Conservative groups in Wisconsin really got all $7.8 million of their money’s worth with today’s ruling in the Scott Walker probe. All four of the Wisconsin Supreme Court justices who voted in favor of Walker, thereby ending the John Doe investigation into Walker’s recall campaign, received millions of dollars from Koch brothers-connected groups that were also being investigated. Wisconsin Club for Growth donated $2.76 million and Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce spent $5.56 million to buy favor, culminating in today’s vote. The final vote was 4-2.

Both John Doe investigations threaten to wreak havoc on Walker’s campaign — John Doe 1 resulted in six convictions over wrongdoing in Walker’s Milwaukee County Executive office and John Doe 2 was mired in shady backroom deals and potential illegal coordination. The bipartisan prosecutors even asked for the four bought-and-paid-for judges to recuse themselves, but none did. For more from American Bridge on Walker’s investigations, click here.

Walker has already had plenty of headaches and unforced errors in the turbulent roll-out of his ill-advised, four-day-old campaign. Today’s ruling shows that no matter how damning the evidence, once the pocketbooks open up, there will always be “liberty and justice” for Koch allies.

Background:

Wisconsin State Supreme Court Justices Were Supported By Koch Connected Conservative Groups

David Prosser

Wisconsin Club For Growth And WMC Spent To Elect Prosser

2011: Citizens For A Strong America Spent An Estimated $985,000 To Help Elect Prosser. According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, “The club’s spending helped the four, but the group was by no means the only one spending on the races. Some of those contests cost nearly $6 million when accounting for spending by all candidates and outside groups. In addition, the club was the sole funder of Citizens for a Strong America in 2011, and that group spent an estimated $985,000 that year to help Prosser. Both the club and Citizens for a Strong America were subpoenaed as part of the investigation, according to The Wall Street Journal.” [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 4/28/14]

2011: Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce Spent An Estimated $1.1 Million Supporting David Prosser. According to the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, “Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce Updated: January 16, 2014 Estimated Spending: $1.1 millon […] About two weeks before the April 5 spring elections, the group sent its members a fundraising letter urging wealthy business interests to contribute generously to its ad campaign to oppose Supreme Court candidate JoAnne Kloppenburg’s so-called ‘radical agenda.’ Kloppenburg, an assistant attorney general at the time, was running against incumbent Justice David Prosser for a 10-year term on the high court. At the same time, the group also sponsored a 30-second television ad – via WisPolitics.com – supporting Prosser. It said more than 60 sheriffs and district attorneys praise Prosser’s work as a justice. A second ad released about a week before the spring election used audio clips of Kloppenburg to accuse her of not being tough on crime.” [Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, 1/16/14]

Wisconsin Club For Growth Spent Estimated $520,000 On Electing Prosser in 2011. Accoding to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, “The Wisconsin Club for Growth is estimated to have spent $400,000 for Ziegler in 2007; $507,000 for Gableman in 2008; $520,000 for Prosser in 2011; and $350,000 for Roggensack in 2013.” [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 7/16/15]

Walker And Prosser Attended The Same Tea Party Event

2010: Walker And Prosser Attended An Americans For Prosperity Meeting. According to the Associated Press State & Local Wire, “Republicans and conservative tea party members railed against health care reform, global warming legislation and government spending at a convention Saturday that attracted about 2,000 people. The meeting, organized by the conservative group Americans for Prosperity and dubbed an unofficial tea party convention, brought together numerous Republican officeholders, party leaders and candidates in addition to national speakers like ‘Joe the Plumber’ and Michael Reagan, the son of former President Ronald Reagan. […] A number of Republican candidates also were there, including candidate for governor Scott Walker, in addition to officially nonpartisan state Supreme Court justices Michael Gableman and David Prosser. Prosser, a former Republican state lawmaker, spoke out against changing the state’s system for electing Supreme Court justices to having them appointed.” [Associated Press State & Local Wire, 3/13/10]

Prosser Said He Would Be A “Complement” To Walker And The Republican Legislature

Prosser Said He Would Be A “Common Sense Complement” To Walker’s Administration. According to PolitiFact, “‘Now Prosser has promised to act as a complement to Walker.’ The ad cites a news release issued by Prosser’s campaign on Dec. 8, 2010, that called Prosser a ‘common-sense complement to both the new administration and Legislature.’ The statement was attributed to Nemoir, but at PolitiFact we attribute a statement from a spokesman as coming from the candidate, who is responsible for it. The reference was to Walker, who had been elected governor in November 2010 but had not yet taken office, and Republicans who would take control of the Senate and Assembly in January 2011.” [PolitiFact, 3/31/11]

