Memorial Day
Memorial Day thoughts
Yesterday was Memorial Day in the Northwoods.
Across Wisconsin’s Northland, crowds gathered in remembrance of those who gave their lives in the service of our Country.
The preceding two weeks, as they are every year, were alive with the furious preparations of County Veterans Service Offices, Veterans groups, and a small army of sextons, groundskeepers, and caretaker associations. They set themselves to cleaning headstones, planting flags, straightening and replacing markers, and carefully planning the many parades, speeches, and firing squads of the day. You see, a lot more goes into Memorial Day than one might think.
I spent the morning with my local American Legion post, traveling from site to site to conduct observances. It was a beautiful day, a perfect mix of sun and warmth, and I was impressed by the turnout at each location we visited. But cynics like me can never be happy, we must always have something to pick at, and I found my attention drawn to the minority.
That minority that treats the day, not as one of solemn contemplation, but as the opening day of Summer. I’m usually not one to tell others what they should and shouldn’t do. It is, after all, a free country, and there’s an argument to be made that those who treat Memorial Day as a recreational holiday are enjoying the very peace and pleasures that our Military dead fought to make possible…but I won’t make that argument and I won’t lie, the steady procession of boats, ATV’s, UTV’s, and every other “V” of the aquatic or terrestrial variety, annoyed me.
I know, I’m a buzzkill, but my personal dourness isn’t the only thing at work here and I’ll attempt to articulate the problem as I see it.
WE’RE AT WAR, AMERICA’S AT THE MALL
Those words, attributed to a United States Army Lieutenant Colonel by a CBS Reporter at the height of the Iraq War, really capture my and many other GWOT/OEF/OIF Veterans’ feelings on their time spent fighting America’s wars over the last thirty or so years.
Unlike previous conflicts in which conscription was a very real possibility for younger men, our post 9/11 service seemed to exist in a bubble, divorced and sequestered from the lives of our civilian counterparts. I know that for me and millions of my fellow Veterans, the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq dominated our lives. We, and everyone we knew, were either returning from, preparing for, or actively on, a deployment overseas.
Yes, we signed up for it. We were a professional, all-volunteer force, fully aware of what we were going to be asked, nay ordered, to do. In that sense, we had and have no right to complain and I, like many others, was enthusiastic about deploying. Before my first tour I remember my excitement at the opportunity to do my job where I felt it mattered. But on my second deployment, 15 months after returning from my first, I started to feel the ache of something eating at my soul.
I was tired, and not just physically. That weariness was a resentment at what, at times, seemed to be the outright ambivalence of the rest of America. It festered quietly in the background as my life seemed to have been waylaid, paused for years at a time, while the lives of my friends and peers who hadn’t joined the Military, continued. We GWOT Veterans gave so much of our lives, sacrificed so much of ourselves, and watched comrades not make it home, while it seemed that America, as a whole, couldn’t have cared less.
It is of course, no match for the similar bitterness felt by Vietnam Veterans, I would never claim that, but it was there and it was real. Personal sacrifice is one of the many burdens of Military service and it’s why I didn’t aim for a twenty-year career in the Army. Perhaps it would be better for Veterans to bear it in silence, and I would, if I didn’t think that doing so would have significantly negative consequences for our Country.
A CHANGING OF THE GUARD
Times change and so do the people. Today, for America’s Veterans, that means saying goodbye to the last of our World War Two and Korean War comrades as that generation has almost entirely disappeared. In the coming years, the number of surviving Vietnam, and Vietnam-era, (VAVE) Veterans will decline and similarly dwindle before vanishing. Statistical projections predict that fewer than one million Veterans of that generation will still be with us fifteen years from now, down from an existing population of approximately six million.
The aging and ultimately, dying off, of VAVE Veterans will prove catastrophic for Veterans Service Organizations like the American Legion and Veterans of Foreign Wars, a subject I intend to write more about in the future, but its impact won’t be confined to those groups. It will also be devastating for the relationship between America’s citizenry and its Military.
In 2011 the Pew Research Center studied that very relationship. Adjusting their results for the 15 years that have passed, their results would look like this:
I have an immediate family member who is/was a Veteran
65 and older: >75%
45-64: 57%
33-44: ~33%
As memories of the draft fade from the consciousness of America’s civilians, their distance from their Military, both emotionally and practically, increases. This “gulf” between Service Members, Veterans and everyone else widens with each passing day. In 2022, Anthony Kurta, Undersecretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness said that “this disconnect is characterized by misconceptions, a lack of knowledge and an inability to identify with those who serve.”
It wouldn’t be a big deal if emotional distance and knowledge were the only consequences of the gap. Most Americans don’t identify with the people who pick up their trash, build their roads, or grow their food. One more career field being added to that list wouldn’t be the end of the world, but the Military is different because it deals in lethality. At the end of the day, our Military exists to fight, kill, and ultimately die, in defense of our Republic and its interests. Because of that, this gap is alarming and should set off blaring claxons in the halls of the Pentagon and Congress.
Admiral Mike Mullen summed it up nicely in an address he made at West Point when he said that, “I fear [civilians] do not know us. I fear they do not comprehend the full weight of the burden we carry or the price we pay when we return from battle…. people uninformed about what they are asking the military to endure is a people inevitably unable to fully grasp the scope of the responsibilities our Constitution levies upon them.”
The electorate, the American people, who through their elected leaders make decisions about the use of our Military, simply can’t afford to be ignorant of what those decisions mean for the men and women tasked with executing them. As fewer Americans are connected to the Military we need touchpoints, avenues of connection for them to understand the ramifications of their choices, more than ever.
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So what does any of that have to do with Memorial Day and the non-observing minority that rankled me yesterday?
The answer is simple, Memorial Day is one of those points of connection. By seeing the graves and hearing the names of the fallen, America’s civilians can reacquaint themselves with the costs of war and hopefully, make more responsible decisions in the future. I am not going to opine on the reasonableness or legitimacy of some of those past decisions, though I would say that Veterans provide some of the most powerful criticisms of the conflicts in which they served.
Memorial Day is not a day for grilling, drinking, and partying. It is not, and should not be, treated as an occasion for flippant recreation. We should not hear salutations of “Happy Memorial Day!”
Memorial Day is the one day we set aside each year for deliberate reflection, mourning, and gratitude. Treat it with the dignity and respect that it deserves.
I’m not asking you to observe it out of some feeling of chauvinistic militarism or performative patriotism. I’m asking you to observe it for the sake of America’s sons and daughters who serve, and will serve, our Country in the future. By honoring those who have sacrificed their lives for our country, we can, I hope, honor, and do right by, those who have taken their place.
Price SHeriff I
THE PRICE COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE RACE
If you arrived here because you want actual information on the candidates and the race you can skip this one. It’s an introductory piece to provide readers with perspective on who I am, why I’m interested, and what they can expect. It’s also painfully long.
Let this be my opening article in a series I intend to write covering the campaigns of Robert Hawn and Waldemar Madsen for election to the office of Sheriff of Price County. Both candidates are running as Republicans and will face off in the partisan primary election scheduled for August 11, whoever wins that primary is almost assured to win the general election in the fall. Polling isn’t really a thing in local elections, but Hawn must be considered the front-runner and favorite to win with Madsen playing the role of challenger. I plan to publish detailed pieces on each candidate but before I begin, I’d like to explain my interest in the election and, in the name of transparency, disclose some things so readers can understand my perspective.
THE ASSASINATION OF DERWIN BROWN
I didn’t grow up in the Northwoods. My Mother, a native of Prentice, had me while she was a graduate student at UW-Madison and we later moved to metropolitan Atlanta when she took a position at Emory. I grew up in a small city that lies directly adjacent to Atlanta itself and serves as the seat of DeKalb County.
When I was in school my parents divorced and my grandmother, a retired teacher, came down from Rice Lake to live with us and help my mother through the process. During the week she would volunteer at the DeKalb County Jail teaching GED classes to juveniles awaiting trial. She found the work rewarding and over time came to know many of the jailers and deputies, one of whom was Deputy Patrick Cuffy, a man she remembers as being both kind and helpful. When summer came my grandmother returned to Wisconsin and her time at the jail ended. Cuffy and the Sheriff’s Office would have faded from her memory, and from our family’s consciousness, were it not for an event later that year.
On the morning of December 15th, 2000, a Captain with the DeKalb County Police Department was gunned down in his home’s driveway not far from where we lived. The victim, Derwin Brown, was not just a police official, but was also the sheriff-elect, due to be sworn in just three days later. Brown, just 46 years old at the time of his death, was a 23-year police veteran and a father of five. He’d campaigned on an anti-corruption platform and had managed to defeat incumbent Sydney Dorsey. Brown’s murder shook the County, not just because of his importance to our community and his family, but because an investigation revealed that it was not a random act of violence, or some kind of revenge by a criminal Brown encountered through his police work. Derwin Brown’s murder was a political assassination, and his killers were DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office deputies, acting at the behest of out-going Sheriff Dorsey, and under the direction of Deputy Cuffy.
There is much more to Derwin Brown’s story, and the fallout from his death, than I’m going to mention here but his death is where my interest, and skepticism, of Sheriffs began.
You see, Sheriffs, the holders of the actual office - not deputies, are like little kings and their counties are their kingdoms. Unlike Police Chiefs, Troopers/Patrolmen, or State and Federal agents, Sheriffs answer to no one but voters. In fact, if we don’t count prosecutors, the office of sheriff is the only publicly elected law enforcement office in the country. So long as they avoid the direct attention of say, a state’s attorney general or investigative agency, there’s very little in the way of a check on their power. A judge or district attorney can slap something they’ve done down but that’s hardly a supervisory relationship. They don’t answer to their county’s board, and they can’t be fired for substandard performance like in the case of a chief of police. Incumbent sheriffs tend to win reelection simply because they have considerable name recognition which is often the deciding factor in local elections.
We invest a great deal of trust and extend a substantial amount of latitude to our Sheriffs. America’s freedoms and protections are only as good as the person behind the desk who pulls the metaphorical levers and so it is extremely important that when we vote, we elect the right person for the job. The Sheriff is the only person on the ballot who we give the right to wear death on his or her hip. They are the coercive power of the state personified and we must get things right when it comes to them.
A MIDWEST COWBOY
A long time ago in a Northwoods county far, far away there was once a sheriff who seemed to model himself after television’s Walt Longmire. A motorcycle loving former detective, his bearded visage was never complete without a Stetson. He loved a good photo-op and his social media accounts were flooded with selfies of him at the gym. He seemed to crave attention and even has an IMDB page from his appearances in criminal documentaries. I’ve learned that he’s recently been diagnosed with cancer and as he’s no longer in office I will refrain from naming him, I’ll simply call him Longmire. I now wish him nothing but peace, healing, and happiness, but during his time in office I was less than pleased with him.
I first encountered Longmire at meetings of his county board’s veteran services subcommittee. These meetings were turbulent as there was a great deal of frustration with the chairman of the subcommittee, a man who was later successfully recalled from office, who I’ll call Porky. Porky was also chair of the county’s law enforcement subcommittee and played a prominent role on the county’s budget subcommittee. When an allegation surfaced that Porky jabbed a veteran at the close of one of the meetings, Sheriff Longmire became incensed at a suggestion that it might constitute a conflict of interest for his office to investigate the incident. He spun the suggestion as an attack on his integrity and the professionalism of his office. I found Longmire’s defensiveness to be both immature and odd in a Shakesperean “methinks thou dost protest too much” kind of way, but I let it go.
Later, when a Veteran Service Office employee resigned, Longmire insisted that he investigate allegations against that employee personally. I thought that was strange and a tad bit inappropriate.
At the time, I worked as a non-sworn employee of a Police Department in Longmire’s county and came to hear many stories about the Sheriff. Deputies were unhappy with his leadership, subordinate leaders in his organization lamented his narcissism and lack of management skills, and there were even allegations that he was chasing away detectives, long-time employees, and the state patrol from the county. He was difficult to work with and was quick to berate law enforcement officers on the phone before he had all the facts - he would even hang up mid-call.
A certain amount of complaining is natural in any organization and a leader’s job is a lonely one, but I found the volume and nature of these complaints to be concerning. When Longmire, without any prior consultation or communication of his intentions, took steps to influence a board of trustees to effectively dismantle the police department for which I had once worked, I resolved to look into him.
I spoke to former employees and I submitted open records act requests to departments for which he’d worked and communities in which he’d resided. I heard some interesting tales but was unable to substantiate anything of note and so I ended up relegating much of the legend of Longmire to the domain of rumor.
It is very important that I now say that none of what I have said about Longmire thus far or going forward is objective fact, it is all my opinion and a recollection of my experiences. If you can guess Longmire’s true identity, please do not take any of what you read here as an attack on his reputation or a reason to think less of him. I will say that even today, I think he served his county relatively honorably and did the very best he could, I just take issue with his leadership style and a few of his decisions that I consider to be, quite frankly, bad.
I eventually found evidence of one of those bad decisions.
On a Sunday, two counties away, Longmire received a speeding ticket from the Wisconsin State Patrol. That ticket isn’t the issue, I have a speeding ticket on my own record myself, I didn’t care about that. The problem was that when Longmire was ticketed, he was driving his official, unmarked, Sheriff’s Office vehicle and, as I learned from State Patrol footage, a woman who I presume to be his girlfriend was in the passenger seat. I reported this to the County Board and filed a formal complaint. In my opinion, Longmire was using government resources for personal errands, an act of corruption, albeit minor, that constituted a violation of the public’s trust and his own office’s policies.
The story doesn’t end there though, a few days later when I visited the Sheriff Office’s records clerk to pay for an open records act request Longmire ambushed me in the department’s atrium. He approached me with aggressive body language and began to argue with me. This was incredibly inappropriate and poorly thought out, an official should not confront the complainant in a complaint against them, but we quickly moved the conversation to a conference room. I’d brought my uncle along because I expected this exact scenario to occur and I wanted a witness.
Longmire accused me of filing a fraudulent complaint against his girlfriend (now his fourth wife) with a governmental agency with which she was involved. I cannot disavow that act in strong enough terms, I had absolutely nothing to do with it and was not aware of it until Longmire brought it up. To this day I do not know who lodged that complaint but I can say that if I have a dispute with someone, it will be about a substantive issue and I will not involve anyone but that person. I was interested in his behavior, not that of his girlfriend.
Longmire told both my uncle and I that he could easily find out where we lived. He also said that he was traveling to, or returning from, a medical appointment when he was ticketed. When I challenged him about what kind of medical appointment would be booked on a Sunday, he retreated and later told the newspaper he was attending some kind of meeting when he received the ticket, so his story changed.
