Air Walker, Frequent Flyer

MADISON, Wis. — Gov. Walker has ditched the brown bag and four-door Saturn featured in his 2010 campaign ads for state taxpayer funded airplane travel, according to a report this week in the Shepherd Express. The paper’s review of Gov. Walker’s travel records found that between January and July 2013 Walker used state planes to fly between his hometown of Wauwatosa and neighboring Milwaukee to Madison 44 times.

One Wisconsin Now Executive Director Scot Ross commented, “Gov. Walker isn’t reserving air travel just for his ever increasing cross country cash grabs, he’s letting state taxpayers foot the bill to regularly fly him the 73 miles from his home to the State Capitol.”

In addition to the shocking number of “commuter” flights in the first half of 2013, Walker racked up over $183,000 in taxpayer funded air travel over the same time. And, according to the report, Walker isn’t the only one choosing to commute by air, aides made the Milwaukee to Madison run 14 times sans Governor.

Ross noted that these costs are only the cost of his in-state air travel and do not reflect other costs to subsidize Gov. Walker’s political agenda such as the state security personnel that travel with him, even on his out-of-state fundraising jaunts.

He concluded, “It looks like Gov. Walker has tired of the new SUV he had taxpayers spring for when he first took office and now fancies himself one of the jet-set he’s larding with tax breaks and continuously shaking down for campaign cash.”