"... in a broad effort to help him — as well as Republican senators — fend off recalls targeting them in 2011 and 2012, court documents unsealed Thursday show."
In the documents, which were unsealed by [Seventh U.S. Circuit Court Judge Frank H. Easterbrook] court judge Thursday morning, prosecutors described what they called a "criminal scheme" to circumvent state campaign finance and election laws....
Lawyers for Wisconsin Club for Growth respond:
"These documents show how the John Doe prosecutors adopted a blatantly unconstitutional interpretation of Wisconsin law that they used to launch a secret criminal investigation targeting conservatives throughout Wisconsin. That legal theory has now been rejected by two courts," said Andrew Grossman of Baker Hostetler, the law firm representing Club for Growth. "Sunlight is the best disinfectant, and this is a story that needs to be told to prevent more abuses and to hold the John Doe prosecutors accountable for violating the rights of Wisconsinites."
IN THE COMMENTS: rcommal said:
Note the inconsistent use of tense in this piece. It's the "tell" that its goal is not to illuminate but to mislead. Reportage, my ass.
ADDED:
The NYT says:
Legal filings by the prosecutors provided a rare view of the inner workings of a far-flung network of conservative nonprofit groups that have come to play a decisive role in national and state elections, moving hundreds of millions of dollars into campaigns by avoiding traditional political action committees that face tougher disclosure requirements.
Some of the groups, in Wisconsin and elsewhere, appear to serve as little more than conduits for funneling money from donors around the country to an array of allied organizations with ties to specific constituencies, such as gun owners or abortion opponents. Prosecutors allege that the groups in Wisconsin coordinated closely with allies of Mr. Walker both in the state and in Washington, with Mr. Walker’s campaign consultants simultaneously advising him on political strategy and television advertising while also raising money and directing the activities of an array of outside groups.
Posts
101 comments:
What a lovely state.
Lots of wishful thinking exposed there.
What an odd little story. You read the headline and think they've just brought charges against Walker. But then you read the story, and I think it's just that recently released documents show that that's what prosecutors were thinking internally. It would be nice to have some clarification!
Yea. No charges filed.
We knew long ago the investigation was precisely about this alleged coordination, so why the big scary headlines. We already knew about their fishing expedition that the Democrat Party prosecutors hoped would net them the evidence.
But still no charges filed. When they file charges I won't be surprised but it is pretty clear that the prosecutors have a political conflict of interest.
I'm thinking the prosecutor will attempt a Tom DeLay type political law-fare indictment stunt that will be ultimately dismissed, but can be used until then to hang around his neck as a "criminal" and derail Walkers career.
So, when are they going to file charges? When it is politically convenient to do so.
I am pretty sure that the investigation is non partisan. You know how I know this? The "secret routers" raid happened just a couple days before the election. Partisan prosecutors would never do that. Like the prosecutors who indicted Cap Weinberger on the Friday before the election.
These people are above reproach.
In follow-up to my earlier post: The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel article, which contains a similar headline and much of the same substance, makes (pretty) clear that this is documentation now being released regarding the investigation that was quashed by a federal judge a while back. Which would suggest that Walker is not being officially accused of anything; this is just what the guys whose investigation has been shut down were thinking. Weird.
Mattman26, that was exactly what I was thinking. The Low Information Voter is going to see these misleading headlines and think he has actually been charge with these criminal activities, or is about the charged with them. Of course the media is not going to put "Two Courts have dismissed the wrongful investigation of Scott Walker on charges of ..."
Interesting use of tense.
The litigation is in the 7th Circuit on the First Amendment claim. The prosecutors seem to have proceeded on an aggressive reading of the state criminal law statute that includes the kind of "coordination" that can't be made a crime and that is in fact within a free-speech right of association. That's what the district judge said, and I expect that's what the 7th Circuit will say. That is, the "sweeping… scheme" is just a "scheme" to exercise first amendment rights.
I am reading a novel set in Communist China in during the "Cultural Revolution." The actions of the government and the communist party remind me of the actions of the current US government and the democratic party. This novel was written in 2000.
