FollowUp 32: Wisconsin Republican Dirty Tricks

Governor Scott Walker sent me an e-mail today, 24 May 2012. Here we go again.

Patriot,

Well, that is how I view myself.  I didn't expect Mr. Walker to be so astute.

This is it. The Wisconsin Recall election is less than three weeks away.

Um, no.  Less than two weeks away, but it's okay by me if Mr. Walker's supporters turn out a week late.

The liberal special interests and Washington insiders have sworn to spend tens of millions of dollars to defeat me. I need your help right now to beat back this senseless Recall. Will you stand with me today?

No.  Again, he claims that outside money is pouring in to his opponents.  The truth is that Governor Walker has tens of millions more than do Wisconsin Democrats, much of his money coming from outside of Wisconsin.

For more than a generation in Wisconsin, the power of special interests and the liberal elite have gone largely unchecked. My Administration finally stood up to them, and we changed the way we do things in government in Wisconsin.

No.  Mr. Walker wants to pretend that the last generation did not include Republican Tommy Thompson as Wisconsin's longest serving governor ever.  Is he really calling Mr. Thompson a liberal?  If you look at the recent history of governors of Wisconsin, it is fairly balanced between Democrats and Republicans.  Neither side has "gone largely unchecked."  Liar.

That’s why my opponents are so desperate to defeat me in this Recall. They want to roll back the clock and take us back to the days of skyrocketing taxes, bloated budgets, and unchecked and unaccountable spending. We cannot let that happen.

No.  While Governor Walker has cut taxes on businesses, it is not true for the average Wisconsinite.  He is spending money beyond Wisconsin's tax revenue, something that was not true of his immediate predecessor.

The moment I became Governor, I set about the work that the people of Wisconsin sent me to do. We eliminated the deficit left by my Democrat predecessor. We gave the freedom of choice to public employees. Our reforms have allowed public employees to decide if they would like to spend (in some cases more than a thousand dollars a year in dues) or keep their hard earned money. We finally put the control of state government back where it belongs, in the hands of the people.

No.  This is a lie.  Mr. Walker was not left a mess.  His reforms took away collective bargaining from public employees; which is not an increase of choice.  That was after lying during the 2010 campaign and stating that he was not going after unions.  Mr. Walker is a proven liar on this.

I kept my promises to the voters here in Wisconsin. I didn’t raise taxes. We have not had massive lay offs of state workers. Our reforms have balanced the budget and lowered the unemployment rate to a level unseen since 2008.

No.  Mr. Walker is using fake employment figures.  The Bureau of Labor Statistics shows Wisconsin losing jobs in April.  Mr. Walker is a liar.

Now I need you to help me tell the out-of-state special interests that we do not want another tax-and-spend liberal in charge here in Wisconsin.

No.  Again, Mr. Walker is the one who has cornered the out-of-state special interests, CrossRoads GPS and the Koch brothers to name two of the biggest funders of his bid to keep his seat.

This Recall is not just about Wisconsin, it is about the cause of reform across this country. It is about deciding what kind of country we are going to be for generations to come. We must send a message that we can and will live within our means. We must not hand power back to a small group of special interests and let them run state governments into the ground across this great nation.

The recall is about deciding what kind of country we want.  Do we want balance between labor and business?  Do we want a viable middle class?  Do we want women to have control of their healthcare and bodies?  Do we want fully funded schools and strong education for our children?  Do we want fair taxes for everyone including businesses?  Or do we want Governor Walker's radical reform?

When we defeat this baseless Recall, it will send a powerful statement across our country about the kind of government we want to have and the bold reforms that will get us there.

The recall is not baseless.  It is based on the actions of Mr. Walker; actions in contradiction to the promises that he made when he sought the office of governor.

We have less than a month to go. I need your help – not tomorrow, not next week, but right now.

Okay.  Less than two weeks is also less than a month.

Today, I ask you to stand with me so I can continue to stand up for hard working taxpayers. Together, we can defeat this Recall and make history – in Wisconsin and across the country.

Keeping Governor Walker in office increases the burden on "hard working taxpayers" and relieves the burden on big business.  Mr. Walker is a liar.

Sincerely,

Scott Walker
Governor

16 November 2011, Original Pedantic Political Ponderings post.
30 November 2011, FollowUp 1.
4 December 2011, FollowUp 2.
11 December 2011, FollowUp 3.
14 December 2011, FollowUp 4.
15 December 2011, FollowUp 5.
30 December 2011, FollowUp 6.
13 January 2012, FollowUp 7.
17 January 2012, FollowUp 8.
25 January 2012, FollowUp 9.
2 February 2012, FollowUp 10.
9 February 2012, FollowUp 11.
12 February 2012, FollowUp 12.
18 February 2012, FollowUp 13.
22 February 2012, FollowUp 14.
6 March 2012, FollowUp 15.
12 March 2012, FollowUp 16.
16 March 2012, FollowUp 17.
30 March 2012, FollowUp 18.
31 March 2012, FollowUp 19.
3 April 2012, FollowUp 20.
4 April 2012, FollowUp 21.
11 April 2012, FollowUp 22.
14 April 2012, FollowUp 23.
17 April 2012, FollowUp 24.
21 April 2012, FollowUp 25.
29 April 2012, FollowUp 26.
2 May 2012, FollowUp 27.
6 May 2012, FollowUp 28.
10 May 2012, FollowUp 29.
13 May 2012, FollowUp 30.
23 May 2012, FollowUp 31.

30 May 2012, FollowUp 33.
2 June 2012, FollowUp 34.
4 June 2012, FollowUp 35.
5 June 2012, FollowUp 36.