What’s next for Wisconsin Act 10? June 20th, 2011 By Patti Wenzel

If you thought the battle of Wisconsin Act 10 was over when the Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled that the legislature had not violated the state’s open meetings law, then you haven’t been paying attention.
That lawsuit was just the opening salvo in the union and Democrats’ attempts to overturn the legislation and save collective bargaining for the majority of public employees in the state. Suing on the basis that the Joint Committee of Conference violated the public’s right to notice and access to a March 9 meeting was a long shot – the Legislature always had their own rules and separation of powers card to play – but the the suit went forward and has now played itself out.

 That is the lead in to the story ... click title to get to the Third Coast Digest.

Keeping Track of Open Meetings and Walker 4/13 PRWatch.org

In Newsmax Interview, Walker Misleads on Administration's Legal Support for GOP Legislators Submitted by Brendan Fischer on April 13, 2011

From the source -

Despite Walker's faith in the conduct of fellow Wisconsin Republicans, his legal team is not contending that GOP legislators followed the law, but only that violations of that law be enforced more leniently. In its petition to the Supreme Court, not once does Walker's Administration argue that Republican legislators acted lawfully.

Walker's petition focuses on three issues, claiming (1) that breaking an Open Meetings law is a "procedural violation" that cannot be punished through voiding a legislative act, (2) that a court does not have jurisdiction to prevent a bill from becoming law (even if it may have authority to void a law once enacted), and (3) that the Act is published and is now law, meaning Sumi's order has no relevance. The brief also questions whether the District Attorney can sue to invalidate a statute, and whether Judge Sumi could enter an order considering defendants' legislative immunity. Significantly, the petition does not discuss whether legislative notice rules can override Open Meetings laws (which, if argued, could have implied legislators acted lawfully).

Arp Upd - Milwaukee County DA, state board schedule news conference on 'significant investigation' By Meg Jones of the Journal Sentinel 4/10

Click on Title - Has to be about Supreme Court Race ... drama until then!

Even more drama ... news3jessica Jessica Arp ... says Kennedy says it's about something else ... hot fingers and an extensive telephone directory ... so like I said even more drama ... 

Obviously Milwaukee County is not Waukesha County ... one can hope! 

NYTimes: Vote-Counting Error In Wisconsin Points to Incompetence, Not Conspiracy

By Nate Silver -- 538 Column

When Kathy Nickolaus, the county clerk in Waukesha County, Wisconsin, spoke to the press on Thursday after revealing that she had failed to count more than 14,000 ballots in the hotly contested state supreme court election, one might have expected her to offer her resignation.

JSOnline made similar remarks ...  

JoAnne Kloppenburg Supreme Court Nominee Election Night, Mad 4/5

Do you think the Koch is cold enough?

Upd. Maybe NOT! - Whew! Kloppenburg wins! Let the RECOUNT begin! 4/6 Still Not Official 12:30pm

Supreme Court - INDEX Rev 4/7/2011  

4/7 Upd: AP reports Winnebago County found 250 uncounted votes ... new totals on County web site ... be prepared ... GAB Kennedy warned that numbers would change ... Kloppenburg now behind ... but we have to wait for all 72 counties to certify their results!

WisPolitics.com seems to have the best handle on this ... follow them - seems they are keeping this up to date -Spring Election
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Lake Mills unofficial tallies being tweeted ...

Town of Lake Mills Prosser 366 Kloppenburg 364... an UNOFFICIAL count. Plus about 40 with write-ins.

AP Totals w/o Lake Mills -

State wide Precincts 3629/3630 Prosser 739,354 Kloppenburg 739,589

So the lead should stand sufficient!!!

Super Hero Strategist or Wisconsin’s Chief Injustice 4/1/2011 LOL

4/4 Upd: Someone suggested to me that Bolduc provide a similar expose on the Justices Scalia and Thomas ... where and how they spend their time, speaking engagements and fees and stipends!   Oh!  Don't forget to report on how well they comply with filing disclosure forms.

Inside the Chamber of theWiscosnin Supreme Court - Crop / Download

Interesting? Can A Bird Fly With Only A Right Wing?! Flapping 

Just a collection point for various points of view to indicate why we want birds to have two wings!!

Wisconsin’s Chief Injustice - National Review Online 4/1

The author is clearly unhappy with Chief Justice Abrahamson.  He seems to suggest that she has been in charge of Governor Scott Walker's political strategy - to destroy collective bargaining and unions in the process - just so she can get another "activist" on the Wisconsin Supreme Court.  As they say on  the net - LOL.

From the source -

But behind Prosser’s travails lie not only enraged state-employee unions, but also a wily chief justice, who is “maneuvering to get the court back to a liberal majority,” a source tells National Review Online.

 Is being called wily by Bolduc better than being called b***h by Prosser?

