Casey Shorts
Almost every election, the candidates running for office – no matter what office – talk about their election as if it is one of the most important elections in a generation.
This year, the candidates running for office are actually telling you the truth. Tuesday’s election is a very important election.
If the election of Donald Trump taught us anything, it is that we need to be more politically engaged. No election is too small to skip, and every election, from local aldermanic races up to presidential elections, gives us an opportunity to elect candidates to office who share our values.
Our first chance to fight back in the Trump era is the election this Tuesday, April 3rd. We must elect more progressive, Democratic candidates will to stand up for us.
In addition to Judge Rebecca Dallet, who is running for Wisconsin Supreme Court to restore balance and ensure equal protection under the law for all Wisconsin citizens, we have an opportunity at the local level to fundamentally change politics in Milwaukee County. The best way we can do that is by electing Democrat Casey Shorts to the Milwaukee County Board.
Casey Shorts is a first-time candidate running to make a difference. Shorts is a local progressive labor attorney who lives in Glendale with his wife – who is also named Casey – and their daughter Faith, who was just born this week. Casey has spent his entire adult life fighting for Wisconsin’s working women and men. Prior to moving to Glendale, Casey worked in Washington D.C. as a legislative aide for Democratic Senator Herb Kohl and Democratic Congressman Dave Obey.
Shorts is running to protect the social services that Milwaukee County provides for its residents. On his website, he says he will fight to preserve Milwaukee County Parks and protect public transit from budget cuts. He’ll prioritize workforce development and focus his work on economic development. He’s also passionate about public health, veteran’s services, and pushing Milwaukee County to do more to combat the opioid crisis that is gripping our communities.
Shorts is running against long-time supervisor Theodore Lipscomb. While Lipscomb has focused his attention exclusively on his fights with Milwaukee County Executive Chris Abele during this campaign, Shorts has presented voters with a different question: what if instead of the constant political fighting that has mired Lipscomb’s tenure on the County Board, our leaders take a different approach and work collaboratively on the county’s budget and serve their constituents? He argues that this approach can lead to better outcomes and public-private partnerships to protect county services without increasing taxes. To the average voter, this may not sound like a novel approach, but it is one that is desperately needed in county government.
Lipscomb and his supporters claim Casey Shorts is “bought and paid for” by Leadership MKE – a new independent expenditure organization that is supporting Shorts’ candidacy. Don’t believe this claim. The truth is, Lipscomb is beholden to a broken political system that has benefited his political career but is preventing Milwaukee County from addressing the major challenges that our communities face: the safety of our neighborhoods and the racial inequities that are preventing our communities of color from prospering.
Lipscomb’s failed leadership and hypocrisy were on full display this campaign. He claims he is for fiscal responsibility, but he was the champion of rebuilding the Estabrook Dam at great expense to taxpayers.
He claims he stands for protecting public services, but he authored the budget amendment last year that cut $15 million from critical social services and infrastructure projects in Milwaukee County. He claims he is against requiring paid parking in Milwaukee County Parks, but he voted for the paid parking provision included in last year’s budget.
10 years of Theodore Lipscomb is enough. It is time for a new representative with a fresh approach. That is why we proudly endorse Democrat Casey Shorts for Milwaukee County Supervisor District 1. The election is Tuesday, April 3rd.
