Darling, Republicans, Serve Milwaukee Cops A Late-Night Snack Of Budget Pork

Honest to God, I wonder how these people sleep at night.

Isn't it hard to get comfortable with two faces to put on a pillow?

After pledging no more late-night budgeting shenanigans, and shedding torrents of crocodile tears over the plight of the poor, burdened taxpayer, the co-chairs of the Joint Finance Committee - - I'm looking at you, Republican fiscal phonies Alberta ("How Many Reasons Do You Need To Recall Me") Darling and Robin Vos - - slipped into the budget an amendment at closing time that forces Milwaukee taxpayers only to continue paying police officers removed by the chief for misconduct.

The amendment has no statewide fiscal impact and has no place in the budget. It's pure, special-interest meddling aimed at one city and its taxpayers.

This unfair sop to the Milwaukee Police Association had been awarded by the Legislature years ago, and corrected only two or so years ago -- but now it's back in the sleaziest of procedures.

Remember when Scott Walker himself promised that there would be an end to budgeting slime?

If this sticking-it-again-to-Milwaukee ripoff isn't removed on the floor of one body or the other, then Walker should veto it.

In case you forget what Walker said on his campaign website about these matters, I will reprint it below from a posting of mine just last week.

In fact I've even proposed - in terms of the budget process, but it would apply to anything - other things that would help transparency," he said. "I don't think there should be any votes in closed caucus, on any issue. If a county board or school board can't discuss a budget in private, then the state Legislature certainly should not. There should not be any closed caucuses on the budget."

"And I would make it, by statute, that the Legislature can't vote on anything after 10 at night or before 9 in the morning," Walker said. "They did things this last (budget) at 2 and 3 o'clock in the morning. As I tell my staff, nothing good happens after midnight. But they did it on purpose because not only do they not want average persons to know, they don't want reporters with deadlines to know - after 10 you miss the nightly TV news and you're not in print for the daily newspapers. They push it back on a Saturday, hoping people won't read about things like that"