UPDATE: David Cagigal - Standing Behind Walker

Part of Walker’s “Homeland Security” Team

As reported here at “Ruff Talk” on November 16th, David Cagigal, a key figure in last year’s failed campaign to win Madison School District funding for the Madison Preparatory Academy, has joined the Walker administration as “Chief Information Officer” (CIO) in the state’s Division of Enterprise Technology (DET).

Assuming his new position on November 19, Cagigal appeared in a line-up of law enforcement types standing behind Governor Scott Walker at a November 27 press conference staged to publicize the 2012 Annual Report on Wisconsin Homeland Security (WHS).

David Cagigal behind Walker (rear, left) at press conference (Photo: Rebecca Kemble)

As reported by the Progressive Magazine’s Rebecca Kemble, Walker took the opportunity, surrounded as he was by so many law-and-order officials, to once again deny any wrongdoing in connection with the violations of state law for which a number of his close associates and former staffers have taken a fall.

At the press conference, Maj. Gen. Donald Dunbar, head of the Wisconsin National Guard presented Walker with the report listing the priorities and expenditures earmarked for the state’s interagency effort to make us all more secure.

Kemble, in her piece, pointed out that more than half of the $3 million annual WHS budget is dedicated to upgrading communications equipment and software for law enforcement agencies and staffing of the Wisconsin Statewide Information Center (WSIC), the clearing house for Walker’s citizen surveillance “If You See Something, Say Something” program.

Cagigal, as the man in charge of “IT planning and implementation efforts for the State of Wisconsin executive branch..., a statewide leader in all technology issues” and “the primary advisor to the Governor and Legislature regarding technology strategies and policies,” will certainly have input or oversight in monitoring our security and surveillance.

Apparently there’s money to spread around for increasing the surveillance state’s capabilities while funding for improving public schools continues to diminish. One must wonder if Wisconsin’s new IT head, an advocate of for-profit virtual (online) charter schools and legislation accelerating the privatization of public education, pondered that thought as he stood behind Walker.

Pondering whatever: CIO Cagigal at Walker press conference. (Photo: Rebecca Kemble)