Wisconsin governor Scott Walker orders a doctor fired

From The Daily Page in Madison's Isthmus:

In an email dated April 5, 2010, chief of staff Thomas Nardelli wrote to Walker about the county's Behavioral Health Division:

Chianelli reports that an MD was hired during his absence from work. The Medical Director did follow all professional channels to determine credentials, but failed to Google or MySpace the individual. It was recently discovered that she has a checkered past and has done some modeling work. It isn't pornographic, but is quite suggestive (I'm told -- I don't know her name). [Sh]e apparently models thongs and wasn't forthright in sharing that with staff prior to her hire as an hourly paid MD at BHD. John is working with Mark Camelli on a way to release her without much fanfare. John's [sic] is more concerned about having her on staff and subsequently having her Googled by staff only to learn of her 'other life' outside of her medical work. Apparently she's competent, but even the Medical Director is dismayed that she has a varied life style outside of her medical profession.

Walker replied to Nardelli later that day:

Get rid of the MD asap.

The doctor's name is not revealed in the email, and a spokesperson for the Milwaukee County Behavioral Health Division was not able to provide it or to confirm if she was indeed fired. A spokesperson for Gov. Scott Walker did not respond to a request for comment...

The Wisconsin Women's Network issued an official statement in response to the exchange between Walker and Nardelli.

"If this doctor was indeed fired for her previous modeling experience, then the Wisconsin Women's Network is disappointed at this very blatant show of discriminatory conduct. We believe that hiring and termination practices should be fair and grounded in individuals' abilities to fulfill the duties of their position, free of discriminatory harassment."

Patrick Hickey of the Workers' Rights Center of Madison says that most employees in Wisconsin are considered "at will," which means an employer can fire them for no reason as long as it isn't discriminatory as defined by state law.

Governor Walker is considered a leading candidate for the next GOP presidential primaries.