Great news out of Wisconsin! (Though “signaled” isn’t as strong as I would like!) h/t Omnes for sharing the news.
Wisconsin Republicans signaled on Thursday that they were retreating from their threats to impeach a recently seated liberal State Supreme Court justice, Janet Protasiewicz, before the newly left-leaning court could throw out the gerrymandered legislative maps that have cemented the G.O.P.’s hold on power in the state.
Robin Vos, the powerful Republican speaker of the State Assembly, said at a news conference in Madison that he would not seek to remove Justice Protasiewicz based on the argument he and fellow Republicans had been making for two months — that statements she made calling the maps “rigged” during her campaign for office this year compelled impeachment if she refused to recuse herself from a case challenging them.
Now, Mr. Vos said, the focus would be on what Justice Protasiewicz does “in office.” He said that if the court ruled against the Republican-drawn maps and other conservative causes, he would appeal its decisions to the U.S. Supreme Court. Impeachment, he said, remained “on the table” but was not something Republicans would pursue now.
“If they decide to inject their own political bias inside the process and not follow the law, we have the ability to go to the Supreme Court and we also have the ability to hold her accountable to the voters of Wisconsin,” Mr. Vos said.
His remarks came after nearly two months of drama about how Republicans would respond to the prospect that the State Supreme Court, now controlled by liberals for the first time in 15 years, will act as a check on conservative control of the state’s government. Mr. Vos had first floated the possibility of impeachment in August, and the potential move was embraced by other top Republicans in the state, including Senator Ron Johnson and former Gov. Scott Walker.
Open thread!
Great News Out of Wisconsin – Judge Janet!Post + Comments (73)