The two frontrunners in the U.S. presidential race are campaigning across Wisconsin today, while their challengers are elsewhere.
Republican John McCain was scheduled to speak today at 11:30 a.m. at a town hall meeting in Oshkosh at the EAA Aviation Center & Museum. He also is set to speak at another town hall meeting at the Radisson Hotel La Crosse (2:45 p.m.), before attending the Reagan Day fish fry dinner tonight at 7 o'clock in Milwaukee's Serb Hall. A source told SBT today that McCain also has committed to attending the Outagamie County Lincoln Day Dinner in Appleton on Monday, Feb. 18, although the McCain campaign has not announced that appearance.
Democratic Sen. Barack Obama held a rally for a large crowd at the Midwest Airlines Center in Milwaukee this morning, and he planned additional "Stand for Change" rallies later today at the Kolf Sports Center Fieldhouse  in Oshkosh (at noon) and at the Kress Events Center in Green Bay (5 p.m.).
Meanwhile, Republican Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee left Wisconsin today to go to the Cayman Islands to give a paid speech to the Young Caymanian Leadership Awards banquet in Grand Cayman, according to Fox News. Huckabee reportedly will return to Wisconsin Sunday evening.
Democratic Sen. Hillary Clinton is campaigning in Ohio today and is not scheduled to be in Milwaukee until the Democratic Founders Day Dinner at the Midwest Airlines Center Saturday night. Obama also will speak at that event.
Obama then will appear at a community meeting at Wausau's Northcentral Technical College at 9:45 a.m. Saturday, followed by an 11 a.m. stop in Eau Claire. Clinton's campaign said she will make stops in Green Bay, Madison, Eau Claire, Wausau and Oshkosh between Saturday and Tuesday, but the campaign did not specify the locations or times.
The Wisconsin Primary will take place Tuesday, Feb. 19. For full coverage of the race, visit WisPolitics.com, a media partner of Small Business Times.

Political pundit Chris Lato provides his exclusive insight about the Wisconsin Primary in today's Milwaukee Biz Blog.

Milwaukee ranks as one of the least-prepared metropolitan markets in the country for the Feb. 18, 2009, conversion of television from analog to digital signals, according to a new survey by the Nielsen Company.
Nielsen released the results of its digital readiness survey at its annual client meeting on audience management in Las Vegas.
Milwaukee ranks 51st among the 56 markets surveyed. According to the report, 19.1 percent of the homes surveyed in the Milwaukee market would be able to receive digital signals if the change was enacted today.
More than 13 million American households with television sets that can only receive analog broadcasts are currently unprepared for the transition to all digital broadcasting. Another 6 million households have at least one television set that would no longer work after that date.
"The change to all-digital broadcasting is the most significant change in the history of television, because unlike other advances such as color, older television sets will no longer be able to receive television signals without a converter," said Eric Rossi, manager of Nielsen's digital transition preparedness team. "Over the past 18 months, we have been reviewing every aspect of the digital transition to measure the impact and help clients understand where things stand as we all prepare for the challenges."
Nielsen found that adults over 55 are better prepared for the digital transition than younger households; and Whites and Asians are more ready than Blacks. More Hispanic households still rely on analog, over-the-air broadcast television than non-Hispanics, the survey said.
New York is the most-ready local television market, with just 3.5 percent of the households having no capabilities to receive digital signals today.

Acuity Insurance in Sheboygan reported a record financial year in 2007.
In 2007, Acuity's policyholders' surplus grew to an all-time high of $761 million, up 11.4 percent from the previous year and more than 40 higher than the industry standard, the company said.
The company's combined loss and expense ratio, where 100.0 is considered break-even for operations, and lower ratios are more profitable, was 97.5.
"In a highly competitive marketplace, Acuity once again managed to grow and do so profitably,” said Ben Salzmann, president and chief executive officer of the company. "Acuity's results in 2007 show we continue to build the foundation of strength and stability that is paramount to our policyholders and independent agents."
Acuity is a property and casualty insurer that operates in 17 states, writes $810 million in premium through more than 800 independent agencies and manages more than $2 billion in assets.

