Well, the '05 Wisconsin Democratic Party Convention is officially a wrap, and there are some interesting tidbits to report -- most of which can be found on
the WisPolitics Convention Blog. Additionally,
Badger Blues has a neat first-night wrapup (his summation of Doyle's speech is a pretty good indicator of the level of enthusiasm felt for the Gov). And I have a feeling
Jef Hall will have a lively, insightful take as soon as he catches his breath.
As to this diary's title, Nancy Nusbaum has all but announced for the open-seat 8th Congressional District race. A former De Pere mayor and former Brown County Executive, she's a proven vote-getter in the population center of the district and has been quietly eyeing the race for a while. Now she's publicly jumped into the "exploratory" phase, which essentially means she's going to run. More on the flipside...
For the Democratic Party nomination, this puts her up against
Jamie Wall, Dr. Steve Kagan, and, erm, some other guy. Wall's the only serious contender, and he already has some solid organization and has done some serious fundraising. If they can keep from tearing each other apart in the primary...
On the R side, the field's been clearing for Assembly Speaker John Gard , which is just fine by me, since the venemous, bile-filled wingnut is eminently beatable.
I'm excited by this, frankly. I really like Jamie, and I think he's got a great future in Wisconsin politics, but Nusbaum might actually be able to take the seat, especially if Gard remains the Gard we all know and loathe.
Keep your eye on this one. At the very least, it's worth contesting seriously.