"I've read all the arguments." — Sean Hannity, Fox "News"Hannity totally dissects Christopher Hitchens with unique and novel argumentation never before considered: Video embed by The Sconz.
After serving four years, voters had seen enough of his brand of judicial philosophy, making him the first sitting justice on the Wisconsin Supreme Court in four decades to lose a retention election last year.Conspicuously, none of those political Brainiacs is capable of extending their "theory" to an explanation of why Wisconsinites delivered 69 of the State's 72 counties this year to Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson, whose "brand of judicial philosophy" should be — by any of their own measures — even more repugnant to them, since she voted with Butler in every single decision which so greatly offends, and even authored one of the two that the WSJ mentions.
At his confirmation hearing this month, Mr. Butler was quick to make light of his double rejection by Wisconsin voters, telling the Senate Judiciary Committee that "After 16 years on the bench, I may be a better judge than a politician."This is a purely speculative partisan fantasy, and an ignorant one at that. If it's a "coded nod" at all, it's to the sleazy program of bottom feeding poli-ticks advanced by Michael Gableman and his supporters, which Louis Butler possessed the judiciousness (I know — what an unusual quality for a judge) and the plain common decency to resist.
Ahem. That's a coded nod to liberal groups like the George Soros-funded Justice at Stake that are trying to eliminate judicial elections.
In Ferdon v. Wisconsin Partners ...It's Wisconsin Patients. These characters can't even read a case caption, let alone engage the decision's other 178 pages, and we're supposed to extend to them a presumption of objective credibility?
One should be careful about defending character assassination. I’m not a lawyer. I don’t claim to know all the particulars of this case. But I don’t think either is necessary to conclude that the Gableman ad was despicable. How could anyone with a moral compass conclude otherwise? The fact that such brutalism has been mainstreamed into politics—and defended if not celebrated—demonstrates how badly the civic fabric is fraying. What a vile business our campaigns, even judicial campaigns, have become. Do you not think this corrodes the democratic spirit, makes voters cynical, and serves as a warning shot to citizens to not offer themselves up as candidates for fear their reputations will be destroyed in a lying 30-second commercial?Marc Eisen.
In all fairness, Psalm 109:8 says: "Let his days be few; and let another take his office." The rest of the Psalm is pretty scary, but the death threats aren't technically part of the specific verse they are citing. The bit about fatherless kids is 109:9.Yes, well, we'll be certain to retrieve that technicality the next time a Bibliolator fusses over The Word of God removed from context.
Critics of Holder's decision — mostly Republicans — have argued [sic] the trial will give Khalid Sheikh Mohammed a world stage to spout hateful rhetoric.Obama pledges successful prosecution, penalty phase — AP
"[Russ Feingold is] all over the place," said Mike Maistelman, a politically connected Democratic lawyer in Milwaukee. "You'll see him at ... pumpkin patches. The guy's everywhere."Wonder if he's been over to this one.
I think that the three judge panel's decision to recommend dismissal of ethics charges against Justice Michael Gableman is the right outcome. I doubt that we really want tribunals passing upon the truth and falsity of campaign speech — even for judges.*Really, what's the point of holding judges to any ethical standards at all, then? They're just politicians anyway (contra separation of powers doctrine, evidently the judiciary is just another political branch).
There has never really been a filibuster of a judicial nominee in the Senate until now, when our Democratic colleagues have decided to change the ground rules on confirmation. They have said so and done so openly, and seem to be little concerned that the Constitution may be violated in the process.So you'd never guess who led yesterday's failed attempt in the U.S. Senate at filibustering the nomination of Judge David F. Hamilton to the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals: the principled Jeff Sessions.— Sen. Jefferson Beauregard Sessions III** (R-AL), 07/25/03
The evidentiary error as found by both the Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court of Wisconsin is the "loophole" to which the Advertisement referred.Responsive Statement of Facts at 7, Wisconsin Judicial Commission v. Michael J. Gableman, No. 2008AP002458-J (Wis., April 1, 2009) (highly instructive scare quotes in original).
[The Supreme Court] found that the error had occurred in the trial court in the Mitchell case ...