Supreme Court - INDEX Rev 4/2/2011

WI 3/29pm Upd - Polling tight in Wisconsin Supreme Court campaign from Daily Kos

Another analysis from JSOnline :
Another "perfect storm": A state Supreme Court race in the grip of external forces 3/29
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Click on Title for article -

Almost more like a rumor but ... from the article ... 3/28

The sources are anonymous, the specific numbers are not released, and the author clearly has an agenda, so take this with a big helping of salt. Even so, it's a decent indication that the Wisconsin Supreme Court campaign will not be a cakewalk for former Republican state Assembly Leader David Prosser. That's pretty surprising, since Republicans swept the state just four month ago and since this is likely to be a very low turnout election.

National Review as also referenced in the article ...

Wisconsin Fight Goes to Court And Walker’s big win could ride on a single judicial election. 3/28

The Greater Wisconsin Committee, a leftist organizing group with deep union ties, has funneled $3 million into anti-Prosser advertising, taking relentlessly to the airwaves. “They are the Left’s biggest political player in the state,” says Brett Healy, the president of the MacIver Institute, a Wisconsin-based think tank. “They run the ads that no one else wants to run.

Indeed. The GWC is airing ads that tie Prosser to the budget bill. “Prosser equals Walker” is the usual theme.

The above quote is from NR by Daily Kos.  To be fair and balanced the MacIver Institute has been labeled by some as a right-wing think tank

WI 3/28 upd pm - 20 percent turnout expected for state's April election - WisSJ

Click on Title for full WSJ article - here is the first paragraph!

MADISON - Even though there seems to be extra interest in the upcoming state Supreme Court race, the Wisconsin Government Accountability Board is predicting a typical level of voter turnout.

 ____________________________________
After reading that it seemed time to re-post the following from this blog - March 11, 2011
[If you use the "Search Wide" with "supreme" you will see other blog entries.]

Wisconsin April 5th 2011: Supreme Complacency?

The following article is just one of the best I have read and encourage you to read it as well -

Supremely Relevant: Prosser vs Kloppenburg by Bill Lueders, Isthmus

(my comments)

In 2006 there were 831,567 votes cast in the Supreme Court Election. In 2008 there were 827,899 votes cast (see WI GAB for all numbers mentioned plus my arithmetic) for the Supreme Court Election.
 
Michael Gableman got 425,101 votes and sitting Justice Louis Butler got 402,798 votes - 51.19% to 48.50%.  In the previous Governor's election the following numbers apply -

Wisconsin Voter Turnout 11/2010      49.56%    2,160,832    
VAP   4,330,695

(Source: WI GAB – VAP … Voting Age Population)

In the Presidential Election in 2008 -

         Wisconsin Voter Turnout 11/2008      69.20%    2,996,869    
         VAP  ~4,370,000 (Source: Wi GAB)

Need I say more?

 Why Vote - Redux!

WI - Upd3/26 - Supreme Politics - Kloppenburg vs Prosser 3/22 in Milwaukee

 3/26 Saturday Morning
There was a debate last night - anybody change their mind? 


There he goes again -

Prosser calls Kloppenburg an 'ideologue' from JSOnline 

‎Probably what he should have called Chief Justice Abrahamson instead of B****!
_____________________________________
3/25 : Another perspective Walker, budget television ads top $300,000

Written by Kathleen Foody  Wausau Daily

____________________________________________
WisPolitics.com - click the Title to see the atrticle!

Almost a comedy script ...  do you think JoAnne Kloppenburg can prevent someone of her Facebook friends from writing that Prosser or the Governor is a "turd"?  In the exercise of free speech how does that compare with him calling the Wisconsin Supreme Court Chief Justice a "b**ch"!

Related ... WI - Justice is a five letter word ... Prosser VS Kloppenburg

From the source - at least it rhymes :

“It says, 'Stop the turd, vote Kloppenburg,'” he said. "Am I the turd or is the governor the turd?"

Kloppenburg defended the Facebook page, saying she was not responsible for what others post there.

 Another voice from the Isthmus:
Emily's Post: David Prosser's poor temperament, Scott Walker's blatant hypocrisy by Emily Mills 

Update: 3/23
Enraged by Walker, activists put Kloppenburg’s Supreme Court campaign on their shoulders

WI - Justice is a five letter word ... Prosser VS Abrahamson - Vote April 5th

Update: The February date was mistyped as 2011.

Almost missed this one ... incident 2/10/2010 reported 3/19/2011 in JSOnline.  Prosser thinks this is being released to embarrass him and hurt him politically!  Gee ... you think so!  Character / reserve / control / judgment all seem like relevant criteria for choosing a Supreme Court Justice!  See - did not even mention Prosser's real opponent ;-}


Click on the title (above) to find out which "four/five letter word" Prosser used in describing the Chief Justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court!

Wisconsin April 5th 2011: Supreme Complacency?

Even Assembly Minority Leader Representative Peter Barca was able to keep his cool when Republicans were ignoring Open Meetings Law!