We will follow you, follow you wherever you may go,
There's no Great Lake that's too deep,
Rib Mountain's not too high it can keep,
keep us away from you
(--with apologies to Rick Nelson)
It's getting so Gov. Scotty can't go anywhere without large, informal "welcoming" committees of anti-Walker forces demonstrating visibly. The latest episode was reported in the Duluth News Tribune after a Walker sortie to Washburn in Bayfield County to a Wisconsin GOP fundraising dinner last Saturday. The newspaper led its story with news that "embattled Gov. Scott Walker spoke at an invitation-only event and was greeted by at least 2,000 angry protesters outside." The story continues, in part:
Walker arrived in a convoy of six unmarked police cars that pulled up at 5:45 p.m. to the Steak Pit for a Republican Lincoln Day fundraiser. The large, boisterous crowd, which had been lining the streets leading to the restaurant since 4:30, quickly recognized him and erupted in boos and shouts of “Recall Walker.” The convoy moved through quickly and without incident, and most of the protesters began to follow a circuitous route on public pathways to a spot behind the restaurant where they continued the protest within earshot of the Republican Party faithful inside.
Bayfield County Sheriff Paul Susienka said Saturday evening that he didn’t have a crowd estimate, but various people had estimated the size at between 2,000 and 5,000. So the protest probably at least doubled the size of Washburn, which has a population of 2,271.
Susienka said there had been no incidents and no arrests...
Protesters banged pots, shook tambourines at car windows and sounded horns. Most of the drivers and their passengers stared straight ahead. They had to navigate through a narrow tunnel formed by protesters on both sides, held back by Bayfield County sheriff’s deputies and rally organizers...
Ron Borchers, a substitute teacher in Washburn, said he was among 24 people who organized the rally, which began Friday afternoon behind Stage North, a community theater and entertainment venue... .