Ethics chief wants Milwaukee DA gone

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The state Ethics Commission’s chairman says Republican Gov. Scott Walker should remove Milwaukee County District Attorney John Chisholm from office for running an investigation that has cost the commission’s administrator his job.

The state Senate refused to confirm Ethics Commission Administrator Brian Bell and Elections Commission Administrator Michael Haas on Tuesday. Republican Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald says he can’t trust either of them because they worked for the now-defunct Government Accountability Board.

That board helped Chisholm investigate whether Walker’s campaign illegally coordinated with outside groups.

Ethics Chairman David Halbrooks, a Democrat, said Wednesday that Bell was nonpartisan and didn’t deserve to be ousted. He says Chisholm is the root of the problem and Walker should remove him or someone should the district attorney. He added Fitzgerald is cementing his place in state history alongside Joe McCarthy.

Walker and Fitzgerald aides didn’t immediately reply to email messages seeking comment. No one replied to an email left in the Milwaukee County District Attorney Office’s general inbox.