MADISON, Wis. (AP) _ The state lawmaker who removed an anti-Republican sign from the state Capitol rotunda says he did it because it posed a security risk.
Republican state Rep. Dale Kooyenga's actions are now costing taxpayers $30,000 under a settlement with a protester who sued over his sign being taken.
Kooyenga said at a town hall meeting Wednesday that his military training taught him the sign's placement along a curved wall in the Capitol made it a ``clear risk'' because it concealed something to the public.
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported Friday that Lester Pines, the attorney for the man whose sign was taken, said Kooyenga could have just as easily taken his concerns to Capitol police rather than remove the sign.
Kooyenga says the lawsuit against him that was settled last week was politically motivated.