Posted on 05/01/2019 7:44:44 AM PDT by Diana in Wisconsin
MADISON, Wis. — In a significant victory for the Republican-controlled Legislature, and a rebuke of Democratic Gov. Tony Evers’ swift political purge, the Wisconsin Supreme Court on Tuesday ordered the reinstatement of more than a dozen public servants confirmed during December’s controversial extraordinary legislative session.
The 4-3 decision also is a stinging criticism of a liberal Dane County judge’s previous ruling and arguably signals how the conservative-led court will ultimately rule on the appeal before it.
Seizing a narrow window of legal opportunity, Evers in March rescinded 82 appointments confirmed by the Legislature just weeks before the Democrat took office. He reappointed all but 15 of the public servants.
“Because the circuit court should have entered a stay of its injunction at the time it was entered, and in order to ensure the effectiveness of our order returning the 82 appointees to their positions, we order that the Governor’s March 22, 2019 letter withdrawing the appointments was without legal effect and remain so for the duration of the appeal,” the court ordered.
“The 82 appointees shall immediately be allowed to perform the duties of their respective positions in the same manner as they were performing those duties prior to March 21, 2019,” the majority stated in its decision, released early Tuesday evening.
Ellen Nowak, chairwoman of the three-member Public Service Commission, was one of the public servants unceremoniously drummed out of her position by Evers’ act. Nowak, attempting to show up for work, was turned away on orders of the governor’s Department of Administration. Evers’ bureaucrats quickly removed from the PSC website all evidence of the commissioner, who previously served as Department of Administration secretary under former Republican Gov. Scott Walker.
“I’m pleased with the Supreme Court’s decision and look forward to returning to the Commission,” Nowak said in a statement. She will do so on Wednesday, according to the Supreme Court order.
In March, liberal Dane County Judge Richard Niess ruled unconstitutional the GOP-controlled Legislature’s extraordinary session and the three omnibus laws that came out of it, agreeing with left-wing plaintiffs that the Legislature did not have the authority to call the “lame-duck” session.
Niess further refused to grant a stay, opening the gates of legal chaos. The judge’s ruling cast doubt on the validity of some 300 laws forged in 45 years worth of extraordinary session — including taxpayer funding for the Milwaukee Bucks arena, medical assistance provisions, and campaign financing.
*SNIP*
Tuesday’s narrow 4-3 decision again put the high court’s three liberals in a dissenting position. Justice Ann Walsh Bradley insists the majority relies on an agreement not “advanced” by the parties. “Indeed, it appears that the majority has changed the substantive law here,” the justice wrote in her dissenting opinion. She wants more briefing, less action.
The ultimate argument in the appeal is whether the Legislature had the authority to call the session, a “power grab” according to Evers and his friends on the left. The state constitution is clear on the “First Branch’s” authority to meet in order to conduct the people’s business.
In its latest orders, the Supreme Court’s conservative majority notes that the appeals process has just begun but that the Legislature has made a compelling argument. “Our review of the Legislature’s motion and the arguments it made below leads us to conclude that it has set forth an argument that has ‘more than the mere ‘possibility’ of prevailing,” the decision states.
NOTE: These decent people would STIL be out of their jobs had Wisconsinites not voted in a new conservative judge just last month! :)
Stay vigilant! The Leftists can and WILL use courts at all levels to ram through their socialist schemes that SANE people won't VOTE for in the first place!
EXCELLENT
>>the Governor’s March 22, 2019 letter withdrawing the appointments was without legal effect
So does that mean the appointees get back-pay, the replacements have to repay their salaries, and all decisions or acts committed by the usurpers in their pseudo-legal capacity are null and void?
[[Evers’ bureaucrats quickly removed from the PSC website all evidence of the commissioner, who previously served as Department of Administration secretary under former Republican Gov. Scott Walker.]]
How Soviet of them.
I haven’t heard, yet.
Gov. Evers (D, WI) canned them all, then re-appointed them all except for 18 people, which are the ones that this reversal helps.
He fired a friend of mine who was Secretary of Tourism - and had done a STUPENDOUS job for Wisconsin. She recently took another job promoting one of our Historic tourist towns; you can’t keep a Wisconsin Gal down! :)
“How Soviet of them.”
Yep. We’re going to have four l-o-n-g YEARS of this cr@p. Evers is a lapdog of Planned Parenthood and is already stating he will VETO any legislation that tries to stop infanticide.
Things are going to get ugly. :(
It’s important to think like a leftist in the sense of anticipating their moves.
Outside the ‘Urban Archipelago’ as Obama liked to call it, meaning areas that use Chicago as a template for projecting political power, the left has very little, if any, influence.
To control those areas that ‘fail’ to use the required progressive template, the most efficacious means of control is via a state’s highest court.
Evers stole the election in the typical Rat manner. Walker was ahead until a bunch of votes were “found” in Milwaukee after it was known how many were needed.
What a state! They give us Trump then throw out arguably the best governor in the country in favor of some nobody democrat dufus. Like England throwing out Churchill after WW2. Dumb bastards.
I don’t disagree, though you know I love my state!
That said, expect a Senate Run from Governor Walker, and a future Presidential Run, too. He would be an AWESOME follow-up to President Trump, actually.
He’s kind of shown his True Colors on Globalism, but the man sure turned Wisconsin’s economy around and got us jobs, jobs, jobs.
Also, there will never be another President Trump in my lifetime, so we’re going to have to get ourselves ready for that, mentally. ;)
” Dumb bastards”
But they have a lot of “company” in the rest of the states that sold out Trump in the 2018 Election. Just think where we would be today if Nazi were still the “minority leader” in the House.
Agreed.
Don Jr
Have the seated the latest SC judge who won the special election last month?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.