"We cannot let a minority of people – and it’s, that’s what it is, it is a minority of people – hold a viewpoint that terrorizes the majority of people,” said Hillary Clinton.
Despicable.
Where's garage?
A Crime! Did you hear the headline? There was a serious crime.
How many years in jail did Walker get? Or was his punishment only the rumors to scare his political supporters, a stay in donation purgatory and insane legal fees?
And who appointed the procecutors or their boss?
That is, the "sweeping… scheme" is just a "scheme" to exercise first amendment rights.
Yet another case of the Left acting like facists.
Democrats fight dirty, Republicans fight stupid. Judges generally help the Democrats. Looking forward to seeing how the 7th Circuit helps the Democrats this time.
It will be epic.
Wow, the Walker-voting Republican Special Prosecutor, and 3 County Republican DA's really have it out for Walker!
Note the inconsistent use of tense in this piece. It's the "tell" that its goal is not to illuminate but to mislead. Reportage, my ass.
Who are the prosecutors? Who are the "unknown people" who opposed the unsealing? What's the case number in the Court of Appeals?
Conspiracy!
They can't prove an actual crime so allege conspiracy.
In a just world, these prosecutors would be out of a job. But if will never be a just world if liberals think that anything goes in trying to defeat their political enemies. It's really sad that liberalism has come to this pass.
Over to you, Garage.
Progressivism = Fascism. Just.shut.up. Or we'll make your life miserable.
Remember how infantile they were in the statehouse? And the vandalism?
It needs the scary label "scheme" to justify the outrage.
Otherwise, it's just people from the same political party talking to each other and that's not any kind of sexy talk that gets the lefties panties in a wad.
These prosecutors look bad. Maybe they were angling for jobs with the Department of Justice.
@Althouse, besides you, Meade, and Scott Walker is there anyone living in your state who isn't a worthless turd?
Thanks for sharing this, as I had a headline on MyYahoo that didn't give an article. I knew where to look for someone in the know!
A sweeping scheme to inappropriately collect private information, and leak it to the public. Not unlike the IRS inappropriately demanding information, and then leaking it to their friends on the left.
Walker has had Teflon in the past. We will see if that continues as the drip drip of documents keeps up.
It is worth noting that the accused had no issue unsealing this document, just a whole sheaf of other ones. It will be interesting to see what comes out next.
Because there will be a next. Walker and CFG have been playing hardball and that doesn't always work out perfect, too many documents are being asked for.
I think Madison Man is OK, and Garage is fine if you stay away from politics. I bet Crack would be fun to have a beer with if he didn't think he had an audience.
Either they file charges or STFU. I'm really sick of this attempted intimidation of Walker by a corrupt prosecution office.
We knew long ago the investigation was precisely about this alleged coordination
The coordination is not "alleged". Everyone involved has admitted they were doing exactly that, rather what is being disputed is if state election laws have to be followed or not.
Seeeecret routers man!!!
I gotta say, your states politics is nothing if not entertaining.
Name the prosecutors. Post photographs of them. Post their email addresses and telephone numbers.
Shame them without mercy.
My, my, my - look at you:
Mention 400 years of white bullshit and they're the coldest, most unfeeling, nobody-can-make-me-feel-anything sons of bitches, the world has ever known.
But let everybody's favorite boy scout potentially scrape his little knee and look at the crowd of "concerned citizens" he can gather.
No matter that I can go by a board on segregation and see:
A list of the most segregated cities in the U.S.:
1 - Milwaukee
"I'm surprised Boston is not on that list. I lived there for 22 years and it is the most segregated place I ever lived. I shudder to think what Milwaukee is like."
I lived just outside Milwaukee for two years.
I was... shocked.
"Honestly, in Milwaukee, even the whites are segregated."
So - Milwaukee grosses everybody out. Congratulations, Scott I-made-my-political-career-here Walker, on this "win" (if that's what this release is) but your punk ass still ain't out the woods yet.
Which is fine because, for some reason, white people like it out there,...
Tom Delay
Sarah Palin
Scott Walker
If you are an effective Republican, they will come after you with nonsense "ethics" charges.
There are only so many pages in the DemocRATic Playbook
Tom Delay
Sarah Palin
Rick Perry
Nikki Haley
Scott Walker
If you are an effective Republican, they will come after you with frivolous "ethics" lawsuits, to tie you up in court.
There are only so many pages in the DemocRATic Playbook.
Does Crack live in WI? I thought he was in Los Angeles.
Always remember, no Republican has ever ever done anything illegal. Not even jaywalking. It's always a liberal conspiracy to get Republicans. I'm sure Obama is even involved here.
"@Althouse, besides you, Meade, and Scott Walker is there anyone living in your state who isn't a worthless turd?"
What state do you live in, turd?
madisonfella: "The coordination is not "alleged". Everyone involved has admitted they were doing exactly that, rather what is being disputed is if state election laws have to be followed or not."
LOL
Yes.
A lefty obama supporter actually wrote that at this point in time.
Zero, nada, zilch self-awareness.
Drudge is redlining a headline that Walker is now being accused of Criminal co-ordinating of donations.
No hint anywhere that this is a release from secrecy of a several years old DA's application for a John Doe secret subpoena investigation of charges that have recently been thrown out of court.
rather what is being disputed is if state election laws have to be followed or not.
I know...lets ask Torecelli....
There are a myriad of cases of democrats ignoring state election laws when it pleases them.
I thought it was "innocent until proven guilty". I didn't know prosecutors were allowed to go in public and make accusations without filing charges.
Garage - are you ok with that king of political gangsterism?
However without this coordination, Walker surely would not have beaten back the recall. He never did have a chance considering the left-wing machine set against him.
madisonfella (aka Inga):
"The coordination is not "alleged". Everyone involved has admitted they were doing exactly that, rather what is being disputed is if state election laws have to be followed or not."
So you think we must all "admit" when we exercise our Constitutionally protected First Amendment rights? In what universe is this true? I don't admit to exercising my God-given rights. I exercise them.
I call bull shit, madisonfella. I'm not in the habit of pre-clearing my Constitutionally protected rights with anybody.
But you're ready to go Full Fascist, aren't you? The Left is and always has been the same. You have to break a few Constitutionally protected eggs to make an oppressive, economy-killing, centrally planned, tasteless omelet. Right? Piss off.
"Too many documents are being asked for."
-- Maybe their hard drives all crashed and were thrown out.
"The coordination is not "alleged". Everyone involved has admitted they were doing exactly that, rather what is being disputed is if state election laws have to be followed or not."
I thought what was in dispute was the prosecutors interpretation of the law and if it is constitutional.
I've seen this news pop up a couple of times now in the past month....
I've yet to see any evidence of criminal activity being presented.
What again is Walker accused of???
In the end there will be once again no charges. Millions of dollars and thousands in man hours spent simply to produce headlines that will hurt Walker and dry up donations. The criminal is that fuck Chisholm.
It took very little time for the La Crosse Tribune to make this their lead "Walker hit piece" online.
This will be fuel for equally misleading editorials over the next week. Commenters who always declare drug dealers innocent (not "presumed innocent") until proven guilty are declaring Walker guilty until convicted. --Never mind the lack of charges.
"Wow, the Walker-voting Republican Special Prosecutor, and 3 County Republican DA's really have it out for Walker!"
Have it in for Walker. Or is that a regional difference of idiom?
And the banner on Yahoo's landing page says, "Charges haven't been filed, but prosecutors say Scott Walker was part of an illegal national effort ..."
Just as you think the press can't really be this bad, it proves that it can be, and is.
Even if he did do what was alleged, because no lefty really cares about the IRS losing emails, I don't care about this.
Where's garage?
When you asked this, he was probably trying to make sure he was logged in as Garage Mahal instead of eelpout. Looks like he got it straightened out correctly this time.
. Millions of dollars and thousands in man hours spent simply to produce headlines that will hurt Walker and dry up donations
Thank the Club for Growth for filing a federal lawsuit.
Were lawyers snookered into expanding the probe? This piece by the always excellent Dom Noth was prescient .