Walker Said “I Won” When Asked For His Reaction To The Re-Election Of David Prosser.According to the Chippewa Herald, “Reporters dutifully asked Gov. Scott Walker for his reaction after David Prosser was narrowly re-elected to the State Supreme Court in the spring of 2011. ‘I won,’ Walker replied. Prosser’s victory assured a conservative majority on the seven-member high court. Last month that majority changed state policy when it ruled that a change in the law requiring voters to show a photo ID to vote in Wisconsin elections is constitutional.” [Chippewa Herald, 8/11/14]

Walker Relied On Recommendations From A Former Prosser Aide In Appointing Members To A Commission That Was Investigating Prosser

Walker Relied On Recommendations From A Former Assembly Speaker Who Once Worked For Prosser In Appointing Members Of A Commission Investigating Prosser. According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, “Gov. Scott Walker relied on recommendations from a former Assembly speaker who once worked for state Supreme Court Justice David Prosser in appointing members of a commission investigating Prosser, newly released records show. Three of the five people Walker appointed to the state Judicial Commission earlier this year were presented to the governor by former Assembly Speaker John Gard, the president of Wisconsin Businesses Inc. and a former lobbyist for school voucher proponents School Choice Wisconsin.” [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 7/8/12]

Law Professors Said That Prosser Could Not Be Seen As Impartial

New York University Law Professor Stephen Gillers: Club’s Spending “Is Sufficient To Warrant Recusal In A Case In Which The Club Has Publicly Expressed A Strong Interest, On The Ground That The Judge’s Impartiality Might Reasonably Be Questioned.”According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, “Stephen Gillers, a New York University law professor who specializes in legal ethics, said under Wisconsin’s rules Prosser should step aside. The others may need to do so as well, depending on the particulars of their races and the help the Wisconsin Club for Growth provided them, he said. The club’s level of spending in Prosser’s 2011 race ‘is sufficient to warrant recusal in a case in which the club has publicly expressed a strong interest, on the ground that the judge’s impartiality might reasonably be questioned,’ Gillers wrote in an email to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. ‘It doesn’t mean the judge will be partial. The rule means to ensure public confidence. Its focus is the need for the appearance of impartiality.’” [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 4/28/14]

Indiana University Law Professor Charles Geyh: “A Reasonable Person Would Doubt (Prosser’s) Capacity To Be Fair.” According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, “Charles Geyh, an Indiana University law professor with expertise on judicial ethics, wrote in an email to the Journal Sentinel that he believed ‘a reasonable person would doubt (Prosser’s) capacity to be fair’ because of the amount of money the club spent to help him and because his election was so recent.” [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 4/28/14]

Michael Gableman

Wisconsin Club For Growth And WMC Spent To Elect Gableman

2008: Wisconsin Club For Growth Spent $507,000 For Michael Gableman. According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, “In recent years, the club has spent about $1.8 million to help the four justices who make up the conservative bloc controlling the court – $400,000 for Annette Ziegler in 2007; $507,000 for Michael Gableman in 2008; $520,000 for Prosser in 2011; and $350,000 for Patience Roggensack in 2013. Those figures are estimates tabulated by the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, which opposes undisclosed spending by groups such as the Club for Growth.” [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 4/28/14]

2008: Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce Spent An Estimated $1.76 Million Supporting Michael Gableman. According to the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, “Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce Supported: Gableman Estimated Spending: $1,760,000 As the state’s largest business organization, Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce is one of the most influential groups at the State Capitol. It was one of the first organizations to use negative advertising and other outside electioneering activities to sway elections starting in 1996. And like other phony issue ad groups, WMC refuses to disclose how much it raises and spends on these activities. WMC backed Burnett County Circuit Judge Michael Gableman in his effort to unseat Justice Louis Butler in the 2008 Supreme Court race April 1.” [Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, 1/30/09]

Gableman Received Free Legal Services From The Law Firm That Represented Walker In The Collective Bargaining Case

Gableman Did Not Pay For Legal Work That Michael Best & Friedrich Attorney Eric Mcleod Performed As Gableman Fought An Ethics Charge. According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, “Michael Best & Friedrich last week disclosed Gableman did not pay for legal work that attorney Eric McLeod performed from July 2008 to July 2010 as Gableman fought an ethics charge. They had a deal that the firm would get paid only if Gableman prevailed in the ethics case and was able to persuade the state to pay his attorney fees – an arrangement other attorneys have called highly unusual. The Supreme Court split 3-3 last year on the ethics charge. That meant Gableman was not found to have violated the judicial ethics code. But because he did not win, he was prevented from asking for legal fees from the state.” [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 12/23/11]

