Here’s a link to the story about rank(ing) Judiciary Committee Member Sen. Jeff Session (R-Asshole, er…Alabama) that lays out his long career of racism. In fact, he was such a known racist that he was rejected by the U.S. Senate for a judgeship that Ronald Reagan nominted him for. http://www.tnr.com/politics/story.html?id=8dd230f6-355f-4362-89cc-2c756b9d8102 Just a couple of the […]
Once again, the dependable corporate lapdogs on the Wisconsin Supreme Court bought and paid for by Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce come through in the clutch for corporate interests. Justices Mike Gableman and Annette Ziegler, beneficiaries of millions of dollars in spending from WMC during their run for the Supreme Court, ruled yesterday that owners of […]
In April 2008, One Wisconsin Now requested Ashland County District Attorney Sean Duffy investigate allegations that Mike Gableman, while serving as Ashland District Attorney, made illegal fundraising calls from his state office for then-Gov. Scott McCallum. As the DA where the alleged violations took place, Duffy’s office would be the most logical place for the […]
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Monday that Wisconsin Justices Annette Ziegler and Michael Gableman must disqualify themselves from hearing any cases involving Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce. That is an oversimplification, but not by much. Here is how the NY Times summarized the decision in a front page story today: Elected judges must disqualify themselves from […]
Maybe pressure from the public kept Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce on the sidelines in the spring Supreme Court race. Perhaps a new progressive majority at the Capitol forced WMC to ‘reassess’ its pro-corporate, anti-worker lobbying efforts. Or maybe the corporate titans at WMC were just biding time, saving their money, energy and whatever modicum of […]
MADISON, Wis. — The judicial ethics of Jefferson County Judge Randy Koschnick are under fire after breaking his own clean campaign pledge by attacking Supreme Court Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson in a television advertisement with several dubious claims. “It’s telling about his ethics that Randy Koschnick has broken his own clean campaign pledge,” said Scot […]
Ever wonder where Randy Koschnick’s campaign gets the funny numbers it uses in its bogus claims about Shirley Abrahamson’s record? Now it can be told, thanks to the latest campaign finance report Koschnick filed with the Government Accountability Board. Koshnick has gone to Ms. New Math herself — Jessica McBride Bucher. She can be relied […]
Randy Koschnick today broke his clean campaign pledge in rip-roarin’ style, attacking Supreme Court Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson in a 30 second TV ad, that for now, is only available on the “internets.” Judicial integrity and ethics are critical for Wisconsin’s courts and Koschnick’s ad is the latest in a series of half-truths and distortions […]
The last debate is over, and you have to say one thing for Randy Koschnick: He’s consistent. There’s another thing you can say, too. With him on the Supreme Court, you can forget about those pesky checks and balances. What the legislature wants, the legislature gets. His message in the final debate had a familiar […]
If Randy Koschnick is one thing, he’s consistent. Time and time again, he has grossly distorted Chief Justice Abrahamson’s record. Fortunately, we here at OWN are willing to do the due diligence and research that Koschnick has no interest in doing. Randy Koschnick has claimed over and over again that Chief Justice Abrahamson ‘sides with […]
MADISON, Wis. — A painstaking analysis by One Wisconsin Now of more than 4,000 decisions made by the Wisconsin Supreme Court during the current term of Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson proves Jefferson County Judge Randy Koschnick has misrepresented Abrahamson’s record. A full accounting of her decision making shows the Chief Justice has supported the state’s […]
Now that the Republicans have opened the MacIver Institute, One Wisconsin Now thought it might be good for the media to have information on exactly who the leaders of this Republican operation are.
Judge Randy Koschnick, would-be Supreme Court member, defends his willingness to try to get killer Ted Oswald off, while working as a public defender, by saying that Paul Bucher, then Waukesha County DA, who prosecuted the case, said Koschnick did a great job and has endorsed him. That’s certainly not what Bucher said at the […]
Judicial ethics are essential in Wisconsin. Jefferson County Judge Randy Koschnick has made the claim Wisconsin Supreme Court Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson sides with criminals 60 percent of the time. While a number of media outlets have reported this phantom figure, Koschnick has refused to adequately explain what this number represents or how he arrived […]
Jefferson County Judge Randy Koschnick had a higher reversal rate in 2008 than three quarters of all other circuit court judges.