That Justice Gableman agonized over running the ad before deciding to run it certainly could support an inference that he did not believe it was false. — law professor Rick EsenbergThese bland apologetics are just laughable. Gableman is hardly that dumb. Moreover, one of the three-judge panel's unanimous findings was that Gableman's ethics violations were committed knowingly.
State Rep. Mark Gundrum (R-New Berlin) said Friday that he is running for Waukesha County circuit judge and will challenge incumbent Judge Richard Congdon in the April 10 election.Gundrum in a cakewalk.
Judge Congdon was appointed to the bench in January, 2009 by Democratic Gov. Jim Doyle.
Of course it is. That's how he's going to win. And it's how Randy Koschnick scored 60% of the vote in Waukesha County last April.Gundrum said he would be a judge who would follow the rule of law and not impose his own views.However, in the very next paragraph:"I think it would be good to have a person with a solid conservative view of the law in there," Gundrum said.Uh, that sounds like politician double-speak.
LARRY KING: S.E. Cupp [Who he? — ed.], what do you think of this phenomenon?And the "unstoppable" Sarah Palin had no apparent objections to acting like one. Indeed, it was an opportunity completely embraced.
S.E. CUPP, CONSERVATIVE COLUMNIST: I think she's unstoppable. I think Oprah missed a real opportunity here. Only five minutes in she started asking about Bristol and then it was on to her clothes and Levi. I think she was treating her like some tawdry, sleazy kind of Jerry Springer guest.
'Twas a pitiful sight to see the once-mighty Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel so snubbed.The always entertaining and informative.
Typical, take something out of context to attack someone you do not agree with.Irony — It's dead, dead, dead as a doornail 'round those parts.
Daniel J. Acker's mother told authorities Acker was visiting Walt Disney World ...Whoops. That would be a child sex offender no-no.
which Acker denied Monday during a bail hearing before telling the presiding judge that he stayed in Florida with a male friend in his 40s, and that he spent that time sunning, playing his guitar and relaxing.Acker pleaded no contest to two counts of second degree sexual assault of a child. Three additional charges of child enticement were dismissed but "read-in," which means that while not an admission of guilt, the judge can take them into consideration for sentencing.
Once Wis. Stat. § 973.20(1g)(b)'s definition of "read-in crimes" is considered, not in isolation but together with this surrounding statutory language, a plain reading of § 973.20 in its full context clearly indicates that by agreeing to a read-in, a defendant agrees to have his or her criminal conduct considered at sentencing, not just to have some words, devoid of such context and meaning, read out loud by a court. It is further clear that a defendant's agreement that his or her criminal conduct is to be considered must logically entail an implicit admission by the defendant that such criminal conduct by the defendant exists.State v. Straszkowski, 2008 WI 65, ¶111 (Butler, J., concurring) (emphases in original).
Chris Matthews: Where did KSM go to college?Wouldn't you know, Rep. Judy Biggert (R-IL) went to Stanford and Northwestern, the latter being one of the top ten law schools in the country (Harvard being another). Glib, idiotic "elitist" card play FAIL.
Rep. Judy Biggert (R-IL): Probably Harvard.
Andrew Sullivan: 4.16 pm. There is no journalism being committed here. As I suspected.lol - He can't possibly be serious. It's frickin' Oprah, not Frontline.
Pastor Ted Haggard said he has more compassion for gays because of his trials in recent years.The only impressive thing about this character is his denial.
Being a couple of additional thoughts on last week's recommendation to the Wisconsin Supreme Court from a three-judge panel that charges of misconduct brought by the Wisconsin Judicial Commission against Michael Gableman should be summarily dismissed.*A candidate for a judicial office shall not knowingly or with reckless disregard for the statement's truth or falsity misrepresent the identity, qualifications, present position, or other fact concerning the candidate or an opponent.
A candidate for judicial office should not knowingly make representations that, although true, are misleading, or knowingly make statements that are likely to confuse the public with respect to the proper role of judges and lawyers in the American adversary system.
Ah yes, thanks for the reminder.The life of the law has not been logic, it has been experience. — Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.
