On Valentine’s Day, A Better Wisconsin Together Highlights Right-Wing Judge Brad Schimel’s Love for Special Interests

MADISON, Wis. — This Valentine’s Day, A Better Wisconsin Together is calling attention to the love between right-wing Judge Brad Schimel and his special interest donors.

While in public office, Brad Schimel wrote that politicians using their office and powers to benefit their campaign contributors was, “the essence of representative government.” Thus, in anticipation of the February 14 holiday, A Better Wisconsin Together took a deep dive into who’s been sending ‘valentines’ to Schimel’s campaign, and what their political motivations could be.

“Wisconsinites deserve to know how much special interest groups are spending to exert their extremist influence in our state,” said Lucy Ripp, communications director at A Better Wisconsin Together. “Especially for someone like Schimel, who hasn’t just said there’s nothing wrong with elected officials taking action to benefit their campaign contributors, but he’s done it himself while in public office.”

To learn more about instances of Schimel’s shady behavior when it comes to campaign cash, click here.

Among the large donations from wealthy, right-wing donors and special interests on Schimel’s campaign finance reports since he announced a run for the state high court are:

$20,000 each from Dick Uihlien and his wife Elizabeth. Dick Uihlein is an Illinois-based billionaire and huge funder of the MAGA disinformation distribution machine. He has underwritten groups involved in the violent and deadly January 6 insurrection, and has spent lavishly to support PACs like Fair Courts America and the Restoration PAC to elect extremist politicians and judges in Wisconsin and elsewhere;
$1,000 from Andrew Hitt, a fake elector who fraudulently signed paperwork in an attempt to overturn the results of the 2020 Presidential election;
$20,000 each from Diane Hendricks and her daughter Kim Hendricks. Diane, the billionaire owner of ABC Supply, is a noted proponent of diverting state funding from public schools to less accountable private voucher and charter schools. The Hendricks family are massive political donors to the Republican Party and right-wing candidates;
$20,000 from Republican Eric Hovde, a millionaire California banker who unsuccessfully ran for U.S. Senate in Wisconsin and has supported banning abortion in Wisconsin;
$20,000 from longstanding Republican donor Michael White, who is also a board member of the right-wing legal outfit Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty;
$20,000 from Augustin Ramirez, a private voucher school owner;
$11,250 from John Fleckenstein, a gun industry business owner;
$6,000 from Rick Graber, the current head of the Wisconsin-based right-wing mega-funder Bradley Foundation.

“With so much on the line in Wisconsin this year, from abortion rights and voting rights all the way to public school funding, we can’t afford to not pay attention to who’s donating to public officials like Schimel and what’s on their agendas,” Ripp concluded.

This Valentine’s Day, call Judge Brad Schimel at (262) 548-7548 and demand he break up with far-right special interest donors and start focusing on what’s best for Wisconsinites.