Uppity Wisconsin

From the Capital Times (Madison, Wis), John Nichols reports:

Nothing reveals the pathology of power so much as the monumental harm that we intentionally bequeath our children.

A $9 trillion debt, a government thrown into fiscal crisis, corruption, war; these are the Bush-Cheney endowments to future generations.

Gov. Doyle deserves recognition for one small step in the right direction on care-taking the environment.

Reports Bill Novak at the Cap Times (Wisconsin Gov says no to coal for state power plants): 

Using coal at state-owned heating plants is not an option that should be considered as a fuel source, according to a directive issued Friday by Gov. Jim Doyle.

The directive to move away from coal is in line with recommendations made by the governor's task force on global warming.

Why then did they print an editorial that was so shabbily researched? I am referring to the editorial column “Van Hollen should act fast on petition fraud case” (July 25).

We all have been reading about some spectacular (for Dane County) murder cases recently.

At a preliminary hearing yesterday, the Capital Times reports on: “an emotional day in court Friday as family members and friends of Joel Marino … heard audio tapes that offered the first glimpse of what appears to be limited words spoken during the interaction between the two men that resulted in Marino's death.” 

Accused murderer Adam Peterson, said, in a recorded phone conversation with his father, “I just stabbed him out of nowhere,” reports the Capital Times.

Incomprehensible. Senseless. Unstoppable?

And no comfort for the grief-stricken Marino family.

But I hope that the Madison citizen, John Brodan, who called police about Peterson after spotting him working at Capitol Centre Foods, and making the connection to a sketch of the murder suspect released March 10, gets the $30,000 reward for “information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible for the death of Joel Marino.”

The Capital Times became the first daily newspaper to call for the resignation of Wisconsin Supreme Court justice Annette Ziegler.

We can expect more calls for Ziegler's resignation to follow in the coming months.

Ziegler, elected in the spring of 2007, was hit with denunciations for her conduct as a Washington County judge during her successful campaign that drew little attention from Wisconsin voters.

Ziegler, in violation of Wisconsin judicial conflict of interest rules, presided over dozens of cases in which her family had a financial interest, and failed to disclose to the litigants the conflicts in each case.

Now, Ziegler, awaiting discipline for her conduct on the bench as a county judge, is taking criticism for refusing to recuse herself, as a current Supreme Court justice, from a case that is a high priority of the corporate lobbying group, Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce, that spent over $2 million (surpassing the amount spent by Ziegler’s campaign) to elect Ziegler to her current judgeship.

Update: Kos reader says 540,425 signatures for recall during a given 60-day period.

 If ever there were a clear case for a citizen recall of a state-wide public official, Supreme Court Justice Annette Ziegler is she.

Today's Capital Times raises the possibility of a citizen recall should, as expected, the Wisconsin Supreme Court neither suspends nor expels the corrupt Ziegler.

Writes the Cap Times editorial:

The legal quagmire that is created by Ziegler's presence on the court is shameful. But Ziegler has no shame. Even as she admits to past wrongdoing, for which she faces an as-yet-undetermined punishment, the justice holds a seat she secured by deliberately deceiving the voters of Wisconsin.

Experience suggests that officials such as Ziegler are eventually tripped up by their own ethical missteps. If that does not happen, then a case can certainly be made for a citizen-initiated recall that would force Ziegler to face the voters in an election where her admissions of judicial wrongdoing would be known to the electorate.

Sounds good.

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