Taxpayers Shouldn’t Pay $30,000 for Rep. Kooyenga Crime
Kooyenga should reimburse Wisconsinites for the money we paid to settle his lawsuit for theft
Dale Kooyenga
MADISON — Today, the Democratic Party of Wisconsin is calling on Rep. Dale Kooyenga to reimburse Wisconsin taxpayers for the $30,000 we were forced to pay on his behalf to settle the lawsuit Kooyenga incurred after he stole personal property in the Capitol.
“On Kooyenga’s campaign website, he talks about advancing personal responsibility and describes himself as a fiscal conservative,” said Melanie Conklin, Democratic Party of Wisconsin spokesperson. “However, if he actually believes in personal and fiscal responsibility, Kooyenga will repay Wisconsin taxpayers who should not be forced to pay $30,000 for his illegal behavior.”
Kooyenga’s theft came to light in May of 2017, when a protest sign went missing from the Capitol rotunda. When it’s owner complained, security footage revealed Kooyenga, the chair of the “Certified Public Accountants” caucus had stolen the sign. Capitol police searched his office and recovered the sign, which Kooyenga said he removed because he was offended by its content despite claiming to believe in freedom of speech.
Shortly thereafter, Kooyenga falsified the details of the incident to the press, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
“When the incident became public last summer, Kooyenga initially told The Associated Press the sign said “damn all Republicans” and called multiple Republicans gropers, but the sign did not say those things.”
“The First Amendment is something every American, especially our elected officials, should uphold. It makes no expectation for whether or not Wisconsin Republicans are offended by the message,” concluded Conklin. “Kooyenga’s constituents deserve better than a hypocrite who would rather take their hard-earned tax dollars than take real responsibility for the crime he committed.”
NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.
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OMG. Are you all really CHEESEHEADS? Why in the world should taxpayers pay for theft defense for some sleeze-ball politician they were stupid enough to elect> Wake up Wisconsin. Pull the plug on the swamp.
A great example of a modern politician that picks and chooses when the laws matter. He’s a disgrace.
And if someone did this to a sign he made we’d have to listen to endless rants about leftists stomping on his free speech rights, etc…
I’m calling on the filer of this lawsuit to donate the amount remaining after legal fees are deducted, to the non-political charity of their choice. If they truly did file it ‘on principle,’ I wouldn’t think they should have any problem with that. That would be a great outcome for all involved.
Dale Kooyenga should have called the capitol police to deal with the sign that the poster had an authorized P E R M I T to post in the capitol.
-The settlement is the cost of Dale Kooyenga’s B L U N D E R . The state seems to be paying regularly for legislator mis-deeds due to civil suits.
No doubt this legislator is guilty of violating what he claims to represent. He should come clean and pay his own bill for his own stupidity. This goes for either party that does something so stupid. And no, WMC or AFP should not pay the expense either.
The Journal Sentinel story leaves out a LOT.
https://wcmcoop.com/2017/07/24/gop-rep-had-brush-with-law-years-ago-kooyenga-sign-theft-questions-remain/