MADISON, Wis. – In a recent interview Maria Lazar, right-wing candidate for the Wisconsin State Supreme Court, voiced her support for state rules literally written by corporate lobbying organizations about when judges or justices should recuse themselves from cases saying, “I believe the current system works.”
“Maria Lazar’s bizarre campaign now includes her seemingly declaring herself open for business with her support of rules the special interests wrote with their own benefit in mind,” commented A Better Wisconsin Together Deputy Director Mike Browne.
The current rules are from 2009 proposals from the Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce (WMC) and others to the Wisconsin Supreme Court to guide judges in determining when they ought to recuse themselves from cases before them because of conflicts of interest. The then-conservative court majority adopted the rules, literally written by the special interests that spent big money to get them elected.
The new chief justice of the state high court has indicated she would like to see a review of the rules and possible changes to them. Previous efforts to reform the rules, including a proposal from over 50 retired judges, were squashed by court conservatives.
Browne noted Lazar has heaped praise on the retiring right-wing Justice Rebecca Bradley, who once skipped out of a court hearing to appear before the WMC and declare herself to be their “servant”.