Certainly, it is not a true representation to imply through crafty sculpting of words that because Justice "Butler found a loophole[,] Mitchell went on to molest another child."(Brown v. Hartlage pits "demonstrable falsehoods" against "erroneous statement[s]," i.e., mistakes. Yet as Judge Fine himself points out in his footnote 4, this was no mere mistake, a finding of fact that all parties including ["apparently"] Michael Gableman acknowledge.)
The most sustained and vehement barbs in this book are directed not at Democrats or liberals or the press, but at the McCain campaign. The very campaign that plucked her out of Alaska, anointed her the Republican vice-presidential nominee and made her one of the most talked about women on the planet — someone who could command a reported $5 million for writing this book.Sarah Palin's erratic new memoir
PALIN: She says her team overseeing the development of a natural gas pipeline set up an open, competitive bidding process that allowed any company to compete for the right to build a 1,715-mile pipeline to bring natural gas from Alaska to the Lower 48.Like I said more than one year ago, before the AP investigation:
THE FACTS: Palin characterized the pipeline deal the same way before an AP investigation found her team crafted terms that favored only a few independent pipeline companies and ultimately benefited a company with ties to her administration, TransCanada Corp. Despite promises and legal guidance not to talk directly with potential bidders during the process, Palin had meetings or phone calls with nearly every major candidate, including TransCanada.
The Alaska legislature came up with the Alaska Gasline Inducement Act (AGIA), which is essentially a set of commercial and technical specifications, and TransCanada was the only company whose proposal was seriously considered, as TransCanada's proposal was the only one deemed initially in compliance with the AGIA.I still await my Pulitzer.
So there weren't any commensurate bids with which to compare to TransCanada's, at least according to the terms of the AGIA.
A librarian finally tracked down John Barrett, Milwaukee County clerk of circuit court. Word of the predicament eventually reached a maintenance worker, who unlocked the county clerk's office.Despite Walker's mandated furlough day, the pair will unite in traditional marriage at 1 p.m., thanks to the stalwart efforts of several dedicated county employees, AFSCME District Council 48.
You may not modify, copy, reproduce, republish, upload, post, transmit, or distribute in any way any material from this site including code and software without express permission from DickMorris.com or as permitted in Reprint Requests.Says so right here (although it doesn't really even need to).
Thank you for purchasing "One" by Metallica*h/t iTunes.
You might also like these recommendations
Raining Blood
Slayer
Madhouse
Anthrax
Jason Newsted's bass was purposely turned down on the album as a part of the continuous "hazing" he received, and his musical ideas were ignored.Nice guys.
In 1989, Metallica received its first Grammy Award nomination for ... And Justice for All, in the new Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance Vocal or Instrument category. Metallica was the favorite to win; however, the award was given to Jethro Tull.Well, alright then:
[Sarah Palin claims she] agreed to her disastrous interview with Katie Couric — a central event during Campaign 2008 — because a top McCain aide told her Couric had low self esteem, leading Palin to take pity on the CBS anchor."It's ridiculous."
Court cites unseemly use of eternal damnation threatsIt's Evangelism-business-as-usual. (Some may feel free to quibble over the exclusion of sex crimes, but I'm not quite that "militant.")
TEXARKANA, Ark. — Evangelist Tony Alamo used his stature as a self-proclaimed prophet to force underage girls into sham marriages with him, controlling his followers with their fears of eternal suffering.
Time shall unfold what plighted cunning hides;King Lear (I.i.284-86) (h/t Ralph Adam Fine).
Who covers faults, at last shame them derides.
Well may you prosper!
And he deliberately exercised it, according to Judge Ralph Adam Fine, who concludes that while Gableman did indeed violate the Wisconsin judicial ethics rule against telling lies about one's political opponent, that rule is an unconstitutional abridgment of speech.Gableman's lawyer, James Bopp, described the panel's recommendation as a complete vindication, the AP reported.Disgraceful.
Both Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama since failed in their Democratic bids to become President of Wisconsin.If there is one thing about Neumann’s latest publicity grab this sort of reminds me in last year’s Wisconsin Democratic Presidential Primary in which Hillary Clinton was desperate to get a debate against Barack Obama.
