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Walker says public safety main priority in Milwaukee

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Gov. Scott Walker

Gov. Scott Walker

Following days of violent protests in Milwaukee, Governor Scott Walker says the most important role of government in the city right now is to protect the safety of the public.

“If you don’t have public safety, you don’t have anything else,” Walker told reporters after a meeting with Milwaukee area law enforcement on Monday evening. “If people can’t live in their communities and their neighborhoods without fear, everything else is kind of irrelevant.”

Demonstrators have been taking to the streets since Saturday night, after a Milwaukee police officer fatally shot an armed black man in the city’s Sherman Park neighborhood. Police have said 23-year-old Sylville Smith was turning towards the officer with a gun in his hand at the time of the shooting. The protests have resulted in multiple injuries and numerous incidents of property damage, including burned buildings and rocks thrown at police squad cars.

Police and the Mayor Tom Barrett have called for the Department of Justice, which is handling the investigation of the shooting, to release footage from the officer’s body camera. Walker on Monday said the DOJ should follow the law and not impeded its ability to conduct a thorough investigation. “We don’t want to rush their investigation, the law is important to have an independent review.”

Mayor Barrett on Monday instituted a curfew for anyone 17 and younger that was set to take effect at 10pm. Walker said his “hope and prayer” for the city is that things will calm down.

Walker also responded to critics who have claimed economic conditions in Milwaukee’s black community have helped fuel some of the violence in recent days. The governor says those concerns are ones he has been working with lawmakers from the city to address, through actions such as job training programs.

Walker said he plans to continue those discussions once safety is restored. “If you want to address poverty, if you want to address living conditions, you want to address housing – all of those things are legitimate issues…but if you’ve got neighborhoods where businesses are burnt down, where people are afraid to live, it’s only going to make those problems more difficult.”

Walker expects changes to campaign finance bill

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Gov. Scott Walker announces he's suspending his presidential campaign. (Photo: Andrew Beckett)

Gov. Scott Walker (Photo: Andrew Beckett)

As lawmakers fast-track legislation that would overhaul Wisconsin’s campaign finance laws, Governor Scott Walker signaled on Tuesday that he does expect some changes to the bill before it lands on his desk.

The bill, introduced last week, would double contribution limits to candidates, require more frequent filing of finance reports, and make clarifications on corporate contributions to political parties and committees. It would also remove restrictions on candidates coordinating with outside issue advocacy groups, which Republicans argue is needed to bring the state in line with a state Supreme Court ruling earlier this year.

During a stop in Madison, Walker said it’s important to make changes that will reflect some of the numerous court rulings over the years that have impacted the state’s campaign finance laws. He also said it’s a good idea to give more attention to political parties participating in elections, which the bill aims to do by increasing contribution limits to candidates and requiring more frequent reporting of campaign finances.

“I think, probably one of the best things they can do is put more attention on the political parties, as opposed to special interests,” Walker said. “People can see a difference between a Republican, a Democrat, or other political party participant…that will shift more power to the parties and less to special interests.”

Walker did express some concerns when asked about a provision in the bill that some experts believe would lift restrictions on how candidates spend their leftover campaign funds. Current law only allows candidates to direct that money to other campaigns, political groups, or charities, but Government Accountability Board director Kevin Kennedy said Tuesday that the bill could end that prohibition. Kennedy later walked back that comment at a legislative hearing, saying GAB staff may have misunderstood the provision.

If the bill would make that change, Walker said he would hope lawmakers would revert back to the original restrictions. “I don’t have any interest in doing that on my own level,” Walker said. “For me, I think those funds should be used for the purposes they were intended.”

The campaign finance bill was the subject of a hearing at the state Capitol on Tuesday. It’s expected to make its way through the Legislature quickly this fall.

Walker more aggressive in debate, but impact questionable

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Governor Scott Walker was able to score some hits in the second Republican presidential primary debate, although one expert thinks the chances of it boosting his lagging campaign are questionable.

When he was able to speak, Marquette University political scientist Charles Franklin says Governor Walker was able to clearly communicate his position on a number of the key issues he’s campaigning on, and also addressed criticisms from other Republican candidates. However, Franklin said the governor did not get very many questions through the three hours of the debate and, as a result, ended up with the least amount of speaking time out of the 11 candidates on stage.

Franklin said that limited exposure could make it harder for Walker to count on the debate to help boost his falling poll numbers, where he’s dropped out of the top tier in the past month. “It’s hard to see how he gets a bump from last night’s performance,” Franklin said.

The debate format itself also worked against Walker. CNN moderators focused most of their questions on the current front runners, either directing them at those candidates or asking others in the crowded field to weigh in. Franklin said that created a sort of “vicious cycle,” where candidates who are lower in the polls, like Walker, had a hard time breaking in to the main discussion. “You don’t get enough time because you’ve fallen back in the polls. But then, having fallen back in the polls, you need more time.”

