If you thought the word “authoritarian” was some highfalutin concept tossed around at intellectual liberal wine tastings, then you’re blissfully ignorant of the threat that word poses to you and our constitutional rights.
The Republican’s chaotic takeover of Wisconsin is nothing short of stunning. From belittling and ignoring the judicial branch of government, threatening fellow lawmakers, discounting public protests, closing the Capitol, busting unions, spurring recall elections, election improprieties, vilifying teachers, vilifying unions, vilifying labor, turning neighbor against neighbor and claiming there are two worlds in Wisconsin-Madison and the rest of the state, it’s not hard to tell who has decided the “spoils” of government are theirs and theirs alone.
Which brings me to Rep. Steve “Napoleonic” Nass:
Postcrescent: A Republican lawmaker called on a state Justice Departmentlawyer to resign for sending an email offering legal advice to Democratic state senators after they fled the state in February.
Rep. Steve Nass sent Republican Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen a letter asking for an investigation into Assistant Attorney General Thomas Bellavia for emailing the Democrats on Feb. 27 and telling them he supported their efforts ... Bellavia sent from his private account … Bellavia apparently mistakenly sent the email to an aide of Republican Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald, who forwarded it to Nass’ office.
Nass said he thinks Bellavia should resign and seek outside counsel because he thinks the email raises serious ethical and legal questions … "There are legitimate concerns that Assistant Attorney General Bellavia could attempt to sabotage the defense of the Wisconsin Legislature based on his partisan political activities," Nass said in a letter to Van Hollen.
Erpenbach said Nass should back off given that Bellavia sent his message from his home account … "He’s a constituent contacting his local elected official," Erpenbach said. Miller said Nass was trying to "intimidate and silence the voices of people that personally disagree" with him.
And what does the partisan Republican justice department think?
Executive assistant Steve Means said in a statement that DOJ was aware of the email. "It was sent from a personal email address and Mr. Bellavia was not acting on behalf of the Wisconsin Department of Justice … He said anyone following the Justice Department’s work to get the law enacted would recognize the "absurdity" of Nass’s suggestion that the DOJ wasn’t vigorously defending the Legislature’s actions.
So much for trying to silence the opposition.
wow... no comments. It's probably because you had an uninteresting angle on an otherwise interesting story.
ReplyDeleteYou might have notice, there are not a lot of comments. But yours is uninteresting and troll like.
ReplyDeleteI keep it here as an example of more conservative empty rhetoric.