Ripped from yesterday's headlines

...of that major metropolitan paper, the Racine Journal Times:

1)"Ryan raises $3.8M, challenger raises $225,000"

Rob Zerban, the latest sacrificial lamb getting ready to run against House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan, had this to say: "If you are representing big oil, gas companies and insurance companies of course they have a lot of money and are going to support him..."

And we're supposed to really hate those guys.  Hey, I don't use gas or insurance, do you? Get hatin'!

2)"Being redistricted out of their district - Sen. Wirch and two opponents would not live in Senate district under new map"

Bob Wirch (D-Kenosha) could be required to move into the city of Kenosha in order to retain his seat if the new plan goes through.  [UPDATE: the senate approved the plan today.]  As would the two Republicans - Jonathan Steitz and Fred Ekornaas - meeting in next week's primary to Wirch's recall election.  Naturally, Wirch is calling it partisan gerrymandering (take a look at the maps in the article - I wouldn't be surprised if he was right).

Let us once and for all stipulate that: incumbents with important committee posts are always going to raise more campaign money than relatively unknown challengers, and the challengers will always whine about it; and the party that is in the majority will always use that power to secure advantages for itself, and the party in the minority will always cry partisanship.  Someday the situation will be reversed - Dems up, Repubs down - and it'll be the same thing in the other direction.

On the other hand, in this case (these cases) its hard to come up with any sympathy.  Zerban is dragging out the "populist" lament that Obama and Pelosi have been beating to death - those evil fatcat corporations that aren't like you and me at all!  Egads!  And Wirch, while he may (may) have a point this time, wasn't all that eager to represent his district back in February, was he?