Rick Scott's Real State of the State
Rick Scott has a history of election year pandering, and it was on full display during his State of the State speech today. Whether Scott's touting his dubious 700,000 jobs creation promise, flip flopping on his pledge to protect educating funding, or refusing to discuss raising the minimum wage (which he's said makes him "cringe"), billionaire Scott has shown time and again he's committed to putting his re-election prospects and self interested ahead of what's best for Florida's middle class. American Bridge took a close look at Scott's speech today, check out our new series of videos to get the truth on some of Scott's most dubious promises and claims:
Rick Scott's Real State of the State: On Jobs
Proof: Scott Walker Knew About Staff's Secret Email Network
For someone who has repeatedly denied he knew about the secret email network his staff used to conduct campaign business during government work hours, Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker sure received a lot of emails sent from this network. American Bridge and our team of more than two dozen researchers reviewed all of the 27,000 pages of emails released from the Walker "John Doe" investigation recently. As reported in today's Washington Post, American Bridge discovered that Walker "was copied on 960 e-mails sent to the private e-mail addresses of public employees during work hours." That's right. Nearly one thousand emails sent to Walker on his staff's secret email network during work hours. Walker's days of culpable deniability are long gone.
American Bridge Launches BridgeGateTapes.com
Twenty-six hours of audio tapes of emergency worker dispatch calls from the four day span of BridgeGate were released at 8:30 AM today by the police department of Fort Lee, New Jersey. American Bridge was first in line to receive the tapes, and has posted them on our new website: BridgeGateTapes.com. The audio from these tapes may provide a window into the burden local law enforcement and emergency response workers shouldered while Christie's administration sought to penalize a political foe of the Governor. Christie has repeatedly claimed he knew nothing of the lane closures while they were happening, yet his public statements about this timeline have been inconsistent and imprecise, and official investigations continue into what he knew about this scandal and when.
The Big Three Questions for Scott Walker
Scott Walker on Monday called it a "slippery slope" to answer specifics about the more than 27,000 pages of emails from the "John Doe" scandal released last week because as he claims, "once you start on one thing, then there's hundreds of questions on each of those." Then on Tuesday, when he finally took questions from Wisconsin reporters, Walker continued to dodge the key question surrounding this scandal: did he know about the secret email network his staff used to conduct campaign business on government time? The evidence from the 27,000 pages of emails released last week makes a compelling case that Walker must have known. Given the volume of emails he received and responded to on it, and his directive to staff to stop using the laptops the morning before a search warrant was executed, it's nearly impossible for Walker's previous claims of ignorance to hold water. While Walker continues to deliver evasive responses to questions about his involvement in the John Doe scandal, three big questions remain unanswered: 1. Did Scott Walker know his government staff was breaking Wisconsin law by using a secret email network to conduct campaign business on government time? 2. How can Walker claim he didn't know about the secret email network when he exchanged numerous emails with then deputy chief of staff Kelly Rindfleisch’s "secret" email account during work hours? 3. Did Walker deliberately use his campaign email account to bypass public records laws, or were his campaign emails discussing county work made available to Milwaukee County’s public records officer? -Brad Woodhouse President, American Bridge 21st Century
Take the Quiz: Walker or Christie?
When Republicans bragged about their governors taking the lead for the party, the growing parallel scandals surrounding Chris Christie and Scott Walker probably weren't what they had in mind. Take American Bridge's new quiz and see just how hard it's getting to tell these two scandals apart - WalkerOrChristie.com
"Old News," Governor Walker? You wish.
Statement From American Bridge President Brad Woodhouse:
"Scott Walker says the revelations this week from the John Doe investigation are old news. Nothing could be further from the truth. "It's not old news that Scott Walker's most trusted and seniors aides traded in gross, anti-women, anti-gay, anti-Semitic, racist emails. It's not old news that Scott Walker ordered an employee fired for no other reason than she had been an underwear model. And it wasn't old news that Scott Walker ordered daily coordination between his campaign and the County Executive's office, that he knew about the secret and illegal email system used there on his behalf, or that he ordered it shutdown once the crap was getting ready to hit the fan. No, none of this was old news. "What has gotten old is Scott Walker's refusal to answer questions, his refusal to come clean with the public and his insistence on putting his personal ambition over the interests of his constituents. Another thing certainly is showing some age - his prospects for reelection and his hopes for higher office."
