UPDATED
Please see my thoughts after the election https://dekerivers.wordpress.com/2007/04/03/what-annette-zieglers-victory-means/
Also please read https://dekerivers.wordpress.com/2007/03/06/annette-ziegler-wrong-for-supreme-court/
The makeup of the Wisconsin State Supreme Court is highly important in our constitutional system, and given the attempts by conservatives at both the state and national level to stretch, manipulate, and torture legal reasoning it is vital that progressives get to the polls in April and cast a ballot for Linda Clifford. This spring’s election contest is generating statewide interest, and for good reason.
The election of Clifford, an energetic and thoughtful candidate is a no-brainer given the political schlock that is the basis for her main competitor, Ann Ziegler. I think we should understand the differences between the two women.
Ziegler keeps mentioning that she is the only judge in the race, and therefore better suited for the Supreme Court. But she seems to forget that our long tradition in Wisconsin has voters respecting diversity of profession when voting for Justices. Just a decade ago the majority of those serving on the bench came from outside the court system. As an example, it is clear that Chief Justice Abrahamson is a remarkable member of the Court. On the conservative side the same argument can be made for former Speaker of the Assembly Dave Prosser, who all must admit is a much-respected jurist. Therefore one can make a strong case for placing a judge on the bench with real life-problem solving skills. Clifford brings those skills, along with her decades of experience in government, private practice, and State Bar involvement with her as she seeks our vote. Her involvement in a whole series of federal and state cases makes her more than qualified for the job.
The fact that Ziegler seems to have an antagonistic approach to the Court and even labeled it as an “all powerful pseudo-legislature” suggests to me a rigid and uncomfortable fit for the Court. We already have enough division and rancor in our political and judicial systems without adding another problem to the mix. Ziegler would be such a problem.
In a Court Candidate Response to Fair Wisconsin Linda Clifford stated the following.
“As a justice, I promise:
- To uphold the rule of law, putting aside personal or political preferences;
- To rely on legal precedent to promote legal stability, but not blindly, respecting the need for the slow evolution of the common law to reflect social, technological, or legislative change; and
- To interpret and uphold legislative enactments to advance legislative intent–UNLESS those enactments violate civil liberties, constitutional rights, or fundamental freedoms or violate other constitutional or statutory provisions.
Then, I would have the courage to strike them down. That’s not activism; that’s not legislating from the bench. That’s judging–what Wisconsin citizens expect its co-equal judicial branch to do –standing guard between our constitutional democracy and the tyranny that can occur if unauthorized legislative or executive actions go unchecked.”
Wisconsin Progressives must fight hard for this seat on the Court in light of the chicanery and recklessness that conservatives have used to further their aims. The campaign monies of Mark Green, and the ever-present discrimination against gay people in Wisconsin are but two examples. The best way to positively effect change is by casting your ballot for Linda Clifford for Wisconsin State Supreme Court.
CAFFEINATED POLITICS 
So as not to further embarass a reader who commented here I have removed his post and others that related to it.
Now that Linda Clifford has demonstrated herself to be a fool by taking the word of a sleazy political hackster import over Wisconsin law enforcement professionals, and willing to say and do anything to get elected to an office she has scarce credentials for, are you still serious about promoting her to represent the people of Wisconsin as a member of the state supreme court?
And just in case your (blind) answer is yes, you may want to seek some professional help because you are not living in reality. Have a nice day.
Are you equating anything you just wrote with the unethical activity that will force Ziegler off the bench? You have a serious misunderstanding with both the role of the judiciary, and the concept of jurisprudence in our society if you can consider Annette proper for the bench. She will be severely dealt with in the coming weeks by the WI oversight commission that deals with such problems she has created.
And I am sure that you must have also just forgot the political hack that had ‘issues’ while employed with Mark Green, and is now right behind the Ziegler mess. They do clump together like dog poo.
Honestly, I do not like either candidate, but Judge Ziegler is clearly better than Clifford. I think it is a sad state of affairs for our political system in WI when all the good candidates are afraid to run because of the type of mud slinging that Clifford has done of late.
Judicial experience is CRITICAL. The Court regularly reviews the actions and decisions plus the procedures of the Circuit Court judges. If you have only been an environmental and immigration attorney who has only ever even appeared in a court room less than 5 times in a 30 year career, you are clearly not qualified to review court procedures!
Ziegler, having been a judge, has shown her commitment to the judicial process. She also paid her dues as a prosecutor!
All Clifford can do to try to salvage her utter lack of experience is sling mud falsely. That is all she has the experience to do!
Clifford has turned me off with her mud slinging. Clifford also has ZERO relevant experience.
I am voting for Ziegler. I don’t like either, but at least Ziegler is qualified!
You are going to be a lawyer and yet see no ethical problems with Ziegler and her actions as a judge? You state that judicial experience is critical and yet seem to miss the fact that our Supreme Court has had bold jusitces without that background. I think a few retakes on some classes is in order before you try for the bar. You know the legal one?
I have no problem with counter points of view and yet “the soon to be lawyer” sounds more like a political hack than a legal scholar. One might assume that ‘a lawyer to be’ might have weighter issues to use as a counter to my post than the same old whine that the GOP has been promoting. The lawyer to be seems more destined to work in the GOP party headquarters than in the role as a lawyer.
In reviewing who supports Annette Ziegler (most of the D.A.s, most of the judges, many reputable attorneys, former Governors, doctors and former incumbents of her aspired position), I am impressed by who supports her. I found page after page of them. Of all those who support Linda Clifford, I have a hard time finding one who has not stepped up rabidly in recent days in all-out attacks against conservatives. You find crooks like Jim Doyle, who prints twice as many ballots as there are Wisconsinites, Lautenschleiger, whose chicanery is well noted and was never properly dealt with, “Fair Wisconsin,” which is nothing of the sort, and assorted gay supremacists. Clifford has openly participated in the ACLU, (which is at the heart of the hyperlitigiousity that is bankrupting and dismantling the American society). Clifford’s insertion of the cliche’ loophole in her statement on rule of law (and essentially original intent) is foreboding and reminiscent of past tragedies.
Clifford’s doublespeak scares me.
Clifford’s past scares me.
Clifford’s supporters scare me.
If that’s who wants her in, and that’s what she wants to do, we’d all better be aware that she could and probably would redefine everything we’ve worked so hard to preserve.
dekerivers, you amuse me, but you don’t surprise me. Like most lefties, you have your own sense of reality. You are able to support pure (in your own words) “dogpoo” politicians and causes just because they are contrary to the GOP or conservative viewpoints.
You speak of unethical activity by Annette Ziegler as if you know what you’re talking about. And, true to lefty thinking, you can conveniently blot out all of the unethical actions by the Dems as if they didn’t exist — or like they don’t count because, after all, lefties can do and say whatever they want to get elected and get their causes heard. And,somehow, it’s just fine.
My, what a warped sense of reality you live in, my friend.
I do not consider myself a leftie. Liberal yes, leftie no.
I support issues and people who are worthy of my support. To pretend that I support anything or anyone just because it/they are not conservative is just plain wrong. I have been critical of Doyle and many other Democrats on this blog and elsewhere. It just so happens that those in power (the GOP) are the ones that seem most unable at this time to be honorable and trustworthy. Annette is just the latest example. I much enjoy living with some sense of right and wrong than what conservatives do and buy elections for unethical judges.
My family would have voted for Linda Clifford, but we are so sick of cannidates that worry on lashing out instead of saying what they believe in. Her acceptance of childish ads WILL prove to defeat her.