To the editor:

Wisconsin has a new budget balanced by borrowing $800 million to make up for a shortage of revenue to pay our obligations.

My questions of these so-called courageous legislators is: Where was the courage needed to admit it was a mistake to repeal the automatic annual increase in the gas tax for a few years back? Where was the courage needed to reinstate this increase needed to keep up with the rapidly increasing costs of funding our in fracture? These same legislators had no problem slipping a bill into the budget in an attempt to give them total secrecy when dealing with the business of spending our tax dollars. I guess courage and conscience only came into play when there is a benefit to themselves and their wealthy campaign contributors.

These same selective qualities are shared by the conservative majority of our Supreme Court judges who seem to have no problem deciding cases by the size of campaign contributions from those who bought their seats for them.

Their recent decision ending the "John Doe" investigation is proof of that. If that probe was just a "witch hunt" as they maintained, then a thorough search for the truth would have proven that.

I believe that a good housecleaning is due in Madison. These judges and legislators have truly tainted the once proud tradition of clean open Wisconsin government.

Back on the farm when the gutters were full, we cleaned the barns. The same should hold true for our government.