“GAB head told former employee to tone down comments”

Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel:

The head of the state’s elections agency largely defended a former employee Tuesday for how he discussed an investigation into Gov. Scott Walker’s campaign in emails. However, Kevin Kennedy acknowledged he had talked to the employee numerous times about “toning it down.”

The state Supreme Court in July terminated the investigation into the GOP White House hopeful’s campaign, saying the probe was without basis.

In emails in 2013 and 2014, then-Government Accountability Board lawyer Shane Falk accused a special prosecutor of lying to the press by saying Walker wasn’t a target of the probe and said the state was run by billionaires and corporations because of a “bastardization of politics.” Falk wrote if the prosecutor was trying to avoid politics, he “better check Burke’s ad,” referring to Walker’s opponent, Democrat Mary Burke.

Republicans have said the exchanges are the latest sign the accountability board was biased against them.

“When you keep seeing signs of heavy partisanship, when you keep smelling the smoke, you realize there’s a fire there,” said Sen. Devin LeMahieu (R-Oostburg).

Kennedy, the accountability board’s director, said he appreciated that Falk was blunt but added he had talked to him about his tone when he worked for the agency. Falk last year left the accountability board, which runs elections and oversees campaign finance, lobbying and ethics laws.

 

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