As someone who lives in the 44th and voted for Joe Knilans I want him to resign. He could have run in his district. Did someone put him up to it? He did after all knock off the Speaker of the Assembly. If he didn't like the way his own district was represented fine but he didn't like the way my district was being represented!

Who wants to bet that, after redistricting, Rep. Knilans's current residence will be part of the district he is supposed to live in now? I hate to be a cynic, but I wouldn't be surprised if Joe had no intention of actually selling his house and is just planning to wait until they redraw the lines in his favor...

Thank you for clearing that up regarding the 10 days. All I ask is that the rules be followed. I have no dog in this fight. One Chumley is as good as another. Besides, I don't think that Walker is going to let them make very many decisions anyway.

Tit for tat. ;-)

Typical conservative garbage. If you don't like the rules, ignore them. If you don't like the results of a presidential election, make up an inane story about the winner not being a real American.

Could the root of the problem be gerrymandering? What does that small group of Janesville homes that are grouped into the 45th district have in common with the mostly rural 45th?
garyprime: It's 10 days before being sworn in, not 10 days before the election. Why do you want Joe to follow rules that you make up?
Joe Knilans was up front about the residency issue from day one of the campaign. It was only after he won that a fuss was made. Joe faces the same dilema as many in the community, it's hard to sell a house.
Lastly, It was the Democrat Party of Wisconsin and the Madison Media that pushed this issue.
Why are they questioning the will of the local people? Expect much of this type of pettiness from the democrats in the coming 4 years.

I agree with Roadmaster:

"The issue comes down to was Knilans a legal resident of the 44th Assembly District for ten days prior to assuming office.

It seems clear that he was not. Claiming to be residing in an unfinished basement was a sham which should not be acceptable."

Of course Dems have the "right" to question but this only hurts them and it shows that they are petty and poor losers. Democrats like to paint themselves as tolerant and understanding. This shows them as something quite different.

Typical liberal garbage. If they don't like the results, let's change the rules. They ought to quit while they're ahead. They've managed to swashbuckle an entire cross section of American voters and get a man with no birth certificate elected. Stop grasping at straws and let Joe Knilans tend to business.

The rules are goofy! The time to check residency is when someone turns in paperwork to be on the ballot. As it is, I could run for office anywhere, then move into the district after winning the election but before being sworn in. And what does residency really mean without a lot of other words? Does a mailing address in the district suffice? Does six nights out of ten do the trick? Who made the rules, anyway? They should be revised.

How did Knilans get on the ballot if he was not living in the district? The linked story says that he did not take up this contested residence until after the election. As I understand it, he was required to be a resident 10 days prior to the election and he was not. Now he says he is signing a lease to establish residency. I see that as too little, too late. How will the election board reconcile this lack of previous requirement? Are these rules flexible and if so, how flexible are they? It seems to me that we need some clarification on this point. Was he elected illegally?

Knilans sounds like trouble already (sleep in a basement away from family) Why couldn't we just vote for someone in district already, never mind that makes sense and politics never does.

theone - That was a good link. THX.

If Basement Joe was legally living with his brother, why did he move?

Interesting take by BDN

http://beloitdailynews.com/articles/2011...

Rules are rules.
We can't just follow the rules that we like and ignore the others.

Of course, we're not talking about something that rises to the level of a criminal act here. It's just hard to believe after the residency issue arose during Sheridan's term that Knilans would not have anticipated this applying to himself.
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I mean, really, living in the district is about the most basic, elementary aspect of representative government there is. Would someone living in Illinois be able to get elected to Congress in Wisconsin? Would someone in Milton run for Janesville City Council?

The issue comes down to was Knilans a legal resident of the 44th Assembly District for ten days prior to assuming office.

It seems clear that he was not. Claiming to be residing in an unfinished basement was a sham which should not be acceptable.

This is different from the situation with Sheridan were he met the requirement to be a resident of the 44th upon assuming office. The statutes allow a temporary absence after assuming the office.

If Joe was doing something legally wrong, Democrats or Republicans or anyone else would be right to question his actions. It would seem that Joe's brother might be the one who broke the law by renting a room without having the necessary permit to do so. What surprises me is how a Republican could even think of doing something wrong. What is this world coming to?

If Joe was doing something legally wrong, Democrats or Republicans or anyone else would be right to question his actions. It would seem that Joe's brother might be the one who broke the law by renting a room without having the necessary permit to do so. What surprises me is how a Republican could even think of doing something wrong. What is this world coming to?

Sure the Democrats are within their rights. Politics is not about playing nice. It rubs both ways. Being pains in the butt isn't going to result in Mr. Knilans not being able to serve. They just aren't making it easy for him. In truth - he should have had this taken care of before now. It's a dumb issue to start his tenure out with.