26-Years Old, A drinking Problem, A College Dropout, A Valued Walker Appointee

Who says money can't buy privilege? The wholesale sell off of your government is in full swing and the GOP is selling it at bargain basement prices.

Scott Walker Gives $81,500 Government Job To Top Donor’s 26-Year-Old College Dropout Son

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Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R)

Since taking office in January, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) has stripped public workers of their collective bargaining rights, proposed wage cuts to local government employees, and insisted that his “state is broke” and that its public workers are overpaid. But Walker applies a different standard to himself.

Today, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reveals that Walker is using state funds to pay more than $81,500 a year to the 26-year-old son of a major campaign donor with no college degree and two drunken-driving convictions.

Despite having almost no management experience, UW Madison college dropout Brian Deschane now oversees state environmental and regulatory issues and manages dozens of Commerce Department employees. After only two months on the job, Deschane has already received a 26 percent pay raise and a promotion.

Deschane’s father, Jerry Deschane was a major financial backer of the Governor’s campaign:

Jerry Deschane, executive vice president and longtime lobbyist for the Madison-based Wisconsin Builders Association…bet big on Walker during last year’s governor’s race.

The group’s political action committee gave $29,000 to Walker and his running mate, Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch, last year, making it one of the top five PAC donors to the governor’s successful campaign. Even more impressive, members of the trade group funneled more than $92,000 through its conduit to Walker’s campaign over the past two years.

Total donations: $121,652.

Deschanes’ father admitted that during the gubenatorial campaign he may have put in “good words” for his son with Walker campaign manager (and current chief of staff) Keith Gilkes. A state official has confirmed that Gilkes “recommended Deschane for an interview at the agency.” Michael McCabe, the executive director of the Wisconsin democracy Campaign, said the appointment had “all the markings of political patronage.”

In the coming months, we may be seeing more cases of Brian Deschanes. The anti-union law Walker signed last month also included provisions that would convert more than thirty-seven civil service positions into political appointees chosen by the Governor.

 

Come, come Moen...

Do you really have personal knowledge of whether or not this Deschane guy is a good administrator? I mean, I've seen plenty of non-college-educated people who could run circles around college professors when it comes to administration. If Walker appointed him because of campaign contributions, well, how often does this happen? I'm not condoning it, but it's become standard practice, I'm afraid... so we probably shouldn't pick on this guy and single him out unless we're willing to examine all political appointees. As far as his drunken-driving convictions go, it sounds like he might make a good presidential candidate one day. After all, let's look at Bill Clinton's, George W. Bush's and Barack Obama's previous drug usage. You're really not going to say he's unqualified simply because of drunk driving, are you?

 

I figured you defend political cronyism. How often it happens is irrelevant. It shouldn't happen at all. I don't accept it as standard practice because I believe in calling it what it is. Doling out government jobs to wealthy donors is still illegal. The drunken driving convictions certainly demonstrate the character of this individual. I’d like to know exactly what qualifies this kid to oversee the state environmental and regulatory issues and manage dozens of Commerce Department employees. Was it that he couldn’t complete college undergraduate program and dropped out? Face it, this kid isn’t qualified to sweep the parking lot much less make 81 grand a year until daddy stepped in.

 

I'd love to say that both of you make "good points" but they're not. More like realistic points as in unfortunate but true.

Yes,
People get jobs because of daddy. Yes, sometimes the "uneducated" one actually DOES know how to run things.


To me, in this case, it's the setting and it's biting Walker in the butt. Kid gets a cushy job because daddy is a big donor. Kid gets a 26% raise and promotion.

Kid gets sucked into small media spotlight.

Kid gets demoted and takes a pay cut (coincidence)?

Walker demotes son of campaign contributor - JSOnline

Somehow I see Governor Walker as a one term Governor.

 

Great article. I love the qualifications of the people that this drunken kid beat out for the job.

The first, Oscar Herrera, is a former state cabinet secretary under Republican Gov. Scott McCallum with a doctoral degree and eight years' experience overseeing the cleanup of petroleum-contaminated sites.

The second, Bernice Mattsson, is a professional engineer who served since 2003 in the post to which Deschane was appointed.

By contrast, Deschane has no college degree, little management experience and a couple of drunken-driving convictions. His father represents a trade group that gave more than $121,000 to Walker and his running mate.

This is what I think of when Right wingers are out there saying that anyone can make it if they work hard enough. However, they never mention how much easier it is if daddy greases the wheels for his drunken college dropout son. It isn't a level playing field and it never has been. Those who HAVE, GET through corruption, pay-offs, quid pro quo, political favors just like any third world banana republic. We just pretend all is hunky dory and those that push the idea that hard work and opportunity exist for all are the most clueless people out there. It’s who you know, not what you know. You can disagree with that but then you’ll have to explain why this kid got where he did and more qualified people that actually did work hard never got considered.

 

It looks like the Cheesebaggers in Wisconsin raised another stink. It's too bad that Deschane wasn't a union member, they could have fought for him to keep his job:

"Deschane will return to his job as a bureau director at the state Department of Regulation and Licensing, a post he took in mid-January at an annual salary of $64,728."

On another note, I wonder if the Cheesebaggers will also look into the excessive pay of bus drivers in Wisconsin:

Because of the insane union contracts in Wisconsin, one Madison bus driver, John E. Nelson, was able to make $159,000 in 2009 -- about $100,000 of which in overtime pay. Jackie Gleason didn't make that much playing bus driver Ralph Kramden on "The Honeymooners." Seven bus drivers took home more than $100,000 that year. When asked about the outrageous overtime pay for bus drivers -- totaling $1.94 million in 2009 alone -- Transit and Parking Commission Chairman Gary Poulson said: "That's the contract."

 

So this guy who has probably worked as a bus driver for years works more than 40 hours a week and receives overtime pay for doing so. As a matter of fact, he works a lot of overtime and receives a lot of overtime pay which is usually time and a half. If you think people shouldn’t be paid time and a half for working over 40 hours a week, you and I will have to disagree.
Now why did this guy have to or get to work so much overtime? My guess is because the city didn’t have enough drivers to cover the routes. So, they can either hire another driver and pay the additional salary, benefits, and associated costs or they can simply pay this guy above and beyond his regular salary and cut back his hours when things get slow. In reality, this guy is saving the city money.
This is of course another trumped up false equivalency argument put forth by the right wingers like Ann Counter because in their minds, an unqualified political donor’s son getting an 81,000 dollar a year job is the same a guy that works everyday and puts in overtime that actually saves the city money. Too parallel universe for me.

BTW A cheesebagger would be a Wisconsin Tea Party Teabagger. Nice Ralph Kramden reference though...

 

Don't get me started with all the union-negotiated abuses that benefit the slackers with senority over the hard workers....my time as a Teamster union steward really opened my eyes & soured me.

 

No, a "cheesebagger" would be a Wisconsinite who teabags.

 

I see that all the time. Sometimes it saves money, sometimes it doesn't. Either way, I can pretty much guarantee it isn't that bus driver's decision as to whether they hire another person or not. And, I would also have to believe that bus driver was putting in some serious hours to make almost double his regular salary in overtime. I didn't do the calculations but I would have to guess close to 40 hours of overtime a week...for an entire year. Sure seems like a guy working his butt off to better himself. American Dream stuff.

 

I have worked for a lot of college educated idiots in my life but helped them understand the job that they have to do even though I am only a High School graduate with a 2.9 GPA. That smacks of nepotism to me and shows his hypocrisy.

 

Well if I knew I could make that much, I could have dropped out of college as well. Not saying it is right by any means, wish I could make that much.