Caffeinated Politics

While Republican candidates across the nation are figuring out ways to distance themselves from Donald Trump, Wisconsin gubernatorial hopeful Tom Tiffany is angling to emulate him.

Last week the newswires rang with headlines about the Tiffany campaign barring two Journal Sentinel reporters from entering a campaign event in Milwaukee, thereby escalating tensions between a public statewide candidate and the press coverage the public understands is a constitutional right. It was just a couple of days after Donald Trump had created a windstorm of anger and resentments when we tried to ban CNN, MS NOW, and Politico from the White House. A federal judge needed to rule and again affirm what we all should be aware of in moments like this.

A free working press and Constitutional safeguards are good for the citizenry.

There were times when I thought some of the state press were a bit zealous and off-the-mark when covering per-diem stories as they related to the office of State Representative Lary Swoboda. I worked in the office, and recall how the headlines would rankle us, but the motto to our statehouse office remained the same to all.  The door is always open.

So, I understand that sometimes there are reasons to disagree with a reporter. I was most peeved when, at meetings in the district, Swoboda would make a series of clear-cut, well-framed statements, but if they appeared in a story, it was as an afterthought at the bottom of the article.  But we never once elbowed out a reporter or limited access.  To be honest, we had a rule in the office that we handled every press call by the close of the day. I started that rule the first day I was hired, and it stayed that way for a decade.  (The only press calls I did not deal with in the office were the ones related to Swoboda’s run in the primary to become the DPI Secretary.)

With that as a bit of a background as to how I view a working relationship with the press and an elected official, it is understandable to state Tiffany’s campaign made a serious mistake when it barred Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reporters from doing their job. The issue is not whether anyone on the campaign likes or dislikes the Journal Sentinel or the reporters who work for the newspaper. The issue is whether candidates for office believe they should get to choose who covers them. You and I know the answer must be no.

A free press is not a public-relations arm of a campaign. (No more than the Department of Justice should be viewed as a bevy of personal attorneys for a president.)   During a campaign for office the press is there to ask tough questions, and to probe and demand accountability from a candidate and the campaign. Reporters are the eyes and ears of the citizenry. They are watchdogs standing between powerful people and the public they seek to govern.

The Tiffany campaign sent out a troubling message when it barred reporters from a news service they do not like. The action screams that scrutiny from reporters is not welcome.

That should concern folks across the state, regardless of their political leanings.  The principle is bigger than politics.  Strong candidates do not fear questions. Strong candidates do not need gatekeepers to decide which journalists are acceptable. Strong candidates walk into a room full of skeptical reporters and make their case.

I grew up in the era of Sam Donaldson who worked at the White House for ABC News.  His voice could be heard over the blades of the helicopter, though President Reagan always the consummate actor, would cup his ear and feign being unable to hear.  But here is the point I wish to make in this column. The First Amendment is not designed to protect comfortable journalism. It is designed to protect inconvenient journalism. You know what I mean.  The stories politicians dislike and don’t want to talk about, but the ones voters and citizens most need to hear.

Tom Tiffany is asking Wisconsin voters to trust him with one of the state’s most important offices.  But he shrinks on the campaign trail, unable to let every reporter hold him accountable.  That is a troubling look with only abut a month to go until election day.