Weekend Reading

Hosting G-7 At Trump's Resort Is 'Profound' Emoluments Breach
Newly Uncovered Tax Documents Show Trump Kept 2 Sets Of Books And May Have Committed Financial Fraud
Andrew Yang Is Full Of It
GOP Group Uses Trump's Own Words On Corruption Against Him In Searing New Fox Ad
High Court Will Review Evers Veto Power
Private School Vouchers Cost $350 Million
Think Trump's Cruelty Is Unique? Meet Robin Vos
What Walker Cost Wisconsin

I Am So Tired Of Republicons

Wisconsin Supreme Court takes case challenging Gov. Tony Evers' vetoes

Three taxpayers represented by the conservative Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty asked the high court in July to take their challenge directly, without making them first go through the lower courts.

The court agreed to do so Wednesday, according online court records. A ruling is expected by summer.

The lawsuit argues Evers exceeded his authority by issuing vetoes that enact policies the Legislature hasn't endorsed. It's a practice that governors from both parties have engaged in for decades. The state Supreme Court has repeatedly sided with governors over the years, granting them extensive veto powers.

Wednesday's decision to take the new challenge means the high court is willing to at least consider whether it should reverse its long-standing precedents. Conservatives control the court 5-2.

The Wisconsin Institute For Law And Liberty [try not to laugh at the ridiculousness and outright misdirection of the organization's name] was formed in 2011.  What has taken them 8 years to challenge the governor's veto powers?  Oh, yeah, if a Republicon is doing the vetoing then it's fine.

The article explains, "Those bringing the lawsuit are asking the court to reverse vetoes that effectively rewrote parts of the budget written by Republicans who control the Legislature."

It continues, "Ordinarily the Supreme Court waits for cases to go through lower courts before taking a case. But Esenberg asked the justices to take the case immediately so that the case could be resolved quickly.  He acknowledged this summer that lower courts would have been required to side with Evers because of Supreme Court precedents. But the high court is free to rule on the case as it sees fit.  Esenberg is seeking to overturn precedents going back to 1935."

No need for a paper trail from the lower courts reiterating the precedent.  Much easier for the conservative State Supreme Court to agree to hear the case and pretend there's no history here to consider.

These Republicons are so slimy and corrupt.

Republicons have no problem ignoring precedent.  They have no problem wasting taxpayer time and money.  This is clearly self-serving, anti-democratic grandstanding.  Another attempt, like gerrymandering, at consolidating their power.

Wisconsin Reading

What A New Governor Means For Wisconsin's Controversial Foxconn Factory
As Soon As Scott Walker Lost, His Pet Legislators Started Stripping The Governor's Powers
GOP Assembly Speaker Robin Vos Threatens To Take Power Away From Tony Evers Before January
Will Republicans Steal Power From New Democratic Governors?
The States That Elected Trump Have Turned Against Him
How Labor Helped Bring Down Scott Walker And Bruce Rauner
Racism And The Wisconsin Idea
Court Strips Workers Of $10 Million Award
Did Scott Walker & Donald Trump Deal Away The Wisconsin Governor's Race To Foxconn?

The Lt. Governor Nobody Wanted

The Lt. Governor Nobody Wanted [excerpt]

When the results of the 2010 Republican primary for Lieutenant Governor came in, most GOP insiders were shocked at the results. Few expected Rebecca Kleefisch to win. The smart money was on Brett Davis, who was backed by much of the Republican establishment, including members of Scott Walker’s inner circle. But Kleefisch not only won, she crushed Davis, with 46 percent of the vote to his 26 percent; three other candidates split the rest of the vote. 

That left Walker with a problem he didn’t want. His top aide Keith Gilkes had declared that “we are not touching anything to do with Kleefisch,” calling her “radioactive,” in emails to then-Milwaukee County Executive Walker’s staff members (included in documents released from the John Doe investigation of Walker). Walker aide Kelly Rindfleisch dismissed Kleefisch as “fluff” and after she skipped one political forum, wrote “I hope she keeps missing them. And topples over on her high heels.” Said another Walker staffer, “I cannot see how anyone can take this woman seriously.” 

One Republican who worked on the Kleefisch campaign described her as a very weak candidate who was “not very smart… she would try to memorize facts.” 

Yet this is the person just a heartbeat away from the governor. Walker, who wants to run for president, has refused to promise he’d finish a four-term for governor, should he win reelection, so it’s possible Kleefisch could one day be called on to succeed him.

For Further Reading:
Fisching For Answers
Give Reality Back To Taxpayers

Drunken (?) Declarations: Here's Tommy!