Wanted: Democrat who really, really wants to be governor

It would appear, after what has probably been an anxious month for the Wisconsin Democratic Party (and a gleeful one for the Republicans, if Dave Blaska is any measure...read to the end of that post), that Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett is taking up the boxing gloves for the next gubernatorial election.

Glad as I am to hear that someone is running for Governor on the Democratic ticket, and they're not an 18-year-old McDonald's manager, I am slightly worried about the tone of the Journal-Sentinel article. "inching toward a bid," according to one of his staff. Along with the White House's unofficial endorsement - weeks before he'd even announced a run, while there was still an arguably strong candidate still in the running - and I start to wonder whether he's doing this for his own reasons.

I tend to vote for Democrats, but from this vantage point, Barrett very much gives the impression of someone who's had their arm twisted into running. "Somebody has got to be governor, I suppose I will do it." I don't have much faith in the Republican options, either, but a tepid approach to the Governor's seat is not going to win the hearts and minds of Wisconsin's non-urban residents, Tom. I very much hope for the sake of both his campaign and the state of Wisconsin that he is genuinely interested in serving the people of this state and helping head off a potentially severe budget problem in the years ahead. The Pew study warns that we can expect more cuts to services, and, if the schools situation is any measure, higher property taxes to compensate for cuts to local government, in an economy where more people need services, and fewer people can pay their property taxes. And if that's the case, we're going to need the most dedicated public servants we can get.