Candidates for attorney general, Republican incumbent J.B. Van Hollen and Democrat Scott Hassett, met in a debate at the Marquette University Law School Thursday.
Hassett, a trial lawyer and former secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, said Van Hollen has politicized the office of attorney general. He said Van Hollen ""wasted taxpayer funding"" when he sued the Government Accountability Board over voter registration checks in 2008.
Van Hollen said party affiliation is not something that factors into his decision on what lawsuits he is involved in.
""The law is what is going to dictate our actions and always has dictated mine,"" Van Hollen said.
Hassett also criticized Van Hollen's handling of a case that surfaced last month involving District Attorney Ken Kratz. Kratz sent sexual text messages to a victim he was representing.
Hassett said Van Hollen should have been more ""proactive"" and acted 11 months ago, when the incident happened.
Van Hollen said he did everything the law would allow to distance Kratz from the case. In order for Kratz to be removed from his position, a verified complaint from a Calumet County citizen would have been needed, Van Hollen said. No such complaints were received.
Public safety ""needs to be the number one priority in the state government,"" Van Hollen said. He said he has worked to get criminal illegal immigrants off the streets.
Hassett said he does not approve of state involvement in immigrant enforcement.
A second debate will be held in Madison today at the Wisconsin Public Television studio.
