Wisconsin Supreme Court races are inherently political.
I know. I know.
I don’t want it to be true either, but it’s an unfortunate reality that we as a state are going to reconcile with if we want to have more truthful conversations surrounding politics.
I’m just about to pass the 2.5 years mark living in the Fox Cities, and I’m here to tell you that when the Republicans had control of the Supreme Court, they used it to their political advantage.
Then I covered the race between Dan Kelly and Janet Protasiewicz, and they both ran with political angles (feel free to peruse my page to find those interviews).
Now that there is a Democratic majority, they are using it to their advantage.
And now, here we are again, another race, both candidates highlighting the hypocrisy and political angles the other is taking. Both sides have their media safe havens reporting half of the issues.
Allow me to cut through the the nonsense for you. This is a political election. It always has been a political election. It will always be a political election.
If Brad Schimel wins, he will do things that favor Republicans, and will force the law to fit that benefit.
If Susan Crawford wins, she will do things that favor Democrats, and will force the law to fit that benefit.
Pretending that only one candidate represents that reality is disingenuous at best.
All of this being said, information has been made available to me over the last 24 hours that cannot be ignored.
Heartlandsignal.com shared leaked audio yesterday from Conservative candidate Brad Schimel while he was speaking at a Republican meet and greet in Adams County.
Go ahead and give the video below a listen.
HOT MIC: At a Republican Party of Adams County meet-and-greet last July, conservative Wisconsin Supreme Court candidate Brad Schimel said there may be need for a violent revolution to take back power because "the socialists won't give it up":
— Heartland Signal (@HeartlandSignal) January 28, 2025
“If we let this go, it’s gone. And… pic.twitter.com/PVweTK5O27
Wow… a “bloody revolution”…
I didn’t realize Brad Schimel admired the work of Luigi Mangione. (I would like to state unequivocally that I am aware that Luigi allegedly engaged in a violent action, whereas Mr. Schimel only used violent rhetoric, but the principle is still the same.)
I’ve always been a firm believer that we have the systems in place to enact the kind of change that we would like to see, but I guess others believe that violence gets us our desired outcomes.
(A quick aside, I could write an entire article about how the Democrats in 2024 were running on Reaganomics, not socialism. I could also write an entire article about how the dangers that Schimel warns about surrounding resource and wealth consolidation under “socialism” are absolutely happening in this country right now. I could also, also write an article about how Brad Schimel is about to turn 60, which means he spent the first 18 years of his life benefitting from tax rates, as high as 91%, that absolutely reflect that dastardly socialism he’s so scared of. But, ya know, we’ve all got places to be, so I’ll just leave you with those little tidbits.)
There’s no place for this in political discourse. Where are all the people that condemned Luigi’s actions against the United Healthcare CEO? Where’s all the righteous indignation that people exhibited after they heard Americans express empathy for the alleged assassin?
Something tells me we shouldn’t expect to hear from them any time soon.
You know, when I was starting this article, I was going to juxtapose this story next to recent (Failing) New York Times reporting highlighting that Susan Crawford was telling Democrat donors that a vote for her could net Dems 2 more seats in the House after some map manipulation.
That’s a real story, and I don’t believe that it has any place in the discourse surrounding judicial elections, but I’m sorry, this is not an apples to apples comparison.
We were told that Brad Schimel would be a more sane version of Dan Kelly from 2 years ago. Someone that could challenge a more traditional Democratic candidate.
After hearing this though I have to ask, if this is the more “normal” or “reserved” or “back to basics” option, then who the hell else was in the running?
To listen to more of my thoughts on the matter, click the player at the top of the article.