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Wisconsin Democratic Gov. Tony Evers on Tuesday sued the Republican-controlled Legislature, arguing that it is obstructing basic government functions, including signing off on pay raises for university employees that were previously approved. Evers is asking the liberal-controlled Wisconsin Supreme Court to take the case directly, bypassing lower courts. In addition to not approving the pay raises for about 35,000 University of Wisconsin employees, Evers argues that the Legislature is blocking state conservation programs, updates to the state's commercial building standards and ethics standards for licensed professionals. The Legislature included a 6% pay raise for UW employees over two years in...

NOW LIVE: Wisconsin Supreme Court Oral Arguments

https://thefederalist.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Screen-Shot-2020-05-14-at-4.58.53-PM-998x725.pngMADISON, Wis. — Declaring that the state’s top health official wrongly bypassed legislative oversight, the Wisconsin Supreme Court on Wednesday struck down the Evers’ administration’s extended lockdown of the state.The 4-3 decision by the conservative-led court declares Wisconsin Department of Health Services Secretary-designee Andrea Palm’s Emergency Order 28 “unlawful, invalid, and unenforceable.”“Because Palm did not follow the law in creating Order 28, there can be no criminal penalties for violations of her order,” the ruling notes. “The procedural requirements of Wis. Stat. ch. 227 must be followed because they safeguard all people.”Palm’s extended order, issued before Evers’ first stay-at-home edict...

Election-day results for all races will be updated live here after polls close. The Associated Press (AP) does not provide vote counts for uncontested races.

MADISON, Wis. - Donald Trump just walked into a political buzz saw in Wisconsin. The latest Marquette Law School poll, released Wednesday, just six days before the Badger State votes in the presidential primary election, shows Texas Sen. Ted Cruz with a 10 percent lead over the billionaire "anti-establishment" Trump. But what the numbers might underscore more than anything is most conservatives in Wisconsin like Gov. Scott Walker, and a sizable majority don’t care for Donald Trump. "Walker has an 80 percent approval level among GOP primary likely voters, with just 17 percent disapproving. That is strong support within the...

Madison - State Supreme Court Justice Rebecca Bradley and Appeals Judge JoAnne Kloppenburg advanced in Tuesday's primary and will square off in the April 5 election for a 10-year term on the high court. With 98% of the vote counted, Bradley had 45% to Kloppenburg's 43%, with Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Joe Donald finishing third. Donald conceded an hour after the polls closed. The race pits two ideologically contrasting candidates who in the next two months will make the case that, if elected, they will act independently and steer clear of partisanship on the bench. Republican Gov. Scott Walker appointed...

Part 297 of 295 in the series Wisconsin's Secret War MADISON, Wis. - The special prosecutor of the politically driven probe the state Supreme Court has twice declared dead laments the conservatives he intimidated for more than two years are legally tougher than the "violent criminals and terrorists" he investigated as a federal prosecutor. "The miscalculation I made in this investigation was underestimating the power and influence special interest groups have in Wisconsin politics," Francis Schmitz, point man for the unconstitutional "John Doe II" probe said Wednesday in a press release. "My career in the military and as a federal...

Madison— Rebecca Bradley was sworn in as a state Supreme Court justice on Monday and soon afterward participated in oral arguments. Chief Justice Patience Roggensack made a brief mention of Bradley's appointment to the court just before arguments but did not dwell on it. "I think you will notice we have a full complement of justices," she told those gathered for arguments. GOP Gov. Scott Walker appointed Bradley to the bench Friday to replace Justice N. Patrick Crooks, who died Sept. 21. Crooks had said he was not going to run for re-election next year, and Bradley was one of...

Stoughton — Gov. Scott Walker Thursday promised savings on the massive Zoo Interchange project in Milwaukee and urged lawmakers to release $150 million in borrowing for road projects, saying together those two steps would be enough to keep at least five major highway projects from facing delays. In other remarks Thursday, Walker said that he could appoint a new justice to the Wisconsin Supreme Court by the end of this week and that he also favored clearer rules on which bathrooms can be used by transgender students in public schools. Walker's administration announced last week it was delaying the five...

Part 255 of 253 in the series Wisconsin's Secret War MADISON, Wisconsin — State Democrats claim to be the champions of open government. But while they rail against an ill-conceived and short-lived GOP plan to close some open records, the left has been strangely silent about liberal state Supreme Court Justice Shirley Abrahamson’s reluctance to turn over communications that would shine light on her behind-the-scenes legal activities. That silence is deafening among the left’s best friend, the mainstream media. Abrahamson has hired an attorney to defend her in the records request filed by conservative targets of Wisconsin’s unconstitutional John Doe...