Despite polling at just two percent in some states now, Walker was included in the main debate because of his stronger standing during the time period used to determine who would appear on stage. However, with his numbers falling, the Republican governor now finds himself in danger of losing his place for the next debate that’s coming up at the end of October in Colorado. “He certainly needs to find a way to reverse the decline he’s seen…which really threatens to take him out of the top tier of candidates,” Franklin said.

Walker will be back on the campaign trail this weekend, with stops that include visits to South Carolina and Iowa.

Walker voices support for legal immigration limits

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Gov. Scott Walker addresses an NRA convention in Tennessee.

Gov. Scott Walker addresses an NRA convention in Tennessee.

Governor Scott Walker now says he supports limits on legal immigration, citing a need to “protect American workers and American wages.”

Walker, a potential 2016 candidate for president, recently changed his stance on supporting a path to citizenship for those in the U.S. illegally. During an appearance Tuesday on conservative radio host Glenn Beck’s program, the Republican governor stood by his recent comments that he now opposes amnesty for undocumented immigrants.

For the first time, Walker also said “adjustments” would have to be made by the next president and Congress on legal immigration. He said he has talked to a number of people in Congress about the subject, and he called it a “fundamentally lost issue by many in elected positions today.”

Walker said there needs to be a discussion on what the nation’s legal immigration system is doing to citizens looking for jobs, and what it’s doing to wages.

WTAQ

Walker back on the campaign trail

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After raising campaign money across the country and airing commercials since November, Governor Scott Walker is hitting the ground to defend against an upcoming recall election in June.

Eau Claire was among several stops across the state Tuesday, where Walker met with dozens of supporters gathered at a manufacturing company. In his speech, Walker put heavy emphasis on how Wisconsin is heading in the right direction because of the policies he has helped to implement. The governor argued that in “the first two months of the year, more than 17,000 private sector jobs have been created” and “the unemployment rate is the lowest it’s been since 2008.”

During a stop at Services Plus, a manufacturing company in Green Bay,  Walker defended the controversial collective bargaining law that sparked the recall effort, and balancing the state budget. “We avoided the massive layoffs of public employees that they saw in other states.”

Walker’s eventual opponent will be decided in a primary election on May 8th. Tom Barrett, Kathleen Falk, Doug La Follette and Kathleen Vinehout all turned in the required signatures Tuesday to appear on the ballot.

However, the governor argues it doesn’t matter which Democrat is on the ballot come June 5th. He said out of state money from big union groups will be behind the nominee, no matter who it is. Walker has also raised a large amount of his campaign funds from outside of Wisconsin.

The governor also made campaign stops in Dane, Milwaukee, and Mosinee.

AUDIO: WAYY’s Mike Ness reports (:56)

Mike Kemmeter-WHBY contributed to this report

Walker holds out hope on mining

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The governor believes a deal can still be reached on a mining bill. However, Governor Walker says any measure lawmakers pass would need to be substantially similar to a compromise rejected in the state Senate last week.

Walker says “passing a bill and calling it a mining bill really doesn’t do the hard working citizens of the state any good if it doesn’t actually lead to a mine that’s going to produce those jobs.”

The governor says Gogebic Taconite, the company that has been pressing lawmakers to streamline the regulatory process for an open pit iron ore mine in northern Wisconsin, has already agreed to about 20 compromises in the bill. Supporters of the changes say the Gogebic project could create thousands of jobs and bring billions of dollars into the state.

In talking with Gogebic’s CEO, Walker says it was clear the company has already moved as far as it is willing to go. He says that’s why the company abandoned its plans for the mine in Iron and Ashland Counties after the Senate failed to get enough votes to pass the bill.

The Senate compromise failed after Republican Senator Dale Schultz (R-Richland Center) voted with Democrats in opposing the amended version. Schultz has raised concerns about changes to environmental regulations and the removal of public legal protections.

The governor says he is willing to call a special session, but only if the final product actually makes the state more appealing to mining companies. Walker says “having a dog and pony show” doesn’t do the state any good if no jobs come from it.

The governor says lawmakers have sent a clear message to all mining companies that they are not welcome in Wisconsin right now.

AUDIO: Andrew Beckett reports (1:07)

Walker talks reform

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While speaking at Washington free market think tank, Governor Scott Walker defended his policies on public employees including collective bargaining changes and requiring higher pensions and health contributions.

In today’s talk, “Are Wisconsin’s Budget Reforms a Model for Other States,” Walker said the issue is not only favored only by Republicans – as Democrats such as N.Y. Governor Cuomo, Mass. Governor Patrick and even Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel also want labor changes.

“Who would’ve thought a year ago when Occupy Chicago protestors came in, they’d mention my name and Rahm Emanuel’s name in the same breath,” said Walker, adding these changes “make sense.”

Gov. Walker said his fiscal policies are a way to protect the retirement benefits of those in public service. He mentioned states like Illinois – which fail to make tough budgetary decisions – are now looking to cut pension benefits.

The American Enterprise Institute hosted Walker for the event.

