March 13, 2025

The Wisconsin Supreme Court candidates debate.

The difference between these Susan Crawford and Brad Schimel is sharply defined.

The state’s Democratic Party is airing television ads tying Mr. Musk to Judge Schimel....

Click that link to see an ad that shows Elon Musk wielding the chain saw and giving the "Nazi" salute over and over again.

The Democrats’ focus on Mr. Musk’s support for Judge Schimel, rather than the judge’s backing of Mr. Trump, reflects the president’s sustained popularity in the state.... Framing the election as a fight against the billionaire White House adviser also allows Democrats to draw attention to a boogeyman their voters dislike....
“Musk waving his chain saw around and provoking debates over whether the Nazi salute and the Roman salute are the same thing has provoked an explosive level of fury,” said Ben Wikler, the chairman of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin. “There is white-hot rage.”

If hatred works, why not? What does it matter if you are lying when you've got something can provoke "explosive... fury" and "white-hot rage"? I am severely put off by this kind of aggressive emotionalism.

45 comments:

Howard said...

The banality of banality.

Iman said...

The cheesiest of the cheesy.

RCOCEAN II said...

Crawford is just a typical Leftwing Democrat judge who will vote the D party line on all cases, just like they all do. Its hilarious she presenting herself as "non-partisan".

RCOCEAN II said...

I love that winsconsin gets to vote on who their judges are. That makes sense, since they judges are always acting as super-legislatures.

Jupiter said...

"It would be prejudicial for me to comment on that. I will say, that I am an abortion lawyer and my clients are abortion doctors, and we never met a baby we didn't want dead."

Leland said...

Skimmed through the video, but I want to give some props to Susan Crawford responding to a question (45min into the video, paraphrased): "provide 2 examples of a situation where you would recuse yourself from a case". Crawford did not hesitate to bring up an example in her past where she did recuse herself, which should be expected from someone touting experience. I mention this in contrast to Kamala Harris being asked to name any mistake she made in her past and her failure to answer that question. Most would expect such a question in an interview. It is a low bar for which I'm giving Susan Crawford praise, but it is a bar Harris could not meet. Harris is still being considered a top candidate for the Democrat nomination in 2028.

rehajm said...

…so partisan lawfare judges from Wisconsin are an upgrade from partisan lawfare judges from Hawaii?

john mosby said...

When I see "Schimel," I read "Schlemiel." But maybe that's not a bad thing in the state that's home to Hassenpfeffer Incorporated?

JSM

WhoKnew said...

That commercial is disgusting. I thought I was turned off by the dueling soft on crime ads that are flooding the airways, but that one is purely evil. Personally, I think Schimel's ads should unrelentingly focus on Crawford as a radical Madison liberal, focused on gerrymandering the state's congressional districts, overturning Act 10, and legislating from the bench. Those ads would have the added advantage of being true.

Michael Fitzgerald said...

Awww, little Benji Wikkkler grew up to be a Che Guevara wannabe. How sweet. Must have been that all-American small town Wisconsin childhood what done it.

MadisonMan said...

I'm voting for diversity on the court. I don't think the court needs another middle-aged white woman.

Eva Marie said...

I appreciated that the audience didn’t clap or boo during the debate. I also think the 2 moderators were very good - no long speeches, no interjections of their own point of view. Both candidates were able to react immediately to each other’s comments. Those moderators need to be hired for the Presidential debates.

BarrySanders20 said...

"I'm voting for diversity on the court. I don't think the court needs another middle-aged white woman."
Exactly. Especially another middle aged white lefty woman from Dane County. The court is dysfunctional right now with 6 women. Everything's a cat fight. To mansplain, we need at least one more Y chromosome there to mellow out the ladies a bit. More estrogen in the WIsco Supreme Court chamber is not the answer -- no matter what the question is.

William50 said...

Why are Leftists in San Diego California so interested in getting Crawford elected?

mezzrow said...

May the best candidate win, for the sake of all the citizens of Wisconsin. I can easily imagine a car named the Floridian, but I can't imagine a vehicle named the Wisconsinite. Is it me?

If the Democrat ads work they will get exactly what they deserve, sad to say.

Wince said...

That freeze frame on the debate video with Crawford's arched eyebrows, closed eyes and pained look actually sums it up.

rhhardin said...

You ought to be put off by soap opera woman-think too.

Aggie said...

I'm not too interested in the race, being from out-of-state, but - did they mention the amounts of campaign financing supporting each candidate? I remember previous stories highlighting a vast difference, with dark and out-of-state money being associated with the Democrat.

We elect judges in Texas, too, but my personal belief is that the State Supreme Court should be above political drivers. I think they should be nominated and appointed in a more traditional way, personally.

And: "When I see "Schimel," I read "Schlemiel." " Hah! What I thought of was Judge Smails.

That's got to be a hard one to overcome.

chuck said...

Nazi or Roman salute? That's either ignorance or dishonesty, but either option makes Wikler a credit to Harvard, the famed Mother of Demons.

If I had a vote, I'd go for the chainsaw team.

Leland said...

I guess it is too much to ask that Democrats consider why Trump is very popular in the state despite all their attack ads against him a year ago.

Mike (MJB Wolf) said...

I'm voting for diversity on the court. I don't think the court needs another middle-aged white woman.

Nice. That made me chuckle.

MadTownGuy said...

["Musk waving his chain saw around and provoking debates over whether the Nazi salute and the Roman salute are the same thing has provoked an explosive level of fury,” said Ben Wikler, the chairman of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin. “There is white-hot rage.”]

"If hatred works, why not? What does it matter if you are lying when you've got something can provoke "explosive... fury" and "white-hot rage"? I am severely put off by this kind of aggressive emotionalism."

