WI GOP whines that REPORTS of their harassment of a professor are "concerted effort to intimidate"

[highplainsdem]

Slate's Dave Weigel blogged about this latest development in the story.

This is originally about the WI GOP demanding to see the emails of a University of Wisconsin professor after he dared to blog about ALEC, the American Legislative Exchange Council. There are a couple of other topics about this at DU, but the message they sent Weigel deserves its own topic, I think.

This is Weigel's blog that provoked their complaint:

Wisconsin GOP Wants E-Mails Sent by Professor Who Wrote Critical Blog Post
http://www.slate.com/BLOGS/blogs/weigel/archive/2011/03/25/wisconsin-home-of-political-threats-and-false-flag-operations.aspx

This is Professor Cronon's post about the GOP demand to see his emails

http://scholarcitizen.williamcronon.net/2011/03/24/open-records-attack-on-academic-freedom/

two days after this blog post about ALEC:

http://scholarcitizen.williamcronon.net/2011/03/15/alec/


Here's what Weigel wrote today:

http://www.slate.com/BLOGS/blogs/weigel/archive/2011/03/25/wisconsin-gop-blasts-concerted-effort-to-intimidate-over-request-for-professor-s-e-mails.aspx

Wisconsin GOP Blasts "Concerted Effort to Intimidate" Over Request for Professor's E-mails
Posted Friday, March 25, 2011 12:43 PM | By David Weigel

The Wisconsin GOP responds to today's questions about the request for UW Prof. William Cronon's e-mail with a statement from party executive director Mark Jefferson. The statement is in blockquotes; I break it up to annotate.

-snipping the first paragraph from the GOP statement and Weigel's comment on it-

I have never seen such a concerted effort to intimidate someone from lawfully seeking information about their government.

Further, it is chilling to see that so many members of the media would take up the cause of a professor who seeks to quash a lawful open records request. Taxpayers have a right to accountable government and a right to know if public officials are conducting themselves in an ethical manner. The Left is far more aggressive in this state than the Right in its use of open records requests, yet these rights do extend beyond the liberal left and members of the media.

-snip-

Finally, I find it appalling that Professor Cronon seems to have plenty of time to round up reporters from around the nation to push the Republican Party of Wisconsin into explaining its motives behind a lawful open records request, but has apparently not found time to provide any of the requested information.

-snip-

Awww, poor little Wisconsin GOP. Maybe they can try to sic the State Patrol on Weigel, if he's ever in Wisconsin. Or lock him out of the capitol. Or throw themselves on the ground and scream to complete this childish tantrum. (And then maybe the psychiatric hold they clearly need can be arranged.)

God forbid any in the media notice their attempt to harass the professor.

I couldn't quote Weigel's comments here, with the four-paragraph limit, since I wanted to quote those three paragraphs of the GOP whine. But what he said in response is amusing and well worth reading.

[Brickbat]

1. These people just get better and better. Pointing and laughing is sometimes just as powerful as

policy, and I suggest we use more of it.

[msongs]

2. seems like emails on his taxpayer job provided account would not neccesarily be privileged nt

[alcibiades_mystery]

4. He explains in great detail why they might be

The most compelling reason is that releasing the information in a blanket manner may violate FERPA in a number of instances, if he is discussing grades and other private information with students. Similarly, if Cronon sits doctoral committees and similar bodies that discuss student work in a way that might be protected by FERPA (all of which activities are included in the primary purposes for which a professor at a state university should be using email), disclosure of those emails would be illegal under federal law.

The other reason covers communications not necessarily legally protected, but which the law might nevertheless view as having value to be protected: communications between boards of professional organizations, between peer reviewers and editors of journals, and between researchers may all include an expectation of confidentiality that would experience a massive chilling effect under such disclosure. The notion that one should not conduct business related to such matters on one's official university (i.e., state) email borders on the ludicrous, especially where some of these activities are included in criteria for tenure and promotion by university guidelines (such as contribution to the profession, which could describe participation on boards of professional organizations as well as peer review and editorial activity of academic journal submissions).

It's not at all cut-and-dried, and I can see courts deciding that the principle of blind peer review, conducted on university (i.e., state) email serves a function that should not be chilled by such blanket and seemingly politically motivated open records requests. The FERPA law seems like a no brainer, even of we don't get into that level of judicial decision-making. State open records laws cannot trump standing federal privacy laws.

[sybylla]

20. There was a ruling in Wisconsin not long ago that decided this for public school teachers

It said that though public school teachers are indeed government employees, they do have the right to use their school e-mail for personal purposes.

It stemmed from a lawsuit challenging a FOIA request for school e-mails, but I can't site it at the moment.

It may be that that the ruling in that suit would also apply here.

[sybylla]

22. I found the court case that may allow him to keep private e-mails private

http://www.ruderware.com/resourcecenter/la/WISupremeCourtRulingRePersonalEmails-RuderWare.htm

In Schill v. Wisconsin Rapids School District, 2010 WI 86, the Wisconsin Supreme Court found in a 5-2 decision that the contents of purely personal e-mails of teachers are not subject to production through the Wisconsin Public Records Law.

<snip>

In conclusion, the lead opinion holds that if the content of an e-mail is solely personal, it is not a record under the Public Records Law and the e-mail cannot be released. This decision has many things that should concern public employers and their employees. First, four of the seven justices found that purely personal e-mails are “records” and, therefore, are subject to the balancing test. While applied in a way that prevented disclosure in this case, the balancing test is inherently subjective and may be applied unevenly in the future. Second, all justices acknowledged the fact that there are certain circumstances when purely private e-mails must be produced. For example, if an e-mail is used in the disciplinary process or if an e-mail contains both work-related and personal information, the employer must redact the purely personal information. Third, as Justice Gableman notes, if there is a dispute about whether an e-mail contains purely private information, the e-mails can be reviewed by the court in camera. Thus, there is a heavy burden on employers to sift through e-mail to determine whether they must be produced to the public.

[madrchsod]

5. i agree, he may have no protection.

[Raksha]

3. Now THAT really takes chutzpah!

Re WI GOP whines that REPORTS of their harassment of a professor are "concerted effort to intimidate"

Bullying has become a conditioned reflex with Repukes. What they don't realize is that they invariably give themselves away by who they choose to bully and how they go about it. And what they have just told us loud and clear is that Prof. Cronon really touched a nerve with his focus on ALEC. There is definitely something to be said for sitting back and letting your enemies destroy themselves. Not all the time, of course, but sometimes.

[highplainsdem]

29. Yes, it does. They really are bullies.

[MoDupey]

6. What?

Man am I tired of this poop!

[highplainsdem]

8. Welcome to DU, MoDupey!

And here's a :hug: (I noticed your profile says your hobby is hugs).

I'm tired of this BS from the GOP, too. I can hardly believe what they've been doing.

[MoDupey]

16. thanks!

I had taken a break from the political world for a little while and it felt pretty nice. Then Fitzwalkerstan happened. Now I can hardly look away even though most of it turns my stomach. On another note, in the small village where I live (1,000 people) I have seen some anti-walker signs being put up. Progress is being made! :D

[highplainsdem]

17. Love hearing about the anti-Walker signs!

:thumbsup:

[gratuitous]

7. Poster child for the Wisconsin GOP: Eric Cartman

But without Eric's underlying winsomeness.

[murielm99]

9. Maybe they can go squirrel hunting and leave some .22

caliber bullets around and imply that the liberals did it.

[truebrit71]

10. He's a professor right? At a University, yes? How is that "government"?

..from the rethuglican statement: "lawfully seeking information about their government."

Which branch of the government does Prof Cronon represent?

Until they have an answer to that they should be told to sit and spin...oh, and nice projection btw...fucking scumbags..

[proud2BlibKansan]

12. It's because their taxes pay his salary

And it's nuts.

[truebrit71]

14. My taxes pay for the local fuzz...do I get access to their e-mails too?

..and yes, it's completely nuts..

[alcibiades_mystery]

13. It is a state university

Technically, the open records law in Wisconsin allows requests of any state business, of which the state university is one. The professor is a state employee, and therefore subject to the open records act.

[truebrit71]

15. ..my point is the whiner specifically said 'government'..

..I know he's a state employee and falls under that umbrella, but the GOP are using the "open government" "transparent government" argument on something that isn't technically 'government'...

[zbdent]

18. "big government" is whatever they wish it to be ...

even if it's the local mayor of a small town ... if it goes against what they demand, it's "big gummint is invading your home!" (but hey, if two people of the same sex want to be happy ... it's the right of the "gummint" to keep it from happening ...)

[proud2BlibKansan]

11. The GOP is stuck in an entitled taxpayer mode

I had an argument online just yesterday with a right winger who believes that because public employees are paid with HIS tax dollars, he has the right to tell them how they can spend their paychecks.

It's just insane reasoning. Since this professor is paid with tax dollars, a tax payer has the right to read his emails? That's just insanely illogical.

[sybylla]

19. Wisconsin GOP - the gift that keeps on giving.

If they keep it up, there will never be another puke elected to public office in the next decade.

[leftynyc]

21. Pathetic whiners

That's all the WI pubs do these days - whine that people wont let them destroy things. Poor pathetic babies.:nopity:

[pacalo]

23. This is an outstanding OP. I've read each link provided & each was a fascinating read.

Professor Cronon is BRILLIANT. His theses regarding the Republican party's think tank, ALEC, & its secretive mission to change state legislation to reflect its goals must have hit the nail on the head, considering Wisconsin's GOP are demanding his e-mails. Walker's policies were actually the ideas of ALEC, which is why a number of newly-(ahem)elected Republican governors are seemingly working in unison to create havoc in their states.

Highplainsdem, the information you've provided is the best I've read in understanding what the heck went wrong in Wisconsin. Thank you. I've bookmarked each of the links so that I can read them a second time.

:thumbsup:

[Raksha]

24. I agree that Prof. Cronon is brilliant, and it's great to have him on our side.

Good idea to bookmark all the ALEC-related threads. I'm going to do that too.

[highplainsdem]

25. Thank you! And yes, Professor Cronon must've really struck a nerve, or the WI GOP

wouldn't be reacting like this.

Here's a link to the more general topic on ALEC I started on the 8th, when I finally realized who was behind all this radical-right copycat legislation:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=439x591230

[FiveGoodMen]

26. Criminals say justice is merely an attempt to stop their activities.

Pretty much the same statement.

[highplainsdem]

30. LOL. True...

[Raksha]

27. K & R, bookmarked.

[highplainsdem]

31. Thanks!

[defendandprotect]

28. kr -- back later -- !!

[highplainsdem]

34. Thanks!

[Scuba]

32. GOP whines.... Yes, that pretty much sums it up. n/t

[malaise]

33. K & R

to expose the fascists