Right wing Lawsuit King Esenberg claims guilty Walker aide Rindfleisch innocent. Hmm, she pleaded guilty Rick....

Funny thing, even when Republicans are caught and found guilty of breaking the law, conservative politicians, right wing think tanks and hapless in-the-tank voters will still deny laws were ever broken. This perceived infallibility is a bit on the frightening side.

On WPR's Joy Cardin Show, Rick Esenberg, president the right wing lawsuit mill The Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty, nonchalantly broke the news that convicted Scott Walker aide Kelly Rindfleisch was innocent, and that she committed no crime. Yes, even after the State Supreme Court turned down her appeal. It was a confident declaration that conservative voters need to believe, and hearing it on the radio helped support their delusions (audio):

Esenberg: "It amazes me that people in Wisconsin on the left, were apoplectic because a handful of staffers in Scott Walker's administration had a private email system to conduct not government business, but political business which they were perfectly free to do..."

In this conversation about Walker's hypocritical comments about Hillary Clinton's emails, the reality based world saw things quite differently. jsonline:

Rindfleisch pleaded guilty in 2012 to doing campaign work at her Milwaukee County government job. Walker's campaign and government teams used a secret email system or private email accounts to deal with the bread-and-butter issues of county government: personnel, budgets and buildings.

A trove of previously sealed documents released last month provides a rearview mirror look into Walker's world and the push to take county government off the official grid. Using private emails for official business can make it harder for the public to find out what its government is doing. 

Emails from private accounts show the Walker campaign and county government teams discussed such varying issues as problems at the Mental Health Complex, the death of a teen at the O'Donnell Park parking structure, reaction to moves made by county supervisors, the attempt to ease out the head of the medical examiner's office, the handling of public records requests, repair estimates for buildings, capital projects, and updates on storm damage and the federal response.

The Progressive's Ruth Conniff responded to Esenberg, calling into question his and congresses credibility on the subject.

The Truth about Walker's "Crap" Budget.

In my opinion, The Progressive's Ruth Conniff is one of the most powerful liberal voices in the media right now. Her well framed and concise analysis is a refreshing break from the chaotic ramblings of most progressives.

Conniff offered up the following straight forward look Scott Walker's budget "crap" in the latest Isthmus. Democrats would be wise to use the same style of common sense messaging, and drop the cliches:

The budget was 12 days late, garnered more “no” votes from Walker’s GOP colleagues than any other budget he has tried to pass, and was described by at least two Republicans in the state Legislature as “crap.”

The budget he signed reflects the two main themes of his political career: destroying public institutions, from schools to parks, and eliminating oversight and accountability when it comes to spending public funds … a state budget Assembly Minority Leader Peter Barca (D-Kenosha) aptly described as throwing the people of Wisconsin under Walker’s campaign bus.

Here is a prime example: The state budget expands a school voucher program that, after 25 years, has not improved academic outcomes for children in Milwaukee. Instead of demanding better results, the new budget eliminates the requirement that voucher school students take the same standardized tests as students in the regular public schools.

To deal with the bad news about WEDC and other examples of cronyism and shady dealings, some unnamed person inserted a provision in the budget to make state government impervious to open records requests.

Then there were the goodies like getting rid of the wage floor for construction workers (Walker issued a special statement proudly announcing that his budget rolls back this New Deal-era protection for workers) and repealing the weekend so employees can “volunteer” to work seven days in a row.

Walker Donors Exposed for Offshoring.

Ed Schultz and The Progressives Ruth Conniff get into the offshoring details of some of Scott Walker's donors. The nation is getting a taste of this guys politics.

Sen. Glenn Grothman gets the Big Ed treatment, with a big assist from Ruth Conniff.

State Sen. Glenn Grothman (growth-men) is a throwback to a time best forgotten, and an absolute media whore. He's decided to challenge long time Rep. Tom Petri, who isn't conservatively bizarre enough. The idea that Petri is a more moderate Republican is ridiculous except for the fact we are comparing him to Grothman. Just type "Petri" in the search bar on the top left, and you'll see why. I've been featuring all the bigger House votes by our state congressmen (yes, all men) for some time, and it's really really ugly.

Just recently in a Post Crescent article titled, "Petri at odds with constituents...," Petri was asked about public opinion polls that directly contradicted his voting record in Congress, and here's his response:

The survey results haven’t changed his mind. Petri said in an interview that he listens to constituents’ opinions and takes them into account, but he also factors his own knowledge into the equation Petri said if voters are unhappy with that or want him to disregard long-held beliefs …well, “then they’ll have to hire someone else.

Again, it doesn't matter what the public thinks, Republicans always know what's best for us.

But back to Grothman. Here’s Big Ed with the Progressive's Ruth Conniff, who relished the chance to introduce Grothman to the rest of country. It was fun watching Conniff relentlessly rip into Grothman for just being…himself:

jsonline: "I don't think Congressman Petri in particular or the Republicans in general have been aggressive enough at all in (addressing) the increasing culture of dependency in this country and that culture has led to the breakdown of the family and this huge deficit." Grothman conceded he did not live in the district. Grothman said he plans to move to Campbellsport in Fond du Lac County. He keeps his state office open on the federal holiday honoring Martin Luther King Jr., saying in 2011 that giving state employees the day off insulted private-sector workers who had to remain on the job. In 2012, Grothman issued a statement claiming Kwanzaa was celebrated mostly by white liberals "in an effort to divide Americans."

Grothman said he would campaign against the Affordable Care Act, arguing Petri "implied he didn't mind a bigger government role in health care." Petri voted against the legislation now known as Obamacare.

Walker's National Image Changed Overnight, thanks to Actual Critical Coverage.

Well, it looks like Scott Walker's claims ignorance isn't even convincing enough now for one of his big supporters:

CapTimes- Steven Elbow: Two former prosecutors, one a Republican and one a Democrat, agree on one thing: there wasn't enough evidence to charge the governor with a crime. Paul Bucher, a Republican who served nearly two decades as Waukesha County district attorney, agreed. "I don’t think there was sufficient evidence to show the governor was involved in that," he said. Bucher may not be the most objective observer. His clientele includes defendants in the John Doe investigation that led to Wednesday's release of more than 28,000 pages of emails 

Bucher said the email shows that Walker knew about the secret email system, put in place by employees to skirt public records laws. But it doesn't prove that he knew about the system all along. "I think he knew something because of the articles," Bucher said. 

National Coverage Continues: Ed Schultz talked with The Progressive's Ruth Conniff, who had a treasure trove of information for viewers across the country:



I thought I'd highlight Schultz' interview with State Sen. Jon Erpenbach. Not only did Erpenbach frame the situation in Wisconsin nicely, but Ed went into one of his great and very passionate rants.


For great email dump coverage, check out The Progressive.

Ed Schultz, Progressive Magazine's Ruth Conniff, John Fugelsang reveal the real Scott Walker, they don't hold back!!

After watching the Ed Show from Sunday, I nearly got off the couch to clap. I did shout though. Ed and his guests got it so right about Scott Walker. Stephanie Miller features John Fugelsang on her radio program often, but here, after hearing how he ripped into Scott Walker, you will have a new best friend. What Fugelsang said about the Capitol protesters is amazing...not to mention his joke about arresting folk singers.

A must see: