In defense of freedom: Judicial branch cannot have a political agenda

OPINION:

Freedom is precious, but it is also fragile and must be protected.

Our freedoms are based on a constitutional structure that will survive only if officials in all branches of our government act with integrity and respect the constitutional limitations on their power. Judges at all levels of the justice system must hear cases impartially and objectively and faithfully apply the law and constitutional principles.

But here in Wisconsin, justices in the current majority on our highest court decide cases and promise outcomes before the cases are even filed. Decisions are made before they have reviewed any legal briefs, considered the facts, heard the lawyers’ arguments or analyzed and applied the law to those facts. Instead of doing as required under their oaths, they implement partisan agendas in plain sight.

The legislative and executive branches engage in politics. For our system to work, however, the judicial branch cannot have a political agenda.

Think of it this way. Judges have been aptly compared to baseball umpires. Their job is to call balls and strikes. They are not to make the rules or advance the interests of one team or the other.

Imagine if you went to a ballgame and the umpire came out wearing the opposing team’s jersey. Would you bother to stay for the game? Do the teams even need to play the game? We already know the outcome is not going to be fair.

Well, when a court advances its own political agenda rather than neutrally applying the law, the justice system becomes a farce, and nothing about our constitutional system can survive.

In addition to this, there is the lawfare we have seen nationwide, with people misusing the justice system to go after their political foes. Like everyone else, I have watched what has happened with the politicization of our court system, and as I have done throughout my career,

I refuse to sit back and watch our justice system crumble. I’m running for the Wisconsin Supreme Court to stop the madness and restore integrity, objectivity and humility to our court system.

We are blessed to have been born in the greatest country in the history of the world, where great men and women before us dedicated their lives to preserving and protecting our God-given rights and freedoms.

It’s imperative that we take up that fight to ensure that the protection of our freedom always triumphs over personal beliefs. This solemn responsibility is the foundation and the guiding light of my commitment to defending freedom. It’s why I have dedicated my life to protecting our streets, our laws and our God-given rights.

I have dedicated my career to defending victims, supporting law enforcement and ensuring that criminals are held accountable.

As Waukesha County district attorney, I earned a reputation for being tough and relentless in pursuing justice. Over my 25 years as a prosecutor, I handled every type of serious crime, from elder abuse to child abuse, human trafficking to homicide and sexual assault to public corruption. Being tough on crime has never been just a campaign slogan — it’s a calling.

While serving as Wisconsin attorney general, I proudly stood with law enforcement and tackled the state’s most critical criminal justice issues. I refused to accept that the way we had always done things was good enough. From day one, I overhauled the broken routines and procedures that had become the status quo.

Taking on the status quo came with significant backlash at times. Still, with persistence, our team made significant and necessary reforms aimed at combating drug abuse, elder exploitation and threats to children’s safety. When tackling issues that affect Wisconsin families, I have never and will never let comfort and routine halt necessary progress. Notably, I established a statewide program that addressed decades of neglect surrounding rape kits, providing victims with closure and clearing a backlog of untested kits that had built up for over two decades.

We need a state Supreme Court that serves Wisconsinites, protects our laws and preserves our way of life, not one that props up the worst partisan dysfunction in Madison. While I’ve spent my life defending Wisconsin and making our justice system work for Wisconsin residents, my opponent has spent much of her career suing our state.

When I was prosecuting criminals and delivering justice, my opponent was suing the state to try to eliminate a voter ID requirement and raise taxes. As a judge, she has a troubling pattern of putting sexual predators back on our streets.

My opponent has a dangerous agenda with real-life consequences for all of us, and she is the handpicked choice of the current lawless liberal majority. My only agenda is to restore respect, humility and objectivity to our state’s highest court and protect Wisconsin families.

As we turn the page and make solid resolutions this year, let us also turn the page on the political activism that the current Wisconsin Supreme Court has operated under. I am in this race to protect your freedoms and the things that make Wisconsin great. Join me as we stop the madness and make Wisconsin safe and prosperous again.

• Brad Schimel is a career prosecutor who served as Waukesha County, Wisconsin, district attorney and state attorney general before becoming a circuit court judge, the office he currently holds. He is running for Wisconsin’s Supreme Court.