Scott Walker Called Out For A Lie
Felske, who was the real Wisconsin Teacher of the Year
[su_right_ad]Brian Williams gets suspended for this kind of thing, and Scott Walker becomes a presidential contender.
Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker jumped to the front of the unimpressive GOP 2016 presidential pack thanks in large part to rave reviews for his speech at the conservative Iowa Freedom Summit late last month. (The Washington Post charts the impact of the speech here.)
But it turns out one of its most powerful moments was a lie.
Walker told the story of Megan Sampson, whom he said was “the [2010] Outstanding Teacher of the Year in my state.” He claimed Sampson was laid off that same year by Milwaukee Public Schools because of union seniority rules, which were abolished by Act 10, the 2011 legislation that dismantled protections for public employees.
In fact, Sampson was not the Outstanding Teacher of the Year, not even one of them. An actual 2010 Wisconsin Teacher of the Year, Claudia Klein Felske, who won the high school award, laid out the extent of Walker’s fib in an open letter to Walker posted on the Marquette Educator site Monday. There were also awards given for middle school, elementary school and special services teachers of the year, she explained, but Sampson was not among them.
[su_thin_right_skyscraper_ad]It turns out the award Megan Sampson received was the “Nancy Hoefs Memorial Award,” given to “an outstanding first year teacher of language arts” by a small Wisconsin English teachers association.
It’s true that Sampson was sent a layoff notice due to state budget cuts that year, and seniority was one factor, but she was recalled to her post that same summer. She declined the job, and went to teach in the suburbs.
And while Walker was boasting that his 2011 rollback of public workers’ rights made layoffs of younger teachers like Sampson impossible, in fact Act 10 doesn’t even prevent the use of seniority in layoffs.
It turns out that this was not Felske’s first run-in with Walker.
Felske closes her letter by remembering their freshman orientation at Marquette University. “I graduated from Marquette and later became Wisconsin High School Teacher of the Year. You never graduated, and you became the Governor of the State of Wisconsin bent on dismantling public education. Ironic, isn’t it? Situational irony at its best. I’d laugh if its ramifications weren’t so utterly destructive for the state of Wisconsin.”
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John Tarter February 12th, 2015 at 10:33 am
Let’s not talk about presidential contenders, (or sitting presidents for that matter) lying shall we?
Anomaly 100 February 12th, 2015 at 10:45 am
Troll ^.
Mike February 12th, 2015 at 11:29 am
And not even a good one at that.
Anomaly 100 February 12th, 2015 at 11:31 am
I admire the good ones. But this guy sucks at it.
Suzanne McFly February 12th, 2015 at 7:39 pm
A “good” troll at least figures out what they are for/against on a specific issue before they open their pie hole.
shindigg February 12th, 2015 at 10:49 am
When republicons lie, troops and other innocents die! That’s what is important, not some politician’s personal anecdote that gets embellished or exaggerated….Who cares? There is not ONE politician from either side of the aisle who doesn’t do that….
That isn’t the same as like lying to invade Iraq in 2003 for the purposes of looting the place for your cronies’ monetary gain….That’s a big difference than some politician’s personal anecdote that gets exaggerated…..HUGE difference!
William February 12th, 2015 at 10:52 am
Hey Tater. When and IF you right wing clowns are able to make some sort of accusation actually stick, you’ll be sure to let us know. Until that time you’re just a bunch of losers squandering millions upon millions investigating non scandals because you’re still p!ssed about the black guy in the White House.
arc99 February 12th, 2015 at 10:59 am
I say that we not talk about the paranoid delusional fiction accepted as absolute gospel truth by low information right wingers and instead talk about what actually happens in the world of reality, such as Gov. Walker’s documented falsehood.
wpadon February 12th, 2015 at 11:22 am
At least this President did not allow his Saudi Arabian friends to hijack commercial airplanes and fly them into buildings.
tiredoftea February 12th, 2015 at 4:08 pm
Yeah, probably a good idea. You sure don’t want to spend the rest of your little life defending W, the war criminal, Mittster and his job fabrications, or any of the other klowns you adore.
Boehner-Monkey February 12th, 2015 at 11:17 am
Yay! WTG, Suzanne 🙂
Suzanne McFly February 12th, 2015 at 7:36 pm
Thank you 🙂
Boehner-Monkey February 12th, 2015 at 7:41 pm
yw 🙂
William February 12th, 2015 at 11:23 am
If this keeps up the clown car will be empty.
tiredoftea February 12th, 2015 at 4:12 pm
It’s more like they will need another at the rate they keep popping up.
Mike February 12th, 2015 at 11:26 am
I love an early election run, it gives the right an extra 3 or 4 feet of rope to hang themselves with. Carry on.
Dwendt44 February 12th, 2015 at 11:53 am
Walker lied; it’s a habit with him.
Bunya February 12th, 2015 at 1:31 pm
This is nothing new. If Scott Walker’s lips are moving, he’s lying.
… and Brian Williams, who holds no political office, has his head on the chopping block. Yes, the fate of the free world is in peril because a newscaster told a “I caught a fish this big” story.
tiredoftea February 12th, 2015 at 4:09 pm
Good work, Suzanne!! I’ll bet Marty is awfully proud!
Suzanne McFly February 12th, 2015 at 7:35 pm
Thank you Tea 🙂
tiredoftea February 12th, 2015 at 8:37 pm
I’m proud of you! How much help did you get from your doggies?
Suzanne McFly February 13th, 2015 at 6:55 am
Awww, you caught me, they pretty much did the whole thing themselves. They are pretty smart, I think they read my textbooks when I am at work.
Candide Thirtythree February 12th, 2015 at 10:12 pm
Since everything he says is a lie it is not very remarkable that he has gotten called out for it once.
Bradley Forward February 13th, 2015 at 7:24 am
Republicans = Lies.