Yakety Sax, Yakety Yak

This morning, on Charlie Syke's Incite show, as was promised, DPW ran the commercial slamming Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker for his flip-flops and outright lies regarding the stimulus money.

Sykes led a counter charge by devoting a segment to the commercial, in which they ran the commercial again. I'm sure that the DPW is very glad for the free plug. The main points of Charlie's attack was that it was all Governor Jim Doyle's doing, that Doyle was really scared of Walker and that this was some kind of record for launching an attack that hasn't even announced their candidacy yet (he kept repeating that it was nineteen months before the election.

Not once did Sykes or his panel address the charges in the commercial, which is rather telling in themselves. Apparently they were hoping to distract their viewers from the truth of that matter.

And considering that Doyle has little to be afraid of from Walker. Doyle has already four times the amount of money that Walker has, and a recent poll from a right wing group shows that Walker, despite six years of campaigning, still seven points behind Doyle, and in a virtual tie with Mark Neumann, who hasn't done much publicly in a decade.

And as the DPW's commercial setting a record, hardly. Nor is the DPW the only ones attacking a non-announced candidate.

Via Bruce at Badger Blogger, we find that even the Chicago Tribune covered this story. They had some very interesting facts that one would never find in the local newspaper, much less the radio station owned by the same parent company.

The Trib covers some of the common knowledge that regular readers of this site already know. Things like Walker's inconsistency regarding stimulus dollars or that he has been campaigning for months:

Walker, the Milwaukee County executive, is expected to seek the Republican nomination for governor next year. Democratic Gov. Jim Doyle is widely expected to seek a third term.

Walker has spent months attacking Doyle's budget proposal and the federal stimulus package.

[...]

Walker said in January he wasn't going to seek federal stimulus money and didn't submit a list of potential projects to Doyle. In February, he wrote a column published in the Wall Street Journal that ran under the headline "Why I'm Not Lining Up for Stimulus Handouts."

But last month, Walker released a list of $130 million worth of potential stimulus projects in Milwaukee County that he said meets his criteria for accepting the money. Walker said he'll only accept the money if there is no long-term financial commitment, no required local match and no requirement for new operating or maintenance costs.

Walker said Thursday that has always been his position.

At the same time he released his list last month, Walker vetoed a county board resolution calling for aggressive pursuit of the stimulus money, calling the policy reckless and not in the best interest of taxpayers. A day later, the board overrode the veto and accused him of grandstanding as part of his expected gubernatorial run.

But then the Trib covers things that might not have been as commonly known among the public:

In a strongly worded November fundraising letter, obtained Thursday by The Associated Press, Walker said Doyle and President Barack Obama "rolled out the red carpet for a cabal of militant activist thugs" who registered voters last year.

Walker accused Doyle of negligence, resulting in an election system "more akin to Hugo Chavez's rigged polls in Venezuela than the proud Wisconsin tradition."

Walker has also criticized tax increases in Doyle's budget and called for using some of Wisconsin's share of the federal stimulus money to cut taxes. He has called for eliminating sales taxes for the rest of the year and using stimulus money to fill that hole, instead of spending it on infrastructure or programs.

That idea has roundly been discounted as nearly impossible without an act of Congress.

If Doyle championed the idea, the sales tax cut could be a reality, Walker said.

So, Walker's been attacking Doyle, who hasn't announced whether he will seek re-election, at least 24 months before the election. That's a bit different than Sykes' assertions. But then again, Sykes, like Walker, has never been a strong one for being truthful or accurate.

I also get a kick out Walker comparing Wisconsin to Venezuela. If that is the case, what would one compare Milwaukee County to? Given its dying transit system, its decaying parks, and its recent history of not being able to deliver services as required by law, due to excessive staff shortages, I'd have to guess that it would have to be someplace in outer Mongolia or something.

I also like the last line. "If Doyle championed the idea, the sales tax could be a reality."

I know that Walker dropped out of college, but does he really not know that a governor of a state does not have authority over the federal government? Shouldn't there be some kind of basic aptitude test before one is allowed to run for office? (Well, maybe not, then there wouldn't be enough politicians to go around. Then again, would that be so bad?)

Either way, Sykes is as misleading in the truth of who did what as Walker is about where he stands, or doesn't stand, regarding stimulus money. It does make one stop and wonder why either of them even hold the jobs they have now.

Cross posted at Cog Dis.