(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . I'm hesitant to write this because I might be wasting my time, but this is very important to me... [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.', 'Backgroundurl Avatar_Large', 'Nickname', 'Joined', 'Created_At', 'Story Count', 'N_Stories', 'Comment Count', 'N_Comments', 'Popular Tags'] Date: 2023-02-18 No, this is not a photo from the insurrection... Sometimes the more energy and effort I put into a diary the worse it performs. Quite often diaries I’ve taken less than a half hour to throw together reach the top of the Reclist. Go figure. This effort will be the former as opposed to the latter, nevertheless, here I go once more into the breach... It is said that all politics are local... We all care about things that affect us personally. We’ve all got our own issues and pet projects. It should therefore come as no surprise to me that a majority of you have little interest in what’s going on in my neck of the woods. That hasn’t always been the case… Back in 2011 this site was enthralled by the goings on in Madison, WI after newly inaugurated Governor Scott Walker introduced a “budget repair bill” that gutted public unions and eliminated their right to collective bargaining. You might remember it... In the midst of the Wisconsin protests I wrote what for years was my highest rated diary about a slim chance to do something about that shit and regain control of the Wisconsin Supreme Court. On election night our preferred candidate, JoAnne Kloppenburg, was declared the winner; but a subsequent recount handed the election to her opponent. That sucked ass... Four years later another Supreme Court election was underway and a dirty trick Constitutional Amendment was on the ballot. Our incumbent candidate won, but that godforsaken amendment passed… Ballotpedia Until 2015, the justice with the longest continuous service on the court served as the chief justice, unless that justice declined, in which case the role passed to the next senior justice of the court. A state constitutional amendment passed in April 2015 eliminated the seniority selection of the chief justice, opting for a peer vote by current justices. The justice selected by the court serves a two-year term as chief justice. As a result our beloved “National Treasure” the late great Shirley Abrahamson was stripped of her title and position as Chief Justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court... On May 30, 2018, Abrahamson announced she would not seek reelection to the Wisconsin Supreme Court in 2019. She left office July 31, 2019, having served for 43 years—the longest term in the Court's history. She was the only woman on the high court from 1976 until 1993; in her final three years, the court had a 5–2 female majority. Sadly, she passed away on December 19, 2020, but I’m comforted that she didn’t have to witness what took place less than a month later... I digress... In 2016 Wisconsin Republicans were again up to no good. On the ballot was a Supreme Court Justice who had been appointed by Scott Walker to fill 3 vacancies in 3 years and shared her surname with longstanding Justice Ann Walsh Bradley. Despite my efforts at that time, Walker’s candidate rode that unearned name recognition and her unearned “incumbency” to victory over returning candidate JoAnne Kloppenburg… This place went apeshit! It was the heat of the primaries, and Markos suggested Bernie Sanders voters might be to blame. The reclist was dominated by pushback and analysis, and I shared my two cents... NOW you want to talk about Kloppenburg? Where the hell were you the past few weeks when I was writing about the race? You were busy squabbling among yourselves and focused on your favorite candidate. You were too busy stroking your compatriots and attacking your detractors. Now I see you all bickering and squabbling again, this time over who’s to blame for Kloppenburg’s loss. Losses of this kind are the status quo now in Wisconsin. From Scott Walker to Ron Johnson to Rebecca Bradley the same Tea Bag pattern continues to unfold. I’m getting used to it. Next you’ll be telling me Wisconsin deserves the government we have… We must love it… We keep voting for it… Who’s to blame for Kloppenburg’s loss? I’ll take some of it. I could have written better diaries. I could have pimped them more. I could have spent days preparing a coordinated assault on the reclist. If I didn’t have a real job and a kid to raise I might have had time to. I did what I could. In 2023 history appears to be repeating itself… This week Dailykos Staff Writer Joan McCarter wrote a piece We can end corporate ownership of at least one Supreme Court in this election in Wisconsin. As of this writing it has received 36 recs... Front Pager and DailyKos Elections author Jeff Singer wrote Progressive once again laps opponents weeks ahead of nonpartisan primary for Wisconsin Supreme Court. So far, 21 recs… Democratic Party of Wisconsin Chair, Ben Wikler has written five stories in an attempt to bring this subject to your attention since New Years Eve. His latest, published this week, 5 Days Till Wisconsin's Supreme Court Primary Election has garnered 15 recs… I find this disconcerting… That’s why I’ve spent a good deal of my Saturday tracking down and collating all of these links for you. I’ve expended a great deal of energy to summarize the history and the parts DailyKos and I personally have played in it. I understand that it’s not a subject likely to push your buttons and get you riled up the way God or Garland does, but I hope you’re still with me... I’m not quite done yet... One of the Republican party’s preferred candidates, Dan Kelly, is a CONSUMMATE DOUCHEBAG! Wikipedia After President Obama's 2012 re-election win, Kelly said his re-election was a win for the "socialism/same-sex marriage/recreational marijuana/tax increase crowd." Kelly has likened Social Security to