It ain’t no joke website here especially with me being named best blogger of the 2009 Americans for Prosperity National Defending the American Dream Summit. I competed with over 150 different blogs across the nation to win the award.The AFP's national bestest blogger is therewith attacking GOP gubernatorial candidate Mark Neumann on "career politician" grounds in defense of Neumann's rival Scott Walker. Mr. Walker's photograph appears in the dictionary under "career politician."
Walker has had ... 16 years experience as a public servant.h/t WisOpinion.com, whose standards slipped a notch yesterday.
The reason why Neumann is a career politician because he has spent four years with the party establishment against conservative values.
The next summer the soil, fertilised by twenty thousand corpses, broke forth into millions of poppies. The traveller who, on the road from Saint Tron to Tirlemont, saw that vast sheet of rich scarlet spreading from Landen to Neerwinden, could hardly help fancying that the figurative prediction of the Hebrew prophet was literally accomplished, that the earth was disclosing her blood, and refusing to cover the slain.In Flanders Fields
Laughter is a serious business, and comedy a weapon more dangerous than tragedy. Which is why tyrants treat it with caution. The actual material of tragedy is equally viable in comedy — unless you happen to be writing in English, when the question of taste occurs. The English are the most tasteless nation on earth, which is why they set such store by it.
Basic math says the Liberty Counsel has pulled in an estimated $300,000+, the Alliance Defense Fund an estimated $500,000+, and the American Family Association an estimated $600,000+ from selling their "War on Christmas" wares.Got a good scam going there. Praise the Lord.
Shortly after 9 p.m., the executioners will inject Mr. Muhammad with a series of chemicals, ending with a fatal dose of potassium chloride, according to prison officials.Governor Will Not Stay Sniper Execution
Tim Kaine, Virginia's first Roman Catholic governor, has openly expressed his faith-based opposition to capital punishment, but promised as a candidate in 2005 that he would carry out Virginia's death penalty law despite his beliefs.Mr. Muhammed, as the Times calls him, was a terrorist and capital punishment — like it or not — is pretty clearly authorized by both the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution.
If anything, [the "Impartial Justice" legislation] inhibits the ability of candidates to get their message out and it expands the influence of outside interests. That is exactly the opposite of reform and there is no way I could support that.And this abridging of speech is bound to be troublesome, particularly as it's exacerbated by the expansion of those outside influences.
Legislators and the governor are expected to respond to public opinion. It's the very nature of their jobs. But judges are not at all supposed to concern themselves with or respond to public opinion. Their job, plain and simple, is to interpret the law and to make rulings and decisions based on their interpretation of the law.Michael Ellis: Court campaign bill misses the mark
Your Obama Justice Department is on the loose again. This time they are [sic] asking for all visitors from a news website (a left of center one at that).
Under long-standing Justice Department guidelines, subpoenas to members of the news media are supposed to receive special treatment. One portion of the guidelines, for instance, says that "no subpoena may be issued to any member of the news media" without "the express authorization of the attorney general" — that would be current attorney general Eric Holder — and subpoenas should be "directed at material information regarding a limited subject matter."All very fascinating, because the subpoena in question was issued on January 23, 2009.* Eric Holder didn't succeed to the position held by his Bush administration predecessors until February 3 and then on February 25 — Lo and Behold! — the subpoena was withdrawn.
Once again, judicial elections have left a bad taste in the mouths of Pennsylvania voters. It's as if we all watched from the sidelines as some celebrities threw an expensive party, got into a fistfight and traded barbs in the tabloids the morning after. We were entertained for a few minutes and then wondered what it all had to with us.Judging the election.
But choosing judges IS important, and their decisions DO affect our lives. Selecting judges deserves a process worthy of the importance of the decision.
... for its thoughtful consideration of this difficult issue.* The justices had to consider the First Amendment rights of individuals and organizations to participate in elections and the due process rights of litigants to receive a fair and impartial hearing before a court. These are both fundamental rights and weighing them can be a tough balancing act.Not really. Without due process, the government could otherwise deprive persons of their property, their liberty, and even their lives.
