THE UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN’S INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER SINCE 1969 THURSDAY, APRIL 21, 2011
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VOLUME XLII, ISSUE 129
ARTS | CHEW ON THIS
OPINION | COLUMN
NEWS |U.S. NEWS
Hamburger wars: Dotty Dumpling’s vs. The Old Fashioned page 8
Separate board for UW could mean less bureaucracy page 6
Obama defends higher ed funding President says financial aid programs helped him finish school and cutting funds to them won’t solve budget woes page 2
Kloppenburg calls for voter recount Judicial candidate wants further investigation into Waukesha County clerk Andrew Averill State Editor Wisconsin Supreme Court challenger candidate JoAnne Kloppenburg formally called Wednesday for a statewide recount done by hand and also asked for another formal investigation of the discovered votes in Waukesha County. “There are legitimate and widespread anomalies and legitimate questions about the conduct of this election, most visibly in Waukesha County, but also in counties around the state,” Kloppenburg told a gathering of supporters at the Werner Park Community Recreation Center on Madison’s north side. Her decision to request a statewide recount came out of concerns that vote discrepancies reported in other counties meant problems occurred throughout the state, including issues discovered in the cities of Milwaukee and Racine, and Fond du Lac and Winnebago counties, Kloppenburg said. She said she hoped a recount would shine some
light on an election that seemed suspect to so many people. Kloppenburg declared victory in the Supreme Court election with a narrow 204 vote lead the day after the polls closed. Later that week, the Waukesha County clerk discovered more than 14,000 votes had not been reported from Brookfield. When tallied, the votes put incumbent Justice David Prosser in the lead by more than 7,000 votes and he declared victory Monday. The non-partisan Government Accountability Board launched an official investigation into the Waukesha votes and reported Tuesday it found the numbers reported by municipalities were consistent with the numbers from the county canvassers. Kloppenburg said she did not believe in the integrity of the investigation and also asked Wednesday that the GAB appoint a special investigator to “professionally, thoroughly and completely” investigate Waukesha County Clerk Kathy Nickolaus. She said the team responsible for analyzing the data was not “adversarial” enough in their approach.
Matt Hintz The Badger Herald
JoAnne Kloppenburg, candidate for the Wisconsin Supreme Court, announced a recount from the April 5 election Wednesday afternoon. Prosser ’s spokesperson Brian Nemoir said in a statement it was ironic that Kloppenburg insisted just 24 hours after the GAB concluded its fourday investigation that the Waukesha County votes be
examined further. Nemoir said the decision to request a statewide recount would only reaffirm Prosser ’s lead. “We’ve not had a statewide canvass and four separate examinations of
the canvass in one county. The record books show the largest number of votes turned in state history on a recount is 489,” Nemoir said. “[Kloppenburg’s] losing margin now stands at 15 times that.”
He added the recount would cost taxpayers money, but just how much money is currently unknown,
RECOUNT, page 4
City locks plans for Mifflin Block Party Wristbands needed to have alcohol in event zone; Soglin concerned with permit process Katherine Krueger Campus Editor
George LeVines The Badger Herald
Chancellor Biddy Martin fielded questions about teaching assistant status under the New Badger Partnership during a public forum Wednesday.
Martin: NBP still feasible in Wis. Legislature Despite claims saying UW will remain part of UW System, chancellor says plan can still get votes to pass Pam Selman City Editor While members of the Wisconsin State Legislature have speculated the plan to split UW-Madison from the rest of the UW System will not be realized, UW Chancellor Biddy Martin expressed her confidence in the New Badger Partnership and continued to field student questions during a well-attended
public forum Wednesday. Although the proposal, which would effectively split UW-Madison off of the UW System, has become a topic of heated debate throughout the past several days as the Wisconsin State Legislature begins to examine the details, Martin said she was confident the proposal would gain momentum. “I think it has a good chance — I don’t think
we have the votes right now, and I don’t think it’s guaranteed by any means, but I am very hopeful,” Martin said. “I really do think they are just looking at this — it’s a change, which is never easy for anyone and in wake of the other changes taking place throughout the state, it’s especially difficult to contemplate change.” Joint Finance Committee Co-Chair Rep. Robin Vos, R-Burlington, said
earlier this week the split might not be seen in the upcoming budget, arguing the split would be a tall order for the Legislature to take on. Still, Martin said she believed “a lot could change” between now and the time the proposal actually goes up for substantial debate. The proposal has also recently received some
PARTNERSHIP, page 4
After encountering a number of obstacles in the process to revamp the format of Madison’s famed Mifflin Street Block Party, a city committee’s unanimous approval of the plan may soon give students reason to celebrate. Madison’s Street Use Commission approved Majestic Live’s plan for the event, which includes giving wristbands to attendees of legal drinking age to allow consumption of alcohol in the street, which members said they hope marks the first step in making the event more consistently positive. Matt Gerding, Majestic co-owner, said most facets of the plan were considered during the course of nearly 14 revisions of the original. He said there would be one stage for performances located between Bassett and Broom Streets on Mifflin Street with acts to be announced and events beginning at 11 a.m. He also said security staff will not allow glass containers in the event. Madison Police
Department Officer Carl Gloede said these charges in the event model will allow for consumption of alcohol in street and terrace areas within the approved event zone for attendees over 21. “All other regulations for underage drinking, house parties and out of control house parties will be enforced,” he said. “The only real big change is the drinking allowed on the street for of-age individuals in the zone.” Mayor Paul Soglin expressed concern during the meeting that the permit process had not been brought before City Council, particularly in the case of the required permit to sell beer in the event area. Capital Neighborhoods, Inc. member Scott Kolar said the new incarnation of the Block Party would promote an event that focused more on entertainment. He added the group has assumed the risk that the festivities may not profit and could potentially lose money during the first year. “The goal is to see
MIFFLIN 2011, page 5
GAB asks for resources, time as more recall petitions are handed in Residents to turn in signatures to remove absconded Dem from northern Wisconsin seat Andrew Averill City Editor With another recall petition scheduled to be handed in Thursday, the agency responsible for clearing signatures is expected to request an extension from the Dane County Circuit Court to
allow more time to finish their validation process. The non-partisan Government Accountability Board has 31 days to examine signatures on petitions to recall lawmakers. But with the unusually large amount of recall committees announcing they have gathered the required signatures, the GAB said it did not know if finishing in 31 days is a
feasible or a good idea. “We’re asking for an extension simply because we’ve never seen this amount of petitions before and we wouldn’t be able to process them in 31 days,” GAB spokesperson Reid Magney said. “We also want to try to synchronize the election dates of any petitions that are found to be sufficient.”
If special elections are called in different districts around the state, GAB officials would like the voting to take place on the same day so certain citizens in Wisconsin do not confuse the time of their election with the scheduled voting day of another election, Reid said. The GAB would also require more staff members so staff are
© 2011 BADGER HERALD
not stretched thin. Reid said the GAB has asked the state’s Joint Finance Committee for $40,800 in order to hire additional temporary staff. The committee will hold a meeting to discuss the request sometime in the future, Reid said. Historically, requesting an extension on the deadline to validate recall petition signatures is not unique. Two senate seats
in 1996 and 2003 were being contested through a recall drive and the GAB received an extension for both, Reid said. Recall campaigns have already filed four petitions containing an estimated 99,500 signatures with the GAB office and a petition for Sen. Jim Holperin,
RECALL, page 2