Last week, We Party Patriots ran a story about Chris Rebholz, a man who appears in a television ad touting the benefits of Scott Walker’s economic policies for small business. It has come to light, with further research, that a few details of our story were outdated. In researching Rebholz further we have also discovered new information. Allow us to clarify.
The main focus of the original story was accurate: In 2008, when he was named Bravo! Entrepreneur Award Winner by Biztimes.com he was described as a “serial entrepreneur,” meaning that he essentially starts or funds various companies. Our suggestion that TriStar Products, of which he was formerly President, made the recalled Hulk Hogan Ultimate Grill was not necessary as they created this product after Rebholz had left to become the CEO of Christopher Morgan Fulfillment Services. We also suggested that Rebholz is a “billionaire” based on the original UppityWis blog post which piqued our interest. This contention has proven difficult to back up.
It would be more accurate to say Rebholz is a multi-millionaire who, since leaving TriStar and starting Christopher Morgan, became the owner of Milwaukee’s professional football team, the Mustangs of the Arena Football League.
Not exactly a small business investment.
But the entrepreneurial accomplishments of Chris Rebholz were never meant to be the focus of our piece. What was intended as the focus was Scott Walker’s misleading use of a quite wealthy man with a tradition of outsourcing jobs to China to tout the wonders of his “small business” ideals. This story is about Walker’s reliance on and interest in preserving the one percent, i.e. the exact people who funded his campaign and who continue to represent the most visible of his supporters. Meanwhile, your everyday Wisconsinite is feeling the pinch of bad policy as Wisconsin has lost jobs for five consecutive months.
Chris Rebholz, as a man, may well be a swell guy. His Biztimes award announcement noted his philanthropy:
Rebholz supports the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Wisconsin, the MACC Fund and Variety-The Children’s Charity of Wisconsin, among others. He has played a major role in a $160 million addition now being built at Children’s Hospital and will be honored with the naming of the Rebholz Family Promenade upon completion.
The country’s moral compass, insofar as we idealize it, has always pointed toward looking out for our neighbors, not just ourselves. Under Scott Walker, small numbers of people are enjoying temporary success while vast majorities await an uptick in results. We wholly embrace the truth on this blog and are willing to acknowledge if we make an error as we did in describing Chris Rebholz last week. We wish we could say the same about Scott Walker.
