Corrupt, Callow and Dogmatic Is No Way to Go Through Life

Hiding in the USA

Updated - Modern Wisconsin history has never seen a governor as fearful, even phobic, as seen in Scott Walker's adamant refusal to face the Wisconsin people, or hold extended press conferences.

This explains in part Walker's penchant for secrecy and Walker's belated acknowledgement through his flack that his staff helped craft the aborted Open Records fiasco. (Opoien, The Capital Times)

"I will call on Governor Walker to do what he promised Wisconsin he would do five years ago; make Wisconsin government more transparent and accountable," said State Sen. Jon Erpenbach (D-Middleton) in a statement.

Not going to happen. Secrecy is to corruption what violence is to assault and battery. And Walker does not want the American people examining his record too closely.

The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel kept up the pressure on Walker to come clean, noting in another editorial yesterday, "Gov. Scott Walker and state legislators have scrapped — at least for now — a brazen attempt to limit access to state public records. But that by no means is an end to the issue; there are still questions that need to be answered. ... To borrow a phrase: What did Gov. Scott Walker know and when did he know it?"

Other leading Wisconsin politicos—Sen. Tammy Baldwin, Rep. Mark Pocan and Russ Feingold for example—hype their listening sessions and open, accessible offices, though no one has approached Feingold's mark of holding a listening session in all of Wisconsin's 72 counties each year of his six-year senate term.

Can you imagine Scott Walker doing that?

Walker governs in secret, by "bomb" in his own description, and at the whim of campaign donors (Isikoff, Yahoo News), prompting the well-regarded John Torinus Jr. to ask if campaigns even matter "when almost none of the major policy departures contained in the [Walker] budget were proposed" by Walker during the 2014 gubernatorial campaign.

Selling out the Wisconsin people for special interest money does not a policy wonk make.

Even Republican national politicos know Walker is in over his head, advising him to get more experience as Walker's ignorance became apparent to the national political audience this spring (Hoffman, Politico).

"Walker's diplomatic experience is limited to settling disputes with Minnesota during football season," sneered Ruben Navarrette in February (CNN). Walker "needs a better tutor on jobs and immigration," scolded the Wall Street Journal in April.

C'mon Scott, corrupt, callow and dogmatic is no way to go through life, kid.

Of course, neither is neo-Confederate, racist and misogynistic, but Scott Walker has trouble comprehending why in the radicalized Republican presidential primary.

Factor in petty and vindictive, with a self-proclaimed warrant from God, and even Republicans should worry what Walker would wrought onto the nation.