WISGOP outsources Billboard Picture: Russian "Wisconsin" Miner?

Bumbling WISGOP president Joe Fadness stepped in it again, as only a “stand with Walker” supporter could. This is almost too laughable to believe. jsonline-Jason Silverstein:  

The Wisconsin Republican Party outsourced part of an advertisement against outsourcing jobs: The party bought space on several billboards throughout Wisconsin criticizing Democratic gubernatorial challenger Mary Burke for outsourcing jobs to China … But BuzzFeed reports that this miner is neither Wisconsinite nor Chinese immigrant — the photo is a stock image from Russian photographer Andrey Bortnikov, whose personal page identifies the miner as a current Russian citizen.

Admit it, with incompetence like this, there has to be illegal coordination between the Walker campaign and WISGOP:

A party representative said that the billboard ran for one day, Wednesday, and was removed.

With just the right measure of sarcastic aplomb:

Joe Zepecki, communications director for Burke's campaign, wrote in an email: "If Scott Walker had the same level of concern for Wisconsin workers than he has for Russian coal miners, maybe we wouldn't be dead last in the Midwest, tenth out of ten, in private sector job creation on his watch."

At Uppity Wisconsin, this bit of incredibly bad Walker outsourcing information reared its ugly head:

WISGOP attacks Trek Bike's free speech rights to defend itself against Walker's political Smear Campaign

Warning to out-of-state businesses, don't get on the bad side of Gov. Scott Walker. 

For a party that hates frivolous lawsuits, using courts, and supports Citizens United, they sure hate it when the tables are turned.

Trek CEO John Burke featured a full page ad in local newspapers defending his company from political attacks by Mr. “Open for Business” Scott Walker. Apparently, free speech and the money that pays for newspaper ads is now illegal for businesses that have a blood tie to a political candidate.

WISGOP’s Joe Fadness continues to highlight the party’s hypocrisy and willingness to flip flop at a moments notice to maintain power. The ends do justify the means for these pirates, even if it means bashing successful state businesses. LaCrosse Tribune:

The Wisconsin Republican Party has filed a complaint with the state elections board over a full-page newspaper ad by Trek Bicycle Corp., saying it amounts to an illegal contribution to Democratic gubernatorial candidate Mary Burke. She is the sister of Trek president John Burke. 

That wasn't all:

The company had broken the law by responding to criticism from the Walker campaign about outsourcing by Trek. "Trek's advertisement uses corporate funds to aid the campaign of Mary Burke and uses language mirroring Mary Burke's talking points," the complaint reads.

Trek spokeswoman Marina Marich said in a statement: "The governor's television ad clearly attacked Trek, and Trek is entitled to defend itself under the First Amendment by running its own advertisements containing the true facts. We are confident that our letter published in newspaper advertisements is constitutionally protected free speech that fully complies with Wisconsin law."  

For those who don't check the comments, here one that nailed it:

Anonymous said...Sounds like the Republican Party is alleging coordination between Trek and Mary Burke's campaign. Haven't they been claiming (incorrectly) that coordination is allowed under Wisconsin law -- or at least should be following the latest US Supreme Court rulings favoring "corporate free speech"? So what's their position? That collaboration is legal for Scott Walker, but illegal for Mary Burke's campaign?

The Joe Fadness Follies....continue.

Is WISGOP executive director Joe Fadness having a mental breakdown? I used to give him credit for being just a little bit slower than RNC chief Reince Priebus. I gave him way too much credit.

Fadness seems to think the Mary Burke statements below are actual flip-flops. I've read them over and over again...can you see the difference?

From MSNBC, 04/03/14:Burke is an unequivocal supporter of the Affordable Care Act and wants to expand Medicaid in the state, which Walker has refused to do.[1]

Burke in Interview with Green Bay Press-Gazette Editorial Board, 04/03/14:Certainly, Obamacare has its problems. That was a really rough rollout…We have to make sure it is a system that’s working, and it needs to be changed if it’s not working.[2]

Fadness hates Burke

Obviously, I don't want to spend a lot of time on this, but really...is Fadness crazy? I can only assume the Republican Party of Wisconsin's admission they're already out of campaign ammunition is not sitting well with Walker.

