"Sparky" on parade.
Photo courtesy of Republican Party of Waukesha County
Sparky the elephant (above), Waukesha County GOP mascot, got the boot because Brookfield bans political parties as parade entries.
Posted on 07/03/2006 9:30:35 PM PDT by afraidfortherepublic
Party's fiberglass pachyderm prohibited from Brookfield parade
By LISA SINK
lsink@journalsentinel.com
Brookfield - Democrats can rejoice: This city's Independence Day parade will feature donkeys but no elephants.
"Sparky," a 5-foot-tall, 100-pound fiberglass elephant purchased as the mascot for the Republican Party of Waukesha County will not be allowed in Brookfield's Fourth of July parade today, ending its four-year parade run.
But the Wisconsin Donkey and Mule Society will return as a parade unit.
That's because the donkey and mule society is not affiliated with the Democratic Party. The elephant mascot, however, violates Brookfield's ban on political parties as parade entries.
The city's rule has the Republican Party of Waukesha County seeing red.
"This is supposed to be America," said self-described "elephant handler" Kent Woods, second vice chairman of the Republican Party of Waukesha County.
"What's next? Are we going to start opposing military groups because some are offended by our presence in Iraq?" Woods asked.
Parades filled with politics
Party Chairman Don Taylor said he was amused by the controversy but believed the ban on political parties was unreasonable.
After all, he noted, parades are filled with partisan politicians. Brookfield is no different: More than a dozen local, county, state and federal elected officials - all Republican or non-partisan - are scheduled to march in today's approximately 80-unit parade, including U.S. Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner, state Sens. Ted Kanavas and Tom Reynolds, state Rep. Leah Vukmir and Waukesha County Executive Dan Vrakas.
Elected officials are allowed as long as they represent Brookfield and don't hand out campaign literature.
Woods said the $3,800 Sparky, one of four such fiberglass elephants purchased by county Republican parties around the state, has been well-received in the nearly dozen Christmas, Memorial Day and Fourth of July parades it attends annually. Sometimes it gets a standing ovation, he said. Woods' children coined the name Sparky because the mascot was intended to spark interest in the Republican Party.
Concerns of politicized parades
But Bill Kolstad, city director of parks, recreation and forestry, said neither the Republican Party nor the politicians ever applied to bring the elephant to Brookfield's parade. It just showed up with the elected officials.
Last year, Kolstad tried to send the pachyderm packing when he saw it drive up to the parade route. Woods said he sought out Mayor Jeff Speaker, who gave the party permission to be in the parade.
But this year, Speaker - a Republican Party member - is backing up the city parade rules against political parties and partisanship.
"I don't see a big deal out of it," Speaker said.
Even in a county that is one of the biggest Republican strongholds in the country - where 67% of voters selected President Bush over Democratic challenger John Kerry - Speaker said, "I've got to honor my constituents."
About 30 to 40 residents have complained to him about the parade turning into a political promotion with campaign brochures and the like handed out with candy, he said.
"I'm not exactly sure what district the elephant represents. I don't think he's elected," Speaker said.
The Democratic Party hasn't been in any parades in Waukesha County since the 1960s or '70s, said Rick Congdon, party chairman.
"I'm not sure people really want to have their parades politicized," he said.
But Woods said celebrating America's two-party system is part of honoring its independence from the British monarchy.
"Our forefathers . . . did not like a one-party system," he said.
Then, what kind of parade would they have? Kids on bikes?
Does someone have a ping list?
"Sparky" on parade.
Photo courtesy of Republican Party of Waukesha County
Sparky the elephant (above), Waukesha County GOP mascot, got the boot because Brookfield bans political parties as parade entries.
Don't know if you're in this ping list.
I wonder if they will allow rhinoceroses?
We need to make this man's life miserable. A lot of problems for conservatives and Republicans start at the local level with gutless phony Republicans in elective office -- people who think they owe nothing to the party and its supporters and go with the power and the squeaky wheels, which usually means the Rats.
Oh MAN! Don't feed them ideas!
Umm, 'scuse me? They have a local rule against allowing political parties to be represented in parades. Politicians are okay as long as they a) don't hand out literature, and b) represent an area in that city.
There's nothing gutless or phony about it - the guy's just following the rules. Don't like it? Get 'em to change the rule. Don't make the guy's life miserable for following the rules. That's something the other side would do.
"...Woods said celebrating America's two-party system is part of honoring its independence from the British monarchy. 'Our forefathers...did not like a one-party system,' he said."
That's disingenuous as hell. Our forefathers did not like parties, PERIOD.
Maybe we need to learn some lessons from the other side. They never take "no" for an answer. While I don't favor blatant lawbreaking, where there's a will, sometimes there's a way.
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