask yourself if that’s where you’d go to find entertainment. It’s a no-go zone, thanks to the BLM thugs who turned it into a mini-version of the South Side of Chicago. And after Election Day, it will look like Detroit after the 1968 riots.
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The filth is everywhere in Madison now, streets are nothing but trash right next to the beggars that she is allowing on the corners again. Resident for over 70 years, Madison use to be a very livable city, now it pretty much sucks, taxes are too high especially for elderly on fixed incomes to stay in their homes. But, never fear this mayor will build us thousands of affordable housing units to share with the ones who never worked, will never work, and do not want to work. Then the squatters follow them from the bigger cities to get away from the crime out of control there. And, only to find it here too. But, never fear, the local media always are keeping us informed of the daily shootings, robberies, muggings, oh wait, they do not report it, you have to learn from other sources. Do not fear the citizens know what is really going on in the bike capital of the world.
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City wants homeowners to keep the gutters clean to keep the lakes clean, well then why do they not allow the ones in the Dane co. jail do the cleanup seeing the city crews can’t keep the leaves out of the gutters. Hell, just sitting there eating, sleeping, tube watching, have them pay for their bad deeds, nah, they will keep up the rewards so they can just repeat repeat and repeat the acts they are there in the first place. Absolutely no deterrent.
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Download the police scanner app, sit back and enjoy all of the police calls while enjoying your popcorn, chips, soda, or booze. Very entertaining.
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