GOP presses case on Evers’ treatment of conservative MacIver news outlet
MADISON – One Wisconsin lawmaker is seeking to force Gov. Tony Evers to treat a conservative group like he treats nonpartisan news outlets while another Wisconsin Republican is trying to raise money off a federal lawsuit with the same goal.
U.S. Rep. Sean Duffy — who said Monday he’s leaving Congress — sent a fundraising email last week telling supporters Evers is trying to help Democrats defeat President Donald Trump in 2020 through “silencing conservative voices” in Wisconsin by excluding the MacIver News Service from a press briefing on the state budget and not telling them when the governor will be available for questions.
State Rep. Shae Sortwell of Two Rivers also refused to add an Evers administration employee to his office’s mailing list over the matter.
“We’d be happy to add one of Governor (Evers) Asst Deputy Secretaries to our distribution list... as soon as Governor Evers stops shutting out MacIver,” Sortwell said in an email to Department of Financial Institutions Assistant Deputy Secretary Catherine Haberland, who asked Sortwell to add her email to his list of people to send updates from his office.
The conservative John K. MacIver Institute for Public Policy, which employs writers who cover Wisconsin state government, is suing Evers in federal court to gain access provided to nonpartisan reporters.
The group alleges Evers has violated its writers’ rights to free speech and equal access by not notifying them about the governor’s public appearances or inviting them to media events.
A spokeswoman for Evers didn’t answer whether Evers had a reaction to the Republicans’ actions and instead raised questions about other matters.
Earlier this month, Evers spokeswoman Melissa Baldauff said the administration provides many opportunities to MacIver and other groups to attend events with the governor.
“Gov. Evers is committed to openness and transparency in state government, and he believes strongly that a fair and unbiased press corps is essential to our democracy, especially now as Wisconsinites and all Americans are calling for accountability from elected officials who refuse to take action on gun safety reform, healthcare, and the hatred and violence borne of white supremacy,” Baldauff said, referring to recent mass shootings.
Sortwell said in an interview he sent the email to the state agency official to make a point.
“I think it’s pretty sad the media has to take the governor of Wisconsin to court,” Sortwell said. “All they want to know is what is going on in their state and report it back to the people who read their publication.”
Duffy in his pitch said Evers was only “issuing press passes to hand-picked friendly liberal news outlets.”
Evers included reporters from nonpartisan outlets in a state budget briefing, however, including the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, the Associated Press, the Wisconsin State Journal, Wisconsin Public Radio and other outlets that employ reporters who cover state government without a partisan perspective on a daily basis.
In its lawsuit against Evers, MacIver News Service alleges nonpartisan outlets and liberal groups are also receiving emailed advisories about when and where Evers would be available to answer questions — notifications the conservative group unsuccessfully sought to also receive.
Bill Lueders, president of the Wisconsin Freedom of Information Council and editor of The Progressive magazine, has said the allegations — if true — are not “in keeping with the state’s proud tradition of open government.”
Evers has until Sept. 17 to respond to the lawsuit.