We went back and forth in this manner before the conversation moved in a more productive direction. I voiced certain concerns and he gave me a variety of assurances. I left the conference room satisfied and with my interest in Sheriff Longmire sated. Some months later he announced his retirement.
I am not so self-absorbed as to think that my complaint led directly to Longmire’s retirement, though I’m sure it was a factor. In many ways my time in the United States Army spoiled me. I didn’t realize it in the moment but the leaders with and under whom I served in the military were held to much higher standards and were quite simply better at being leaders than their civilian counterparts like Longmire. I expected a higher level of moral and ethical behavior from leaders like Longmire than a normal person probably would as I’d seen Army leaders, and even Commanders, relieved for much less than what Longmire had done. In that way, I was approaching things from a warped and unrealistic perspective.
When I contemplate my actions regarding Longmire, I realize there’s much I would do differently if I had the opportunity to relive things. I was somewhat petty and vengeful, qualities about myself that I have worked to change. Longmire certainly had and has flaws, as does everyone, including me and I have many. He was not grossly corrupt, he just made some bad choices, as we all do occasionally. I wish him nothing but the best going forward.
I recount this story, not out of pride or to relish in some kind of victory, but rather to establish my investigative bona fides, illustrate my continuing interest in the office of Sheriff, and demonstrate my past willingness to confront bad behavior on the part of elected officials or those seeking election.
WORKING FOR PRICE COUNTY
At the height of the Longmire saga, I was no longer employed by the police department that I’d mentioned earlier. I’d shifted to a position in that same municipality’s public works department, not because of any issues I had at the PD, but because I enjoyed public works more. To this day I haven’t been able to match the unique satisfaction I got from a hard day’s work at that department. For reasons I still haven’t been able to explain I especially enjoyed painting.
I departed that position after the head of the department, who was battling cancer, was forced to resign because of some distasteful machinations of the municipal board of trustees. In a move that I still consider to be blatant nepotism the board replaced that director with a man whose uncle was a trustee. The very word nepotism is derived from the Latin nepos meaning nephew so take from that what you will. I was not the only employee to leave, in a six-month period four other employees of that municipality were dismissed or, like me, departed of their own accord. Not counting the library, which was its own separate entity, every employee but the clerk fell to that small town’s Stalinesque purge, but that’s all a story for another time.
A short time later I sought and obtained employment as a deputy clerk of court with Price County. I’ve always had an interest in law and thought the position would afford me an opportunity to observe the legal process firsthand. The job primarily consisted of taking minutes of court proceedings and filing documents with some small amount of scheduling and customer service. I’d served on the County’s veteran commission since 2020, so I was familiar with the courthouse and some of its personalities. Because I’d served as an adjutant and administrative office manager in the Army, and served as the adjutant/secretary of, at that time, four different veteran and community service organizations, I thought I had the experience and tools to succeed. I was dreadfully wrong.
What I had in administrative and organizational skills did not make up for what I lacked in social intelligence. I had not, up until that point, ever worked in an environment that was dominated by women. Aside from the Judge, the District Attorney and his assistant, three men with whom I had very little interaction, the second floor of the courthouse was all women, and then me. I did not think this would be an issue, I was and am not, a sexist or some kind of male chauvinist, but I wasn’t sensitive to some of the things that would come with working in that environment.
I should have known something was wrong when, on my first day, buildings and grounds workers visited and made a show of counting heads. The running joke was that the clerk of courts office was something of a carousel or a game or musical chairs. I was told that I probably wouldn’t last long, the previous holders of my position left relatively quickly, and it was expected that I might do the same.
I entered a workspace that was fraught with animosity and strain.
Within my first three days I was called to HR and asked to identify problems I saw in the office. This more than anything set me up for failure and sabotaged my term of employment because I was thereafter seen as some kind of HR mole. When I entered rooms conversations turned to hushed tones and more than once I noticed peers, some of whom were quite senior and in their fifties, sniggering at me. I felt isolated and ostracized from the very beginning.
When I complained about some of the idiosyncrasies of the computer system in which we worked I was referred to HR in a manner reminiscent of a surprise intervention on an alcoholic. I did not raise my voice, I didn’t use profanity, and I didn’t have a breakdown, I simply expressed frustration in a way that in my past experiences of working in male-dominated spaces, was meant as an invitation for commiseration and fraternity. It was not seen that way by my coworkers.
A particularly bad episode arose when I encountered a visitor to the court with whom I was acquainted from my time at the aforementioned police department. The man was a social malcontent and the municipality had a restraining order against him on behalf of its employees because of his history of harassment. He was there to see the judicial assistant who was not in her office, and he recognized me and began following me. I agreed to help him find the judicial assistant, located her in an empty court room with another employee, and made the introduction. That other employee then lodged a complaint with my supervisor against me for interrupting her. I explained the context and background of my experience with the man and why I wanted to discharge him as quickly as possible, but she, and my supervisor, afforded me no understanding or grace. She, and many of the other employees with whom I dealt, were unwilling to work with me in any meaningful way. I won’t say that there wasn’t teamwork, there certainly was a team, but I was not a member, I was an opponent.
In the past I found it a common workplace practice to exchange personal phone numbers with coworkers, not for social reasons, but for times when coordination is needed. In the Army it was a first-day kind of thing, and I’d done it in every civilian job I’d had up until that point, I’d get my coworkers’ numbers and they’d get mine. I wrote my cell-phone number down on a sticky note in a way I thought was a courteous continuation of that tradition but never received the numbers of my peers. In the first week of the employment of another deputy clerk that person had everyone else’s number. I think maybe this was because I’m a man and perhaps that made my coworkers uncomfortable, but I found the contrast to be very telling.
I could write ten more pages filled with these kinds of examples, but I’ll refrain from the exercise. That said, I’ll add just one more example to the record I’ve begun here. As I’ve previously mentioned, I served on the Price County Veterans Commission from 2020 to 2025. It met once a quarter and required me to clock out from work 30 minutes earlier than usual. It was reflected in my time-card and was something I coordinated with my supervisor in advance so that I could make up for the missed time. When I attended one of these meetings the same sniggering mid-50s employee who’d reported me to my supervisor for “interrupting” her noticed and reported me to Human Resources for what she must have imagined was some kind of time-card abuse. I received an email from the County’s HR director that my pay would be docked, and this was done without coordination or communication with my supervisor. This is illustrative of the kind of environment that existed in the courthouse. That same employee routinely arrived at work ten minutes late, departed ten minutes early, and frequently enjoyed hour long lunches with her spouse in her closed office, but I refused to report her and thus engage in the petty tit-for-tat she seemed to be inviting.
The final straw came about three months into my employment when I made a mistake at work. The sort of mistake I made was serious but should not have constituted an event from which an employee could not recover. It was not a case of gross negligence or malfeasance but the result of taking a position for which no coherent standard operating procedure or continuity book existed and operating a system that lacked any kind of user guide or formal, or even informal, training program. The deputy clerk I’d replaced had made a similar and very serious mistake and was retained. I learned that just a short while later, someone in the office had apparently made the exact same mistake I’d made, yet all of the employees were retained.
In the aftermath of my mistake my supervisor informed me that “something needed to be done” and that some combination of Nick Trimner, the county’s administrator, and sheriff’s office leadership “wanted my job”. When I asked my supervisor if she would support me she told me that she would not. I was taken aback by her position, in my near-decade of service as an officer in the Army I’d found myself in precisely her position many times and had always backed up my people – it was expected of us to do so. As a leader we were taught that everything our teams did, or failed to do, was because of us. If one of my guys made a mistake I owned it and resolved to prevent it in the future, usually through additional training.
Because of her lack of support, and the general work environment, I immediately tendered my written resignation complete with a two-week notice. I didn’t need the job and felt that, even if I survived the mistake, my continued employment was untenable. Because I felt I had been on good terms with my supervisor I asked her if I could list the position on my resume and expect a positive reference. She replied that I could not, and I then informed her that if that courtesy would not be extended to me, I couldn’t reasonably be expected to extend the courtesy of a two-week notice to her and the county. I quit on the spot.
Later that day I received an email from another employee to my personal email address expressing regret at my departure. Beneath the text of that email was a forwarded email from the HR Director announcing my resignation to several people including Chief Deputy Robert Hawn and Administrator Nick Trimner, people I must, given that context, reasonably assume sought my termination.
I was and still am unhappy with my experiences working for Price County. I found the environment to be toxic, the employees to be, in many ways, unprofessional, and the leadership to be, on the best of days, uninspired, and on the worst of days, incompetent - not at their jobs, but in the actual practice of leading. Trimner’s interpersonal managerial skills seemed to be limited to pizza parties, and the oft-absentee Human Resources Director came off as deaf and blind to the culture immediately in front of her.
I found the Judge for whom I clerked, now retired, to be cold and impersonable toward me, though he was plenty friendly to female employees. His technological illiteracy was frustrating as he would let legal actions linger in his queues for months and once created a small diplomatic incident when I, at the direction of my supervisor, asked if I could turn off his computers at the end of the week, a practice dictated by the county’s IT department. I also distinctly remember that Judge, in a shocking display of unprofessionalism, once chastising my Supervisor in front of her entire office. I could not understand how a person in such a high position could be so ignorant of basic leadership concepts like praising in public and correcting in private.
Yes, my best day working for Price County was my last.
Despite leaving the county’s employment I continued to serve on the Veterans Commission and interacted with characters like Trimner in a cordial manner. I say serve because I never applied for, sought, or received the financial reimbursement that comes with serving on a county commission. I viewed it as volunteer work that allowed me to keep my thumb on two issues I felt were important, rural veteran access to behavioral health programs, and more broadly, access and transportation to, VA healthcare. I continually advocated for a DAV van for the county to facilitate travel of Price County veterans to VA hospitals and clinics, an asset the county now has.
My time on that commission ended more than year after the end of my employment with the county. The precipitating event for my departure was an attempt by the county, through its HR director, to claim me as an employee in an application for a grant predicated on employment of veterans. The director emailed me for certain information, and I informed her that I was no longer an employee and should not be considered one as my service on the commission was unpaid. A little while later I received an unsolicited and unwanted ACH payment from the County to a bank account they’d had from my actual employment and later received a tax form in the mail. I resigned from the commission.
All of this is, of course, my opinion and recollection of events and I must assert that none of it is objective, undisputable fact.
I know this must seem like a laundry list of minor complaints, and it is, but I didn’t write it to convince you that the County is bad or that you should think poorly of Circuit Court and County personnel.
I am a difficult person to like. I know that some of the difficulties I had at the County were because of my personality which can be abrasive and off-putting. I did not play the part of the meek new guy who was just happy to be there and I paid for it. I could’ve handled things much better.
I’ll also say that despite my dislike of how the proverbial sausage is made by the county, the sausage itself is sound. They can certainly improve how they do things, but what they do is more or less acceptable. I saw no great miscarriages of justice and the work that the citizens of our county expect its employees to complete was done, and done to a passable standard. I am not saying that Trimner, the HR director, Clerk of Courts or anyone else is trash and needs to go. I saw absolutely nothing I would consider to be corruption and my bar for that is very low.
The real reason I’ve written this small book is to show that I have reasons to dislike the county, Trimner, and probably Hawn as well. This is important for the rest of the series so that readers understand that when I speak positively about them it’s through gritted teeth. If I endorse them, you can know it’s for the right reasons and not because I personally like them.
I’m calling things how I see it.
Thanks for reading.
PRICE SHERIFF II
What to look for
In the introductory article to this series I explained several reasons why I’m interested in the office of Sheriff and some of my past experiences with Sheriffs outside of Price County. In the interest of transparency, I also talked about my time working for the County. I know that much of it doesn’t make me look good, but I want to be honest with you, the reader. Despite my own shortcomings, I hope you’ll agree with my belief that the Sheriff is powerful, perhaps the most powerful person in a county, and because of that power it is vital that voters select the right person for the role. But how can we make that determination? What criteria should we use when comparing candidates?
I propose we use four measures, three that are quantitative and one that is more abstract and less tangible; Education, General Law Enforcement Experience, Leadership Experience, and Character.
· Education: What post-secondary education has the candidate completed? Is it in a field relevant to law enforcement?
· Law Enforcement Experience: How long has the candidate worked in law enforcement? In what organizations? How familiar is this candidate with the type of organization they seek to lead?
· Leadership Experience: Has this candidate successfully led small and/or large teams? What supervisory experience does the candidate have? What managerial experience, such as long-term planning and budgeting, does the candidate possess?
· Character: What are the candidate’s moral and ethical qualities? What are their core values? Can we comfortably entrust them with the duties and powers of the office of Sheriff?
Over the next few days I will use these criteria to assess the two leading candidates for the Price County Sheriff’s office, and I hope that you will apply them as well to make your own judgement.
See you soon.
Chris Armstrong answers our questions
Candidate for Wisconsin's 7th Congressional District
As part of our coverage of the upcoming (August 11th) primaries for Wisconsin's 7th Congressional District the THO distributed questionnaires to candidates from both parties . Chris Armstrong is a Polk County native and longtime resident of New Richmond. He owns and operates an IT business and is running for election, and nomination, as a democrat.
Here are the answers he generously provided.
Of the roughly 750,000 residents of the District, why are you the best person to represent it in the House of Representatives?
I’m running for Congress because as my grandson gets older, I want to be able to look him in the eye and tell him I did everything in my power to make this a better place for him, so he can find a good job, find a place to live, and raise his family here.
My job as an Enterprise Architect is to bring together disparate groups of stakeholders, work to a common understanding of the problem, and then collaborate to come up with the optimal solution that best meets the needs of everyone, in the face of overwhelming complexity and a continually changing landscape.
My qualifications are that I’m a long-time, everyday Wisconsin resident who is fed up with the status quo.
What differentiates you from the other candidates of your Party?
In February 2025, amidst the flurry of illegal and unconstitutional actions of the Trump administration, I went down the busiest intersection in New Richmond and started protesting by myself.
After years of putting up lawn signs and voting, I decided I needed to get off my butt and do something instead of crossing my fingers and hoping it would all work out. In March 2025, I got involved with the Democratic Party to get out the vote for the spring election.
Then I decided to host a “Hands Off!” protest in New Richmond and over 250 people attended! And after that founded New Richmond Indivisible with other local organizers.
I was the first candidate from either party to enter the race in April 2025 before Tom Tiffany had declared his candidacy for governor. When I started protesting last year, I never imagined I’d be running for Congress today. It’s pretty crazy the path life sets you on – you don’t often know the destination when you begin the voyage.
