Indiana Prosecutor Suggested Scott Walker Fake Attack On Himself To Discredit Unions

INDIANAPOLIS — An Indiana prosecutor said one of his deputies resigned Thursday after admitting he sent an email to Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker suggesting the Republican fake an attack on himself to discredit the public employee unions protesting his plan to strip them of nearly all collective bargaining rights.

Johnson County Prosecutor Brad Cooper said Carlos Lam resigned in a phone call about 5 a.m. Thursday after acknowledging that he sent the Feb. 19 email to Walker suggesting "the situation in WI presents a good opportunity for what's called a 'false flag' operation."

"If you could employ an associate who pretends to be sympathetic to the unions' cause to physically attack you (or even use a firearm against you), you could discredit the public unions," Lam wrote in the email, which was obtained by The Associated Press.

Cooper said Lam initially denied sending the email and said someone had hacked into his email account. But Lam later acknowledged he had written the message, and resigned hours before the Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism reported the contents publicly Thursday.

"He wanted to come clean, I guess, and said he is the one who sent that email," Cooper told the Daily Journal newspaper in Franklin, south of Indianapolis.

A message left by the AP at a telephone listing for Lam was not immediately returned Thursday.

Lam's email was sent amid daily protests at the Wisconsin Capitol against Walker's plan to take away public employees' rights to collectively bargain for anything except wages no higher than inflation.

"We cannot have the public unions hold the taxpayer hostage with their outrageous demands," said the email, which urged Walker to "stay strong."

Lam is the second Indiana prosecutor to lose his job over volatile comments about the Wisconsin protests. Jeffrey Cox, a deputy attorney general, was fired last month after tweeting that police should use live ammunition against labor protesters.

Wisconsin Republicans eventually used a procedural maneuver to pass the collective bargaining measure without Democrats who had fled to block a vote and Walker has signed it in to law. But a judge has issued a temporary restraining order to block the law from taking effect while courts consider a lawsuit alleging the Republicans' move violated the state's open meetings law and constitution.

Comments

[YoBear]

12:49 AM on 03/30/2011

To some degree we shouldn't be surprised to be in this mess. The younger generation has inherited a ton of baggage and one cannot blame them for electing someone like Walker to do some cleanup.

[madame48]

09:34 AM on 03/27/2011

This is really getting scarry. I read the 1936 Sinclair Lewis book "It Can Happen here"...about a fictitious authortarian taking over America...what was his tactic etc.....READ IT...this Michigan stuff of financial marshal law is something the enemies of FDR could only dream of...firing duly elected officials, private takeover of town assets, breaking legal contracts, selling off town assets...this is INSANE...and if it isn't challenged there, just like the nationwide effort to kill public unions,.THAT will be next. Teabaggers wake up..is THIS what you wanted? when YOUR town rec parks are sold to GE and you can't afford to take your kids because NOW ALL workers have wage caps, not just the public workers...wake up!!

[drillsgtmark]

10:07 AM on 03/27/2011

It already has happened here, it's called Fascism...

[serialcoma]

11:29 AM on 03/27/2011

Or in other, less obvious words.. Republicanism, Conservatism, the right wing.....

[ninjasrolled]

03:20 PM on 03/27/2011

You don't even know what that means.

[ljmck]

04:50 PM on 03/27/2011

The point of the book was that "it can happen here," but the title of Sinclair Lewis's work is "It Can't Happen Here."

Sorry to be so fussy, since my typing also frequently betrays my thought process.

[dutch163]

09:19 AM on 03/27/2011

very sad when it has come down to tactics like this...
It gives me great concern for our future,,for our kids and grandkids
and so much of the contempt leveled at the working class....it is like we have gone backwards
very disheartening

[laaambchop]

08:48 AM on 03/27/2011

His handling of previous cases should be investigated...he has proven himself to be a liar.

[saileyboy]

08:31 AM on 03/27/2011

Pretty much the plot line for "Machete". If you've never seen the movie you would get a kick out of how republicans are portrayed. You can find it on cable pay per views right now. It is everything the preview said it would be (even though the preview was a fake made as a joke for another movie). But the producers never take themselves seriously so it is an enjoyable.

