Carpenter Calls Gov. Walker a 'Dictator' in Television Interview

Greenfield representative Tim Carpenter, who are in Illinois to avoid voting on Gov. Scott Walker’s budget repair bill, spoke with TMJ4’s Vince Vitrano and Diane Pathieu by phone this afternoon.

Carpenter, who recently wrote a letter in response to Walker's bogus phone call with David Koch, has not responded to an interview request by Greenfield Patch, but here are excerpts of a transcript of his television interview:

Diane Pathieu: The Governor called on you Senate Democrats, asking you to come home and, quote, do your job. What’s your reaction to that?

Tim Carpenter: We’ll, I’d like to call on Governor Walker and say, Governor Walker, tear down this wall. He mentioned democracy. Democracies don’t have dictators. What is happening is the Governor refuses to negotiate, to talk to us, to have any type of dialogue. All we’re asking is to protect the workers’ rights that. That doesn’t belong in the bill and we’re very frustrated because he’s basically stone-walling us. And we’re frustrated.

Vince Vitrano: Senator Carpenter, are you getting anywhere with Republican senators in terms of could they possibly invite an amendment that would separate out … the collective bargaining from the other fiscal concessions that they’re seeking from the state employees?

Carpenter: Yes, I’ve been in contact with other senators and I know there is a division in the Republican caucus and people don’t like, in the Republican caucus, the pressure that they’re on. But people are talking about if a Republican does vote for an amendment like that, that they’d lose their chairmanship and a whole bunch of other threats. So, we’re having a meeting right now. We’re working on the bill amendment and trying to negotiate. If the Governor is flying around the state, we can meet at the state border and work this out in 10 minutes.  But instead of being a negotiator, the Governor is being a dictator.

Pathieu: Senator … do you have anything you’d like to say or are you at all worried about not being able to reach your continuants from where you are?

Carpenter: Quiet the contrary. I’ve been in touch with continuants. I have an iPhone. I’ve been going through my email, my state office email. I’ve been calling continuants, talking with them about things, keeping updated. I’m actually working twice as hard as I would normally do in my office in Madison. The difference is, I don’t have a gun to my head at the Capitol and here I am free to work with my continuants.