There is nothing we can’t do when we work together to demand change. 2026 is the Year of the People!
What experiences in your life do you feel are the most formative and will influence your actions as our Representative if elected?
I’m just a normal guy who grew up here, raised my family here, and started my own business here. I grew up on the Apple River, north of Star Prairie in Polk County, and went to school in Amery. Went to college at University of Wisconsin-Madison and University of Minnesota-Twin Cities to earn a Bachelor of Science degree in Astrophysics. Raised both of my kids in New Richmond, where I currently live with my wife, Diana. For 30 years, I have been the owner of a small business in the IT industry with offices in Hudson and New Richmond.
Growing up along the Apple River was a unique privilege and something I’m sure I took for granted as a kid. As is often the case, when I graduated from high school in Amery, I surely didn’t think I’d be back here to raise a family and start a business. But proximity to family and friends and the unparalleled natural beauty of Wisconsin has kept me here and I’m not planning on leaving.
What do you see as the biggest issues facing the District that are actionable in Congress?
Congress must stop the lawlessness and corruption of the Trump administration. Whether it’s the illegal war in Iran, tearing down the East Wing of the White House, building the nonsensical ballroom, the insane tariffs, the assault on science, our environment and National Parks, the Epstein coverup, this government is doing everything it can to make life worse for everyone except the ultra-rich and well-connected.
The U.S. does not have a money problem. We have a priority and allocation problem. We need to fund the things that make family life possible. Affordable healthcare and housing, paid family leave, and accessible childcare should not be considered perks.
If elected, what caucuses and subcommittees would you like to join?
Not sure how committee assignments work for freshmen representatives, but based on my 35+ years of professional experience, I think I could make a valuable contribution as a member of the Science, Space, and Technology committee and the Small Business committee. That being said, I have great interest in many other areas such as Oversight and Government Reform, Energy and Commerce, Transportation and Infrastructure, Agriculture, Education and Workforce, and Natural Resources.
Based on what’s listed on Wikipedia, I’d be interested in participating in the following caucuses: Congressional Bipartisan Rural Health Caucus, Climate Solutions Caucus, Congressional Progressive Caucus, Congressional Research and Development Caucus, Great Lakes Task Force, and Sustainable Energy and Environment Caucus.
If elected, what pieces of legislation would you seek to introduce and are there any current legislative efforts that are likely to carry over into the next session that you would like to co-sponsor?
The first thing I’m going to do when I’m seated in the House of Representatives in 2027 is work with my fellow members and introduce Articles of Impeachment against Donald Trump and his cabinet.
I’m not doing this because I don’t like Trump (which I don’t) and I’m not doing this because I don’t agree with the administration’s policies (which I don’t); I’m doing this because this administration breaks the law every single day and nobody is doing anything about it.
What’s the point of passing any new legislation when this administration breaks the law, flouts the Constitution, and ignores the will of the people every single day? We are a nation of laws, not men.
We need to tax the ultra-wealthy, implement Medicare for All, provide family leave and childcare, protect our environment, invest in our children’s education, abolish ICE, help our veterans, house the homeless, feed the hungry, invest in renewable energy, and adopt sensible international trade and ag policies.
The 7th District is the largest congressional district, geographically speaking, in the State of Wisconsin, covering just over one third of its land area. If elected, what steps would you take to connect with constituents over such a large area?
My plan is to spend as much time back in Wisconsin as possible. Wisconsin is my home and is one of the most beautiful places on Earth. Fortunately, I love doing road trips, so regularly visiting all 26 counties and 7 tribes will be a welcomed break from serving in Washington, D.C. It would be really cool to catch a walleye, go camping, and play golf in every county. Working to achieve those goals would be great motivation!
I’ll hold town halls regularly throughout the district throughout my term. Will endeavor to do as many of these in person, but will also leverage modern technology to make sure I can stay connected with everyone no matter where they are. That being said, we definitely need to invest in better cell phone reception and high-speed internet connectivity across the district.
If elected, what steps would you take to stimulate the District’s economy?
First, we need to eliminate the arbitrary and harmful tariffs this administration has illegally imposed on the American people. Businesses need stability and predictability in their costs and markets in order to compete and thrive.
Second, if we want young people to stay in this district and build something here, we have to give them an actual reason to stay. Same for recruiting people to move to the 7th district. That means well-funded schools, affordable housing and healthcare, job training programs that connect to real careers, and a local economy with something to offer the next generation.
One dimension should be boosting tourism by investing in telling the world about the great wilderness and wildlife to be found in the Northwoods. Whether it’s camping, fishing, hunting, biking, skiing, snowmobiling, or just taking in what nature has to offer, the Northwoods represents what’s best about Wisconsin.
If elected, what will be your position on federal regulation of the timber industry?
The Northwoods by definition represents the vast forest, lakes, rivers, and ancestral home to our Native American tribes. It needs to be preserved for future generations at all costs.
We must protect what we cannot get back: Our water. Our air. Our land. The natural landscapes of Wisconsin’s 7th District took millions of years to become what we see around us today. They have been stewarded by Native Americans for thousands of years.
We’re privileged to live in what I think is one of the most beautiful, wonderful places on Earth. We owe it to all the people that brought us here and future generations to protect and invest in what we have so we can leave it in even better shape than we found it.
I support managed harvesting of our timber resources, but not at the expense of environmental protections for our landscape, wildlife, and water. I am intrigued by new timber-related industries such as sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and advanced, wood-based building products.
I oppose the repeal of the Roadless Rule that currently protects our environment from unnecessary incursion into our National Forests. I oppose the recent decision by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to no longer consider habitat destruction a relevant criteria of the Endangered Species Act to protect our irreplaceable wildlife. I oppose the reorganization of the Forest Service and would seek to restore all of the forestry conservation and research programs that have been terminated by this administration.
If elected, what will be your position on a potential farm bill / agricultural improvement act?
I would support legislation that would invest in our small farms that have been the backbone of many of our rural communities across the 7th district. Farmers don’t want handouts, they want viable markets and federal policies that encourage diversification beyond commodity crops like corn and soybeans.
Large ag companies (in seed, fertilizer, equipment, meat packing) are way too big and have too much influence over our agriculture industry. We need to enforce anti-trust legislation to keep these companies in check. We also need to enact Right to Repair legislation to give our farmers cost-effective choices in maintaining their equipment.
We need to reinvest in local farm-to-consumer programs, and restore SNAP benefits and USAID, which have provided reliable markets for new and old farmers alike. We also need to restore appropriate staffing levels to USDA agencies that have been under attack by this administration. The traumatization of our federal workforce by illegal DOGE cuts, reductions in force, and office relocations is an offense to those farmers that depend on these valuable services.
If elected, how would you seek to address rising consumer costs? ex; groceries, gas etc.
Seems like the current administration is doing everything it possible can to make affordability worse for everyday Americans. First, the current tariff regime is making everything more expensive, so that needs to be struck down and retracted. Second, while stopping the illegal war in Iran will not immediately impact energy prices, might as well get that over as soon as possible so the price of oil will eventually come down (although not likely for 6-9 months, if ever). Third, we need to stop deporting non-violent, undocumented immigrants that support our vegetable, produce, and meat packing industries. Fourth, need to reinvest in renewal energy to drive down household electricity prices.
If elected, what will be your position on immigration?
