Walker Putting Former Campaign Manager on County Payroll is the Very Definition of Cronyism
Maybe some enterprising right-wing talk radio show host will take notice of County Executive Scott Walker hiring his former political campaign manager for $76,000 as a “community liason”. Many of those same talk show hosts have been decrying “cronyism” for years now. This move by Walker smacks of the worst kind of cronyism and it has no place in government.
Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker today said he hired his campaign manager to a county job as an assistant in Walker’s office.
Tim Russell, a real estate agent who most recently served as Walker’s campaign manager for his spring re-election, will be paid $75,982 a year. Russell is temporarily filling the vacant post of community liaison, but will likely shift to another job in his office soon, Walker said.
But fear not, it’s just a placeholder job according to Walker! I think a lot of people would like to be “placeholders” for that kind of money.
Apparently, bigger and better things (and paychecks) are in store for his campaign manager Tim Russell.
August 19, 2008 5:03 pm 
I live in the Washington Heights neighborhood of Milwaukee, WI with my wife Jen, our daughter Emerson, and son Carter.
; ?>/images/feed-icon-16x16.gif){kind=icon}
By Go Celtics, August 19, 2008 @ 8:33 pm
Pathetic.
There are several politically-oriented jobs in the office of an elected official. This position - created with the approval of the County Board - is no different. There are liberal elected officials at all levels across America that appoint political hacks to political positions no differently from this. I’ve seen it so spare me your protests.
You’d have no complaint about it if a liberal replacement for Walker did this. Nor should you.
Pretend you can convince me otherwise.
By Daniel Cody, August 19, 2008 @ 9:27 pm
So again, if someone else did it, that makes it OK for your guy to do it. At any rate, I vaguely recall Scott Walker campaigning as a different kind of politician who would clean up County Government?
Part of running a “clean” government is installing public servants who aren’t beholden to the person who got them the job - and in this case who got their boss the job - and will make the right decisions based on what’s best for the public they serve, not on if it will advance their bosses career.
You also seem to be confusing politically orientated jobs with politically appointed cronies as well as appointing “political hacks” vs. your campaign manager. There’s a difference, but in this case you’re just not willing to see it.
By Go Celtics, August 20, 2008 @ 5:49 am
No Dan, that’s not it at all. There’s a difference between your world, which is “yeah but look at your side” every single time an issue is brought up, and what I’m talking about, which is simple reality. And reality is that the offices of elected officials have varying numbers of politically-oriented positions that are generally filled based on how much water the applicant carried for the candidate during the election.
Walker can “clean up County government” as a “different kind of politician” and still put political hacks into political positions - as this one clearly is. It’s the actual administrative positions - department heads and the like - that make the difference. Is he appointing qualified candidates or political cronies? Is he appointing someone to run transit or hhs who has experience or did he appoint a campaign worker like Bush did with FEMA a few years back? That’s where it matters.
Democrats and liberals appoint campaign officials to political positions in their administrations or offices ALL THE TIME and there isn’t much wrong with it - the job is political, after all. You don’t put a bean-counter in a political position where spin is the name of the game and you shouldn’t put a political hack like you into a professional position (which politicians of all stripes do anyway, which is merely one reason why I despise both parties).
Do you understand the distinction now?