"This was a shadow government meant to further the political career of Scott Walker"
http://host.madison.com/wsj/news/local/govt-and-politics/walker-denies-knowing-of-wrongdoing-by-former-top-aides/article_26541d86-491f-11e1-b6fa-0019bb2963f4.html
MILWAUKEE — A day after investigators accused his former top aides of using a secret computer system to do political work on the taxpayers' dime, Gov. Scott Walker denied knowledge of illegal activity taking place during his time as Milwaukee County executive.
"I think it's very clear when all this is done, no matter how much time it takes — and again, my campaign has been involved in cooperating with them for more than a year — but I have every confidence that when this is completed, people will see that our integrity remains intact," Walker said.
The two former staffers charged, Kelly Rindfleisch, 43, and Darlene Wink, 61, are accused of crimes linked to illegal campaign activities while they pulled double duty as Milwaukee County employees and campaign workers. Both are accused of doing political work while being paid by tax dollars. Walker said Friday that his staffers knew such activities were prohibited.
...
The governor's critics pounced on the revelation that, according to investigators, a group of Walker "insiders" used laptops and a secret Internet and email system to circumvent campaign laws and perform political activities to evade discovery from authorities.
"This was a shadow government meant to further the political career of Scott Walker," said Graeme Zielinski, spokesman for the Democratic Party of Wisconsin. "All of them knew what was right and what was wrong, and they chose the crooked path."
... Democrats on Friday accused the governor of being either willfully ignorant or complicit in the crimes alleged by prosecutors. Some pointed to an email between Walker and his one-time deputy chief of staff, Tim Russell, as an admission on Walker's part.
In the email, Walker discusses the resignation of Wink, who was asked to leave her county job after admitting to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that she frequently posted political comments online during working hours. "We cannot afford another story like this one," Walker wrote. "No one can give them any reason to do another story. That means no laptops, no websites, no time away during the work day, etc."
Zielinski intrepreted Walker's statement as "a clear admission that Scott Walker knew what was going on." I agree.
= new reply since forum marked as read