Ben Wikler isn't such a great guy, after all. But if the Democratic Party didn't have rage, what would they have?

Greg The Class Traitor said...

"I am severely put off by this kind of aggressive emotionalism."

Are you voting Republican and encouraging all your friends to do the same?

If not, then your "put off" doesn't matter

Bob Boyd said...

“Hatred is the most accessible and comprehensive of all the unifying agents. Mass movements can rise and spread without belief in a god, but never without a belief in a devil.”
― Eric Hoffer

WhoKnew said...

I was reading a Federalist article on the Wisconsin voter ID constitutional amendment (on the ballot with this Supreme Court race) and I saw this quote from a left-wing group Souls to the Polls: “This newest amendment proposal would enshrine Wisconsin’s strict voter ID law in the state constitution–disenfranchising thousands of eligible voters and limiting the court’s ability to protect our voting rights,” Add this to my list of Crawford's goals; overturning voter ID. They know almost 80% of Wisconsin voters support voter ID but they don't care. And they know that if Crawford is elected she will lead the charge to overturn the existing ID law on fake grounds.

Ann Althouse said...

The NYT article is largely about the huge amount of money being spent — more than any other judicial election in U.S. history, as I understand it. This race is viewed as having national importance because Wisconsin is a swing state where the outcome might depend on things the court might decide —  voter ID, drop boxes, etc.

Ann Althouse said...

And redistricting is an endless issue here. It's something that can affect the balance of power in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Bob Boyd said...

Remember, Susan Crawford voted for the guy who hates the Packers.

Mr. Forward said...

"I can't imagine a vehicle named the Wisconsinite." Mezzrow

It should have a deer catcher front end with a snowplow mount. Color choices are Green and Gold, Cardinal Red, Blaze Orange or Camo. Jumper cables and beer cooler are not optional.

Achilles said...

The democrat party is evil. They are sponsoring and encouraging open violence against their political opponents.

Ben Wikler knows he is acting like a NAZI himself. I believe he is smart enough to make that connection.

There are some democrats that are not smart enough and they are just stupid. But stupid fascists are almost as dangerous as smart fascists.

But the democrats are misreading the zeitgeist right now. I hope they continue to do so. They will not be tolerated much longer. Soon 40% of the country will demand their removal and 40% will not defend them from us.

boatbuilder said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Dunham said...

Tesla sued the state in Outagamie County Circuit court to overturn a decision that blocks the company from opening dealerships in the state of Wisconsin. The lawsuit is most likely going to end up going to the Wisconsin Supreme Court.
Always follow the money.

narciso said...

ever since 2012, when one county delivered the ballots late, they have been stealing elections to the Supreme Court, and hence stealing elections statewide,

Krumhorn said...

Unfortunately, Oneida County is in another universe from Dane County. I much prefer the Rhinelanders.

- Krumhorn

The Cracker Emcee Refulgent said...

"That commercial is disgusting. I thought I was turned off by the dueling soft on crime ads that are flooding the airways, but that one is purely evil."

I don't know. The prog chick will probably win, just because it's an off-year election in a fraud-ish swing state, but the commercial is another weird example of the Donks trying to convince the most batshit part of their base. I found it puzzling that so much of Kamala's campaign consisted of this kind of appeal.

Admittedly, the batshit part is a significant percentage...

Rabel said...

“There is white-hot rage.”

When he's right, he's right. And Ben's doing his part to promote it.

Original Mike said...

Does even the left actually believe the Nazi-salute shit? It's just disgusting the depths they plumb.

Two-eyed Jack said...

Tammy Baldwin is the latest Dem senator to post a ridiculously chopped video of Musk, claiming that he wants to cut Social Security when he is clearly speaking of cutting fraud in Social Security. They apparently can think of nothing better to do than to build themselves a new fine-people hoax and white-hot rage to warm it. I guess that they are dim senators as well.

rehajm said...

The state’s Democratic Party is airing television ads tying Mr. Musk to Judge Schimel...

...okay, so they've convinced all the Democrats in Wisconsin to vote against Schimel, but...

Qwinn said...

"a judge who is so supportive of the president that he dressed up as him for Halloween"

I've dressed up as hobos, zombies and vampires. Little did I know that when I was doing so, I was explicity declaring my support for winos and undead.

Greg The Class Traitor said...

WhoKnew said...
I was reading a Federalist article on the Wisconsin voter ID constitutional amendment (on the ballot with this Supreme Court race)

Good planning. That should get more GOP voters out

Josephbleau said...

I am waiting for the edited video from an old Frankenstein movie showing Schimel choking her.

EAB said...

I’m in WI and I want voter ID. I don’t want drop boxes. And I know that Musk’s spending is in response to Soros. I also don’t want a judge who will always do what is “right” as she says. I want a judge who will uphold what’s in the State Constitution. I don’t want a Soros judge that folks will be hoping to recall in a few years like they do his DAs.

Bob Boyd said...

Remember when the rodeo clown dressed up as Obama? The NYT and the left didn't think it meant he supported Obama. They went after him and ruined his life.

mikee said...

Sounds like the campaign staff knows their target audience. Idiots. They're going for the majority of the idiot vote, who can't tell a simple lie from a simple truth. God help the Republic, if they can win that way again.

Post a Comment

Please use the comments forum to respond to the post. Don't fight with each other. Be substantive... or interesting... or funny. Comments should go up immediately... unless you're commenting on a post older than 2 days. Then you have to wait for us to moderate you through. It's also possible to get shunted into spam by the machine. We try to keep an eye on that and release the miscaught good stuff. We do delete some comments, but not for viewpoint... for bad faith.