IS RUSS FEINGOLD playing a duplicitous game on the recall? “The fact that the signature effort may fail is just one of the reasons why Russ Feingold has taken the official position that he will not run. Yes, some people might be more willing to sign the recall petition if they knew the strongest-polling Democrat was ready to go, but the signature-gathering-effort would turn into a discussion about whether Feingold is preferable to Walker, and — as I read Feingold’s mind — Feingold would prefer for people to leave him out of it and concentrate on how bad Scott Walker is. By disclaiming the desire to take power, Feingold is able to present himself as a statesman, appearing at numerous anti-Walker events to bolster the morale of the protesters and, seemingly selflessly, to criticize Walker.”

UPDATE: Trading Cigarettes For Illegal Signatures in Milwaukee. “In this video, you can see them recruiting young children to sign the recall petition, and then paying them off with cigarettes. Nice.”