READ: Reaction to the Wisconsin Supreme Court rulings issued Thursday
MILWAUKEE (WITI) -- Lawmakers and other public officials are making their voices heard after the Wisconsin Supreme Court issued multiple rulings on high-profile cases on Thursday, July 31st. Those cases included Act 10, voter ID and a domestic partner registry.
Read the statements of those officials on the various decisions below.
Act 10
St. Sen. Leah Vukmir (R): “Act 10 is among the most important pieces of legislation passed anywhere in America since my election in 2010 and I was proud to work with Governor Walker and my Republican colleagues to pass this landmark legislation.” Act 10 was exactly the kind of bold reform Wisconsin needed to put its fiscal house in order and I look forward to building on this success during the coming legislative session.”
St. Sen. Chris Larson (D): “Today’s anti-worker ruling was not surprising considering the partisan Wisconsin Supreme Court that, time and time again, has acted more like politicians in robes than as impartial arbiters of the law. Their opinion will continue to negatively impact communities across Wisconsin by limiting the freedom of our hard-working neighbors to negotiate with their employers for fair wages and safe working conditions. Our workers are the builders of our economy and the backbone of our communities. Rather than hampering their ability to create opportunity, we should be giving them proper workplace safety measures and the basic freedoms needed to achieve the American Dream. While today’s ruling mirrors extreme efforts by Gov. Walker and legislative Republicans to undermine our workers’ right to be treated with respect and dignity, Senate Democrats will continue to stand up for the rights and freedoms of Wisconsin workers and build an economy that works for all of us.”
Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen: “Since the historic events of 2011, I have been dedicated to defending Act 10 and Wisconsin’s Voter ID law. Today, the Supreme Court has completely upheld these laws. The decisions settle important state policy and serve to strengthen our constitutional democracy. I applaud the hard work and diligence of our attorneys and staff who also did their duty.”
Mike Tate, Democratic Party of Wisconsin: "It's disappointing, but not surprising, that Scott Walker's bought-and-paid-for Supreme Court stamped its seal of approval on his signature legislation that sought to 'divide and conquer' Wisconsin by gutting collective bargaining rights and his repeated attempts to make it harder for seniors, students, and veterans to cast their votes. Fortunately a federal court has intervened and the barriers Republicans have tried to erect to rig the game in their favor will not be in place this fall. Wisconsin voters will not be deterred from righting the wrongs of the past four years, and in November, we'll elect a governor in Mary Burke who will fight for the rights of all people to have a voice in the electoral process."
St. Sen Glenn Grothman (R): “Act 10 is the single greatest legislation we’ve passed in the past four years. It’s empowered schools to keep the best teachers in the classroom. It’s saved the state and local governments billions in health care and pension costs. Most importantly, it’s tipped the balance of power back to the taxpayers and away from the public union bosses. Today, Act 10 withstood yet another frivolous legal challenge, and I applaud the court’s decision upholding the law.”
WEAC President Betsy Kippers: “Wisconsin educators are disappointed, but no court ruling can take away their right to organize through a union. We are assessing how the ruling will impact our members and any options available. Here’s one thing everybody should know: No law or legal ruling will ever stop us from remaining Wisconsin's loudest collective voice for students and public schools."
St. Senators Alberta Darling (R) & St. Rep. John Nygren (R) released this joint statement: "The Supreme Court's ruling upholding Act 10 is a victory for taxpayers. We took the steps necessary to save thousands of Wisconsin jobs, get our fiscal house back in order and ultimately balance our budget. Act 10 was crucial in turning a $3.6 billion deficit into a $1 billion projected surplus without raising taxes. Today the rhetoric will stop; Act 10 has saved thousands of jobs and gave teachers more freedom in the classroom. Wisconsin continues to lead the way in reforming government. Act 10 was a major step in restoring the priorities for state government."
Brett Healy, Pres. of the John K. MacIver Institute for Public Policy: “It is a landmark day for the taxpayers of Wisconsin. Act 10 has saved the state, local governments and school districts nearly $3 billion. Thanks to the Supreme Court's ruling today, taxpayers for decades to come will continue to realize those savings."
David Fladeboe, Americans for Prosperity: "Today’s ruling by the Supreme Court confirms what we have all known for years, Act 10 is the right law for Wisconsin. The results have been clear as day: billions of taxpayer dollars saved, billions in tax cuts and reforms that are moving our state forward. Opponents of this law have been more interested in disrupting the progress we are making here and this court ruling finally puts the issue to rest. Now we can focus on the future and the next generation of reforms."
Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce: “A recent WMC member survey revealed that the most important issue for Wisconsin business leaders is state fiscal policy. Fiscal policy beat out reducing taxes, health care affordability and access to reliable and affordable energy. That tells you how much Wisconsin’s business community values state and local government living within its means. Act 10 is a landmark achievement for Wisconsin. It has saved taxpayers billions and it has saved public employee jobs. Act 10 has also helped improve Wisconsin’s business climate by removing the threat of tax and fee increases caused by deficits. WMC applauds Governor Walker and the Wisconsin Legislature for having the courage to enact Act 10 in 2011. And we applaud the Wisconsin Supreme Court for ruling today to uphold it.”
