Most Popular Choices
Share on Facebook Printer Friendly Page More Sharing
Exclusive to OpEd News:
General News   

Rovian Beats Dem in Wis Supreme Court Win

By       (Page 1 of 1 pages)   No comments
Message Michael Leon

Madison, Wisconsin— Judge Annette Ziegler beat back Attorney Linda Clifford in a Wisconsin Supreme Court election Tuesday. 

The ostensibly non-partisan race was, in fact, a highly partisan affair pitting right-wing groups and ideologies represented by the Club for Growth, Wisconsin Right to Life, Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce and the Federalist Society and the Republican party against progressive labor, pro-choice, democrats and moderate Republicans. 

The race was extraordinary because the democrat Clifford ran no TV ads before the Feb. 20 primary and needed to dig herself out of a deep name-recognition and message hole, a money-saving measure that drew criticism as an unwise campaign tactic. 

Bloggers and Press

Most democrats had given up hope on Clifford’s candidacy until early March (advancing the story broken by One Wisconsin Now Action and blogger Jay Bullock), the Madison-based Wisconsin State Journal published a devastating series of articles (written by Dee Hall and Ed Treleven) detailing the Republican Judge Ziegler’s presiding over dozens of cases where she neglected to disclose conflicts of interest, in blatant violation of Supreme Court rules. 

The Ziegler campaign’s explanations ranging from her conducting an internal "gut check" in the disputed cases, deriding the rules as “big city thinking,” to stonewalling drew widespread scorn from newspapers across Wisconsin including those in major population centers such as Milwaukee, Madison, Appleton, Wausau and Kenosha, among other municipalities. 

“The case against electing Washington County Circuit Judge Annette Ziegler is now so clear, so compelling and so urgent as to disqualify her from serious consideration in the race for state Supreme Court,“ wrote the Madison-based Capital Times. 

Ziegler Victory 

The Ziegler campaign, beyond the sheer volume of third-party money poured into the race, out-campaigned Clifford with the message “experience and protection” versus “inexperience.” 

The race also featured racist immigrant-bashing, and now the unusual spectacle of an elected judge sure to face sanctions for running a corrupt circuit court. 

The Ziegler victory continues a virtual tie on the seven-member Wisconsin high court dedicated to the rule-of-law versus a faction doing the bidding of corporate interests and social right-wingers.

###

Rate It | View Ratings

Michael Leon Social Media Pages: Facebook page url on login Profile not filled in       Twitter page url on login Profile not filled in       Linkedin page url on login Profile not filled in       Instagram page url on login Profile not filled in

Michael Leon is a writer living in Madison, Wisconsin. His writing has appeared nationally in The Progressive, In These Times, and CounterPunch. He can be reached at maleon64@yahoo.com.
Go To Commenting
The views expressed herein are the sole responsibility of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of this website or its editors.
Writers Guidelines

 
Contact EditorContact Editor
Support OpEdNews

OpEdNews depends upon can't survive without your help.

If you value this article and the work of OpEdNews, please either Donate or Purchase a premium membership.

STAY IN THE KNOW
If you've enjoyed this, sign up for our daily or weekly newsletter to get lots of great progressive content.
Daily Weekly     OpEd News Newsletter
Name
Email
   (Opens new browser window)
 

Most Popular Articles by this Author:     (View All Most Popular Articles by this Author)

Hector Jordan - Trail-blazing Hispanic Hero

Oliver Stone's Vital World Trade Center

Ray Nitschke and Bush's Iraq-Vietnam Speech

VA Document Contradicts US Atty in Jailed Vet Case

Gov. Tommy Thompson Is No Moderate on Iraq

Rutgers Basketball-Politically Correct and Apolitical

To View Comments or Join the Conversation:

Tell A Friend