Wisconsin Right Now

Wisconsin’s next Supreme Court race could be even more contentious and even more expensive than the last one. Liberal Justice Anne Walsh Bradley surprised the state on Thursday when she announced she would not run for re-election next year. "My decision has not come lightly. It is made after careful consideration and reflection. I know I can do the job and do it well. I know I can win re-election, should I run. But it's just time to pass the torch, bring fresh perspectives to the court," Walsh Bradley said in a statement. She is one of Wisconsin’s longest-serving justices, serving her third 10-year term on the court. She wrote, “In the 177-year history of the court, only four justices have served longer than my length of service.” Walsh Bradley’s decision means the next election will be open. Former Republican attorney general, and current Waukesha County judge, Brad Schimel has already jumped into the race. There aren’t any declared Democrats yet. Schimel...

The next legal fight over whether someone has to belong to a group as a condition to do their job may be coming to a courtroom soon. The Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty on Monday asked the United State Supreme Court to take once again a look at mandatory bar membership in the state. “For far too long, this Court’s precedents have allowed States to put attorneys to the choice of either losing their ability to earn a living in their profession or associating with and funding opinions with which they disagree,” WILL argued in its amicus brief. WILL is calling the challenge a First Amendment case. [caption id="attachment_94848" align="alignleft" width="189"] ANTHONY LOCOCO Deputy Counsel[/caption] “Forcing objecting attorneys to join and fund an organization that engages in speech with which they disagree is contrary to fundamental values of free speech and free association,” WILL Deputy Counsel Anthony LoCoco, said. “If the State Bar wants ...

The next four years at the Wisconsin Capitol are likely to be the same as the last four years. Governor Evers took the governor's mansion. The Republicans held on to the legislature but fell just short of a supermajority. That means the same kind of split government that Wisconsin has seen for the past four years. “Republicans won't have a supermajority in the state Assembly. Gov. Evers' veto pen is secure,” Wisconsin Democratic Party boss Ben Wikler said on Twitter after Tuesday’s election. Republicans needed to flip one seat in the State Senate to get to a supermajority, they did that by winning Democratic Senate Minority Leader Janet Bewley’s seat in far northwestern Wisconsin. She didn’t run again. Republicans needed to take five seats in the Assembly in order to get a supermajority there. They grabbed three seats. The top Democrat in the Assembly, Rep. Greta Neubauer, said stopping a Republican supermajority is something to celebrate. “With the governor’s...

“In one of the more bold acts of cynicism I've seen in awhile, WI Republicans have scheduled a hearing for their terrible, discriminatory medical cannabis bill – for 4/20 of all days,” - Sen. Chris Larson Next week’s hearing on a medical marijuana program for the state has already upset many of the Democrats at the Wisconsin Capitol who’ve pushed for legal marijuana in the state for years. The Senate Committee on Insurance, Licensing and Forestry on Monday scheduled a  medical marijuana hearing for SB 1034 , which would open a path for Wisconsin to treat marijuana as medicine. That hearing is scheduled for next Wednesday, April 20th. “In one of the more bold acts of cynicism I've seen in awhile, WI Republicans have scheduled a hearing for their terrible, discriminatory medical cannabis bill – for 4/20 of all days,” Sen. Chris Larson , D-Milwaukee, said on Twitter on Monday. 420 has been part of marijuana lore for years. Larson is not alone in failing to find any hum...