Reinstate asylum programs. Reform employment visas so they reflect the needs of our economy. Create a real and clear path to citizenship. Hire enough immigration judges so people aren’t waiting for their cases to be heard for years on end. The immigration system in this country is genuinely broken and it has been for a long time. Terrorizing immigrant communities with ICE raids is not a solution. Fixing the system is.
Abolish ICE. The culture is broken, the tactics are lawless, and the institutional contempt for due process and human dignity runs too deep to patch up with new leadership and a fresh coat of paint. Build something from scratch that follows the Constitution, obeys the law, and treats human beings like human beings.
If elected, what will be your position on gun-control?
Reasonable gun safety measures are supported by a majority of voters and firearm owners of both parties. Background checks and waiting periods should be mandatory on all gun purchases and transfers. Requiring firearms to be under lock-and-key in gun safes is also not unreasonable. And keeping weapons out of the hands of people who are at risk of harming themselves or others would make a difference.
If elected, what will be your position on American support to Ukraine?
The U.S. should fully support Ukraine’s efforts to expel the Russian invaders and return all captured territories back to Ukraine. However, that will be difficult with the significant depletion of our armaments and ordnance due to the illegal war in Iran. Russia should be sanctioned to fullest extent possible. The U.S. should also do all that it can, with our European partners, to ensure that the 20,000 children abducted by Russia are returned to their families.
If elected, what will be your position on the conflict with Iran?
The oil market is a global one and unfortunately domestic policy and increasing production do not generally impact prices at the pump. Really got to hand it to the Trump administration that they did the one thing that everyone knew would almost certainly increase oil prices. Namely, launching an illegal, unprovoked, offensive war against Iran that has resulted in the closing of the Strait of Hormuz.
The irony is that the Strait was open before and all manners of trade flowed freely. Now the Middle East is destabilized and petrochemical infrastructure has been crippled. Hard to imagine how someone could anything more effective to disrupt the global economy and raise prices on everyone and everything.
While the economic and political consequences are troubling, the loss of life of our service men and women and innocent Iran civilians is tragic. And for what? Just to get back to a place where things before the war, but worse? This war is yet another impeachable offense for both President Trump and Secretary Hegseth.
If elected, what will be your position on American support to Israel? Will you take donations from AIPAC if offered?
I believe that Israel has the right to exist and to defend itself from attacks. Its initial response to the 10/7 attack by Hamas was appropriate, but it must stop the ongoing obliteration of Gaza and incursions into Lebanon. The U.S. should cease arms shipments to Israel until it stops killing innocent people. Netanyahu is “smart” version of Trump who needs to stay in office to avoid prosecution for corruption, who has also successfully manipulated Trump into this disastrous war with Iran.
I have not and will not accept any donations from AIPAC or any corporations or lobbyist groups.
What issue not addressed above, do you feel is important and what would you like the public to know about your position on it?
Healthcare
The 7th District is the most rural in Wisconsin and requires more funding per capita than urban areas to deliver modern healthcare services. We need to fund hospital and clinic development so people don’t have to drive for hours to receive regular and emergency care. We need to implement loan relief programs and immigration policies to recruit doctors and nurses. We need to raise wages for our assisted care workers. We also must not leave our veterans or Native communities behind.
Reproductive healthcare is healthcare; no if’s, and’s, or but’s. We need to repeal the Hyde Amendment that prohibits federal funding for abortion care. Women have the right to make their own decisions about their body, having children, and raising a family.
AI & Data Centers
It is rather compelling that the over-proliferation of data centers is one issue that appears to unite people of all political persuasions. Around 70% of all Wisconsinites do not approve of the massive buildout of that is occurring across our state, particularly in our rural communities.
As someone who has been in the IT industry for 40 years, I have seen these new technology trends come and go. Generative and agentic AI is the latest fad and like past trends the tech sector is overinvesting and the benefits are overpromised.
The federal government could require that all AI data centers go through environmental and community impact assessments, require all AI companies to post bonds to guarantee they will cover excess energy infrastructure and rate costs, and mandate that they use renewable energy sources that they build themselves, not on the backs of everyday consumers.
I support a moratorium on data center development until the federal government can put these guardrails in place. Several of the hyperscale data centers being proposed in Wisconsin are expected to consumer the same amount of energy currently used by all households in the entire state. When new industrial development is going to increase demand for energy over 50% in the next several years, while the cost of energy is increasing and our need to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels, it’s clear the AI/data center industry needs stringent regulation.
And even if AI does deliver the claimed productivity increases, how does that benefit the American working family? The American workforce is more productive than ever, but those profits have largely gone to executives and shareholders. How about increasing pay, healthcare benefits, and retirement programs for the people that made it happen?
Voting Rights
Oppose passing the SAVE Act that places unnecessary burdens on citizens exercising their right to vote. Oppose Postal Service regulations that interfere with registering and voting via the mail. Stop weaponization of DOJ and DHS to coerce states to hand over their voters lists and purge their voter rolls.
Pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Act. Make Election Day a national holiday. Reform and fund the Federal Election Commission (FEC) to enable effective investigations and credible enforcement actions.
Pass federal redistricting legislation and move to amend the Constitution to strike down Citizens United. Voters should choose their representatives – not politicians picking their voters. Money is not speech and corporations are not people.
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This article does not constitute an endorsement of Armstrong and is not a political advertisement, paid or otherwise.
PRICE SHERIFF III
Please, don't send in the clown
To view files referenced in this article scroll down to the posts immediately following this one.
Waldemar A. Madsen III, known as Walt, is a Republican candidate for Price County Sheriff and is seeking his party’s nomination in the partisan primary to be held on August 11th. Madsen, a resident of Phillips, is a United States Army Veteran and operates a demolition company. He is perhaps best known for his active social media presence and campaigning on Facebook.
I have researched some of Madsen’s past and am publishing this article because I believe that it is in the public’s interest to be informed about candidates for elected office prior to entering the voting booth. For the purposes of this article, I will split my writing into two sections; fact, and opinion.
FACTS
The following is true to the best of my knowledge and comes from documents I have obtained from Law Enforcement agencies, State of Wisconsin records I have reviewed, and social media material I have viewed. It is communicated for voter education and not for the purposes of defamation.
I am in no way implying that Madsen is guilty of any offense and am simply providing a summary of facts found in the aforementioned sources.
In the last five years Madsen has been charged with four criminal misdemeanors in Price and Taylor counties:
Price County case 23CM31: Possession of THC, dismissed. Possession of Drug Paraphernalia, amended to a Phillips city ordinance violation, Madsen pled guilty.
Price County case 23CM101: Not viewable in CCAP but mentioned as dismissed in clerk’s notes from motion hearing in 23CM31 on 11 December 2023.
Price County case 25CM44: Violation of a Harassment Restraining Order, still open, pending scheduling of trial as of 13 July 2026.
Taylor County case 26CM42: Bail Jumping, closed, dismissed on prosecutor’s motion.
All of this information can be verified by querying CCAP.
Madsen’s house was searched three times by the Phillips Police Department (PPD)
PPD Case 21-58: 8 January 2021, Officers reported the following:
- Officers received information from a former resident of the home that Madsen had a history of using marijuana and hiding it in a specific spot.
- Madsen admitted to officers that he used marijuana in his home and showed them his hiding spot.
- Officers confiscated a marijuana grinder and a soda can that was used as a smoking device. Chemical tests performed by officers confirmed the presence of THC in residue found on the items.
- Additionally, officers confiscated two firearms and a decapitated bear’s head which was preserved in Madsen’s freezer.