slavery. He has argued that U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Obergefell v. Hodges, which ruled that bans on same-sex marriage were unconstitutional, was illegitimate. In 2014, Kelly wrote that slavery and affirmative action both "spring from the same taproot" and that "neither can exist without the foundational principle that it is acceptable to force someone into an unwanted economic relationship." What an asshole! Can you believe this shithead was on the court once before? After the announcement of the nearing retirement of Justice Prosser, in 2016, Kelly was appointed by Governor Scott Walker to serve as a justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court. Under Wisconsin law, the seat would come up for election on the next spring election when no other Wisconsin Supreme Court seat was up for election. Justice Kelly ran for a full term on the court when it came up for election in 2020, but was defeated by Wisconsin Circuit Court judge Jill Karofsky. Justice Kelly's term in office ended July 31, 2020. Wisconsin Carry v. City of Madison In a 2017 case, Kelly wrote for a 5-2 majority holding that the City of Madison is forbidden under state statute from banning passengers carrying firearms on city buses. Tetra Tech v. Department of Revenue In a landmark 2018 administrative law case, Kelly wrote the Court's lead opinion, which held that the Court would no longer follow the practice of judicial deference to agencies' interpretations of their own rules in Wisconsin. The other conservative on the ballot, Jennifer Dorow, made her name nationally by presiding over the Waukesha Christmas parade attack trial. Here in Wisconsin she’s infamous for opposing LGBTQ rights… Wikipedia Dorow has previously been critical of the Lawrence v. Texas ruling, believing that the Supreme Court ruling overstepped the powers given by the United States Constitution. In her 2011 application to become a judge, Dorow referred to the ruling as "a prime example of judicial activism at its worst" and that "[Lawrence v. Texas ] went well beyond the four corners of the U.S. Constitution to declare a new constitutional right". Fortunately we have two excellent liberal candidates to choose from this year in Milwaukee County Judge Janet Protasiewcz and Dane County Judge Everett Mitchell... PBS Wisconsin On her campaign website, Protasiewicz describes herself in terms of her judicial record:, "Community leader, a veteran prosecutor, and a lifelong advocate for victims of crime. In nearly a decade as circuit court judge, she has earned the respect of the community, developing a reputation for being fair and impartial." (snip) "Our system works because the law is predictable. You can read the constitution, the statutes, and case law, and know what to expect, but as we can see on an almost-daily basis, our most closely-held constitutional rights are under attack by radical right-wing extremists,"... (snip) "The Honorable Reverend Everett Mitchell was elected to the Dane County Circuit Court and presides over the Juvenile Division in Branch Four. As a juvenile court judge he hears cases involving family reunification, juvenile delinquency, and other civil and criminal proceedings. He also oversees Dane County's High Risk Drug Court Program," reads the biographical language. "During his tenure on the bench, Judge Mitchell has worked with colleagues to change courtroom policies to reflect trauma-informed practices, such as removing restraints and handcuffs on youth during hearings. He joined several judges in petitioning the Wisconsin Supreme Court to support changing the presumption to ensure that children in Wisconsin can attend their court hearings without restraints and handcuffs." Though these elections are ostensibly non-partisan it is obvious to everyone involved that they are not... The Associate Press The winner of the April 4 election will determine whether the court remains under control of conservative justices or flips to a liberal majority. Everything from redistricting to abortion rights to election laws heading into the 2024 presidential election and after in the swing state could be determined by the court. The court has the final word on hotly contested issues in the state because of conflicts between Democratic Gov. Tony Evers and the Republican-controlled Legislature. The court has overwhelmingly sided with Republicans on major policy issues over the past decade-plus. (snip) Wisconsin’s 1849 law banning nearly all abortions went into effect last year after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 ruling that established a nationwide right to abortion. Wisconsin’s Democratic attorney general and governor are suing to overturn the state law, a case that could make its way to the Wisconsin Supreme Court after the new justice is sworn in in August. As you can see, the stakes couldn’t be any higher… I’m not sure what more I can do. I’m not exactly sure what it is that I want you to do. Mostly I’m just hoping you notice and maybe give a shit… It’s taken Wisconsin 12 years to claw our way back from the fallout of 2010. We’ve got ourselves a fine Democratic Governor in Tony Evers and we pulled our weight by swinging to Joe Biden in 2020. The results of this Supreme Court Election may have repercussions in late 2024 if the last Presidential Election is any indication. The Primary is this Tuesday, February 21st... The two candidates who receive the most votes will move on to the General Election on Tuesday, April 4th… This is not the last you will hear from me before then… In the meantime GOTV, canvass, donate, write postcards, make phone calls, tell your friends, tell your neighbors, and wish us the best of luck! [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/2/18/2153620/-I-m-hesitant-to-write-this-because-I-might-be-wasting-my-time-but-this-is-very-important-to-me Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/