Avicom Marketing Communications, a Waukesha-based firm specializing in business-to-business campaigns for a variety of clients in areas such as health care, finance, technology, manufacturing and construction, today launched a new political and public affairs practice.
The company is now a single-source campaign communications provider for political candidates and issue organizers, according to Avicom public relations director Karl Robe.
Veteran political strategist Chris Lato will lead the new political and public affairs practice.
Lato served as communications director for the Republican Party of Wisconsin from 2001 to 2005. He also is a broadcast journalism veteran with more than a decade of experience, most recently as a reporter and anchor at WTMJ-AM 620 in Milwaukee.
Avicom also plans to announce a new addition - a 30-year news veteran who is "slightly left of center" - to its political and public affairs practice on the eve of the Wisconsin Primary, which will take place Tuesday, Feb. 19.
"I know from experience the difficulties faced by campaigns and organizations that have to deal with a number of different vendors - one provides website services, another deals with event planning, yet another works on communications services, advertising, signage and so on," Lato said, "By comparison, Avicom provides a comprehensive menu of services all under one roof. Planning and executing communications programs becomes stronger and more cohesive. From execution to billing, we offer a streamlined approach for campaigns seeking efficiencies to create more bang for the buck."
"Republican or Democrat, partisan or non-partisan, campaigns and organizations all face similar challenges in developing their communications plans," Robe said. "The Avicom team provides a full-service approach for candidates and organizations seeking decades of expertise in delivering measurable results. From strategy, theme and messaging development to website, logo and campaign design, we will partner with candidates and issues on both sides of the aisle."
For additional information, visit www.avicomdirect.com/affairs.

Oshkosh Corp. today announced that its McConnellsburg, Pa.-based access equipment subsidiary, JLG Industries Inc., the world's leading producer of access equipment, has been awarded a $24.7 million military contract.
The company will manufacture 197 JLG Millennia Military Vehicle (MMV) telescopic material handlers for the U.S. Navy. The order was awarded by the Defense Supply Center of Philadelphia.
"Oshkosh Corp. continues to support the military efforts through our industry-leading brands. This contract for additional JLG MMV telehandlers will provide the U.S. Navy Seabees Construction Battalion with essential equipment to perform their duties with greater safety, performance and comfort," said Robert Bohn, chairman and chief executive officer of Oshkosh Corp., which recently changed its name from Oshkosh Truck Corp.

The two Wauwatosa mayoral candidates will discuss business and transportation issues at a forum on Thursday, Feb. 21, at Alioto's Restaurant at 3041 N. Mayfair Road.
The candidates, Jill Didier and Jerry Stepaniak, will respond to questions prepared by two business groups that are presenting the forum, the West Suburban Chamber of Commerce and the Wauwatosa Economic Development Corp.
The public is invited to attend, but registrations must be made in advance. The cost is $23 for chamber and WEDC members and $30 for non-members. Reservations can be made by calling the chamber at (414) 453-2330. Registration and networking will begin at 11:30 a.m., followed by a noon lunch and the forum.
Didier and Stepaniak, who are each Wauwatosa Common Council members, are vying for the mayoral position currently held by Theresa Estness, who is not seeking re-election after eight years in office.

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has been awarded a federal grant of $764,790 for the Fox Riverfront development in downtown Green Bay.
The grant includes funding for transient docks for boats 26 feet and larger, fixed and floating gangways and piers, and a portion of the design, engineering and mobilization costs. In its entirety, the Fox Riverfront project will cost an estimated $4 million and will feature an urban boardwalk along the river's edge with boat landings, docks, fishing piers, overlooks, and a connection to the Fox River State Trail.
The federal grant is from the Boating Infrastructure Grant Program (BIG-P) Tier II, and funds are awarded based upon national competition.
"This award will help us continue to revitalize Green Bay's waterfront," said Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle. “"he Fox River is the heart of the city and the riverfront development will significantly increase public access to the river, bring more visitors downtown, and create boating, fishing and recreational opportunities in the area. It will help us grow the Green Bay economy."

