Update 4:30 p.m. Wednesday with comment from district attorney
The Waukesha County District Attorney’s office has launched an investigation into allegations that GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney and Congressman Paul Ryan traded sub sandwiches for votes in Waukesha on Election Day.
"We now have the complaint and, yes, we have commenced the investigation," District Attorney Brad Schimel told Patch in an email Wednesday.
Schimel, who is out of the office until April 16 added: "I hope that a resolution can wait until I am back, but I am in regular communication with the investigator."
The Democratic Party of Wisconsin filed the complaint in Waukesha Wednesday morning.
Detective David Witkowski of the Waukesha County Sheriff’s Department, who is assigned to the district attorney’s office, said he is investigating the complaint. Witkowski was at the Cousins Subs in question Wednesday morning and is waiting for a few phone calls to be returned.
“I don’t have a lot of information at this point,” Witkowski said.
Party Chairman Mike Tate said at a press conference Tuesday that Democrats have filed a complaint with the Government Accountability Board, the state agency that oversees elections in Wisconsin, and with the district attorney's office.
shows Romney and Ryan handing out the sub sandwiches. Additionally, a video edited by the state Democratic Party shows Romney leading a rally and telling supporters to go vote, and “If you want another sandwich, there are more back there.”
State law prohibits offering something valued at more than $1 in exchange for a vote.
Tate said it’s a clear-cut case of election bribery.
“We have pretty clear video evidence of Mitt Romney and Congressman Ryan handing out free sandwiches, and at the same time encouraging people to go cast a ballot,” Tate said. “It’s very clearly against Wisconsin election law.”
Reid Magney, a spokesman for the GAB, told Patch that his agency had received the complaint, but would not be investigating the incident because it is a criminal matter. It will be up to the district attorney to decide what action — if any — should be taken.
Even though the GAB is not investigating the incident, Magney said the agency routinely tells campaigns not to give away anything of value to voters.
"We advise candidates and businesses not to provide food, beverages or any other inducement to thank people for voting or to get them to vote," Magney said.
It doesn't matter whether a candidate gives away something as part of a general "get out the vote" effort, or if a candidate is trying to entice someone to vote a certain way, he added.
"We believe voters should vote because they care about the candidate or the process," Magney said. "Not because they got a free sandwich or a free beer."
However, Romney told WISN12 news the allegations are ridiculous and it’s a laughable stunt by the Democrats to distract from President Obama’s policies that have resulted in “record job losses and skyrocketing gas prices.”
Tate is calling for an investigation by election officials and criminal sanctions to be imposed.
The incident brought back memories of the infamous "smokes for votes" allegations in the 2000 presidential election, in which Democrats were accused of giving homeless people cigarettes if they cast ballots for presidential candidate Al Gore.
"Republicans like Scott Walker were vocal about the so-called 'cigs-for-sigs' situation in 2000, and 'Kringle-gate' in 2002, not to mention repeated calls for the rule of law to be applied to the fullest extent in the almost nonexistent instances of voter fraud," said Graeme Zielinski, spokesman for the Democratic Party. "Here is a case that's much, much stronger-the candidates themselves are participating in the bribery.
"The statute is clear. So were the actions of Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan," he added. "I don't think a prosecutor, regardless of his party affiliation, has any choice but to act and apply the laws of the State of Wisconsin."
A bribe is a bribe is a bribe. Romney (and RYan, too) BOTH need to have their noses rubbed in this, but good! If the election commission fails to do so, then we might just as well fold up the whole tent of the "American experiment" with democracy, because it will have failed-- completely!
Here's the official statutory section that Romney/Ryan are accused of violating: 12.11 Election bribery. (1) In this section, “anything of value” includes any amount of money, or any object which has utility independent of any political message it contains and the value of which exceeds $1. The prohibitions of this section apply to the distribution of material printed at public expense and available for free distribution if such materials are accompanied by a political message. (1m) Any person who does any of the following violates this chapter: (a) Offers, gives, lends or promises to give or lend, or endeavors to procure, anything of value, or any office or employment or any privilege or immunity to, or for, any elector, or to or for any other person, in order to induce any elector to: 1. Go to or refrain from going to the polls. 2. Vote or refrain from voting. 3. Vote or refrain from voting for or against a particular person. 4. Vote or refrain from voting for or against a particular referendum; or on account of any elector having done any of the above. As you can see, the law states that a mere inducement to get an elector to go to the polls and/or vote (without mention of who to vote for or against) is a violation under 12.11(1m)(a)(1) and/or (2).
The Milwaukee County DA has taken it one step further in an opinion letter issued on the earlier 'BBQ for Votes' incident that occurred during last year's senatorial recalls, stating that there must be conclusive evidence linking the act of giving the thing of value to the elector and the elector actually voting (a causation element). Personally, I think that the Milwaukee County DA was stretching here to suit a desired outcome/result against prosecution in that incident. Under such a standard, Romney/Ryan obviously did nothing wrong, as there is no direct causation between the act of giving and the act of voting. But one doesn't really need to make such a stretch of the statutory language due to the high bar set by the required showing of mens rea (criminal intent) to conclude against prosecution in this case.
I hope this helps!
INVESTIGATE CONSPIRACY N O W .
I am sorry for your people. However, explain to me where it is fair for people who do not have an income, or a very low income, to be FORCED to pay for insurance, or be fined $1,000.00 Until they buy it? Ask the Canadians about National Health Care of any kind. Why do you thing they would rather come here to get treatment and pay for it themselves? First of all, the health care people and places here are charging way too much for their nonsense. An aspirin when I was in the hospital was $0.50.. Now it probably has doubled or tripled. Insurance people get rich by selling it, so what do you think is going to happen when we are FORCED to buy it? The price goes UP. It happened with Auto Insurance rates. America has never been legal to FORCE anyone to buy anything. This is supposed to be a free land, and we are now running on a Dictatorial base. That is Communism.
I call it good business.
Personally, I'd just as soon not eat anywhere where Paul Ryan has touched the food.
Cousins has ran promo's like this in the past, they just didn't have candidates doing the serving. Regardless of what the DA decides, I doubt there will be anything to come of it.
The most that will happen is a minimal fine, is my prediction. And people learning not to do it again.
Damn, imagine that; a freebie from the GOP. This Country is screwed up!
Also, no one will see Mitt and the Republicans voting to have the Muslim Brotherhood Terrorists come to America, to help Obama run the country. Time to have an American in office again.