Vos & Co. illegally hired private lawyers w/public $$, judge says

Think of it as your bank account being hacked.

Wisconsin's GOP legislative leaders who could not be bothered to work most of the Pandemic Year 2020 while collecting full pay from taxpayers added to their abuse of the public treasury and trust by hiring illegally private attorneys in anticipation of litigation over the gerrymandering extension they are likely to soon craft and approve, a judge has ruled:

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos and Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu entered into contracts in December and January with two outside law firms to handle the redistricting process, including any future lawsuits. The contracts allowed for spending of more than $1 million in taxpayer money to the two law firms.

Dane County Circuit Judge Stephen Ehlke ruled Thursday that the contracts are void because Vos and LeMahieu were not authorized to hire the law firms. LeMahieu and Vos did not immediately return messages seeking comment.

I've noted several times on this blog - recently, here - in a posting about who has control of federal COVID19 aid - that Vos and Co. have a penchant for throwing big bucks at private law firms, along with other free feathering of their own fouled nests: 

Republicans in Wisconsin have been on a partisan power trip ever since voters removed Scott Walker from a governorship which the GOP assumed was theirs in perpetuity.

As if Walker was still safely ensconced in office with the same certainty they'd guaranteed themselves after hiring private lawyers with taxpayer dollars to craft district maps in secret that continue to give Republican legislators more seats and political power than honest mapping would have fairly awarded.... 

A reach for COVID dollars would be par for Vos's course, as he has used the Speaker's powers for personal staff expansion, repetitive private-attorney hirings, and more assorted lawyering-up by the millions of taxpayer dollars. 

Just as he has added more dollars to legislators' receipt-free meal reimbursements, making any trade of public-food-policy-for-partisan-advantage even more repulsive.

As I said with regard to Republicans now 'representing' Wisconsin in Congress: there seems to be no limit to devaluation of the honor and the work they have brought to holding their high offices. 

Details about the hefty payments which were to begin in January are here.