Follow the arrows to land at the fake IRS scandal perpetrated by the Republican Party in an effort to pre-emptively protect their dark money, courtesy of tax exempt “social welfare” nonprofits.
Fresh on the heels of the last John Doe investigation into Gov. Scott Walker’s administration, which resulted in convictions for three former Walker aides — an appointee and a major campaign donor, comes the revelation of yet another probe surrounding the Wisconsin Republican Governor. This one centers around an anonymous campaign that is most likely Walker’s recall campaign “Friends of Scott Walker”.
According to newly-unsealed court documents, it appears that Scott Walker’s recall campaign is the focus of the “illegal campaign coordination between (name redacted), a campaign committee, and certain special interest groups.”
Daniel Bice at the Journal Sentinel revealed why it’s looking like it’s Walker’s recall campaign under investigation:
From the outset, the probe focused on possible “illegal campaign coordination between (name redacted), a campaign committee, and certain special interest groups,” according to a filing signed by the five district attorneys in the case.
The campaign committee under the microscope?
Almost certainly it’s the Friends of Scott Walker, the governor’s campaign committee.
“Good guess,” said one source familiar with the probe. “That’s it.”
Several others, however, were reluctant to identify the governor’s campaign, noting the secrecy order remains in place. A John Doe probe is similar to a grand jury in that it allows prosecutors to collect evidence and gather testimony in secret.
In an earlier Journal Sentinel article by Patrick Marley, Jason Stein and Daniel Bice, it was pointed out that Walker’s campaign also paid $86,000 to defense lawyers at a legal firm one would hire if they were being probed.
Of the five suspects, we have tax exempt 501©4 “social welfare” nonprofit the Wisconsin Club for Growth, which outed itself as one of the groups under investigation.
Source Watch details, “Wisconsin Club for Growth (WCFG) is a state arm of the national Club for Growth, and one of the top political spenders in Wisconsin. WCFG spent $9.1 million during the Wisconsin recall elections, and has reportedly received a subpoena in a John Doe probe into possible campaign finance violations during those races.”
Naturally the Kochs are involved because wherever you see Governor Walker, a Koch brother is not far behind:
WCFG’s Board of Directors includes Eric O’Keefe, a right-wing political operative with deep ties to the Koch brothers, and who helped form groups including the Franklin Center for Government and Public Integrity and American Majority. WCFG is led by RJ Johnson, a close Walker ally and advisor.
Brendan Fischer PR Watch detailed the other groups:
The special interest groups under investigation include Wisconsin Club for Growth, which is led by a top Walker advisor and friend, R.J. Johnson, and which spent at least $9.1 million on “issue ads” supporting Walker and legislative Republicans during the 2011 and 2012 recall elections. Another group is Citizens for a Strong America, which was entirely funded by Wisconsin Club for Growth in 2011 and 2012 and acted as a conduit for funding other groups that spent on election issue ads; CSA’s president is John Connors, who previously worked for David Koch’s Americans for Prosperity and is part of the leadership at the Franklin Center for Government & Public Integrity (publishers of Watchdog.org and Wisconsin Reporter). Other groups reportedly receiving subpoenas include AFP, Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce, and the Republican Governors Association.
If you’re wondering why so many probes surround Governor Scott Walker, it’s not just political opponents getting revenge. Fischer pointed out, “The new court documents undermine those portrayals. The documents show that while the probe started in Milwaukee, it quickly spread to four other counties and is now led by Republican and Democratic prosecutors. ”
And remember, Scott Walker is the guy who left college after being busted for illegally campaigning in an election. Then his Milwaukee county administration was investigated which led to crossover to campaigning and his current administration… And now, it appears his recall campaign is being probed.
Scott Walker is being talked about as high on the GOP 2016 presidential list. He was ranked as number one in some lists, as previous Republican front runner Chris Christie faces his own investigations over corruption. From the looks of it, Walker has the ethical values to be a perfect Republican president, which means he would face rather huge obstacles to getting elected as President.
Beyond Governor Scott Walker’s slobbering submission to the Koch brothers, what is going on here is an example of why the Republicans made a big deal out of a fake IRS scandal. They ginned up that scandal to tire the public of the subject, because the truth is that they are abusing the Citizens United ruling. Scott Walker’s campaign’s intimate ties with Club for Growth are the perfect example of how they are doing this.
Sarah has been credentialed to cover President Barack Obama, then VP Joe Biden, 2016 Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, and exclusively interviewed Speaker Nancy Pelosi multiple times and exclusively covered her first home appearance after the first impeachment of then President Donald Trump.
Sarah is two-time Telly award winning video producer and a member of the Society of Professional Journalists.
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