Funny no major paper could write a story on the fact that the Democratic Party of Wisconsin's 2014 platform supports repeal and a ban on concealed carry. And a "no outsourcing" policy, right before they endorsed Mary "Send those jobs to China" Burke.
a "scheme" to exercise first amendment rights.
About half the country doesn't believe we should have those first amendment rights.
That's the result of increasing partisan delineation. Democrats keep talking about how extreme the GOP has become while they systematically dismantle the Constitutional republic, use government to target their political opponents, and rule by fiat. They're off in their socialist bubble exposing micro-aggression and saving the oceans.
Think the U.S. can't become a banana republic? Imagine if Democrats held the House and gained three seats on the SCOTUS, you could watch all your pretty property and free speech rights flutter away like crumbling leaves in the wind...
This is about the press.
The State Journal, Journal Sentinel and AP are coordinating in a hit piece designed to make readers think there is current event that is "prosecutors accuse...".
And it is working. The story is picked up on RCP, Fox, Drudge, etc.
So to paraphrase the NYT excerpt, people who hold a particular viewpoint pooled their money together to provide themselves a greater voice, and that money was, gasp, used to support people with similar ideas. Quelle horreur!
So US Supreme Court be damned, the NYT, Garage, and the commentariate in Madison have ruled that this is entirely too much free speech.
The headline for this should read:
Fishing Expedition for Kangaroo Court Sunk!
So let me get this straight. Gov. Walker was accused by prosecutors of engaging in a criminal conspiracy to exercise his first amendment rights of free association? Maybe I'm missing something, but this sounds remarkably like the Chinese Communist Party's interpretation of freedom of speech - you can say anything you want, as long as it doesn't disturb "social harmony," and you can associate with anyone you want, so long as the Party approves in advance. Don't Democrats realize how awful their legal theories are in this case, how far afield they have strayed from core American beliefs about political freedom?
"So to paraphrase the NYT excerpt, people who hold a particular viewpoint pooled their money together to provide themselves a greater voice, ..."
Could've been some of those terrorist viewpoints Hillary talks about.
Prosecutors allege that the groups in Wisconsin coordinated closely with allies of Mr. Walker both in the state and in Washington, with Mr. Walker’s campaign consultants simultaneously advising him on political strategy and television advertising while also raising money and directing the activities of an array of outside groups.
Isn't this what happens during any campaign?
Unlike Obama's where he turned off the security code on cc in order to accept illegal foreign donations or say Journolist, where the media coordinated and allied with Obama to keep anything negative he did/does from seeing the light of day.
And this is different from what Planned Parenthood, Marriage Equality, National Resources Defense Fund, Sierra Club, NOW, George Soros, the NEA, AFT, etc have done for years? If so, how so?
Thank the Club for Growth for filing a federal lawsuit.
I'm as confused as the next person about this whole lawsuit (and these present-tense articles today aren't helping), but why should Club for Growth sit by as Prosecutors fish? After years of investigation, and finding nothing?
Do you keep trying to fish from a dead lake? I think not.
Translation: "Scott Walker raised a lot of money to defeat our permanent Union interests, and we won't stop until everyone is terrified of ever donating to a Republican again."
It's not politics. It's low-level civil war. Never forget it.
I have to go down to Princeton every month and fly into Newark. I get picked up by A1 limos and all the drivers are oldies that had previous jobs they lost.
They all bitch about blacks voting as a block, illegal immigrants, Obama, etc.
I found myself bitching right along with them. I go, "yea what about fucking Hilary?" And they go off.
Then I bitch about the gays and the muzzies and the blacks and they illegals right along with them, getting them more whipped up. "Fucking fag marriage" I said.
Yesterday, a guy from Coney Island, who moved to New Jersey, and wants to retire to Panama (where I guess you can live off of $1000 a month and hardly any taxes and good medical care), and I got into about the Redskin name change shit. I was really pissed. I was like fuck the Indians but not the lalalalala Indians because we both agreed they are hard workers and bring jobs to this country.
We also both agreed Hilary is a dyke and Bill is still getting pussy on the side but has signed agreements and specific pay schedules for the whores he does.
