Liberal group demands to see homophobic remarks that Attorney General Brad Schimel made at hate group conference

One Wisconsin Now is demanding that Attorney General Brad Schimel turn over records and copies of any prepared remarks he delivered at an Alliance Defending Freedom conference. The ADF, designated as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center, paid over $3,800 in expenses and a $300 appearance fee for Schimel to attend its conference at a luxury resort in California, where he participated in a panel discussion on “states’ rights.”

“Brad Schimel needs to come clean on why, in his official capacity as attorney general of the state of Wisconsin, he took over $4,100 for first class travel and accommodations to appear before a hate group,” said One Wisconsin Now executive director Scot Ross. “He needs to immediately turn over the records related to his appearance, for which he was paid, and what remarks he delivered at this gathering of rabid homophobes.”

The Associated Press reported:

“Republican Attorney General Brad Schimel accepted thousands of dollars from an anti-gay organization to appear at the group’s West Coast conference last summer, state records show … The Southern Poverty Law Center has listed ADF as a hate group that seeks to outlaw homosexuality and develop legislation that denies goods and services to gay and transgender people.”

… Schimel’s 2017 statement of economic interest on file with the state Ethics Commission shows the attorney general accepted $3,828 as well as a $300 honorarium from the Alliance Defending Freedom during the calendar year. The statement offers no further details.

Filed under the state open records law, The One Wisconsin Now request seeks copies of all records pertaining to Schimel’s participation in the 2017 Alliance Defending Freedom conference, including emails, prepared remarks, handouts, presentations, reimbursement requests, and electronic copies of video or audio recordings.