News:

"Wings and a Prayer [L-E]"
Congratulations OfferedToEros & Random for completing your RP!

Main Menu

Recall Scott Walker

Started by Valerian, November 10, 2011, 10:11:34 AM

Previous topic - Next topic

0 Members and 2 Guests are viewing this topic.

Callie Del Noire

I'm sorry for your state Valerian.. but in a sorta perverse way, Walker continues to amaze me. He's so bluntly obvious in his attempts to hijack the process that I can't believe he's not being prosecuted yet. I do imagine within the next few years he will be. There is no way so much graft and corruption could be going on around him without him knowing/endorsing/getting a piece of it.

And if he is UNAWARE of it..he clearly needs to NOT be in office.

ShadowFox89

 I blame our proximity to Illinois.
Call me Shadow
My A/A

Callie Del Noire

I doubt he's unaware, he shows an disproportionate number of signs of being a double high authoritarian personality.  He hits damn near every indicator.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Right-wing_authoritarianism

Valerian

There's another debate tonight between Barrett and Walker, at 9 o'clock.  I thought Barrett did somewhat better than Walker in the last debate -- a friend of mine said that he thought that the people who were asking the questions didn't seem to like Walker much, though I didn't catch that myself.  Walker was particularly good at slithering out of answering questions, though; we'll see if he manages the same tonight.

Walker's rearranged job numbers have been confirmed by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics -- or so Walker's people say, at least.  The Bureau itself hasn't confirmed this.  And in any case, no one's saying the numbers themselves are at fault; the problem is that Walker's misusing them.

This is the kicker, though, except I'm sure it won't hit the mainstream media:

Quote
Walker, in a rare moment of candor, stated to reporters that he would not use the criminal defense fund to pay for the legal defenses of his aides, who have been charged with crimes ranging from child enticement, to theft from veterans and the families of fallen soldiers, to misuse of taxpayer resources to illegally campaign for Scott Walker, and would instead use the funds for himself or his campaign.

Wisconsin law is very clear: an elected official can only establish a legal defense fund if they, or their agent, are under investigation for, charged with, or convicted of violations of Wisconsin’s campaign finance and election laws.
In other words, he's admitted that he is John Doe in the ongoing investigation, after denying it pretty much since the beginning.  And if it isn't on Fox -- which it won't be -- half the state won't even notice.  Argh.
"To live honorably, to harm no one, to give to each his due."
~ Ulpian, c. 530 CE

Callie Del Noire

Quote from: Valerian on May 31, 2012, 02:22:50 PM
There's another debate tonight between Barrett and Walker, at 9 o'clock.  I thought Barrett did somewhat better than Walker in the last debate -- a friend of mine said that he thought that the people who were asking the questions didn't seem to like Walker much, though I didn't catch that myself.  Walker was particularly good at slithering out of answering questions, though; we'll see if he manages the same tonight.

Walker's rearranged job numbers have been confirmed by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics -- or so Walker's people say, at least.  The Bureau itself hasn't confirmed this.  And in any case, no one's saying the numbers themselves are at fault; the problem is that Walker's misusing them.

This is the kicker, though, except I'm sure it won't hit the mainstream media:
In other words, he's admitted that he is John Doe in the ongoing investigation, after denying it pretty much since the beginning.  And if it isn't on Fox -- which it won't be -- half the state won't even notice.  Argh.

I watched the first one on youtube.. it seemed self evident to me.. I mean just look at their faces.. I think none of them would have shed a tear if they had run him down in traffic.

Valerian

I have to admit, that little frowny face Walker makes whenever he stops talking really grates on my nerves.  :P  And from what I've heard, Erin Davisson, who was on the panel and is a local newscaster, has no love for Walker; the surprising part is that she would let it show much.


Now, I just found this a few minutes ago.  It's apparently some sort of dump of emails that Walker's office just made, after a request was made for them about a year ago.  There are 7,289 pages of the stuff, according to the Daily Kos, and they're asking people who have the time to sort through them and see what they can find.