He pays 20,000 a year in housing taxes-highest housing taxes in the country, but Christie is working to resolve this issue.
What's that all about?
tits.
Where we're these guys when I ran (twice) for State Rep here in Massachusetts. Or two years ago when I was Campaign Treasurer for someone else trying?
Regards — Cliff
The reality is, and always has been, that the lefties know obama and his federal depts have and continue to target conservatives and political opponents.
The left also knows that their charges against Walker and others are BS.
And that's precisely what the left ENJOYS about this.
It makes them positively giddy.
This is who the left is and always has been.
But only every single time and every single place that the leftists gain critical mass in terms of political power.
The US will be no different and is already well on the path to that outcome.
Our trajectory is set. It's simply a matter of time.
'Always remember, no Republican has ever ever done anything illegal. Not even jaywalking. It's always a liberal conspiracy to get Republicans. I'm sure Obama is even involved here'
Probably. After all the other slimy shit he's done, it strains dredulity not at all.
Or credulity, either.
Doing something that a law was intended to prevent is not necessarily breaking the law.
I can still remember hand wringing among gun control advocates who accused gun owners of "getting around" the assault weapons ban on old military rifles by sawing the bayonet mounts off. They were in fact complying with the law. Just not in the way lawmakers had predicted.
Meanwhile, has the New York Times even reported on the "lost" IRS emails? Serious question.
But those scary Republicans are *gasp* giving money to politicians they like. The horror!
Organizing for America, of course, is more than available for comment.
NPR made it sound like Walker was in real trouble.
This is nothing compared to the Malia Obama wrongdoings.
Secret Tribunals: a leftist's wet dream.
Do you keep trying to fish from a dead lake? I think not.
It's obvious they have the goods- such as they are- on at least alleged illegal coordination between recall campaigns and outside groups. Walker was bragging in an email to Karl Rove about it. A more honest position is that there should be no investigations into campaign finance laws whatsoever. It's always partisan! Even when it clearly isn't.
My God, this is without a doubt the worst-reported story in America right now.
Surely the vast majority of the national and international audience of MSM-consumers are now convinced that Scott Walker is currently facing some very serious charges.
The byzantine nature of the current crop of civil suits over the Wisconsin "John Doe" law and the investigation(s) that it has spawned are going right over the heads of the vast majority of the public.
Please, Wisconsin conservatives; find someone -- find a bunch of smart people -- to write about this story and put it in proper context.
If you Google right now, what you come up with is a litany of stories from MSNBC, Huffington Post, NYT, CBS, DailyKos, all crowing about how "prosecutors say Walker led criminal scheme..." And virtually none of them make any real sense out of the story.
I echo Drago above and repeat myself from eralier thrads:
Many on the Left are ready, willing and (think themselves) able to go Full Fascist.
"This will be fuel" then is you is or is you ain't?
Fuel.
Damnit,
Ever since I started commenting on The Crack Emcee's (or MC as I like to say, to shorten the number of words and letters used, so to be spiritually in-line with the soul of the Parker one-liner "brevity is the soul of lingerie") site,
http://themachoresponse.blogspot.com/
I have hopped-up inferences from words like "Crystal."
Billy.
He said, "You're so Marvelous!" didn't he?
Damnit.
Some of the groups, in Wisconsin and elsewhere, appear to serve as little more than conduits for funneling money from donors around the country to an array of allied organizations with ties to specific constituencies....
No shit Sherlock. It's called politics. (Of course those donors aren't exercising their freedoms. No they are... what exactly?)
Ha ha ha. If Walker beat back the unions he will absolutely beat back anything else. Why don't you troll Soros-backed losers just get a job? Ohh, that's right...because you love living on the dole.
Obama's Dole.
You should be ashamed of yourselves.
But you're not.
Get a life and be productive, before life gets away from you.
For those not following this in the state, this John Doe witchhunt has been shut down. The prosecutors are being sued for civil rights violations. In some ways this document dump also serves as discovery for the plaintants whose civil rights have been violated.
As has been noted above this is Wisconsin's version of lawfare similiar to the IRS's persecution of Americans nation-wide.
