MADISON, Wis. — Documents made public this week revealed that the Wisconsin Judicial Commission has dismissed several baseless complaints state Republicans brought forth against newly elected state Supreme Court Justice Janet Protasiewicz. By declaring the matter closed, the actions of the state court ethics oversight agency deals a severe blow to the state GOP’s recent threats to impeach the newly elected justice and exposes their motives as purely partisan.
“It’s clear now more than ever that state Republicans’ impeachment threats have no standing,” said Mike Browne, deputy director of A Better Wisconsin Together. “The dismissal of these unfounded complaints against Justice Protasiewicz underscores that state Republicans will do anything to hold onto political power, even if it means wasting time and resources on unsubstantiated claims and undermining the votes of over one million Wisconsinites.”
This spring, Wisconsin voters turned out in record numbers to elect Justice Protasiewicz in a landslide victory to our state Supreme Court. According to Browne, Assembly Leader Robin Vos and other Republicans are scared of what the power of our collective voices means for their unpopular agenda.
“Let’s call this what it is,” said Browne. “It is state Republicans looking for any excuse to remove a duly elected justice, because they are scared of what a fair and impartial court will mean for decades of GOP obstruction on issues that could soon come before the court, like abortion rights and fair maps.
He concluded, “By any means necessary, state Republicans will undermine the will of the people to ensure their own partisan agenda comes before the issues that constituents care about.”