Walker's Front Page Troubles
It may not have happened in the NYC media market but a quick perusal of the news in WI this morning shows that the reporters on the ground who know Walker best think his knowledge of illegal staff email use is a big, and front page, story. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (that endorsed Walker) sums it up best:
"Throughout the secret investigation, as the Journal Sentinel reported, Walker maintained that he had zero tolerance for government employees doing campaign work while on the taxpayer clock. But the records detail almost daily interactions between his top county and campaign staffers...The longer he dodges questions, the more he undercuts his reputation as a straight-shooter. There are questions that need answering that only the governor can answer. The people of Wisconsin deserve those answers."Wisconsin State Journal - FRONT PAGE - Emails show how Scott Walker blurred lines between campaign and county business Appleton Post Crescent - FRONT PAGE - Emails reveal mix of campaign, county time Oshkosh Northwestern - FRONT PAGE - Probe ties Walker to private wireless system Milwaukee Journal Sentinel - FRONT PAGE - [American Bridge] pours over emails as it targets Walker Fond du Lac Reporter - FRONT PAGE - Democrats compare Walker to Christie Janesville Gazette - FRONT PAGE - Democrats compare Walker to Christie Herald Times Reporter - FRONT PAGE - Democrats compare Walker inquiry to NJ Governor
Announcing: JohnDoeWalker.com
In advance of new emails being released today in the "John Doe" investigation into Scott Walker's time as Milwaukee County Executive (where six Walker allies were convicted in various schemes), American Bridge has launched a new website on the investigation - JohnDoeWalker.com. Walker is the latest in a line of Republican governors to see his record marred by scandal, and the parallels between Walker's John Doe investigation and Chris Christie's Bridgegate run deep. Walker has claimed ignorance of his staff's corrupt actions, but countless questions remain. American Bridge will be taking a close look at the emails to see if they support Walker's claims, and sharing our findings on JohnDoeWalker.com today and the days ahead.
Another Republican Governor Under Investigation
To: Interested Parties From: Brad Woodhouse, President of American Bridge 21st Century Date: February 18, 2014 Re: New Information on Scott Walker’s FIRST John Doe Investigation Here we go again. A Republican governor under investigation. Again. New emails and documents released. Again. This time, it’s embattled Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker and the FIRST John Doe investigation into his tenure as Milwaukee County Executive. On Wednesday, new documents resulting from the John Doe investigation into Walker’s Milwaukee County Executive administration will be released. That investigation resulted in the convictions of six individuals with close ties to Walker, including two of his former deputy chiefs of staff. The investigation began when $11,000 in funds for a veterans’ charity supervised by the administration went missing. As the investigation continued, prosecutors stumbled upon additional staff misdeeds. Using a “secret email system” in his official office, Walker’s government staff conducted campaign work and fundraised for him while on taxpayer time. The investigation also brought to light a campaign finance reimbursement scheme and even a lurid attempt by a Walker ally to sexually solicit a seventeen-year-old. The investigation closed with no criminal charges filed against Walker, yet he still paid thousands in legal defense fees related to the investigation. Now, mere months after the first three-year long investigation was closed, there is a second John Doe investigation related to spending and coordination of outside groups in Walker’s 2011 recall election. The emails being released tomorrow are those of Kelly Rindfleisch, a former Walker Deputy Chief of Staff who pled guilty to misconduct for fundraising and campaigning for Walker while working on taxpayer time. The emails are from her private account, which she accessed using the so-called “secret email system.” While Walker has claimed he was unaware of his staff’s corrupt actions, countless questions remain. Keep reading for a few things to look for in the new emails tomorrow...
TPM: "GA GOPers Meet Unemployment Debate Question With Awkward Pause (VIDEO)"
Via TPM:
When a moderator for a recent Georgia Republican primary debate asked candidates by a show of hands whether they would vote to extend benefits for the thousands of American workers who have been stuck with long-term unemployment, the question was met with an awkward pause. At the Mayor's Day Senate Forum in Atlanta earlier in the week, none of the six candidates raised their hands in favor of extending benefits, but when the opposite question was asked -- who would vote against such a proposal -- all six candidates raised their hands. Rep. Paul Broun's (R-GA) arm shot up the fastest. The candidates' reaction could indicate that the extension of unemployment benefits could become an issue in Republican primaries.