A Republican state senator whose private emails were gathered in a secret government probe called Tuesday for resignations — and possible criminal charges — of staff at the state Elections and Ethics Commissions.
U.S. Senate candidate and current state Sen. Leah Vukmir, R-Brookfield, called for former staff of the now-defunct Government Accountability Board to resign from their positions on the commissions.
Her call comes after a state Department of Justice report revealed a secret GAB investigation into whether some Wisconsin Republicans, including Vukmir, were illegally campaigning on state time. The investigation didn’t result in any criminal charges and the GAB has since been disbanded.
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The investigation included the collection and storage of private emails and messages.
“I would like to see people definitely lose their jobs over this,” Vukmir said at a WisPolitics event in Madison. “But if indeed there were things that were done illegally … I believe some of the things that happened, people should go to jail for this.”
The previously undisclosed GAB investigation was outlined in a state report about document leaks from another investigation: the so-called John Doe 2 probe into possible illegal coordination between Gov. Scott Walker’s campaign and outside political groups.
The judge who authorized public disclosure of the GAB investigation has since said it should have remained secret.
Vukmir also weighed in Tuesday on the GOP tax bill poised for passage in Congress, saying she believes it will spur enough economic growth to make up for its tax cuts.
An estimate from Congress’ Joint Committee on Taxation estimates the bill will add about $1.5 trillion to the federal deficit over the next 10 years.
“I believe the economic growth that is going to come from this is going to more than going to pay for itself,” Vukmir said.
Following Vukmir’s comments, the Democratic Party of Wisconsin issued a statement criticizing her support of the bill.
“It’s laughable that Vukmir thinks that’s ‘good for everybody in Wisconsin,’ but it proves just how out of touch she is with working families,” said party spokesman Brad Bainum.
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