TUESDAY, MARCH 8, 2011, AFTERNOON NEWS ROUNDUP

E-MAILS REVEAL POSSIBLE WALKER CONCESSIONS ON UNION BILL

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

Gov. Scott Walker's office released documents Tuesday showing he's willing to give on some points of his union bargaining bill to break the Capitol standoff and bring Senate Democrats back from Illinois.

TWO WEEKS IN MADISON - A TRIBUTE

NEW ETHICS COMPLAINT FILED WITH FOCUS ON KOCH MONEY IN STATE

CMD's Erica Pelzek reports:

Monday morning, the Democratic Party of Wisconsin filed a complaint with the state's Government Accountability Board against Gov. Scott Walker, citing comments Walker made during a prank call phoned in by a Buffalo, NY blogger Ian Murphy masquerading as David Koch, one of the billionaire co-owners of Koch Industries and a top contributor to Walker's gubernatorial campaign.

Madison, Wisconsin -- A new lobbying firm, the Badger Advocates, has opened on Capitol Square.

According to its newly-minted website, the Advocates "are dedicated to supporting the University of Wisconsin-Madison ... [and] will promote greater accountability through enhanced autonomy for this unique institution." This lobbying effort is similar to efforts afoot in other states to use state budget issues to privatize public higher education institutions and put more assets and power at the disposal of powerful corporate interests.

The lobby shop's PR description closely mirrors the title of the Wisconsin Public Research Institute's December 2010 report titled, "Making the University of Wisconsin More Accountable Through Greater Autonomy." WPRI is heavily funded by the Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation, a right-wing neo-conservative think tank.