Attorney Who Gave Free Legal Service To Michael Gableman Represented The Walker Administration In The Collective Bargaining Case, In Which Gableman Cast The Deciding Vote In Favor Of The Administration. According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, “Meanwhile, the Dane County district attorney said he is considering asking the high court to reopen a case over collective bargaining legislation without Gableman, because the attorney who provided the free work represented the administration in the case. Gableman cast the deciding vote in the June ruling, which said legislators had not violated the open meetings law and that a law curbing collective bargaining could go into effect.” [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 12/23/11]

Michael Best & Friedrich Attorney Eric Mcleod Stepped Down From Walker’s Judicial Selection Commission; Walker Declined To Say Whether Mcleod Was Asked To Resign.According to Associated Press State & Local Wire, “A lawyer who provided free legal services to state Supreme Court Justice Michael Gableman has resigned from Gov. Scott Walker’s judicial selection commission. Attorney Eric McLeod informed Walker’s chief counsel of his resignation in a Dec. 22 letter, according to a report published Friday by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel ( http://bit.ly/rOqVWh). […] Walker spokesman Cullen Werwie declined to say whether McLeod was asked to resign, saying, ‘We’ll let the letter speak for itself.’” [Associated Press State & Local Wire, 12/30/11]

Gableman Did Not Recuse Himself From A Case To Reopen The Decision That Allowed Walker’s Collective Bargaining Law To Take Effect. According to The Associated Press State & Local Wire, “Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Michael Gableman said Friday he won’t recuse himself from three cases, including an attempt to reopen last year’s decision that allowed Gov. Scott Walker’s contentious collective bargaining law to take effect. Attorneys in those cases had asked Gableman to remove himself because other parties in the cases were represented by a law firm that defended Gableman against an ethics allegation without billing him.” [The Associated Press State & Local Wire, 1/21/12]

Patience Roggensack

Wisconsin Club For Growth And WMC Spent To Elect Roggensack

2013: Wisconsin Club For Growth Spent $350,000 For Patience Roggensack. According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, “In recent years, the club has spent about $1.8 million to help the four justices who make up the conservative bloc controlling the court – $400,000 for Annette Ziegler in 2007; $507,000 for Michael Gableman in 2008; $520,000 for Prosser in 2011; and $350,000 for Patience Roggensack in 2013. Those figures are estimates tabulated by the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, which opposes undisclosed spending by groups such as the Club for Growth.” [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 4/28/14]

2013: Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce Spent An Estimated $500,00 Supporting Patience Roggensack. According to the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, “WMC doled out an estimated $500,000 in the 2013 spring elections, mostly for a 30-second television ad – here via WisPolitics.com – to support incumbent Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Pat Roggensack’s reelection bid April 2 for a second, 10-year term on the state high court. The ad praised Roggensack and claimed she helped render decisions that made communities safer from crime – an issue WMC only highlights in its phony electioneering activities but seems to care little about in its lobbying activities or pro-business legislative agenda.” [Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, 5/21/13]

Walker Praised Patience Roggensack Before Her Election

Walker Praised The Work Of Patience Roggensack; Said “She Has A Clear Record Of Upholding The Law.” According to the Associated Press State & Local Wire, “Republican Gov. Scott Walker is praising the work of Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Patience Roggensack, but stopping short of saying whether he will endorse her as she seeks re-election. Walker said in an interview Wednesday with The Associated Press that it may not make sense to endorse anyone in the officially nonpartisan race for Supreme Court because they won’t carry much weight with voters. Roggensack frequently sides with the four-justice conservative majority on the court. Walker says she has a clear record of upholding the law and not making the law through court rulings.” [Associated Press State & Local Wire, 12/19/12]

Annette Ziegler

Wisconsin Club For Growth And WMC Spent To Elect Ziegler

2013: Wisconsin Club For Growth Spent $400,000 For Annette Ziegler. According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, “In recent years, the club has spent about $1.8 million to help the four justices who make up the conservative bloc controlling the court – $400,000 for Annette Ziegler in 2007; $507,000 for Michael Gableman in 2008; $520,000 for Prosser in 2011; and $350,000 for Patience Roggensack in 2013. Those figures are estimates tabulated by the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, which opposes undisclosed spending by groups such as the Club for Growth.” [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 4/28/14]

