I had the opportunity to visit the Madison again yesterday and visit with some old friends and some relatively new acquaintances. I guess it's because the friends I have chosen are mostly political junkies like myself that whenever we gather, we talk...politics....(who'da thunk, huh?)
So we talked "politics" for a while and the Governor's proposal to ban indoor smoking, statewide with no exceptions, came up in two separate conversations.
Now, understand, I am a cynic, but I'm also "no body's fool" when it comes to politics. I know there has been intensive lobbying....I know who is doing most of the lobbying...I've checked out the web sites and I know that a certain tobacco company is ranked 3rd among all lobbying groups(first is Wisconsin Hospital Association....Healthy Wisconsin?) in expenditures during the last quarter. I've also seen the Tavern League posters (I'm told that they have matching drink coasters for bars too....clever...great marketing actually) .
Yeah, I know all that. And I know it's "normal" or at least, "business as usual" but I was absolutely amused when I heard my friends toss around the phrase "local control" in regards to the smoking ban. Let's face it. With a few exceptions, hearing a denizen of the halls of the State Capitol embrace "local control" is about like learning that Colonel Sanders has given up chicken.
The only reason I think the term "local control" is being bandied about is because politicos (those who participate in and advise politicians) are caught in a tough position. They know that smoking and second-hand smoke is a health hazard and they really want to get rid of it, but the tobacco industry and the tavern league are very formidable opponents which no sane legislator, advisor to a legislator, or staffer looking for job security, looks forward to confronting. Let's face it, having an opponent in the next election with a virtual blank check from either of those organizations is not a healthy prospect.
Hence, the dead squirrel option starts to look pretty attractive.
The Dead Squirrel Option relates to an old Wisconsin axiom that revolves around the question, "What do you do if you find a dead squirrel in your yard?" Answer: "Heave it over the fence into your neighbor's yard...preferably when no one is looking."
That's right....all you local officials get ready....the Legislature would like to hurl this dead squirrel right back in your yard. But they can't do that with impunity.
So far the smoking ban proposal is stuck in committee and pretty much stalemated, but remember, there is a huge economic component to the smoking ban proposal. It's tied to a $1.25 per pack increase in the cigarette tax. If the legislature decides to defeat the proposal (under the guise of "local control") then there is a huge hole in the budget that will need to be filled with either additional revenues (coughtaxescough) or cuts in expenditures (coughsharedrevenuescough) in order to balance the budget. So as you see, there's a cost to heaving the squirrel over the fence and it will be interesting to see how it plays out.