A critical piece of legislation that would protect workers all across the state is up for a vote in the WI State Senate, and we need your help. The Employee Wage Protection Act, Senate Bill 2, would put workers first in the event a business closes or goes bankrupt. In these tough times, it’s more […]
As an organization that believes everybody has a right to their day in court, One Wisconsin Now is keenly aware that Wisconsin conservatives have championed the smearing of defense attorneys and the erosion of the rights of the accused. Ask former Supreme Court Justice Louis Butler, the subject of millions of dollars worth of attacks […]
After the first Supreme Court debate, Randy Koschnick’s right-hand-sleaze-man Seamus Flaherty set the tone for the coming public debate on the Supreme Court: more lies, more mistruths, more distortions. During the debate, Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson pointed out the Judge Koschnick was incorrect in stating the Wisconsin was the only state in which a decision […]
There’s an old political term you may have heard, called “waving the bloody shirt.” There are multiple theories about its origins, but it usually refers to a politician using images of past violence to stir up the electorate’s prejudices and win support. The word demagogue is often used in connection with it. Which brings us […]
MADISON, Wis. — Jefferson County Judge Randy Koschnick’s criticism of the Wisconsin Supreme Court for overruling him on evidence in the murder trial of Matthew J. Knapp, conveniently ignores that Koschnick ruled in the same case to exclude an essential piece of evidence which subsequently convicted Knapp – two pairs of the murderer’s shoes stained […]
MADISON, Wis. — One Wisconsin Now said a laughable attack by Rep. Steve Nass (R-Whitewater) against the University of Wisconsin and Supreme Court Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson may constitute an illegal use of taxpayer funds given Nass failed to attack his own Republican Party of Wisconsin for doing the exact same thing just last August. […]
MADISON, Wis. — Citizens from across Wisconsin are calling for state Supreme Court Justices Annette Ziegler and Mike Gableman to recuse themselves from a case favored by Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce, the big-business lobby which spent over $4 million during their campaigns. Today, One Wisconsin Now delivered 1,200 petitions to both Justices, signed by citizens […]
University of Wisconsin-obsessed Rep. Steve Nass (R-Whitewater) launched a laughable attack yesterday against the UW and Supreme Court Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson because an internship with Abrahamson’s campaign was on the UW Law School website. Nass said this was misuse of taxpayer funds and by god, he wants justice. He wants answers. Funny, but we […]
Mike McCabe of the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign isn’t one to let the facts spoil a good story when he’s on a crusade for his version of clean politics. Case in point: The Badger Herald’s upbeat story, headlined, “Candidates to run cleaner Supreme Court race,” which says: After the negative tone of last election, during which […]
Less than 12 hours after OWN asked concerned citizens to demand WMC-backed Justices Gableman and Ziegler recuse from the Virnich and Moores case, over 700 petitioners saw the obvious conflict of interest and signed the OWN petition. (If you haven’t signed the petition yet, join the party here!) Having previously been part of the Virnich […]
Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson’s opponent, Jefferson County Circuit Judge Randy Koschnick, had barely filed his nomination petitions when he began pressing the flesh — at a gun show in LaCrosse. Koschnick told WXOW-TV the gun show gave him a chance to meet voters. It was such a good chance he campaigned there two days in […]
The headline reads “Case could rewrite corporate law in Wisconsin” and arguments before the Wisconsin State Supreme Court begin this week. Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce has already made it known how it would like the Wisconsin Supreme Court to rule. And who can forget the millions of dollars WMC spent supporting corporate-friendly and ethically-challenged judges […]
Yesterday, in this space, we took a very tiny poke at Rick Esenberg, Esquire, after WisPolitics announced Atty. Essenberg was not a candidate for the State Supreme Court. We observed that for someone to get elected to the high court some time on the bench, somewhere, has been almost mandatory. And Esenberg has never been […]
From WisPolitics: Marquette University law professor Rick Esenberg has decided not to jump into this spring’s state Supreme Court race. Esenberg, who also writes the blog “Shark and Shepherd,” said he was approached about a run but decided against it. Jefferson County Judge Randy Koschnick is the only candidate to announce that he will challenge […]
Jefferson County Judge Randy Koschnick wants to take a seat on the Wisconsin Supreme Court but does he plan to bring the same dissension to Madison that he has fostered in Jefferson? A report in the Captial Times Tuesday reveals a lot about Randy Koschnick. It is based on the comments of his fellow Jefferson […]
The slime machine behind the infamous and racist Mike Gableman ‘Willie Horton’ ad has a new benefactor ‘ Jefferson County Judge Randy Koschnick. Darrin Schmitz, who continues to serve as a Gableman mouthpiece on the numerous on-going ethics investigations of the newest Supreme Court Justice, was the first to let reporters know Koschnick was gearing […]
That slimy commercial that Michael Gableman ran against Louis Butler in the Supreme Court race — the one roundly condemned as false and racist? It was simply a matter of the script being “poorly worded.” That’s what Jessica McBride says, and she should know. More here.
Two conservative groups trashing Democrat Trish O’Neil with an onslaught of inaccurate and racist ads have curiously ignored her Republican opponent, who told a video interviewer the plan was “great.”