2007: Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce Spent An Estimated $2.2 Million Supporting Annette Ziegler. According to the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, “Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce Supported: Ziegler Estimated Expenditures: $2.2 million This is the state’s largest business organization and one of the most influential power brokers at the State Capitol. WMC was one of the first groups to use outside electioneering activities, like negative advertising and mailings, to influence public policy decisions and elections starting in 1996.” [Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, 10/31/07]

John Doe Special Prosecutor Requested That Judges Recuse Themselves From Case

John Doe Prosecutor Asked One Or More Judges To Recuse Themselves From John Doe Case.  According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, “Citing ethical conflict, a special prosecutor has asked one or more state Supreme Court justices to step aside from challenges to an investigation of the campaign of Gov. Scott Walker and conservative groups backing him. The justice or justices will weigh whether they can remain on the cases, which are to be argued this spring and decided by summer.” [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 2/13/15]

Justice Ann Walsh Bradley Recused Herself From John Doe Hearing Because Her Son Practiced Law With One Of The John Doe Petitioners Attorneys. According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, “Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Ann Walsh Bradley on Wednesday recused herself from hearing a request from unnamed petitioners to stop the John Doe investigation into recall campaign fundraising because their attorney practices with her son. The court released a letter from Bradley explaining her decision late Wednesday, along with a Portage man’s request to intervene in the same matter and the court’s denial of that request. The unnamed petitioners are represented by Madison attorney Dean Strang. Bradley’s son, John Bradley, practices law with Strang, but is not involved with Strang’s clients’ petition to have the high court review a ruling by the state Court of Appeals that upheld the investigation.” [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 3/19/14]

Wisconsin Manufacturers And Commerce Linked To Kochs

Wisconsin Manufacturers And Commerce Received A $200,000 Donation From The Wellspring Committee In 2008. According to tax documents, Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce received a $200,000 donation from the Wellspring Committee in 2008. [Wellspring Committee 990 documents, 2008]

• The Wellspring Committee “Was Founded… With The Help Of Conservative Donors In The Network Led By Billionaire Brothers Charles And David Koch.”According to the Daily Beast, “To fill its own coffers, JCN has increasingly relied on funding—to the tune of nearly $4 million, according to IRS documents—from another non-disclosing group, the Wellspring Committee, that’s run by [Anne]Corkery and was founded seven years ago with the help of conservative donors in the network led by billionaire brothers Charles and David Koch. Corkery’s entree to that rarefied network came via JCN supporter Arkley, an early attendee of their famed retreats. And Ann Corkery and her husband, Neil—who is JCN’s treasurer—are central figures in a cluster of other nonprofits, according to IRS documents.” [Daily Beast, 3/23/15]

• In 2008, “Koch Operatives Gave” JCN Founder Ann Corkery “The Reins To Their Fledgling Wellspring Committee, A Dark Money Conduit That Began Pumping Funds To Other Dark Money Koch-Backed Groups.” According to the Daily Beast, “[Ann] Corkery had a breakthrough year in 2008. Koch operatives gave her the reins to their fledgling Wellspring Committee, a dark money conduit that began pumping funds to other dark money Koch-backed groups like Americans for Prosperity. At the same time, Corkery served as a finance vice chair for Mitt Romney’s 2008 presidential campaign.” [Daily Beast,3/23/15]

Wisconsin Club For Growth Linked to Kochs

Koch Connected Center To Protect Patient Rights Gave $225,000 To The Wisconsin Club For Growth.  According to Express Milwaukee, “In October, two dark-money groups connected to right-wing billionaires Charles and David Koch were ordered to pay the largest campaign fine in California history for funneling undisclosed money into two ballot initiative campaigns. The organizations—the Center to Protect Patient Rights (CPPR) and Americans for Responsible Leadership—will pay a $1 million fine and send $15 million to California’s general fund for failing to disclose their contributions to the 2012 ballot initiatives. […]The IRS documents of the Phoenix-based, Koch-connected CPPR show that it donated $225,000 to the Wisconsin Club for Growth, one of the major opponents of the recalls of Walker and a handful of Republican state senators.” [Express Milwaukee, 11/13/13]

The Wellspring Committee Donated $400,000 To Wisconsin Club For Growth In 2011.According to the Shepherd Express, “The Wellspring Committee: National Public Radio and the Center for Responsive Politics recently investigated this dark-money group run by Ann Corkery, which mixes conservative politics and religion. It’s funded right-wing groups such as Americans for Prosperity, the Faith and Freedom Coalition and Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce. In 2011, the group sent $400,000 to Wisconsin Club for Growth. [Shepherd Express, 11/13/13]