Dems Share Blame For DNR's Enforcement Action Pullback Under Walker

The revelation that Scott Walker corporate tool Cathy Stepp has greatly curtailed enforcement of clean air and water laws and regulations is bad enough, but do not forget that in 2009, Democratic Gov. Jim Doyle vetoed a measure that would have returned the selection of the DNR Secretary to the quasi-independent Natural Resources Board.

And Democrats were unwilling to help override the veto, so the measure died and the appointment remained in the hands of the Governor.

Doyle had campaigned on a platform promising to return the Secretarial appointment to the Board - - a change engineered by Tommy Thompson to please his big business base.

A year and three months later, enter special-interest servant Cathy Stepp as DNR Secretary, and the rest is the lamentable history.

At the time of the veto, I wrote this:

And it is a slap at much of Doyle's core constituency - - environmentalists, urbanists, conservationists - - who believe that a DNR moderately removed from gubernatorial direction would function more in the public interest and less driven by special interests.

Because there are staggered terms on the Board, and Board appointees belong to the Governor, too, Walker would have eventually gained a majority and sympathetic Secretary, but Stepp would not have been in his administration since day one.

In fact, Doyle's appointees still hold a 4-3 majority on the board and should Walker win re-election next month, would not get the fourth voe until May, 2013.

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Kathleen Falk wants Stepp out now.