Why’s Peggy Romo West taking thousands of dollars from Republican donors?

I’d like to take a few minutes to discuss Gary and Sally Sprenger and Peggy Romo West.

No doubt if you live in Milwaukee County and pay attention to politics, you’ve heard of County Supervisor Peggy Romo West, but you’re probably wondering, “Well yeah, but who the heck are Gary and Sally Sprenger?” That’s an excellent question, and I’ve got a very surprising answer.

You see, Gary and Sally Sprenger, who are both residents of Mequon, are big donors to a variety of Republicans in Wisconsin. Gary Sprenger has contributed over $14,000 to various Republicans, while Sally has donated over $33,000 to an assortment of Republicans in Wisconsin. Together, the Sprengers have donated over $21,000 to Gov. Scott Walker over the past few years.

So what do Gary and Sally Sprenger have to do with County Sup. Peggy Romo West? Well, according to campaign finance documents, Gary and Sally Sprenger have contributed over $2,000 to Sup. Romo West’s campaign since 2011, a figure that represents approximately 20% of all contributions (approximately $9,500) received by Romo West dating back to the beginning of 2011. That makes Gary and Sally Sprenger the biggest contributors to Sup. Romo West’s campaign over the past two years.

Gary and Sally Sprenger also happen to be the owners of ANEW Home Health Care Services, a company that according to information posted on the intertubes contracts to provide community-based long-term care management for participants in Milwaukee County’s Family Care program.

ANEW CMU Est. 1/1999 ANEW Care Management Unit (CMU) provides community based long-term care management for members in the Family Care program. Family Care is a Medicaid waiver program, funded through federal and state tax dollars. In Milwaukee County, the Family Care program is administered through the Milwaukee County Department on Aging, serving eligible residents, age 60 and over. ANEW’s CMU will be expanding to provide CMU services to “All Adults” in Milwaukee County. It is a unique waiver program, in that it follows a managed care philosophy with a member centered and outcome based focus. ANEW CMU is one of the largest CMUs in Milwaukee County and serves over 600 members on a monthly basis.

Coincidentally (or not coincidentally, depending on your perspective), Sup. Romo West just so happens to be chairwoman of the County Board’s Health and Human Needs Committee, the very committee that has direct oversight of Milwaukee County’s Family Care program. What’s more, ANEW provides the kind of community-based services that Sup. Romo West has recently been pushing/promoting in public forums.

What’s really notable about the thousands of dollars Gary and Sally Sprenger have contributed to Peggy Romo West’s campaign is that she appears to be the only Democrat and the only County Supervisor (in a county they don’t live in, mind you) that the Sprengers have contributed to. I don’t know about you, but that certainly seems curious.