June 30, 2012

They chose to rely on prayer

Killed by religion:*
Leilani Neumann noticed that her daughter was very tired, but nobody believed she was suffering from a serious illness.
Yet they did believe the child, who died two days later, was "under spiritual attack" and medicine would "be taking the glory from God."

Certification by Wisconsin Court of Appeals (and acceptance).

* Or alternatively, libertarianism.

June 28, 2012

You are hereby notified of the following order

[T]he judicial discipline statutes, Wis. Stat. § 757.81 through § 757.99 (2009-10), do not require this court to act at this stage in the proceedings. . . . At this point, the statutes direct the chief judge of the court of appeals to select a judicial conduct panel.
N. Patrick Crooks, J. (emphasis added)

So why doesn't he?

Earlier: Patience Roggensack Prosser's latest recusal target

June 26, 2012

Justice David Prosser just making stuff up again

Prosser maintains panel formation takes a formal order from the court

Baloney.

Immigration quote of the day

Rick Esenberg, in the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel:
"If you are not here illegally, you ought to go back."
This after criticizing the "incoherance" of the immigration debate.

I kid you not.

June 21, 2012

Busted

Priceless. 'Twas more than a peppercorn, apparently.

Go Scot. That's me boy.

June 19, 2012

Wisconsin Republicans win but keep lying anyway

Of the single loss they did sustain:
“Unfortunately a portion of it was fraud,” Robin Vos said.
And unfortunately for Robin Vos, fraud requires intent, which must be proven, and Robin Vos hasn't proven it, so he's simply lying about it.
"I still think that in many ways the election was illegitimate," he said. "To have a recall where someone is going to be serving for the next two years but use the old district lines seems like kind of a rigged setup.
Which is funny, because that is how Robin Vos's party wrote and passed the law, so that the new districts wouldn't take effect until November.

No wonder that dude poured a beer on this clown's head.

It's almost the appropriate reply to his nonsense.

June 18, 2012

Out-of-State agitators return to Wisconsin

How's this for pointless, recreational litigation.
Christian Gossett, a Republican ...
Naturally.
... [is] represented by a Georgia lawyer.
Also, naturally. I hope they lose but if not, the expression "law enforcement officer" is broadened to include defense attorneys.

Why shouldn't it? Equal protection and all that, figuratively and literally. Defense counsel appears in court for the same reasons, to ensure the law is enforced within the boundaries of the various constitutions.

Given the preponderance of ineffective assistance of counsel claims, an unlucky defendant is just as likely to shoot his own lawyer as the ADA.*

Possibly even more likely.

* The conflict is between sub. 3 and sub. 2, wherein permission to carry in the courtroom is required from the presiding judge, as it should be.
Perhaps Mr. Gossett and his subordinates are free to strut around with their handguns in the courtroom so long as the court is not in session.

Or else maybe a judge can invoke her "supervisory/original" jurisdiction.

Predictable Republican decount hypocrites

Well well, looky here.

On teh web: Kloppenburg + decount.

June 15, 2012

Peppercorn Mike Gableman

Is back in the news, courtesy of Rep. Robin Vos.

Where are the WJC's complaints against Peppercorn Mike?

Anybody remember this cock-and-bull story?

June 13, 2012

"It is rather obvious emasculation."

Good grief man. Make of that what you will, I guess.

WJC: Response to formal records request.

Journal-Sentinel photo caption of the day

[In this aerial photo] Gov. Scott Walker can be seen working the grill, just below the American flag.
What a guy.

June 5, 2012

Glenn Grothman rests the WISGOP voter fraud case

Asked for evidence of "voter fraud" — which both Wisconsin governor Scott Walker and Republican National Committee chairman Reince Priebus claim accounts for several tens of thousands of ballots in every election in the State, up to 2% of millions — Wisconsin GOP senator Glenn Grothman stated there's a "feeling" out there that there is. Seriously.

He said it on the teevee just last night.

Earlier: Rep. Jim Ott's critical thinking skills quote of the day

Scott Walker will not be praying for victory

Is what it says here, because, as Abraham Lincoln put it:
God doesn’t pick sides in elections. He* calls us to be on his side.
It's true. Libertarian Jesus calls us to break the law, violate the constitution, and invent jurisdiction by Republican fiat. And of course Libertarian Jesus says 'No' to collective bargaining. It's in the Bible.

Never mind that Abraham Lincoln's context was the emancipation and restoration of full and equal civil rights for black African slaves according to the promise of the American Declaration of Independence. But that's Scott Walker for you, a pious fraud with a six-figure criminal defense fund derived from political contributions, who's only ever drawn a salary from the tax dollars he professes to detest. After an entire life spent as a career politician, it's about time for Wisconsin governor Scott Walker to gain some experience in the private sector. Do send him there today.

Don't worry, he won't starve, and he'll hardly have to do any actual work.

(Also, if anybody deserves to get elected today, it's Lori Compas.)

* God's an aging white male Republican who probably lives in West Bend.

June 4, 2012

The Elephant in Scott Walker's Courtroom

Excellent story by Charles P. Pierce* in Esquire.

And if Mr. Russell's attorney is so concerned about pre-trial publicity, then I don't know what he's doing dropping tasty little bonbons like that.

On the morning before the day Walker stands for reelection. (Not that the True Believers care the noose is tightening on their Golden Boy.)

Also, here's one for the leak conspiracists:
"There was nothing illegal in the release of the information," [Judge David] Hansher said. "It was a part of the public file."
Russell takes another crack at having his case dismissed on July 11.

* Who was hilariously busy today.

June 2, 2012

Scott Walker's creationist bag-o-tricks

Take some expert completely out of context.

Standard creationist modus operandi. For suckers only.

More on this Gableman-quality teevee ad:
Wisconsin — the land of admirable good-government ideals[*] but also of some unpleasantly behind the times racial dynamics.
Thanks, Republicans! You're the best.

* And so much for those.

Scott Walker's world's most expensive photocopying

Reports the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel:
[Wisconsin governor Scott] Walker said he put money [$160,000] into the [criminal] defense fund so that he could provide thousands of documents to Milwaukee County District Attorney John Chisholm, who is heading the [criminal] investigation.
Walker also says he "will not use campaign funds to pay for the criminal defense of his aides." That's a blinding glimpse of the obvious, as the statute authorizing Walker's criminal defense fund says nothing of "aides," but rather "agent[s]," and if he was using the fund to defend his aides who are not agents, then that use of the fund would be illegal.

Reportedly there is about a 50/50 chance that Wisconsinites on Tuesday will return to office a governor "who is being investigated for, charged with or convicted of a criminal violation." That's seriously messed up.