Only A Boy Named David

As promised, given the (ridiculous) claims allayed against Dave Boetcher, I requested via an Open Records Request and have received all 621 emails (and drafts, apparently) sent by Dave from April 2020 to December 2020.

I’ve scanned and very briefly reviewed all of them. Dave did know that I requested all of his emails. He didn’t object, and if he had, I would’ve done it anyway. I don’t expect that anyone is interested in actually reading all of this, so I’ll summarize.

• Dave is unflinchingly patient.
• Dave’s correspondence, even with people who disagree with him, is considerate and compassionate.
• Dave is not the person the recall folks have tried to make him out to be… at least not in his emails.

LINK

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1U6fT_mkvVWxNNYKlPlAtDt66diXAGMh7?usp=sharing

Some recommended links:

Re_ Call Recap_21-10-2020 – This has been previously shared by me, but it remains the most surprising, hilarious and infuriating of all. For those who aren’t aware, this email is from the individual named as the chosen candidate of the recall group seeking to remove Dave from office. I’ve talked with her in the past and have always found her to be considerate, upbeat, nonplussed and above all else, insightful and thoughtful. So the dramatic flip into political animus towards Dave (and myself indirectly) has been deeply disappointing. Dave has a few emails from her over the course of the year. Nothing really references anything the recall group has complained about.

As you read this – remember this is candidate who wants to replace Dave, writing him an email a little less than 3 weeks before the recall campaign started during the 2nd week of November:

Thank you for being generous with your time today. I’m sure that you can tell that I’m very passionate about the topic of reopening our schools. I respect our administration and leaders and I know that you are all working towards what is best for all of the students in Waunakee schools.

October 21, 2020

Re: Good_AM_15.12.2020 – Dave and BOE member Mark Hetzel discuss a vote (that I personally disagreed with) to speed up the process to allow winter sports to compete out-of-county. Again, this is an issue where Dave has literally worked on behalf of what the recall folks have openly demanded, yet he is given zero credit and they continue to lie about him. And I don’t even agree with Dave’s point, so it irritates me that he’s getting the grief that really only I would deserve.

I’ll also point out that I’ve seen no public condemnation of the recall effort from any other BOE members (other than myself), and I find it nice to see some quasi-private support.

It is amusing that the recall folks publicly lauded Mark himself for doing what Dave has also done.

Re: Co_Curricular_Activities_31-8-2020 – Dave’s patient reply to some of the recall folks making spurious claims to him directly. Oddly enough, this email didn’t turn up in my last ORR.

Re: Baseball_22.7.2020 – District athletic dirctor reporting that Village sanctioned athletics were playing outside of Dane County. Appears to have discussed how teams may have been using district facilities without permission.

Re: FYI_13_11_2020: Dave responds to me after I let him know that I likely irritated some folks by discussing faith, belief, Catholicism and Qanon. Amusingly, this led to another Letter to the Editor that (falsely) claimed that Dave failed to control me for attacking Catholicism (which I didn’t really do) and that this was another reason to recall him.

Masks in Schools_15-6-2020 – Dave handing off questions re: administration response to an objection over masks to administration. This rather counters the narrative of his “undermining” administration.

Observing Sports Practices_17-8-2020 – Dave asking permission and for help from administration in observing practices. I point this one out because the recall folks have directly accused Dave of “abuse of power” for effectively doing this. Because this charge is so absurd, I’ll quote this entire email to demonstrate what Dave has really done. This is an email to Aaron May, District Activities Director, along with Superintendent Randy Guttenburg:

“Aaron,
Since I’m doing the DNC Convention this week, I will have some blocks of time where I can
get around during the day. Could you let me know what sports practices are happening
this week and at what times? I would like to see how the coaches and players are handling
the rules we are under and what difficulties they might be having.
Thanks,
Dave”

That’s it. This is the “abuse of power” Dave is being accused of. Asking the administration when he could see a practice or two during August.

In conclusion, I’m not sure what I was expecting. When I read the recall folks condemnations of Dave, I really wondered if Dave did something wrong that I just hadn’t seen. In the end, the only logical conclusion is that the efforts to attack him are intentionally dishonest. Dave has the tendency to float ideas in BOE meetings for the sake of discussion, but I know of nothing he’s done that comports with what the recall folks have said about him.

In a final note – I’m dismayed to have learned that some elected officials in the Village of Waunakee have appeared to support this recall effort and have even encouraged it. Given that the recall is going to fall woefully short of their required number of signatures, I look forward to asking candidates in the Spring election whether they did in fact support this collossal embarassment.