PPD Case 22-1811: 27 December 2022, Officers reported the following:
- Officers received information from a former romantic partner that Madsen had a history of using marijuana in his home and was concerned for the welfare of minors who occasionally resided in the home.
- The former romantic partner told police that Madsen uses marijuana in his home and that he travels to Michigan to buy 1-2 ounces every month.
- Officers confiscated a marijuana grinder, bong, and empty sales package of “Higherlove [sic] cannabis flower” (“Higher Love” being a cannabis dispensary in Ironwood Michigan), all of which had residue which tested positive for THC in a chemical test performed by officers.
PPD Case 23-54: 22 April 2023, Officers reported the following:
- Officers received a request for a welfare check on Madsen as the caller reported that his residence was “disgusting”, that Madsen kept a large knife in his bedroom, and that Madsen had shown the caller a bong.
- Officers confiscated a pipe, a grinder, .31 grams of a plant material, a package of “Blueberry Cush”, a package of THC gummies, and a bong. The plant material tested positive for THC in a chemical test performed by officers. Additionally, officers confiscated one firearm.
- Madsen’s residence had a “strong order of dog feces and rotten refuse” and that “loose refuse, old food and drink containers” were observed in the living area of his home.
All three reports are accessible in the post following this article.
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Madsen has received three citations in the last five years; one for traffic and two for local ordinance violations. Only one of those is interesting, that being Price County case 24FO198. In that case a Price County Sheriff’s deputy issued Madsen a citation for disorderly conduct related to a voice mail Madsen left with a business client, an older woman, which contained profanity. The case was dismissed on a motion by the prosecutor and led to Madsen suing Price County and the Deputy in civil court before Taylor County’s Circuit Court Judge, Judge Knox-Bauer. The lawsuit is still open and ongoing at the writing of this article.
The voice mail and suit are accessible in the post following this article.
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Madsen has stated his opposition to flock cameras in Price County. (screenshot viewable in post following this article)
A lieutenant with the Phillips Police Department stated that Madsen requested the Department query their flock cameras for his girlfriend, and “ping/track” her phone without a court order or warrant.
(screenshot and document viewable in post following this article).
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OPINION
What follows are my own personal opinions and beliefs. While they are grounded in fact, they themselves are not to be taken as fact. I am exercising my first amendment right to speak, in the public square that is the internet, about a candidate for political office and nothing that follows is communicated for defamatory purposes. As Madsen is, in my opinion, litigious, I would like to remind him that speech of a political nature is, as considered by the courts of our Country, the highest and most protected form of speech.
On Madsen’s use of marijuana
I interpret the PPD reports to indicate a continuing pattern of marijuana possession and use by Madsen. If the reports are accurate about Madsen admitting to that use, and to traveling to Michigan for the purposes of obtaining marijuana, they constitute a flagrant disregard and contempt for the laws of the State of Wisconsin.
I acknowledge that marijuana is a contentious issue, and that it is currently the subject of a lively national debate with many states decriminalizing its possession or even legalizing its sale. While I do not use the drug, I am generally in favor of decriminalization but without legalization of retail sale. In my view it is far less damaging to society than alcohol, but it is still hazardous to the point that I would not want to see it become readily accessible and its use pervasive. That said, even advocates of marijuana legalization must admit that despite whatever feelings they might have, the fact is that it is, as of this moment, illegal in Wisconsin.
If we accept Walt’s continued use of the substance as fact it must disturb us. A man who feels he can pick and choose what laws he will and will not obey is very likely to apply that philosophy to his duties as Sheriff. If you, like Madsen, want to use marijuana in Wisconsin then lobby your legislators to change the law but until then don’t think that your personal opposition to a particular law invalidates it. We cannot afford or abide a Sheriff who feels that laws, and enforcing them, are optional.
On Madsen’s public persona, personal affairs, and communication skills
Madsen could be politely described as boisterous but that would be an inaccurate understatement. He is, in my opinion, obnoxious, ignorant, and short-tempered. His voicemail to his business’s client shows that. When I shared information about his criminal charges he denied their factual nature and threatened me with legal action (see the post following this article). I have even seen him post a picture of the home of a county employee (a single female) shaming her for support of his rival for the republican nomination. Walt is, in my opinion, a loose cannon who simply doesn’t understand rather simple fundamentals of law and law enforcement and lacks a working grasp of basic etiquette; a terrible mix for a Sheriff.
The contrast between his public opposition to flock cameras and his reported private attempt to use them shows a deep level of duplicity and hypocrisy. One I am uncomfortable with in a potential Sheriff.
His past run-ins with PPD and the PCSO, along with his interactions with them on social media, where he frequently accuses them of corruption, present a challenge for him were he to be elected as Sheriff. He has profoundly and probably permanently alienated himself from the people he seeks to lead.
On his allegations of corruption, I want to opine and say that a law enforcement officer not doing what you want, or not living up to your expectations, however ludicrous they might be, is not corruption. Receiving a citation or being charged with a crime is not evidence of corruption. Having a negative interaction with a cop does not mean that they are corrupt. The same goes for district attorneys and judges. I have yet to see verifiable and convincing evidence from Madsen or his supporters showing the widespread, or even incidental, corruption that they claim pervades the PCSO.
On Madsen’s military service and veterancy
To open this section, I want to disclose that I am a Veteran, I served on active duty in the United States Army as an Officer of the Adjutant General Corps and deployed overseas twice as part of the Global War on Terror. Walt’s opponent, Robert Hawn, is also a Veteran of the United States Army with combat deployments overseas as an infantryman. I say that to preempt criticisms or complaints that I, or Hawn, have trespassed on Madsen’s imagined privilege related to that status. Whatever privilege that status confers, I would argue none, Hawn and I both possess it, just like Madsen.
Put that card right back in the deck Walt, we’re all tired of you playing it.
I do not know what the average person who hasn’t served thinks when they learn someone, or a candidate for office, is a Vet. I hope those thoughts are positive, but I know that I speak for many other Veterans in the County when I say I’m frustrated by Walt’s constant blathering about having served. I feel that he makes all of us look bad.
Let’s talk about what service in the military does and doesn’t do for and to a person.
It does, or at least should, give a person an understanding and respect for standards, values, and ethics. Service teaches how to work with others as a part of a team, how to subordinate yourself to a greater mission, and how to lead. It also imparts people with a certain toughness and tenacity for life born from countless hours of strife and struggle. If someone is a Veteran, I presume that they’ve had those experiences and I expect a certain level of behavior from them, to put it succinctly, they know what right looks like.
It doesn’t mean you are above criticism or should be handed anything. It doesn’t mean that you will continue to act on the morals or live up to the standards you did while serving. It doesn’t mean you should get a pass for bad behavior (you know better), and it isn’t a justification for breaking the law. It doesn’t make you better than anyone and it doesn’t mean you matter more.
I don’t think Walt understands any of that.
One thing that the Military provides in abundance is fraternity, and Veterans often crave that camaraderie after exiting the service. I know I did, and I have to some extent found it in organizations like the VFW and American Legion. Those organizations are built on mutual respect and don’t discriminate on who had “real” service and who didn’t, on what cool skills you had, or what component you were in. When you separate from the Military you leave your rank and that hierarchy at the discharge office. That is why I was shocked to see Madsen characterize Hawn’s service in the National Guard as somehow less respectable than his service in the Regular Army.
Walt just doesn’t get it, at any level.
