Races of the week: Gillespie vs. Kohl

Wisconsin's U.S. Senate Race

Jules Verne's final novel, Master of the World, is the saga of Robur-wealthy industrialist, brilliant inventor, and committed pacifist. Robur designs and builds a mighty airship The Albatross-a genuine wonder, given that this is the 19th Century and no nation has such a vessel. So much does he hate war that Robur traverses the globe in The Albatross, demanding that the major powers disarm and scuttle their navies. When they refuse, he unleashes bombs from the, air that destroy the British fleet and its sister vessels throughout Europe. Thus Verne portrays the irony and the danger of absolute power: With the most powerful warship of all, Robur deploys the weapons of war and creates carnage to achieve the abolition of what he deplores. In the end, only the forces of nature can stop the self-styled "Master of the World."

In a sense, Wisconsin's Democratic Sen. Herb Kohl is a political Robur-invincible, dominating the body politic of the Badger State, accountable to no one. The heir to a grocery store chain that bears his name and the owner of the Milwaukee Bucks basketball team, Kohl made his maiden bid for office in 1988 when he first ran for the Senate. Blessed with widespread name recognition, Kohl-whose personal wealth is estimated at $300 million-spent an estimated $6.9 million of his own money to win nomination and election. Six years later, Sen. Kohl spent another $7.5 million out of his own pocket to win reelection, nearly six times the total amount spent by Republican opponent Robert Welch (no relation to the founder of the John Birch Society).

"Nobody's man but yours," goes the Kohl slogan. The 65-year-old Democrat argues that since he doesn't accept donations from political action committees and doesn't have to ask individuals for financial support, he is a truly independent, no-strings-attached senator.

"And I find something very, very wrong with that," declares conservative Republican John Gillespie, who is opposing Kohl (lifetime American Conservative Union rating: 3%) this fall. "Yes, I know about the Buckley v. Valeo case and how individuals have the right to spend as much of their own money as possible on their campaigns. But when you choose that path, you also don't have to listen to different viewpoints and you become removed from and unaccountable to the voters. When you go out and ask for $25 here, $1,000 here, and have to make friends with voters and listen to them, you also get a better feel for what they are thinking. And just maybe, you find they have a better idea than you do and you change your mind."

In Kohl's case, Gillespie argues, there are numerous issues on which the senator has voted against the sentiments of Wisconsin voters: against school choice, simplification of the U.S. tax code, flag protection, and a ban on partial-birth abortion. Gillespie would vote the opposite on all of these issues if elected and, underscoring his point that the wealthy incumbent is out of touch with Wisconsin, he noted that a recall movement known as Operation First Breath-sparked by the consistent votes of both Kohl and fellow Wisconsin Democratic Sen. Russell Feingold against banning partial-birth abortion-game within an eyelash of success in 1997.

A former U.S. Army captain, father of two, and grandfather of three (one grandson is named Reagan John Gillespie, after family hero Ronald Reagan and Gillespie himself), the GOP hopeful is well known in his state for something other than politics, sports, or business. With wife Jan and Green Bay Packers legend Bart Starr, Gillespie in 1965 started the Rawhide Boys Ranch to teach, nurture and help many of the worst juvenile delinquents.

After 35 years and some 350 juvenilecourt-placed teenagers through its doors, Rawhide is recognized as one of the nation's most successful youth rehabilitation programs. Its high school, Starr Academy, has a 15-year track record of student and teacher cooperation, and today has an enrollment of 70 students with extensive delinquent records.

"Are we doing something that our public and private schools can't do?" asks Gillespie, who has been likened to the legendary Father Flanagan of Boys Town fame, "Absolutely not. We've let Washington bureaucrats take control of our schools. It's time we take them back and return them to parents, teach ers and administrators. I speak from experience. I know how to get this done."

John Gillespie's campaign chairman is one of the few Wisconsinites better known than Kohl: Bart Starr himself. "I have known John since 1966-the season Green Bay won the Super Bowl and when I joined him in the development of Rawhide Boys Ranch," says the gridiron legend. "He has made a lifelong effort of helping others succeed. With your help on our team, John can win this Senate race."

(John Gillespie for U.S. Senate, PO. Box 7440, Appleton, WI 54912; 920-733-9300)

Copyright Human Events Publishing, Inc. Sep 15, 2000
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