Some are saying it's just a dodge, that they've released a huge pile of harmless stuff so as to distract the Democrats from the Get Out the Vote push, which is starting now, and I have to admit that the little I've looked at so far is pretty tedious and predictable -- a lot of people emailing articles and links around the office, deciding what to tweet, etc., and names of senders are always blacked out.  (One email suggests that a certain article should be paraphrased rather than linked because it isn't entirely supportive -- and goes on to say that s/he isn't sure if most people "even know what collective bargaining is."  And this was before they started gutting education.  :P)

Anyway, I'm browsing through in my spare moments, on the off-chance there's something interesting hidden among the union-bashing.  *sigh*
"To live honorably, to harm no one, to give to each his due."
~ Ulpian, c. 530 CE

Callie Del Noire

Quote from: Valerian on May 31, 2012, 02:52:32 PM
I have to admit, that little frowny face Walker makes whenever he stops talking really grates on my nerves.  :P  And from what I've heard, Erin Davisson, who was on the panel and is a local newscaster, has no love for Walker; the surprising part is that she would let it show much.


Now, I just found this a few minutes ago.  It's apparently some sort of dump of emails that Walker's office just made, after a request was made for them about a year ago.  There are 7,289 pages of the stuff, according to the Daily Kos, and they're asking people who have the time to sort through them and see what they can find.

Some are saying it's just a dodge, that they've released a huge pile of harmless stuff so as to distract the Democrats from the Get Out the Vote push, which is starting now, and I have to admit that the little I've looked at so far is pretty tedious and predictable -- a lot of people emailing articles and links around the office, deciding what to tweet, etc., and names of senders are always blacked out.  (One email suggests that a certain article should be paraphrased rather than linked because it isn't entirely supportive -- and goes on to say that s/he isn't sure if most people "even know what collective bargaining is."  And this was before they started gutting education.  :P)

Anyway, I'm browsing through in my spare moments, on the off-chance there's something interesting hidden among the union-bashing.  *sigh*

I'd say turn it over to the feds.. the John Doe investigation is looking very interesting if he IS the target. irony would be getting thorugh the recall.. only to have his entire cabinet hauled off to court.

itsbeenfun2000

Quote from: ShadowFox89 on May 30, 2012, 03:43:24 PM
I blame our proximity to Illinois.

Growing up in Illinois and living in Wisconsin gives me an interesting take on all of this. However, don't blame Illinois on this one. It may be corrupt but the Democrats and Republicans that have been in office have never attempted anything like this with the public workers. For that matter both parties get along quite well and compromise with them the best they can.

Callie Del Noire

Quote from: itsbeenfun2000 on May 31, 2012, 10:31:59 PM
Growing up in Illinois and living in Wisconsin gives me an interesting take on all of this. However, don't blame Illinois on this one. It may be corrupt but the Democrats and Republicans that have been in office have never attempted anything like this with the public workers. For that matter both parties get along quite well and compromise with them the best they can.

Don't worry.. the Tea party will be happy to fuck your public workers as well. They are happy to screw them all.

I imagine there is a group of them in Chicago wondering how they can do the same sort of thigns there. (which I would like to see)

Valerian

The lucky 13th person has just been given immunity in the John Doe case, a former Walker spokesperson named Fran McLaughlin.

Despite Walker's insistence that he asked for the investigation into the embezzlement by Kavanaugh and Russell, evidence is now coming out that he lied.  Shocker.

QuoteOn May 5, 2010, Assistant District Attorney Bruce Landgraf filed a petition with court officials asking if his office could initiate a secret investigation into what happened with $11,000 in donations intended for Operation Freedom, an annual event honoring veterans.

By making it a secret John Doe investigation, Landgraf wrote that prosecutors might get better cooperation from Walker's office, which had been "unwilling or unable" to turn over records and information needed in the investigation. He said he would need to subpoena county records and officials.

And the Best Line of the Debate Award goes to Barrett, who said this when Walker challenged him about the crime rate in Milwaukee: "I have a police department that arrests felons.  [Walker] has a practice of hiring them."   ;D
"To live honorably, to harm no one, to give to each his due."
~ Ulpian, c. 530 CE

ShadowFox89

 He claims that he was in the "unable" section, told by.. whoever the hell it was, that his office wasn't allowed to release the records.
Call me Shadow
My A/A

Valerian

Walker is certainly able to release all those documents -- always has been -- and has also always been able to speak about the John Doe proceedings to defend himself if he wishes.  From this article:

Quote
In a conference call today with reporters, former Watergate prosecutor and UW Law School professor Frank Tueurkheimer, former Attorney General Peg Lautenschlager and former Kenosha District Attorney Bob Jambois all confirmed that Scott Walker is under no obligation to remain silent to the citizens or the media. He enjoys a first amendment right to defend himself to the media.
Emphasis mine.  And apparently, if he isn't the subject of the investigation, then his lawyers would know that AND be able to prove it.

