Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Blog pranks Wisconsin governor (audio)

On a prank call that quickly spread across the Internet, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker was duped into discussing his strategy to cripple public employee unions, promising never to give in and joking that he would use a baseball bat in his office to go after political opponents.

Walker believed the caller was a conservative billionaire named David Koch, but it was actually a blogger from the online news site Buffalo Beast. The two talked for at least 20 minutes -– a conversation in which the governor described several ways to pressure Democrats to return to the Statehouse and revealed that his supporters had considered secretly planting people in pro-union protest crowds to stir up trouble.

The call also revealed Walker's cozy relationship with two billionaire brothers who have poured millions of dollars into conservative political causes, including Walker's campaign last year.

Listen to a copy of the call uploaded to YouTube:


Part 2:

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

Meaningless.

kantstanzya said...

This is typical liberal/media crap. Rush Limbaugh played the actual tape of this conversation...which would have been referred to as a "dirty trick" if the Repubs had done it.

The phoney caller was the one who said everything and suggested everything. The phoney caller was the one who talked about using a baseball bat...not the governor.

It was clear the governor was uncomfortable with some of the suggestions but didn't comment because the Koch's do own industries in Wisconsin and are importent to the state's economy. When he did initiate a statement it wasn't anything different than he has already said.

Another media/liberal attempt...similar to their attacks on Sarah Palin and the Tea Party...to destroy an opponent they think will be effective against their agenda.

Hopefully this will backfire on them just as the leap to attack in the Tuscon shootings did.

Anonymous said...

Yea!
Helps us little people see who is really in charge in Wisconsin. Not elected officials, but big buiness!
And it is blatent!!
A former elected official at the lowly city council level...and a retired teacher

Anonymous said...

The governor seemed pretty straightforward. Didn't say anything to embarrass himself or his effort

Anonymous said...

I didn't really know much about the govenor but after listening to this call I am fairly impressed. I support him 100%!

Michael Procton said...

6:23-No wonder you never rose above a city council position. You can't even spell the word blatant.

malay said...

The governor did not say anything on this call that he hasn't said in public. If anything, this shows that he is not "cozy" with Koch as he did not even recognize his voice and keeps the conversation somewhat formal. The caller is the one that makes questionable statements.

Anonymous said...

Koch, suggested "planting some troublemakers" among the people protesting the measure in Madison, the capital, and that Walker replied, in part, "we thought about that." He also shared a plan to trick the Senate Democrats by inviting them back to the capital to listen to their concerns and then use their appearance in the capital to declare a quorum and resume session, whether or not they attend. “If you heard I was going to talk to them that’s the only reason why,” he said.

David Koch, along with his brother Charles, own Koch Industries, an energy and consumer products conglomerate based in Wichita, Kan., was one of the biggest contributors to Governor Walker’s election campaign. The brothers also support the Americans for Prosperity, which has strongly backed Governor Walkers efforts to curb the powers of unions. Throughout the Capital there are numerous signs hung from the walls essentially calling Mr. Walker a puppet of the Koch brothers.

If this was Obama saying this the response would be different. Only a devil would defend this

Anonymous said...

the concept of public service unions benefits the few at the expense of the rest.......

that needs to stop.

Anonymous said...

What is disturbing but seems to be overlooked is that a billionaire who funnels money to select politicians is given such extraordinary access to the inner workings of governemt. It bothers me that they are included as if they were elected officials planning strategy including planting protesters, tricking opposition with false promises, etc. While Walker comes off as a smart and well spoken leader, the very conversation belies his integrity. This is about politics, not money or the offer should have been accepted. It also seems bizarre the call was not vetted by his staff. I would imagine a staffer's head is going to roll over this one... the ability to control message will be of paramount importance.

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