Military Police Service
Madsen claims his service as a Military Policeman qualifies him for service as Sheriff, but I would dispute that. MPs in the modern era are more and somewhat less than a civilian policeman. The positions are not analogous. In the GWOT and post GWOT eras, policing on Army posts relies heavily on sworn civilian police officers who are employees of the Department of the Army and less and less on the Military Policemen who once patrolled in the Cold War era. This was done to free up MP units to train and deploy overseas, to be, as they put it, “Combat MPs”.
They provide security at bases, man traffic control points, operate security checkpoints in occupied areas, and provide route clearing and security. They are not call-answering, traffic-patrolling police officers. That is why, to my knowledge, no police agency or sheriff’s department in the country recognizes MP training as sufficient for officers/deputies. Former MPs are required to attend a law enforcement academy/training just like any civilian off the street.
Being an MP doesn’t mean you’re ready to be a Sheriff.
On his campaigning
Madsen has, again - in my opinion, pulled out every stop and barred no holds in his attacks on his opponent. Judging by his dirty tricks I believe it is quite possible that he may have summoned the departed spirits of Richard Nixon or Lee Atwater through some sort of profane séance.
- When I shared news of Madsen being charged criminally, he accused me of prejudicing people against him but that didn’t stop him from very prominently sharing and loudly proclaiming news of a rather shaky accusation of a sexual nature against Hawn.
- Without any coordination with his opponent, Madsen announced a debate, and then some sort of public forum, at a business owned by someone who is, to my knowledge, a supporter of his campaign. Hawn was, as was probably expected, unavailable and disliked the venue and so did not participate. Madsen has since taken several victory laps over the stunt.
- Madsen has, I believe, arranged, through a supporter of his, the release of some sort of AI generated video that makes vague accusations of corruption against Hawn. I don’t intend to watch it or any of the AI slop this person puts out or subscribe to their pay-for-view service. If there are real, verifiable facts that person can make them known, until then it’s just empty, meaningless static.
He has repeatedly attacked supporters of Hawn and neutral critics, like me, of his behavior. I can’t imagine what these tactics, particularly the first one, have done to Hawn’s family and reputation.
Positionally, he has set some rather ambitious goals of expanding PCSO operations and adding two satellite stations. I wonder where he thinks he’ll get the money. He has also stated that he’s against Flock cameras despite reportedly trying to use them privately, a point I’ve already addressed.
In my view, Madsen’s campaign has been an embarrassment, and he has made a clown of himself, veterans, and our County.
Summary
Using the criteria I proposed in an earlier article we can assess Walt’s suitability for service as Price County Sheriff.
- Education: No Post-Secondary education known.
- Law Enforcement Experience: service as a military policeman for an unknown period, a position I personally wouldn’t count toward law enforcement experience. No civilian experience known.
- Leadership Experience: None known.
- Character: Serious issues with obeying the law and behaving in a reputable manner.
I do not believe that Madsen should serve as the next Sheriff of Price County. He lacks the education, experience, and good character needed for the job. Were he elected, which he likely would be should he defeat Hawn in the August primary, I believe he would pose a significant liability to the County and its taxpayers. I think that at best, he might get the Sheriff’s Office sued and at worst he could end up violating my, or more importantly, YOUR rights as a citizen.
Thank you for reading.
Price Sheriff IV
Hawn, the responsible choice
Robert Hawn is a Republican candidate for Price County Sheriff and is seeking his party’s nomination in the partisan primary to be held on August 11th. Hawn, a resident of Park Falls, is a United States Army Veteran and currently serves as the Chief Deputy for the Price County Sheriffs Office.
Hawn recently answered my questions about his background and experience. For the purpose of educating voters, I will relay some of what I learned and provide my own opinion of his candidacy.
Military Service
Hawn was born and raised in Butternut Wisconsin, just across the border in Ashland County. He took the extraordinary step of enlisting in the Army National Guard while still a teenager and attended basic training during the summer between his junior and senior years of high school.
In 2004, just a year out of high school, he was placed on active duty and deployed to Iraq. He served as an infantryman and spent more than a year in-country on a combat tour. He would return to Iraq in 2009 for a year-long deployment and then honorably separated from the National Guard to start a family, with his wife, Valerie.
During his military service he earned two Army Commendation Medals and the vaunted Combat Infantryman’s Badge along with the campaign and service medals normally awarded with service in the Army during that period and in Iraq.
Education
Between deployments Hawn attended Chippewa Valley Technical College, graduating with an associate’s degree in criminal justice, and completing the law enforcement academy, in 2008.
In addition to his academic and basic law enforcement education Hawn has sought out and completed an impressive amount of training related to his field. A small sampling of that training includes:
- FBI-LEEDA Supervisor Leadership Institute
- Wisconsin Department of Justice-Death Investigations
- OJA-Investigating Sensitive Crimes Advanced
- Wisconsin Department of Justice-Basic Drug Investigations
- Wisconsin Department of Justice-Basic Evidence Technician
- Northeast Counterdrug Training Center-Identifying Deceptive Behavior
- The Reid Technique of Interviewing and Interrogation
- NHTSA DWI Detection and Standardized Field Sobriety
- NHTSA Drugs that Impair Driving
- NHTSA Advanced Roadside Impaired Driving Enforcement
- Law Enforcement Experience
In late 2008 was hired as a part-time patrol officer with the Park Falls Police Department (PFPD). His career was interrupted by his aforementioned military deployment overseas in early 2009 but upon his redeployment he returned to the PFPD, and entered full-time employment in 2011 and was assigned as the department’s drug investigator. That is, for those counting, roughly six years with the PFPD when we subtract the time during which he was deployed.
In 2015 Hawn was hired as a patrol deputy with the Price County Sheriff’s Office (PCSO). In 2016 he was promoted to the position of Investigator where he investigated a wide range of crimes including homicides, financial, and property crimes but his primary focus was drugs, and drug endangered children. Hawn served as an investigator until 2022, so again, for those counting, that’s seven years with the PCSO in deputy/investigator capacities.
In 2022 Hawn was again promoted within the PCSO to the office of Chief Deputy, a position which could be described as the Sheriff’s “second-in-command”. A Chief Deputy is responsible for planning, directing, supervising and coordinating law enforcement personnel and activities of the Sheriff’s Office. It’s the perfect feeder job for the position of the actual Sheriff.
During his time in law enforcement Hawn has received the following awards and commendations:
- 2010 Letter of Commendation from the Park Falls Police Department
- 2013-two (2) Letters of Commendation from the Park Falls Police Department
- 2017-Distinguished Service Award
- 2019-Deputy of the Year and Gallantry Star Award
- 2022-Gallantry Star Award
- 2025-Good Conduct Award
Character
It is worth noting that Hawn has no criminal history, or any other history, in the courts of Wisconsin. In his personal time he coaches little league baseball.
Summary
Using the criteria I proposed in an earlier article we can assess Hawn’s suitability for service as Price County Sheriff.
- Education: Extensive
- Law Enforcement Experience: 17 years at both a local police department and a sheriff’s office
- Leadership Experience: Chief Deputy, four years
- Character: Outstanding
I think that, to any reasonable person, the decision about who to vote for tomorrow, August 11th, should be quite easy. Chief Deputy Robert Hawn has the experience, education, and character to serve our county as an outstanding Sheriff and if anything, he’s overqualified.
Hawn is the right choice.
Thank you for reading.