Quote
There is a code that US Attorneys follow that requires them to provide a letter to a person stating that they are not the target of their investigation.  And word is, like they're supposed to, Walker's attorneys have been asking for such a letter for weeks.  And if Walker had such a letter, he would be free to produce it and remove any doubt about his innocence once and for all.

But Walker has produced no such letter, basically because none exists.

There's also a code that prevents filing charges against a candidate within 60 days of an election, though, so Walker's safe for a little while, at least.  There are increasing reports, however, that Walker will be indicted within the next six months.

Speaking of the election, this is the site to go if you're in Wisconsin and need to know where you should be voting.  The districts have changed for most people recently.  Most polling locations are open until 8:00 pm, and you do not need to show photo ID to vote.  That law is still under an injunction, and while some places have started asking for photo ID, you can still vote even if you can't produce it.

This is my small contribution to the Get Out the Vote movement.  Frankly, I'm in something of a panic about this election.  :P
"To live honorably, to harm no one, to give to each his due."
~ Ulpian, c. 530 CE

Valerian

This is still breaking news, in a way, but there's some new information coming out about Tim Russell, Walker's former right-hand-man who has been arrested for embezzling over $20,000 from Operation Freedom, a veterans group.  Walker's pretty much abandoned him, and there have been indications that Russell doesn't have a lot of money for his lawyers.  (The $20,000 allegedly went on vacations, a trip to a "political strategy session" in Atlanta with then-presidential candidate Herman Cain, and renewing the domain names for some pro-Walker websites.)

Word now is that a lot of the most damaging information that's been hitting the press lately about Walker's activities was supplied by Russell's attorney, with Russell's permission, because he's tired of being the scapegoat -- which wouldn't exactly be a shock.  More on that here and here.

David Shuster is saying that Walker will be indicted sooner or later, as he is now officially a target of the investigation, both by Milwaukee County officials and the FBI.

Quote
The legal sources, who are not involved in Wisconsin's recall, spoke on condition of anonymity. They said Walker faces "serious legal challenges," including "a possible indictment," regardless of the election results on Tuesday.

The sources indicate Walker's status was clarified more than a week ago, allegedly following a series of requests by Walker's legal team that prosecutors publicly clear him of any wrong doing before the recall election. Take Action News reached out to Governor Walker's spokesperson for comment on this story and received no response.

In other words, apparently what we most need to do today is to vote lieutenant governor Kleefisch out of office and get Mahlon Mitchell in.  Otherwise, if and when Walker is indicted, Kleefisch will have his job.  If possible, she's even crazier than he is, and about as bright as Sarah Palin -- Kleefisch went on TV and compared same-sex marriage to marrying a piece of furniture.  The lieutenant governor's campaign is technically entirely separate from the governor's campaign, unlike president and vice-president, for instance, so it is possible that Walker would lose and Kleefisch would win, or vice versa, though it isn't likely.

On the other hand, if Walker wins, I'd love to see him forced to resign in favor of Mitchell -- one of the 'union bosses' Walker rants about, since he's currently president of the Professional Fire Fighters of Wisconsin.
"To live honorably, to harm no one, to give to each his due."
~ Ulpian, c. 530 CE

ShadowFox89

 To be fair, I would vote for Mitchell as Vice Governor because he's a firefighter....

Yeah, it might be lazy, but when your father, grandfather, and many of the people you know are firefighters, there's some sense of loyalty.
Call me Shadow
My A/A

Valerian

Well, I can't really argue with that, since even aside from anything else, I'd want Walker out solely because of the way he's treated veterans his entire political career -- my father, both my grandfathers, my uncles, and one of my best friends all served in the military, and most saw active duty during wartime.   That Operation Freedom embezzlement, for instance, couldn't have happened if Walker hadn't taken the running of the group away from the VFW and given it to Russell.
"To live honorably, to harm no one, to give to each his due."
~ Ulpian, c. 530 CE

Valerian

I'd better stop checking the news, or I'll just keep double-posting.  :P

Reports are coming in that people who signed the recall petition against Walker -- those petitions are all over the internet, of course -- are getting robocalls telling them they don't need to vote.

Quote
Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett said his campaign is contacting Wisconsin residents to counter reports of a robo-call that says anyone who signed a petition to recall Gov. Scott Walker doesn’t have to vote in Tuesday’s election.

Barrett, the Democrat challenging the Republican governor, said he has recorded a robo-call of his own telling people that signing a petition wasn’t enough and that they do have to cast a ballot, WisPolitics.com reported. There have been a number of reports of Wisconsin residents receiving calls saying that their signature on the recall petition counts as their vote.
....
Walker’s campaign pushed back against the allegation, issuing a statement strongly denying any connection with the reported calls.

