With two weeks until election day, Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce (WMC) efforts to influence results are taking a back seat to the candidates in state legislative races.
This was anticipated all summer, for a number of reasons. Until a campaign is mounted in the spring state Supreme Court race, where WMC will attempt to defeat Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson, we will not know if this low profile is a permanent condition. Or not.
The factors that limit WMC electronic involvement in five assembly races, (AD 47,49,57,88,91) belligerent and misleading ads used in previous elections.
- Two highly publicized affairs, the withdrawal of Cullen Construction and the Madison magazine article by University of Wisconsin Chancellor John C. Wiley damaged WMC's reputation.
- In legislative races, the TV ads used by WMC are not cost effective. since the districts are so small compared to the size of the media markets.
- WMC members realize that the layer of insulation that WMC brought them, which prevented their company's name from being associated with the vicious ads, is no longer effective.
- The purchase of large quantities of TV time by the presidential candidates deprived WMC of access to what limited spots they could afford.
- The national organizations like the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, who provided the majority of the money for WMC, are preoccupied with key Congressional races in other states and do not have time or money for Wisconsin legislative campaigns.
- WMC is still buying radio spots and mailers in some areas.
- Reformers within WMC may have made headway in reining in the beast.
WMC may still make a last minute effort to attack liberal or progressive candidates, but time is running out.
We will not be able to assess the impact of our WMC Watch campaign and the efforts of One Wisconsin Now (OWN), until we get into the spring election season.