Local and State News
local and state news 9-02
Fire investigators here in Manitowoc say it will probably be a week or so, before they find out exactly what caused a fire this week that left 13 people homeless. No one was injured, but the building on south 14th street was totally destroyed by Monday night’s blaze. The building housed not only Glenn's Bar & Grill, but was also the location of several community living apartments. For now, several of the 13 people who lost their homes, are staying at the super 8 motel on calumet here in Manitowoc. The Red Cross in Manitowoc County will house the victims for three to five days and provide clothing and food if needed. None of the residents have renter's insurance because it was community living. For information on how you can help, call the local red cross chapter at 684-6601.
A 63-year-old man from Glenbeulah is facing a first degree intentional homicide charge…after allegedly shooting a man to death at a bar near Plymouth…reportedly over an argument about politics. 31-year-old
Jason Tenpass of Cascade was shot multiple times late Tuesday night at Racers Hall. According to the Sheboygan county Sheriff’s department, Tenpass was found dead on a deck next to the bar…and the suspect, who has not been identified yet, was tacked by witnesses after the shooting and help until police got there. The incident remains under investigation.
Factories were busier last month – and at least some Wisconsin investment analysts do not believe the economy will fall into another recession. The Institute for Supply Management said its national manufacturing index grew by just under a point in August to 56-point-three. Anything above 50 indicates growth. Milwaukee’s index was at 59. That was down seven points from July, but still three points higher than August of last year. Green Bay investment analyst Adam Longlais says businesses are counting on a slow and gradual recovery. Ken Brusda, the head of an asset management firm in Menasha, says we can expect continued moderate growth. But Milwaukee business research consultant Nick Hayes says firms are still reluctant to spend money – and jobs will still be harder to find, because the economy has re-set itself at a lower level.
The American Legion will wrap up its national convention today in Milwaukee. Yesterday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi asked the Legionnaires to help the nation work together to make sure veterans have jobs when they come home from Iraq and Afghanistan. She said quote, “We promise them a future worthy of their sacrifice.” Pelosi said the current Congress approved a number of measures important to veterans. They included a beefed-up G-I Bill, more funding for the Veterans Administration, more tax breaks for disabled vets, and more help for veterans affected by Agent Orange. But Pelosi said more needs to be done, like caring for homeless veterans, ending the so-called “widows’ tax,” and more treatments for post-traumatic stress disorder.
If you don’t know who Ron Johnson is, you’re not watching T-V. The Oshkosh Republican has spent four-million-dollars on T-V ads in Wisconsin for his U-S Senate candidacy – while Democratic incumbent Russ Feingold has spent one-point-four million so far. The figures come from the Virginia tracking firm of C-M-A-G, and they include T-V ads in the state’s five largest markets. U-W Madison political scientist Ken Goldstein says Johnson has spent a large amount on T-V at this point in the campaign. It has helped him run about even with Feingold in various polls. And Goldstein says it has also allowed him to get away with mis-steps reported in the news, and fight off attacks by Democrats who call him extreme and not ready for national office. Johnson owns an Oshkosh plastics packaging firm, and he says he’s prepared to spend millions of his own money to try-and-defeat Feingold. But first, he must defeat two other G-O-P challengers in a primary that’s 12 days away. Johnson spokeswoman Sara Sendek said the candidate will spend what it takes to get his message out. But Feingold spokesman John Kraus says voters are starting to see that quote, “the Ron Johnson in his T-V ads isn’t the real Ron Johnson.”
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Retired police officers in Wisconsin’s largest city may soon be allowed to carry concealed weapons. The Milwaukee Fire-and-Police Commission is expected to approve the measure today. A federal law passed in 2004 lets retired officers carry hidden weapons if they get proper training. And it trumps Wisconsin’s long-running ban on concealed carry for non-officers. Milwaukee retirees would have pass background checks, get firearms training, and go through a certification procedure. And they’d have to pay 100-dollars a year for permits. Milwaukee Police Chief Ed Flynn proposed the idea. He said other Wisconsin agencies allow retirees to carry hidden heat, and they don’t report any problems with it. The state Justice Department has 18 of its retired agents carrying concealed weapons. Racine County has been certifying retirees for five years, and about two dozen go through the process. Dane County has about three dozen retirees certified – and officials say it makes more officers available in situations that might call for a use of deadly force.
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A man who police said was planning to retaliate for the murder of a street gang member in Madison was charged yesterday with re-entering the U-S after being deported. 31-year-old Jorge Ramirez-Flores was arrested August 13th in Beaver Dam for alleged probation and immigration violations. Police said he was a high-level member of Madison’s “C-14” gang, which was reportedly planning to retaliate against a rival gang for the April murder of 19-year-old Antonio Perez. Madison Police had worked with federal immigration officials to target “C-14” gang members. Authorities arrested 11 Mexican gang members in the Madison area for immigration violations. Those arrests came two days before Ramirez-Flores was taken into custody.
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The state Republican Party retracted its criticism of a fund-raiser for Democratic gubernatorial candidate Tom Barrett, after learning it didn’t happen. The G-O-P issued a statement yesterday which said Barrett hosted a “super secret” fund-raiser on Tuesday night with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. But the statement was retracted a short time later, after spokesmen for both Pelosi and Barrett denied such an event happened. Party spokesman Andrew Welhouse said he first heard about the fund-raiser on a Milwaukee radio talk show, and then from several other sources. Barrett spokesman Phil Walzak said it was sad that Republicans had resorted to quote, “clear lies.”