Progressive Milwaukee alders earn praise from conservative operative for supporting Ashanti Hamilton

Apparently Milwaukee Alderman Ashanti Hamilton has the votes to successfully challenge Ald. Michael Murphy for Milwaukee Common Council president, aided in part by conservatives like “Bathroom” Bob Donovan and Mark Borkowski, as well as a bloc of African American alders and Tony Zielinski.

But on Monday afternoon, a group of eight council members released a statement voicing their support for Hamilton. That would be enough for Hamilton to win the election at a meeting Tuesday, which is scheduled for 9 a.m.

That group includes Aldermen Milele Coggs, Zielinski, Russell Stamper, Bob Donovan and Mark Borkowski, as well as Chantia Lewis, Cavalier Johnson and Khalif Rainey, who joined the council Monday.

Interestingly enough, Ashanti Hamilton’s challenge to Ald. Murphy – as well as the group of supporters of that challenge – drew praise from longtime Republican political operative Craig Peterson, who’s worked hard to find conservative challengers to incumbent alders in Milwaukee, with Peterson saying he saw “great things to come” from Hamilton’s challenge to Ald. Murphy.

It’s disconcerting to see progressives joining forces with conservatives to oust another progressive as Common Council president, but I suppose they have their reasons for their support of Ald. Murphy’s ouster as Common Council prseident – whatever those reasons may be.

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2 thoughts on “Progressive Milwaukee alders earn praise from conservative operative for supporting Ashanti Hamilton

  1. There was a claim black alderpersons felt Murphy had not appointed enough of them to committee chairmanships. I have no idea how true or not that thought is.

    I find anything Craig Peterson praises more questionable just because he praises it. However I wonder if he is praising the move because he sees buddying up to already elected alderpersons as a more viable alternative to importing his own candidate(s) from Waukesha and then seeing him loose.

    Also, correct me if I’m wrong, but Mr. Peterson wants to increase racial tensions in the city as a means of causing trouble for progressives as well as split off some of some of the democratic statewide voting base (recently with Sheriff Clarke on radio ads for Rebecca Bradley).

    Peterson may not live in Milwaukee and had a former patron that made things harder for Milwaukee (and thus people living in Milwaukee) and represented an area made what is was via racism/white flight. But he probably understands that if he can pull the strings of current black elected officials beyond the Sheriff that makes his tasks easier.

  2. Looked around a bit more and found this.:

    http://urbanmilwaukee.com/2016/04/06/murphys-law-will-murphy-lose-council-presidency/

    Peterson probably helped Hamilton get Donovan’s vote.

    Interestingly, Peterson also sent Joe Davis and Ashanti Hamilton a check (though not one that was earth shaking a check is still a check.

    Plus the writer seems to agree with me that “The longer-term goal of Peterson has been to build a constituency in the black community that will oppose the “white liberals” that allegedly run Milwaukee.”

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