I've said it before; this Joe Fadness guy is truly Onionesque. His knack for unintentional humor is enough to brighten any liberal blogger day. Enjoy the following for its raw madness:

Fadness: “Only a liberal Madison millionaire would try to hoodwink voters by changing positions on a key issue twice in one day. It’s no wonder the Democratic base hasn't accepted her ... Wisconsin should be alarmed by the disturbing trend of Burke’s lies and contradictions.
 “Which is it Mary Burke: Do you unequivocally support Obamacare and the havoc it is causing across the country, or do you agree with Governor Walker that the Obamacare boondoggle is flawed and must be repealed? Voters deserve a Governor who can hold a position for longer than 8 hours.”

Don't miss this Joe Fadness moment either.

WISGOP's Joe Fadness stands by outright lies about Mary Burke.

The bumbling thugs at WISGOP have become more of a laughing stock than an actual party campaigning for Scott Walker. In true party form, RPW will not correct their mistakes and campaign errors to make the race for governor and honest one:

WISGOP bungler, Joe Fadness

WSJ: The Republican Party of Wisconsin isn't backing away from a statement about Democratic gubernatorial candidate Mary Burke's plans to self-finance her campaign, even though it was based on an erroneous report … "It was widely reported that Burke planned to spend $8-10 million in the race, yet she is now hedging her bets amidst a struggling campaign and her inability to create traction with voters."

Here’s the funny part; as proof, party leaders pointed to another fringe right wing source appropriately named, “Right Wisconsin.” Even worse, Right Wisconsin is part of the Journal Sentinel, hosted by conservative radio wacko Charlie Sykes. Gee, I wonder what could go wrong?

The State Journal asked for the party's source of the "widely reported" figure. State GOP spokesman Jesse Dougherty cited a Jan. 15 report by conservative web site Right Wisconsin … (the) article stated: "Does Democratic candidate for Governor Mary Burke really intend to spend $8 million of her own money this year? According to a public policy report from Foley and Lardner, the answer is yes."

A spokesman for the law firm said the report was retracted.

End of story? Not quite. The WISGOP goons, under the guidance of executive director Joe Fadness, had this Onionesque answer:

After being informed about the retraction, Fadness issued a modified statement to the State Journal saying "self-financing numbers as high as $10 million have circulated for months." He did not disclose a source for the $10 million figure and the March 27 press release on the party's website remains the same.

Hey, if a few people are still mislead...and it’s true, that $10 million number has been circulating, thanks to WISGOP’s daffy Joe Fadness. Holy cow.

Wisconsin Republican Party's Joe Fadness like Reince, filled with empty and condescending hot air; "liberal Madison activist." Ouch?

Fox 6 in Milwaukee has sent reporter Mike Lowe into the upcoming governors race where he turned up this look at how things are shaking out so far. This was done before Upfront with Mike Gousha's interview with Winnebago County Executive Mark Harris, who despite not having great screen presence, instills a massive amount of competence for the governors office (which works for me).

Former Commerce Secretary Mary Burke gets coverage here too, but really, I would much rather focus on Joe Fadness, the dufus from the Wisconsin Republican Party. If the following comment passes for actual criticism, conservative voters should be ashamed of themselves. THIS is real criticism?

Fadness: "Mary Burke is a liberal Madison activist who spent hundreds of thousands of dollars supporting Democrats, and now she's going to spend millions of dollars attacking Scott Walker!"

Hey, how about those conservative Madison activists in the Capitol telling the rest of the state what to do? Can Fadness really bad mouth Burke for spending money on Democrats after Republican millionaires like...Dumb Ron Johnson, James Sensenbrenner, Paul Ryan and Mitt Romney spent millions of their own money? Or how about Republican sugar daddies Sheldon Adelson, the Koch's, Bob Perry and Harold Simmons, who spent millions? The balls. Here's another:

Fadness: "I think the dysfunction of the Democrats is really coming to light right now, where you have these party bosses..."

No, Republicans have party bosses, Democrats have cats to herd. Here's Lowe's report: