Chad's Priorities for Monona

*Update our neighborhood parks, playgrounds, and playing fields
*Renovate city buildings to reduce utility costs and improve productivity
*Improve lake water-quality by improving retention structures, reducing runoff, and reducing flooding
*Advocate for pedestrian safety on our streets so that children can get around to schools and parks more safely
*Reward excellence from city staff, and Support the programs that make our city a great place to live
Our grandparents and parents sacrificed and invested in a better future for their children and grandchildren, and now we must do the same for future generations. TOGETHER, WE CAN BUILD A BETTER MONONA !


Since 1998, I have been proud to call Monona my home. I grew up in Hampton Virginia, where taxes are low and the quality of life is correspondingly lower. I adopted Wisconsin as my home 19 years ago because I value quality public services, excellent public schools, and the higher standard of living that comes with a well-educated electorate and a well-funded public sector.

When I served on the Monona city council in 2008 and 2009, I promoted sensible and responsible improvements to our city. I improved Transit marketing efforts as chairman of the Transit Commission. I helped to create "virtual sidewalks" around Winnequah School so that kids can walk or bike to school more safely. I supported buying more fuel-efficient vehicles to reduce fuel costs and save the taxpayers money. I defended the rights of citizens to live freely, so long as their actions were not harmful to others. In that regard, I helped to implement our smoking ban, which allows all citizens to eat and drink along Monona Drive in smoke-free and more family-friendly establishments. The positive health benefits of this policy are now well documented.

I am running for office to defend and improve the vital services that the people of Monona expect. We already know what Wisconsin is learning too late, that Governor Walker does not understand what makes Wisconsin great. In Wisconsin, we have learned that democracy and prosperity require honest accounting, investments in education and technology, and quality public services, so that all citizens can participate in the advancement of our state. We do not divide or segregate our people; we are one people from many backgrounds, who share a commitment to good government, democracy, and forward progress. I will fight for these values, to protect vital services such as transit, the library, the senior center, and our parks and recreation programs.

Our investments in our library staff and facilities allowed us to earn "the best library in Wisconsin" award. I want to see us become the "best small city to raise a family" and the "best place to operate a business" by investing in our community with a long-term vision, rather than racing to the bottom. Together, we can build a better Monona.

My experiences as an employer and small business owner mirror my approach to governing. I will treat customers/ constituents with respect and dignity. To be the best, we need to attract and retain outstanding employees/ public servants to work for us. I will continue to treat our city staff just as I treat my own staff, with good and fair compensation, and an expectation of excellence. I will continue to be responsive to the concerns and complaints of the people, and I will expect our services to be the best in Wisconsin. I reject the notion that government should be small or large; good government (like a great business) must be efficient, effective, accountable, and responsive to the people. I respectfully ask for your vote on April 5th.


(These posts range from 2011, back to 2008, when I was first elected to the Council)

Sunday, February 20, 2011

Conservatives Have Declared War on the American Middle Class

We are missing the point if we think Scott Walker is only assaulting public unions. An attack on basic workers' rights is an attack on all workers, and the entire middle class.

The rise of the middle class was the direct result of rising union rights, organizing, and power. We enjoy child labor laws, the 40 hour work week, workers comp insurance, unemployment insurance, retirement and health care benefits, all in large part because UNIONS DEMANDED THESE THINGS.

The fact is that wages and benefits rose for all working people thanks to union efforts.

The fact that private sector manufacturing (and the Union Jobs that were a part of it) have been leaving our state and nation at an alarming rate, has severely threatened our economic stability and prosperity. Now, Scott Walker wants to do to Public Unions what his free market cronies did to manufacturing, TO DESTROY them.

The end result is the destruction of the middle class.

Walker gives to the Powerful

and Takes from the Rest of us.

Wake UP Wisconsin. If you work for a living, and you still have a living wage, be very concerned- YOU ARE NEXT! Union or non-union, it does not matter. We either rise together, or fall together. Walker and his CLUB FOR GROWTH puppet-masters want to destroy unions, destroy social security, destroy medicare and all government programs. They demand tax cuts for corporations, and concessions from the rest of us.

ENOUGH!! The time has come to take a stand. The Radical Right have declared War on every working American. They accuse us of "class warfare" for pointing out their obvious assault on the middle class!?! HOGWASH!! Walker and the Fitzgerald Clan are ready to dismantle our rights and our economy, IF WE LET THEM!

THE PEOPLE UNITED, WILL NEVER BE DEFEATED.

THIS IS WHAT DEMOCRACY LOOKS LIKE

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Saturday, February 19, 2011

Senator Mark Miller is a Monona Patriot

Thank You, Senator Miller. We are proud of you to lead a Walk-out and Work-stop action to protect the Rights Of Wisconsin Workers, and to Honor the Great Heritage of our Progressive State. You have made us Proud, all across our nation. Conservatives may call you a deadbeat, but we know a True patriot in Monona. Leadership sometimes requires action and courage. Thank You!!
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Workers Rights Are Human Rights

Bargaining rights for workers are to capitalism, what voting rights are to a democracy. When you limit these rights, you diminish and threaten the system itself.