Madison— The collapse of Gov. Scott Walker's presidential campaign could actually propel conservative legislation in Wisconsin over the next several months. From ending all public money to Planned Parenthood to allowing state retailers to sell goods at cost or at a loss, lawmakers are considering proposals that conservatives have sought to pass in Wisconsin for years. Bills before the Legislature this fall could put new limits on biomedical research and remake the state's ethics and elections agency. The controversial bills could match scientists against activists opposed to abortion and big Wisconsin retailers like Kwik Trip of La Crosse against far...

MADISON, Wis. – Shirley Abrahamson’s legal fight to keep her job as the state Supreme Court’s chief justice has cost Wisconsin taxpayers $150,000. Abrahamson was the state’s top judge when Wisconsin voters in April approved a constitutional amendment allowing state Supreme Court justices to elect their chief, ending the state’s 126-year practice of determining the post on seniority alone. Later that month, the four conservative members of the seven-person court elected Justice Patience Roggensack as the court’s new chief justice. Abrahamson twice asked the federal district court to temporarily stop implementation of the amendment while her civil rights case proceeded....

MADISON, Wis. – A federal judge on Friday tossed out former Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson’s civil rights lawsuit and declared Wisconsin’s constitutional amendment that forced Abrahamson out of her long-standing seat of power does indeed pass “constitutional muster.” U.S. District Court Judge James Peterson said he wasn’t persuaded by Abrahamson’s case. His ruling puts to rest the liberal justice’s claims that the amendment approved by Wisconsin voters in April unfairly led to her ouster as chief justice. “This court has been asked whether the immediate implementation of an amendment to the Wisconsin Constitution concerning the structure of its court system...

Madison— Dealing Gov. Scott Walker a victory just as his presidential camapaign gets underway, the Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled Thursday the governor's campaign and conservative groups had not violated campaign finance laws in recall elections in 2011 and 2012. The ruling means the likely end of the investigation, which has been stalled for 18 months after a lower court judge determined no laws were violated even if Walker's campaign and the groups had worked together as prosecutors believe. It could also prompt the escalation of other litigation over the probe. The ruling dealt with three pieces of litigation, and the...

MADISON, Wis. – State Supreme Court Justice Michael Gableman sees “grave implications for each and every citizen of Wisconsin” if the court does not take up the Fourth Amendment appeal of a former aide to Gov. Scott Walker. According to a memo reviewed by Wisconsin Watchdog, Gableman is urging his fellow justices to reconsider their denial of Kelly Rindfleisch’s petition for review. The justices could vote on Gableman’s request at 11 a.m. Monday, sources tell Wisconsin Watchdog. “The significance of this issue cannot be understated, and has grave implications for each and every citizen of the State of Wisconsin: Can...

Madison— Days before three state Supreme Court justices skipped ceremonies to admit new lawyers to the bar, Justice N. Patrick Crooks accused newly elected Chief Justice Patience Roggensack of breaking court rules by threatening to throw him off a case without any authority. Crooks and another justice also contended Roggensack had violated court rules by scheduling a conference to discuss three cases without the permission of all seven justices, emails between the justices show. The exchanges are the latest sign of turmoil on a court that has drawn national attention for infighting. Their disputes have been on public display in...

Three Wisconsin Supreme Court justices skipped a ceremony Monday to swear in recent Marquette University Law School graduates, amid a bitter dispute over who should be in charge of the state's high court. It was the first time the court was to meet as a group since conservatives who control the court voted to make Patience Roggensack chief justice. Shirley Abrahamson, who had held the job for 19 years, has contended she remains chief justice and has sued over the issue in federal court in Madison. U.S. District Judge James Peterson, who is hearing that case, declined to issue an...

Patience Roggensack said Tuesday there is no doubt she is the Wisconsin Supreme Court's chief justice and that she didn't want to fight with any of her colleagues — in the process, taking jabs at how the court has been run. The justice told conservative WTMJ-AM (620) radio host Charlie Sykes she had been meeting with top court staff in recent days and planned to allow them and other justices to have more input than they have in the past. ~snip~ Roggensack did not respond to interview requests from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel last week and did not immediately respond...

‘They came with a battering ram.” Cindy Archer, one of the lead architects of Wisconsin’s Act 10 — also called the “Wisconsin Budget Repair Bill,” it limited public-employee benefits and altered collective-bargaining rules for public-employee unions — was jolted awake by yelling, loud pounding at the door, and her dogs’ frantic barking. The entire house — the windows and walls — was shaking. She looked outside to see up to a dozen police officers, yelling to open the door. They were carrying a battering ram. She wasn’t dressed, but she started to run toward the door, her body in full...

Madison— A federal judge declined Thursday to put an immediate halt on an amendment to the state constitution adopted by voters this week that would allow the members of the Wisconsin Supreme Court to choose the chief justice. The job of chief justice has automatically gone to the most senior member of the Supreme Court for the last 126 years. Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson and her supporters sued to keep her position as the court's leader on Wednesday, a day after voters approved changing how the chief justice is selected. She argues the provision can't go into effect until her...