AUDIO: Brian Moon reports (1:15)

Dems on recall myths and timeline

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As the deadline approaches to turn in petitions to recall Gov. Scott Walker and Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch, Democrats are dispelling a few myths.  The Dems have released their internal timeline leading up to the Government Accountability Board’s January 17 deadline. The recall headquarters in Madison plans on gathering petitions the week prior to organize the paperwork before submission.

In a conference call to reporters Tuesday, State Democratic Party Chairman Mike Tate dispelled the rumor that organizers plan on turning in petitions next week to the GAB. Tate also would not disclose how many signatures they’ve gathered but said they are on track. “We have a very rate of people signing both petitions and I expect that we have a very strong number.”

Democratic spokesman Graeme Zielinski said various blogs and sources are reporting erroneous information. “Another phenomenon are well-meaning volunteers who are leaking raw numbers of signatures versus the actual number of signatures that will be submitted after vetting,” he said in a release.

Once the GAB receives the petitions, it will work to verify the signatures. Meantime there is a legal battle ensuing over the agency’s process. Walker’s campaign and the head of the state Republican Party say it should not be their job to find improper signatures. But the Accountability Board says the law only requires them to check the petitions for full names and valid Wisconsin addresses – and they don’t have the resources to do any more than that.

Waukesha County Circuit Judge Mac Davis last week rejected a request by the recall groups to intervene, saying there’s not time to consider it before the petitions are filed. Davis also said the GAB’s position is the same as the recall groups, so they should be adequately represented in a hearing on the merits of the case, which is scheduled for tomorrow. The recall groups have asked a state appeals court to let them join the suit.

AUDIO:  Tate on why Gov. Walker is focusing on signature validation (:39)

Governor defends GAB lawsuit

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In Senate recalls filed last summer, each campaign took up the task of reviewing the petitions filed with the state and making challenges against signatures. Now Republicans want the Government Accountability Board to do that work when petitions targeting Governor Scott Walker are filed later this month.

Governor Walker’s campaign and the state Republican Party have filed a lawsuit in Waukesha County that seeks to force the GAB to make sure signatures on the petitions are valid, and to strike any duplicate of false signatures as part of the review process. Walker says “the integrity of the process is compromised if there are individuals signing more than once” or “if someone is signing with a false name that doesn’t representing a legal voter in the state of Wisconsin.”

AUDIO: Andrew Beckett reports (1:01)

GAB staff have said their only duty is to make sure each signature is complete and has a Wisconsin address with it, and that it’s up to the campaigns to file any challenges. Walker says that process worked fine last summer during the Senate recalls because there was not evidence people were signing multiple petitions, while media accounts this fall have indicated some people may have signed petitions multiple times.

Agency officials say being forced to strike signatures would significantly add to the cost of reviewing the recall petitions, with over 540,000 signatures expected to be turned in later this month. The GAB also argues such a review goes beyond what the law requires the agency to conduct.

When asked whether taxpayers should be forced to pay for the extra expense of a review process that’s much different than what was used last summer, Walker said “anybody upset with the cost should go back to the people pushing for the recall in the first place.”

2011 in review: the year of the recall

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Before this year, Wisconsin had only seen a handful of successful attempts to recall public officials. That changed dramatically last spring, as recall efforts against 16 state senators got underway.

The recalls were based on where lawmakers stood on the collective bargaining issue; Democrats for leaving the state to prevent a vote and Republicans for supporting the bill. UW-Madison Political Scientist Charles Franklin called it a very unusual situation to see so many lawmakers targeted all at one time.

Thousands of signatures were needed and several of the campaigns fell short of their goal. More than enough signatures were gathered though to force elections against six Republican and three Democratic lawmakers.

David Vanderleest, who helped organize the effort targeting Green Bay Democrat Dave Hansen, says the polarized environment caused by the collective bargaining debate made it easy to get people to sign. He noted how clearly the state was divided at the time. Vanderleest unsuccessfully challenged Hansen in the race, which was the first to be resolved.

Following a legal battle over signature challenges to the petitions, primaries for the rest were set for July. Republicans drew criticism for running “fake Democrats” in some of those races, a move Senate GOP Leader Scott Fitzgerald defended as necessary because it gave their members an extra month to campaign after the budget debate. Without primaries, those elections would have been held in early July.

The six Republicans were the first to face elections on August ninth. Democrats fell short of winning the three seats needed to control the Senate, but state Democratic Party Chairman Mike Tate said defeating Senators Dan Kapanke of La Crosse and Randy Hopper of Fond du Lac was still a big win. Republicans argued their ability to hang on to the majority was a sign that results beat out rhetoric with voters.

The two remaining Democrats successfully won re-election a week later.

Despite falling short of their goal to flip the Senate, Democrats have kept their focus on recalls. In November they launched a drive to collect the more than 540,000 signatures needed to recall Governor Scott Walker. Four more GOP Senators are also facing recalls. The state will find out in mid-January if those efforts will succeed.

AUDIO: Andrew Beckett reports (2:00)