GREEN PARTY GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATE SPEAKS AT UWM

Eisman Presents Ideas, Hopes For State At Student Forum

Green Party gubernatorial candidate Nelson Eisman spoke to students
about his plans for the future of Wisconsin on Sunday, Oct. 15.

Eisman talked about the domination of corporate interests in
politics, his goal for universal health care in Wisconsin and
reformation of public education and law enforcement at the state
level in an event sponsored by the University of
Wisconsin-Milwaukee's chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists.

"We need to start thinking critically about what's fair in our
state," Eisman said.

Eisman criticized Gov. Jim Doyle and Republican candidate Mark Green
for not allowing him a chance to debate them in any of the televised
gubernatorial debates. He accused both of them of bowing to special
interests and corporations.

"I would bring discourse to debates that go against their corporate interests."

In addition to the two major parties and their candidates, Eisman
also had words for corporations, specifically "big pharma" and the
health care industry. Eisman's platform calls for universal,
government-funded health care for the entire state. He said it was
"nuts" that 46 percent of people in Wisconsin have preventative health care.

"You shouldn't have to get sick to get health care," he said.

He also called for a change in the way the state approaches law
enforcement. Under Eisman's plan, Wisconsin would focus on
rehabilitating inmates, making state prisons exclusively for violent
offenders and decriminalizing certain drugs. He said that locking up
anyone involved in a marijuana offense was a "waste of a cell."

"I think we've lost the war on drugs and we should declare amnesty," he said.

SPJ President Bradley Wooten invited both Green and Doyle to come to
UWM, with Green said to be receptive to the idea. Wooten said that
Green eventually declined the invitation after talking with people
from Doyle's campaign.

He called it "ridiculous" that candidates who campaign on reaching
out to Wisconsin's youth chose not to come to a public forum on a
Wisconsin college campus.

"Mark Green makes commercials about this 'idea drain' of young people
leaving the state," Wooten said. "That's because (politicians) are
ignoring us."

Eisman echoed Wooten's sentiments, saying that the established
parties' methods of polling disregard the voices of young people. He
feels that polls that only contact previous midterm election voters
through home phone lines are blocking out college students, many of
whom are first-time voters who only have cell phones.

"Young voters won't get called for the polls, and young people are
the most likely to vote for the Green Party," Eisman said.

Eisman ended the speech by outlining his party's ideals and
encouraged those in attendance to work for a change.

"Your generation needs to turn this country around."

The Wisconsin gubernatorial election is Tuesday, Nov. 7.