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Well, how did this happen, hmmm?

The Wisconsin GOP reports that Democrats in the Dairy State are “using a fraudulent tactic to harass and intimidate constituents who favor recalling Democrat Senator Dave Hansen of Green Bay.”

Somehow, calls are being placed in the name of “Bay Care Aurora” — a local hospital — by left-wing activists targeting voters who signed petitions to recall fleebagger state Sen. Hansen (h/t Steve Eggleston):

The Democratic Party has targeted for harassment people who signed recall petitions against Senator Hansen, making calls on beginning on Monday April 25th using a fake phone number and caller ID that showed up on phones as “Bay Care Aurora,” a well-known Green Bay area medical center. Once recall supporters answered the phone, they were told they were speaking with a Democrat Party of Wisconsin operative, and were questioned about signing a petition to recall Hansen.

“It’s disgusting that the Dems would use a fake call from a hospital to trick people into answering their phones – only so they could harass and intimidate them into saying they did not sign a recall petition,” said Mark Jefferson, Executive Director of the Republican Party of Wisconsin. “People who received that call may have feared the worst – an unexpected call from a hospital can bring terrible news about a loved one. The Democrats’ intent was obviously to confuse and upset people, hoping they would be disoriented and easily tricked into saying they had not signed a recall petition. Dave Hansen’s political career may be coming to an end because he fled to Illinois, but that doesn’t excuse this cruel, desperate tactic.”

Here’s a photo of the caller ID from a recipient of the calls:

Local Wisconsin media report that the hospital is denying any knowledge of calls placed from its facility:

“We regret this inconvenience to residents. This call did not originate from Aurora BayCare Medical Center. We have confirmed that no outgoing calls were placed from this number at Aurora BayCare Medical Center. We have reported this matter to the police,” said Public Relations Manager Kristine Lillie in a statement.

Those receiving the calls report callers identified themselves as members of the Democratic Party. They indicated they were going through names on petitions turned in to determine if they meant to sign the recall petition.

Democratic Party of Wisconsin Communications Director Graeme Zielinski says calls are being made to verify the signature on the recall petition following up on some irregularities.

Zielinski says the wrong phone number was typed into the system, but it was quickly corrected.

Innocent mistyping…or willful deceit?

Given the willingness of Wisconsin lefties to use health care professionals to commit fraud in defense of their partisan interests, do the Dems deserve the benefit of the doubt?

Flashback: Badger State Battle: Unions vs. Tea Party in Wisconsin; Runaway Dems could be AWOL “for weeks;” recall campaigns launched; nine anti-Walker protesters arrested; fake doctors’ notes for fake sick teachers (VIDEO)

Speaking of which, there’s breaking news this hour regarding the fake doctor’s note writers. An unspecified number of the left-wing quacks will face unspecified penalties that will remain secret. Wrist-slaps, as usual:

UW Health doctors who wrote sick notes for protesters at the Capitol in February face penalties up to a loss of pay and leadership positions, the UW School of Medicine and Public Health said Tuesday.

The medical school reviewed 22 UW Health doctors said to have been involved in writing medical excuses for protesters attending rallies over Gov. Scott Walker’s budget proposals, according to a medical school statement.

“Several” of the doctors were found not to have participated, and among those who were involved “the nature and extent of involvement varied widely,” the statement said.

“Personnel action will be based on the specific nature of the offense and the level of the physician’s involvement,” the statement said. “The consequences range from written reprimand to loss of pay and leadership position.”

The statement didn’t identify the doctors, citing public employee records laws, and said “the school will not comment on individual cases.”

Lisa Brunette, UW Health spokeswoman, wouldn’t say how many doctors were found to be involved.