I have made additional contribution to the Club for Growth which will ulitimately ruin the consigliere of the criminal enterprise and his hunchbacked thugs. Hope you will join me.
http://www.rightwisconsin.com/dailytakes/doe-investigator-dont-blame-me-i-was-just-following-orders-250227131.html
For once I agree with a particular opinion expressed by phx: the whole internship for Malia Obama is piddling stuff. Barring something totally outside the pale, children of the White House should be off-limits.
Does Walker have any legal or civil recourse against these so-called prosecutors?
I think that Wisconsin should decriminalize Republicans and conservatives.
Of course a federal court, a federal appeals court and the current John Doe proceeding judge have all ruled that what FOSW and others were doing was completely legal and that the legal theory being pushed by the JD is crap. That seems to have been missed in the coverage.
"Mention 400 years of white bullshit and they're the coldest, most unfeeling, nobody-can-make-me-feel-anything sons of bitches, the world has ever known."
Damn, but you've aged well.
Obelisk:
Walker has none because of his political position.
Others will bankrupt some of these players.
Thanks, Mark. Let's try to find some other things to agree to.
It's obvious they have the goods- such as they are- on at least alleged illegal coordination between recall campaigns and outside groups
--
"on at least alleged illegal coordination."
Sweet jumping, steaming jocularity.
I hope.
But likely not, on account of not just "...the goods-such as they are-" but also the use of "It's obvious..." as the starter."
Holy moly. Really?
I just read an article by Jonathan Tobin on Commentary magazine online addressing this odd use of old news to slander Scott Walker.
They brought this up on MSNBC and Joe three times asked if any laws were broken, and three times, the "new analyst" Mark Halperen dodged the question and pushed the line that "this is a problem for Walker" several times.
Even Mika was more honest about it, as she usually is, despite her leanings and obvious cheerleading.
"garage mahal said...
It's obvious they have the goods- such as they are- on at least alleged illegal coordination between recall campaigns and outside groups. "
Yes, quite obvious. And all the charges filed and arrests are proof of that...wait....what? No chrges filed? No arrests made?
How is this possible? They have the goods! Routers! ANY DAY!
"What again is Walker accused of???"
First degree winning in a purple state as a Republican.
"It's obvious they have the goods- such as they are- on at least alleged illegal coordination between recall campaigns and outside groups."
-- They "had the goods" on Romney not paying taxes for 10 years too. Sorry, accusations of Republicans committing crimes are, pretty much, required to come with actual proof and action. If he committed a crime, indict him.
just doesnt sound like anything wrong was done here. The IRS scandal seems much more coordinated and illigal, I suspect that many powerful democrats in the senate, house and executive branch have a big stake in wanting that investigation to go nowhere.
Chuck said...
My God, this is without a doubt the worst-reported story in America right now.
Wrong.
This is without a doubt precisely the way the left wants this story reported, thus from their point of view this is the "best-reported story in America right now."
It has already taken root. Millions of Americans by the end of the week will believe:
1) These are new charges
2) That have been investigated
3) and Walker is guilty
4) Indictments have already been handed down
5) Walker has probably already been convicted of something.
Think of how quickly the "74 school shootings" meme ran the gamut of media.
It's now up there with "more women beaten on Super Bowl Sunday" and "more birth defects caused by men beating women than all other causes PUT TOGETHER" (yes, some on the left are still offering up this absurd-on-it's-face assertion).
Since some of those offering up that absurd assertion are white, it's a guarantee that Crack already believes it.
Mathew Sablan: "-- They "had the goods" on Romney not paying taxes for 10 years too."
Just the other day Harry Reid was hitting us with the rather astonishing news that there are no billionaires on the left.
Garage believes this of course.
Harry's track record with factual accuracy is simply too solid to not take his word for this.
Garage - are you ok with that king of political gangsterism?
garage, all proggs really, are elated by that kind of political gangsterism.
@tim -- BS. Crack is a hateful lunatic. If he were having a beer with a white man, and the white man didn't give him money, he'd run home (or wherever his device is) to whine about it on his blog.
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