'I Know Him,' Walker Says of Jailed Realtor

Gov. Scott Walker acknowledged that he has met the commercial real estate broker arrested for refusing to cooperate with the covert investigation into the governor’s aides, Walker told the Wisconsin Journal Sentinel in an interview at the governor’s mansion.

Walker said that none of his dealings with Andrew P. Jensen Jr., a past chairman of the Commercial Association of Realtors-Wisconsin, were improper.

“I know him. He’s been involved over the years and people with chamber-type activities and things like that, whether it’s the Realtors, the commercial real estate association, the MMAC [Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce] and others. I was aware of him,” Walker said.  

Jensen has not been charged, but will meet with officials in the Milwaukee County district attorney's office on Jan. 25.

Milwaukee County prosecutors started the secret investigation in May 2010, and sources have said that it was initially looking at actions taken by Walker staffers during his campaign for governor.

In his interview with the Journal Sentinel, Walker said he has not acted inappropriately.

“All I know is the way through all the years as county executive and now as governor, I know how I conduct myself. I know the transparency I have and the integrity I bring to the position, so in terms of my own involvement I don’t worry,” he said.

---

Sen. Sheila Harsdorf (R-District 10)

• Harsdorf spoke about jobs and education with the editorial staff of The Sun. “Jobs and the economy are our top priority and will continue to take precedence as the legislative session continues,” she said. “The ills we recently passed build on the initiatives we enacted earlier this year and will help to foster a friendlier business environment in Wisconsin.”

Rep. Ron Kind (D-WI)

• Kind applauded the removal of the gray wolf from the Endangered Species Act list. “This is great news for Wisconsin and for the gray wolf,” he said. “In the last 30 years, the population of gray wolves has risen dramatically, a great success story for endangered species management. But with no known predator, their numbers have risen to an unstable point and will only continue to rise. It's time to allow states to manage the wolf population to maintain balance in nature and ensure the protection of other species and our farmers.”

Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI)

• Johnson . “The proposal the Senate passed last Saturday is typical Washington politics, intended to produce short-term political gains,” he wrote. “Without structural reform, we will bankrupt Social Security, and we will bankrupt our nation.”

Sen. Herb Kohl (D-WI)

• A Kohl staffer will meet with constituents in Little Chute on Jan. 6.
• The Green Bay Press Gazette wrote an editorial congratulating Kohl for his efforts in helping maintain the 2011 budget levels in the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative.