Wisconsin Republican Assembly leader Robin Vos on Friday fired his own election investigator after fending off a primary challenger backed by former President Donald Trump, The Associated Press reports.
Vos last year appointed former Judge Michael Gableman to investigate Trump’s fraud claims about the 2020 election.
Gableman led a 14-month taxpayer-funded investigation, turning up no evidence of widespread fraud but nevertheless calling to “decertify” the 2020 election, which is not legally possible.
Vos announced the investigation under pressure from Trump, who nevertheless blamed him for not doing enough and backed his primary challenger — as did Gableman.
Fired:
Vos announced on Friday that he had fired Gableman, calling him an “embarrassment.”
“After having many members of our caucus reach out to me over the past several days, it is beyond clear to me that we only have one choice in this matter, and that’s to close the Office of Special Counsel,” Vos said in a statement to the AP.
Gableman fires back:
Gableman claimed that Vos “never wanted a real investigation.”
He has not released an official comment on the firing.
His hiring drew bipartisan criticism and his firing drew bipartisan praise.
“Finally,” said a spokesperson for Democratic Gov. Tony Evers.
“It was a good decision. It would have been a better decision six months ago,” GOP state Sen. Kathy Bernier told the AP, adding that she has “zero respect for Michael Gableman.”