[MyOwnPerson172]

07:37 AM on 03/27/2011

He'd better vet whomever he hires quite thoroughly or the "fake" attack could become to realistic.

And what is this about state government prosecutors? It's almost like they don't know the law--or are Republicans.

[laaambchop]

08:44 AM on 03/27/2011

They like to punish people.

[AnnfromCA]

06:17 AM on 03/27/2011

It's good he resigned.  Unions do quite enough to bring the public's attention to the tactics.  No more is needed.

A RICO suit is now in play against a very well-known union.  The type of actions taken by the union?  Oh boy, it makes the WI story look tame.

[DocStrangelove]

07:15 AM on 03/27/2011

ALL you post is rubbish... and RICO is CRIMINAL law, pookie... not CIVIL.

So you LIE as well.

[laaambchop]

08:45 AM on 03/27/2011

sad

weak

expected

[Onlygodknowswhy]

04:55 AM on 03/27/2011

It just goes to show how ruthless the business have become.
Republicans want union blood.
We the people must stand up now oIr forever hold.your peice.
Its time to be counted
Are you going to sit there why your rights are getting takin away.
We need to vote. And take back are rights..

[Ponder this]

07:07 AM on 03/27/2011

wonder if the use of the word "piece" instead of "peace" was deliberate.

[Onlygodknowswhy]

04:52 AM on 03/27/2011

they have that rich attitude.
I dont have to follow the rules.
Laws are for poor people.
There to stupid to know whats good for you.
They thank we should be kissing tnere ring or something.

[elbeas]

09:03 AM on 03/27/2011

It's not the ring they want kissed.

[sushi27]

03:51 AM on 03/27/2011

And this surprises anyone? We all know the republicans no longer have a shred of self-respect and will lie, cheat and apparently break the law to get their way.

[madame48]

09:37 AM on 03/27/2011

the party of "values" have NO MORALS

[Nishnabe]

03:50 AM on 03/27/2011

Don't know if has been posted yet, but the Indiana Sec of State, Charlie White, newly elected in Nov, has been indicted on multiple felony counts for voter fraud. And one of these bozos was in the state AG's office. So there are two state agencies where upper level employees, even at the very top level, have engaged in behavior ranging from advocating murder to voter fraud. And yes, all three of these are Republicans. See, Mitch is not such a hot pick for president since he endorsed White for Sec of State while he had already admitted to lying in order to pick up a paycheck for the Fisher's Town Council.

[Onlygodknowswhy]

04:57 AM on 03/27/2011

Laws for poor people dont you know.
Unless your from hollywood.

[bolivare]

02:32 AM on 03/27/2011

"He wanted to come clean, I guess, and said he is the one who sent that email," Cooper told the Daily Journal newspaper in Franklin, south of Indianapolis."

Sure he did. Just between you and me...he knew he was getting busted.

[laaambchop]

08:47 AM on 03/27/2011

and he was a prosecutor...a liar...

[madame48]

09:39 AM on 03/27/2011

wasn't that after he said his email was hacked or was that another gop AG office Walker "try violence" liar

[bolivare]

07:11 AM on 03/28/2011

Why yes it was. Yes, he is a liar. What I find sad is that had this been a dem, the trolls on here would have been baying at the moon.

[unionbrother]

02:25 AM on 03/27/2011

The republicans always turn to violence when they have nothing more to offer....When they can't stand the thought of loosing, they have to look at ways to create a violent outcome so to blame the violence on the people they are loosing to......I Am going to hate to see what happens in 2012, when the Democrats sweep both the Senate and House, along with the White House....soppose violence will break out everywhere, you know "Second Admendment Soultions" (Sharon Angle)

[normathumb]

02:25 AM on 03/27/2011

Typical Republican tactics. These are not honorable people.

[YOKEL13]

02:07 AM on 03/27/2011

Everything about Walker is fake.