“Any accusation that our campaign is making those calls is categorically false and unfounded. Once again Mayor Barrett and his campaign are trying to falsely attack Governor Walker with absolutely no evidence. This is a desperate move by Mayor Barrett to avoid addressing his lack of a plan to create jobs in Wisconsin,” the campaign stated.
Why does the GOP apparently think that Barrett would try to stop the people most likely to vote for him from going out and voting?  I mean, the calls seem to be confirmed.  Reportedly, the voice sounds somewhat like Barrett's.  Someone's paying for those calls, and I hope someone else is following that money trail right now, because this has to be illegal.

Quote from: Wisconsin state statutes
12.05 False representations affecting elections.
No person may knowingly make or publish, or cause to be made or published, a false representation pertaining to a candidate or referendum which is intended or tends to affect voting at an election.
"To live honorably, to harm no one, to give to each his due."
~ Ulpian, c. 530 CE

Callie Del Noire

Quote from: Valerian on June 05, 2012, 03:10:21 PM
I'd better stop checking the news, or I'll just keep double-posting.  :P

Reports are coming in that people who signed the recall petition against Walker -- those petitions are all over the internet, of course -- are getting robocalls telling them they don't need to vote.
Why does the GOP apparently think that Barrett would try to stop the people most likely to vote for him from going out and voting?  I mean, the calls seem to be confirmed.  Reportedly, the voice sounds somewhat like Barrett's.  Someone's paying for those calls, and I hope someone else is following that money trail right now, because this has to be illegal.

Kinda I'm sure. I figure that it ranks down there with the robocalls made during the GOP primary cycle in SC '08 where SOMEONE made a robocaller that insinuated that John McCain's adopted daughter was his illegitimate bi-racial kid. The McCains had kept her out of the public eye (like they had their other kids when they were younger) to protect her from public scrutiny.

Trieste

It would be comical if it were in a movie or something. As it is, that's just sad.

Valerian

Well.  My SO and I just went out to vote, and weren't able to.  Our polling place is at a local school, and someone there pulled the fire alarm.  At first they were just checking into it and apologizing for the noise -- which was terrible -- but then they decided to evacuate the building.  So now we're going to have dinner and try again in an hour.

It could be just one of those things, of course.  But I'm paranoid right now.  <.<
"To live honorably, to harm no one, to give to each his due."
~ Ulpian, c. 530 CE

Callie Del Noire

Man, I feel for you Valerian. This is getting surreal.

Valerian

Voting, take two, went all right, at least -- no fires, no ringing fire alarms.  The voting numbers were about twice the usual, based on the counter on the machine that takes the ballots.  I was finding stories on the net about some Texas Tea Party group called the King Street Patriots claiming they would have people at every single Wisconsin polling place, but apparently they missed mine.  Anyway, the Patriots got in trouble for voter intimidation in Texas two years ago, so I was a little nervous about that; but again, no problems.  There have been a few minor incidents reported, but really very little in the way of altercations has happened, at least.
"To live honorably, to harm no one, to give to each his due."
~ Ulpian, c. 530 CE

Callie Del Noire

Quote from: Valerian on June 05, 2012, 07:53:32 PM
Voting, take two, went all right, at least -- no fires, no ringing fire alarms.  The voting numbers were about twice the usual, based on the counter on the machine that takes the ballots.  I was finding stories on the net about some Texas Tea Party group called the King Street Patriots claiming they would have people at every single Wisconsin polling place, but apparently they missed mine.  Anyway, the Patriots got in trouble for voter intimidation in Texas two years ago, so I was a little nervous about that; but again, no problems.  There have been a few minor incidents reported, but really very little in the way of altercations has happened, at least.
Any word on the poll results?

AndyZ

It's been called for Walker.  About 63% at the time of this posting, with Walker at 58% and Darrett at 41%.
It's all good, and it's all in fun.  Now get in the pit and try to love someone.

Ons/Offs   -  My schedule and A/As   -    My Avatars

If I've owed you a post for at least a week, poke me.

ShadowFox89

 Yeah... Doesn't look good.
Call me Shadow
My A/A

Valerian

Well, whether or not it'll make enough difference I can't guess, of course, but as more votes come in Walker's lead keeps dropping.  With 75% reporting, Walker now has 55% to Barrett's 44%.
"To live honorably, to harm no one, to give to each his due."
~ Ulpian, c. 530 CE