Madison Teachers Incorporated (MTI) Executive Director John Matthews: "The Wisconsin Supreme Court's ruling also reversed 50+ years of legislation which enabled public employers and employee groups to work together to make workplaces not only more productive, but safer. The quality of life of the people of our great state will long suffer as a result of this decision."
Voter ID
St. Sen. Leah Vukmir (R): “This ruling is an important victory for all of those who legally cast a ballot each election day. Now that the State Supreme Court has affirmed this law, I look forward to the 7th Circuit Court’s ruling so that this important reform can take effect.”
St. Sen. Chris Larson (D): “This session, we witnessed Gov. Walker and Tea Party Republicans repeatedly assault our democratic foundation by suppressing the rights of voters across our state. In turn, communities throughout Wisconsin collectively applauded when a federal judge ruled in April that the Wisconsin Republicans’ extreme anti-democracy, voter suppression agenda was unconstitutional. While today’s ruling by the Wisconsin Supreme Court will have little immediate effect on April’s federal ruling, I’m extremely disappointed that our polarized court has once again permitted attacks on our most basic freedoms. Today, it was our freedom to vote and Wisconsin’s proud tradition of promoting engagement in our democratic process. What will it be tomorrow?”
St. Sen. Glenn Grothman (R): “Presenting identification when you go to vote is not controversial. It’s supported by a vast majority of Wisconsinites and Americans, and I’m glad to see that the Wisconsin Supreme Court sees the necessity and common-sense nature of voter ID. Nonetheless, Wisconsin still lacks a voter ID law that can actually be enforced. While we await the appeal of Judge Adelman’s ruling from April, our elections are wide open for fraud. I was disappointed that the legislature was not brought in for a special session this summer to pass a new law that would’ve certainly passed constitutional scrutiny and could’ve been in place for the fall elections. I urge my colleagues to act quickly on this issue when the legislature reconvenes this January.”
St. Sen. Mark Miller (D): “The ruling on Voter ID continues the Republican scheme to disenfranchise voters they don’t think worthy of the right to vote. We live in a dark world when a one segment of society can take away the freedom of citizens to exercise their constitutionally protected rights. Or, rather, what we thought was constitutionally protected.”
St. Sen. Joe Leibham (R): “Today is a great day for those who believe in the concept that one person equals one vote. As someone who has fought for this legislation for nearly a decade, I am thrilled that this common sense Election Day reform has been reaffirmed by our state’s highest court. Against criticism from the left and from my primary opponents, I have stood strong against watering down this law and kept faith that this law can be upheld constitutional once we get it away from liberal activist judges.”
Voces de la Frontera: "Today the majority of the State Supreme Court has betrayed their duty to protect the constitutional right to vote for Wisconsin's most vulnerable citizens. It has been said many times that this is a most fundamental right, a sacred right, guaranteed and protected by not only the 14th and 15th Amendments to the US Constitution, but also by Article 3, Section 1 of the Wisconsin Constitution. We all know the reasons to enact this law, given by its proponents, do not hold water. We are grateful and comforted by the fact that Judge Adelman found this ugly tactic of voter suppression to be unconstitutional in the federal case, and that decision must be cherished. Today's decision veers from the Wisconsin tradition of protecting voting rights, and it is a clear case of defending a law that is designed to suppress the rights of hundreds of thousands of minority and low-income voters, elderly and disabled persons and students. It is especially tragic and ironic that this decision was made on the cusp of the 50th anniversary of the civil rights movement's "Freedom Summer", which fought so hard to defend voting rights for African-Americans.' We encourage all to make every effort to vote in the upcoming elections on August 12th and November 4th, and we thank our partners, plaintiffs and witnesses, and our legal team."
Domestic partner registry
St. Sen. Chris Larson (D): “Everyone should have the opportunity to live their lives freely and happily, and a cornerstone of this basic right is that everyone should be afforded equal protections under our laws. This fundamental tenet was reinforced by Judge Crabb’s historic ruling in June against Wisconsin’s unconstitutional and discriminatory marriage equality ban. I’m happy the court sided with our basic rights, freedoms, and opportunities on this case today. Similarly, it’s time for Wisconsin Republicans to stop wasting our money on defending policies that promote inequality, foster discrimination, and unconstitutionally limit the rights and freedoms of our fellow Wisconsinites.”
St. Sen. Glenn Grothman (R): “I’ve been a proud supporter of traditional family values including marriage between one man and one woman. I’m terribly disappointed by this decision from the Supreme Court upholding the liberals’ attempts to bypass a constitutional provision that was overwhelmingly approved by Wisconsinites just eight years ago.”