Earlier this year marked the first time that a sitting Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice was disciplined by her own colleagues on the court. Now, only months after Annette Ziegler received a reprimand, the state Judicial Commission has filed a complaint against Michael Gableman, the empty suit that WMC helped install on the high court in April. […]
On Sunday the Wisconsin State Journal reported that Wisconsin’s largest lobbying organization, Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce (WMC) may be rethinking the tone of their infamous political ads. Who could ever forget the sleazy and misleading ads that they have run, most notably in their state Supreme Court efforts to install empty suit Michael Gableman while […]
Less than a month after sending out a blustery press release complaining about an advertising purchase by the Wisconsin Education Association Council, the Republican Party of Wisconsin is strangely silent now that the reliably inaccurate Coalition for American’s Families has reserved almost $900,000 for television ads on Eau Claire, La Crosse and Green Bay television. […]
MILWAUKEE — Less than a month after a blustery press release complaining about an advertising purchase by the Wisconsin Education Association Council, the Republican Party of Wisconsin is strangely silent now that the reliably inaccurate Coalition for American’s Families has reserved almost $900,000 for television ads on Eau Claire, La Crosse and Green Bay television. […]
How comical is that the Wisconsin representative to the so-called ‘Palin Truth Squad’ is Margaret Farrow? The ‘Squad’ presumably will criticize anyone who brings up Sarah Palin’s ethics scandal, truth bending, right-wing extremism and revisionist history. Or those who point out that Palin refuses to talk to reporters and won’t answer questions. This is a […]
The staff and leadership of Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce (WMC) have proven that they are drunk with partisanship. The only hope is for both the rank and file and higher profile members to have a long overdue intervention. The long list of events over the last several months should finally inspire the legitimate business interests […]
Pro-corporate soulmate Supremes Mike Gableman and Annette Ziegler get closer by the day. The latest revelation, Gableman’s going to pull a Ziegler and rule on cases where Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce is involved ‘ despite WMC dumping nearly $2 million during his run to get on the high court. Ziegler earned front page headlines after […]
From the legislator who brought the great state of Wisconsin a plan to arm teachers with guns in an effort to curb school violence (you all remember his hilarious appearance on the Daily Show about 2 years ago’¦), comes another idea worthy of all kinds of jokes and ridicule ‘ lifting a ban on drilling […]
The issue of religion in the United States has always been one the Supreme Court has been quick to avoid. We can hardly blame them; it’s perhaps the most contentious political topic this nation faces. However, it cannot continually be avoided, and so here in Wisconsin is a case involving a man named Gary Kazmarek. […]
WMC has launched a (multi-)million dollar fundraising campaign to its members to finance continued issue-based smear campaigns against progressives who don’t kow-tow to WMC’s pro-corporate, anti-worker agenda. We all know WMC has distorted the records of numerous public officials over the years, most notably in recent efforts to get the ethically-challenged Mike Gableman and Annette Ziegler […]
My pal Bill Kraus at Common Cause in Wisconsin decided to take a poke at OWN yesterday on the FightingBob.com blog for our efforts advancing progressive values, ideas and policies to ensure a Wisconsin with equal economic opportunity for all. Bill has a long and admirable career of doing what he thinks is best to make […]
Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce's $2 million investment in Annette Ziegler has turned around a quick $265 million return for business - an extraordinary deal given today's economy.
On Thursday One Wisconsin Now filed a complaint against Michael Gableman with the state Office of Lawyer Regulation. The complaint centers around dozens of telephone calls that Gableman made as the Ashland County District Attorney, using state phones. These calls were made to Republican operatives, fundraisers, campaigns and even the Republican Party itself. The calls […]
In a 4-3 decision the Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled against the State of Wisconsin in the Department of Revenue v. Menasha Corporation case. Of all people, ethically challenged Justice Annette Ziegler wrote the majority opinion. Last year hundreds of Wisconsinites called for her to recuse herself from the case because it was a major priority […]
After asking three separate law enforcement agencies and the Government Accountability Board to investigate questionable calls made by then-Ashland County District Attorney Michael Gableman, One Wisconsin Now has filed a complaint with the state Office of Lawyer Regulation (OLR). Months ago, One Wisconsin Now discovered that Michael Gableman made many questionable calls, when he was […]
We are asking OLR to investigate because two district attorneys, the Attorney General and the Government Accountability Office have been unwilling to look further into this matter.
United State Senator Jesse Helms (R-What’s Wrong With You Sick, Frothing Morons?) is finally dead. Happy birthday, U.S. of A. Helms was a hate-slathered cretin, whose campaigns and governing showed American democracy at its worst. “White people, wake up before it is too late. Do you want Negroes working beside you, your wife and your daughters, […]