Midwest Air Group, Inc., the new parent company of Midwest Airlines, announced appointments to its new board of directors.
The board will oversee the strategy and performance of the company, which was acquired by TPG Capital on January 31.
The members of the new board are:

• Timothy Hoeksema, chief executive officer of Midwest Airlines. Hoeksema will serve as chairman of the new board. Hoeksema has served as chairman, president and chief executive officer of Midwest Airlines since its incorporation in 1983. He also is a director of the Marcus Corp., the Air Transport Association, the Medical College of Wisconsin, the Greater Milwaukee Committee, the Milwaukee Metropolitan Association of Commerce and the Spirit of Milwaukee.
• John Bergstrom, chairman and chief executive officer of Neenah.-based Bergstrom Corp., which owns and operates 23 automotive dealerships. Bergstrom also serves as a director of Kimberly-Clark Corp., Wisconsin Energy Corp. and the Green Bay Packers.
• Jonathan Garfinkel, vice president with TPG Capital. Prior to joining TPG, he was with Newbridge Latin America and Lehman Brothers. Garfinkel is a director of Aleris International Inc. and Education for Change, an Oakland, Calif.-based operator of charter schools.
• Richard Schifter, a partner with TPG Capital since 1994. Prior to joining TPG, he was a partner at Arnold & Porter in Washington, D.C., where he specialized in corporate restructuring law. Schifter also is a director of the Bristol Group; LPL Holdings, Inc.; Ariel Reinsurance Company Ltd.; and a member of the Board of Overseers of the University of Pennsylvania Law School. He previously served on the boards of America West Airlines, US Airways and Ryanair.
• David Siegel, chairman and chief executive officer of Gate Gourmet Group Inc., a global airline catering and logistics provider. Prior to joining Gate Gourmet in 2004, Siegel served as president, chief executive and a board member of US Airways Group, Inc. and US Airways, Inc., the airline operating unit. He has also served as chairman and chief executive officer of Avis Rent A Car System, Inc. and as a senior vice president of Continental Airlines.
• Elizabeth (Betsey) Solberg, senior partner and co-chair of the worldwide operating committee and regional president of Fleishman-Hillard, a leading global public relations firm. Solberg opened F-H's office in Kansas City, the firm's first outside of its St. Louis headquarters. She currently operates her own strategic communications firm, Communications Partners LLC. Solberg is a director of Ferrellgas Partners, L.P. and is a leader in civic, cultural and educational groups in Kansas City, Mo.

TPG Capital is the global buyout group of TPG, a private investment firm founded in 1992 with more than $35 billion of assets under management and offices in San Francisco, London, Hong Kong, New York, Minneapolis, Fort Worth, Melbourne, Menlo Park, Moscow, Mumbai, Shanghai, Singapore and Tokyo.

Largely because of two Green Bay Packers playoff games, the number of passengers flying out of Green Bay's Austin Straubel International Airport in January was up 8.28 percent for the month compared with a year ago. Also, Continental Airlines plans to add service from Green Bay to Cleveland in April. Read more in SBT's daily roundup of headlines from newspapers across the state at www.biztimes.com.

Busy readers of the BizTimes Daily can get a jumpstart on the weekend ahead by reading the OnMilwaukee.com Weekend Preview. OnMilwaukee.com is a media partner of Small Business Times.

The BizTimes Stock Index fell 3.22 points to close at 150.98 Thursday, and local stocks continued to plummet in early morning trading today. The largest local decliners this morning were Strattec Security Corp. (down $1.82 to $36.70) and A.O. Smith Corp. (down $1.13 to $35.97). The largest local advancers this morning were Bucyrus International Inc. (up $1.03 to $94.91) and Badger Meter Inc. (up 35 cents to $38.40). The BizTimes Stock Index was created by Small Business Times and is monitored by North Shore Bank. The index, which measures the stock values of publicly held companies based in southeastern Wisconsin, is updated daily and can be viewed at www.biztimes.com.