"Selective Outrage" When it Comes to Wisconsin's Supreme Court Justices

Friday, September 8th, 2023 -- 9:00 AM

(AP) Wisconsin Republicans talking about impeaching a state Supreme Court justice before she’s heard a case are pointing to the nearly $10 million she received from the Democratic Party as proof that she can’t fairly rule on redistricting cases that could weaken the GOP’s hold on the Legislature.

But the state GOP and other conservative groups have given campaign cash to other sitting justices, and they’re not recusing themselves on cases involving donors.

All but one sitting justice, liberal Ann Walsh Bradley, have received contributions from a party at the national, state or county level, according to data from Wisconsin’s campaign finance system and an analysis by the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, which tracks campaign spending.

Conservative Justices Brian Hagedorn and Rebecca Bradley have received contributions from the state Republican Party totaling roughly $150,000 and $70,000 respectively. The state Democratic Party has given liberal Justice Jill Karofsky’s campaign more than $1.3 million.

“It’s what I call selective outrage,” said Jay Heck, a longtime observer of the Wisconsin Supreme Court and director of Common Cause of Wisconsin, a nonpartisan government watchdog group. “It’s incredibly hypocritical.”

There was no outrage from Republicans when conservative justices heard numerous cases over the years involving their conservative donors, Heck said. Republican Assembly Majority Leader Tyler August, when asked Thursday if he thought justices who have received money from the Republican Party should recuse themselves from the redistricting cases, tried to draw a distinction with Protasiewicz.

“She has clearly prejudged the case,” August said. “We’re talking about this case, this justice, and I’ll leave it at that.” The attention on the Wisconsin Supreme Court follows a pattern of increasing scrutiny on state judges across the country.

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