"Randy's got things mixed up."

Here's an illuminating exchange from a profile of Wisconsin Supreme Court Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson in today's Shepherd Express.

Last Wednesday at a candidate forum in downtown Milwaukee, Jefferson County Circuit Judge Randy Koschnick admitted he chased after endorsements from the Milwaukee and Wisconsin police associations, but both organizations went for Abrahamson.

Koschnick brushed this aside, saying that as labor groups the associations were more concerned with collective bargaining than actual law enforcement issues. In fact, Koschnick claimed that was what the heads of both associations specifically informed him.

He even said that MPA officials told him they understood the Chief Justice's decisions "are consistently not good for law enforcement."

That revelation was news to Milwaukee Police Association President John Balcerzak and Thomas Fischer, the MPA vice president who conducted the candidate interviews.

Both of them attended the forum and heard Koschnick’s defense.

"If I would have been able to stand up I would have said that Judge Koschnick’s recollection of the interview process is in error," Balcerzak told the Shepherd. "Fischer leaned over to me and said, 'I don’t recall saying that.'" Fischer, speaking to the Shepherd, added, "Randy’s got things mixed up."

And those aren't the only things. One moment Randy Koschnick is criticizing judges for shaping public policy, and the next the self-described "judicial conservative" is promising to "improve society" and "create a stable business environment."

So, which is it? Because you can't possibly have it both ways. That's tantamount to saying, "Vote for me, I'm a married bachelor."