I am proud to call Wisconsin my home, and I am proud of our great history in Wisconsin of defending economic democracy, creating workers compensation insurance, unemployment insurance, and important union rights for workers in the public and private sectors. Wisconsin has led the way in creating the prosperity that we have enjoyed in the 1950s, 60s and 70s.

Without democracy and rights in the workplace, then all power rests with employers, who can behave like dictators. It is no accident that the most advanced, wealthy states and nations are those with strong union movements and rights, where less inequality exists, and this allows for higher overall standards of living, and happiness.

I grew up in Virginia, a "right -to-work" anti-union state, where teacher pay is much lower. Inequality is greater, and the quality of public schools and other services is lower, and I decided not to stay there.
I recognize the "community" that Scott Walker wants to create, and that community is a less desirable place to live.
I hope that Wisconsin turns back this radical assault on our values, and that the people wake up and realize that this Conservative Agenda is a scam; just another Ponzi scheme that will bankrupt most of us, while enriching only a few. The rewards that are promised turn out to be a lie, but if we are foolish enough to fall for it, perhaps we deserve it.

As a business owner, I remodel the homes of middle class professionals. Some are public employees, while others provide goods and services for public workers. We all depend on each other in a thriving economy. Walker's priorities make a challenging economy much worse for me and most citizens in our state.

For years, we have asked working people to make sacrifices; fewer benefits, furloughs, reduced wages. Simultaneously, we increase the costs of "public" services, like tuition and fees.
For 30 years, the lion's share of government handouts have gone to the wealthiest among us, with massive subsidies to big business, and huge tax cuts to the top income earners.

We have shifted massive amounts of wealth from the working majority to the wealthy few.

How can we keep giving bail outs and tax breaks to millionaires and billionaires, and then ask the rest of us to foot the bill? Isn't this completely backwards? Certainly, these policies, which have prevailed for 30 years, have not reduced our debt, or helped raise our standard of living as a nation. We have gotten poorer, and class-mobility has decreased. These policies are literally destroying our prosperity and wealth, and our greatness as a nation. Yet the con artists and liars who sell this snake oil accuse liberal policies (which coincided with our most prosperous era) of destroying America? Hogwash.

I think Wisconsin, and perhaps the entire nation, are finally waking up from this long conservative nightmare. Greed, unchecked, is horrible economic policy, in every way.

United, we prosper. Divided, we fall.

Forward, Wisconsin!
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Campaign Announcement, first campaign, 2008

Chad T Speight has announced his candidacy for the Monona City Council. Speight, 41, is the president of Chad’s Carpentry, a local remodeling firm. He is a graduate of Dartmouth College, and he has lived in Monona for the past 10 years.

In announcing his candidacy, Speight said, “Monona is a great community, and I believe that our best days are yet to come. We need to preserve and enhance our family-friendly qualities. I have a passion for politics, and I want to contribute in a positive way, helping Monona move towards a more sustainable future.

“The people of Monona are thoughtful and enlightened, and I look forward to working with them as we continue to improve our city services and infrastructure. We need to have an open and honest discussion about where best to invest public tax dollars, because Monona does need to invest wisely as we move into the future.”

Speight served for 2 years on the Transit Commission, and he believes that a better transportation infrastructure will make Monona much more attractive to young families. In addition, he is interested in investigating ways to make our streets safer for children, pedestrians, and cyclists. “As we work to continuously improve our infrastructure, we need to invest in sidewalks and bike lanes to ensure the safety of our citizens.”

Speight specializes in sustainable, energy-efficient remodeling, and he would like to investigate options that the city may have for similar technologies, which are cheaper to operate and maintain. In addition, he is committed to maintaining and preserving our parks and public lake access to ensure that the benefits of living in Monona are maintained. “Our access to Lake Monona is a wonderful part of living here, but only if we invest in cleaner, safer practices to be able to enjoy the lake for years to come.”

Speight continues to serve as a board member of the National Association of the Remodeling Industry (NARI), and he has been an advocate for contractor licensing, better building codes, and better building practices in remodeling and new home construction.

Speight is an active volunteer in the local schools, where he is the coach for one of the new Destination ImagiNation teams at Winnequah Middle School. He coaches youth baseball in the Monona Recreation League, and enjoys playing soccer in the 40+ league. He and his wife, Sue Carr, have two kids, Amelia, a seventh grader at Winnequah Middle School, and Kevin, a third grader at Nichols Elementary.

“I commend the council and the mayor for making tough decisions at the recent budget sessions. I am ready, willing and able to help make those decisions, and to continue to move the city in a positive direction for those families here now, and for those looking to Monona for a future home.”