The post has sat empty since 2005 while Doyle awaited a friendly Senate to affirm an appointment. The fact that nobody seemed to notice that Wisconsin was without a railroad commissioner for three years probably speaks to the pointlessness of the position.

The appointment of Breske has raised a lot of eyebrows in Madison. Breske is a relatively conservative Democrat who represents an area in northern Wisconsin. Breske’s district is a fairly solid Republican district. All three Assemblymen in the district are Republicans and the district voted for President Bush both times. Breske has held his seat for so many years due to his relatively conservative positions and the strength of his personality.

Right now, the State Senate has 18 Democrats and 15 Republicans. It’s an election year and Breske is up for election. Doyle’s appointment has made it almost certain that the Republicans will pick up Breske’s seat, thus changing the balance of the Senate to 17 Democrats and 16 Republicans without the Republicans even having to fight very hard for it.

Why would Doyle make it harder on his own party to keep control of the Senate? While it’s common knowledge that Senate Majority Leader Russ Decker and Gov. Doyle don’t get along, if the GOP regains control of the Senate, it will be painful for Doyle, too.

Several theories abound regarding the Breske appointment. Let’s take a look at three of the most prevalent.

Theory No. 1 is that the appointment was a simple favor to help out a loyal Democrat. Breske was born in 1938 and is thinking of his rocking chair years. The state pension that he will receive is based largely on his salary from his last position. The Railroad Commissioner job pays about twice what a state senator makes, so Breske will enjoy a few years of higher salary, and then a fatter pension. This is an age-old patronage system that Wisconsin has endured for decades.

Theory No. 2 has to do with Doyle’s desire for a statewide smoking ban. Senator Breske enjoys strong support from the Tavern League. Because Breske understands the damaging effect that a smoking ban would have on the taverns and restaurants in his district, he has been a staunch opponent of the smoking ban. By appointing Breske, Doyle has removed the primary obstacle in his own party and made it easier for a statewide smoking ban to pass the Senate.

Theory No. 3 is a bit more complicated and requires a bit of history. Back in 2003, Gov. Doyle signed several gaming compacts with the Indian tribes in Wisconsin. These compacts were controversial because they allowed the tribes to vastly expand their casinos and the compacts were signed in perpetuity. In other words, only the tribes themselves could enter into new negotiations for new compacts. Gov. Doyle signed away the right of future Wisconsinites to renegotiate the compacts.

Because of the governor’s abuse of power, the Legislature passed a bill that would require legislative oversight of gaming compacts. The governor would still do the negotiations, but the legislature would have to sign off on the final deal. This was a reasonable check on power and Sen. Breske voted for the bill. Beyond the bill being simply good government, Breske voted for it because the gaming compacts allowed for the expansion of Indian casinos, which would be detrimental to the entertainment businesses in his district - especially the taverns.

Gov. Doyle, ever jealous of his power, vetoed the bill. When the Senate took up the effort to override his veto, it looked like the votes were there (remember that the Senate was controlled by the Republicans in 2003). Then, remarkably, Breske switched his vote and voted against the veto override of a bill that he supported.

It was widely rumored at the time that Breske had cut a deal with Doyle. The theory is today that Breske cashed in on that deal with the appointment last week.

Of course, none of the theories can be proven. But it speaks volumes about the state of Wisconsin politics when nobody is theorizing that Breske was simply the best qualified for the job.

(Owen B. Robinson, a West Bend resident, is a blogger who publishes at www.bootsandsabers.com. His column usually runs Tuesdays in the Daily News.)