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EXCLUSIVE: Milwaukee Police Union Refuses To Endorse Pro-Cop Mayoral Candidate Bob Donovan
By Mark Belling, WISN-AM

The union of Milwaukee police officers is refusing to endorse the mayoral candidacy of Bob Donovan who has made support of police and fighting of crime the centerpiece of his campaign. The union has instead decided to stay neutral in the race between Donovan and Acting Mayor Cavalier Johnson despite Johnson’s support for a city budget that reduced the number of sworn officers in the department.

Donovan was routinely endorsed for election by the MPA in his many runs for the city council, a body on which he served for nearly two decades. The union also endorsed Donovan when he ran unsuccessfully for mayor against Tom Barrett in 2016. The union for many years has endorsed conservative candidates for public office and has generally supported Republican candidates for governor, one of the very few labor unions in the state to do so. Given that history, the MPA’s abandonment of Donovan in 2022 is stunning.

On the other hand, the union is under new leadership. Former union heads Bradley DeBraska and Mike Crivello both oversaw the union when it was endorsing conservatives in the past. The current head of the union, Andrew Wagner, may be going a different route.

Wagner told me the decision by the union board to remain neutral was unanimous. He said the union wanted to maintain strong relationships with whon=mever is elected mayor. Translation: The union thinks Johnson is going to win and kicked Dovan to the curb.

The union recently clashed with new Police Chief Jeffrey Norman over Norman’s order that officers not display anything containing the phrase “thin blue line.” Donovan defended the cops on that issue. Apparently, Wagner’s union doesn’t believe in supporting its own friends.

Whereas, Assembly Speaker Robin Vos has refused to cooperate with Representative Janel Brandtjen, Chair of the Campaigns & Elections Committee and the Vice-Chair of the Committee on Government Accountability & Oversight, in her efforts to investigate election fraud, including his refusal to sign subpoenas issued by her or allow her the rightful oversight role of the investigation led by former Supreme Court Justice Michael Gableman and

Whereas, each State Representative is provided with staff to serve the people of their respective legislative district and

Whereas, Representative Ramthun was elected to serve the people of the 59th District and

Whereas, Speaker Vos removed the only full-time staff member of Representative Ramthun after Representative Ramthun unveiled the truth of Speaker Vos’s support of drop boxes for the 2020 election and

Whereas, this removal makes it impossible for Representative Ramthun to effectively serve and assist those who elected him and

Whereas, this removal is an immoral, vindictive step, one that punishes open discourse on controversial issues and has no place in the actions of a leader and

Whereas, this removal sends a clear message to all other State Representatives that Speaker Vos will punish them for speaking the truth if it damages his reputation and

Whereas, the support of drop boxes is antithetical to election integrity, encourages voter fraud, and results in a distrust of election outcomes by the large majority of Wisconsin voters and

Whereas, Attorney Misha Tseytlin wrote on behalf of Speaker Vos regarding drop boxes; “We wholeheartedly support voters’ use of any of these convenient, secure, and expressly authorized absentee-ballot-return methods” and

Whereas, Speaker Vos and Senator Fitzgerald signed off on drop boxes without a full vote of the legislature and

Whereas, Republican State Senator Kathy Bernier is writing legislation to legalize drop boxes, and, when questioned, Speaker Vos has refused to answer questions if he supports drop boxes or not.

Resolved, we, the Republican Party of Sheboygan County, in caucus gathered on February 5, 2022,

1. Condemn Representative Vos’s actions:
2. Removing Representative Ramthun’s staff
3. Undermining Representative Brandtjen as Chair of the Campaigns & Elections Committee and the Vice-Chair of the Committee on Government Accountability & Oversight

1. 1. The slow-walking any meaningful investigation of the 2020 election.

1. 2. Demand a vote of no confidence be taken by the Assembly and a new Speaker be elected immediately and/or demand Speaker Vos resign from his role as Assembly Speaker.

3. We fully support Representative Ramthun’s 2021 Assembly Joint Resolution 120

Click image to expand.

Click image to expand.

EXCLUSIVE: Conservative State Supreme Court Justice Pat Roggensack Not Running For Reelection in 2023; Her Daughter Will Seek To Replace Her

By Mark Belling, WISN-AM

Wisconsin State Supreme Court Justice Patience Roggensack, a stalwart member of the Court’s conservative bloc, will not seek reelection to another ten year term on the Court in the spring of 2023.   Her daughter, Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Ellen Brostrom, intends to run for the position.

The election could decide ideological control of the Court.   At present there are three clear conservatives on the court and three staunch liberals.   The seventh justice, Brian Hagedorn, inevitably casts the deciding vote on virtually all controversial cases. Hagedorn ran as a conservative but has frequently voted with the liberal bloc.

Given the close ideological divide on the court, expect a remarkably contentious campaign.   The biggest question is where Brostrom would fit in on the Court if she won.

Brostrom’s ideology is hard to pin down.   She has a history of endorsing liberals in major judicial elections and supported Lisa Neiubauer, a liberal, in her successful run for reelection to the state Court of Appeals.   Brostrom also endorsed Rebecca Dallet in her 2017 run for the Supreme Court but withdrew it after Dallet blasted the current Court which was then headed by Roggensack, Brostrom’s mother.  But Brostrom has also donated money to the campaign of Justice Rebecca Bradley, the most conservative member of the court.

It’s probably fair to say that liberals would be wary of Brostrom because she is the daughter of Roggensack.  And conservatives may be wary of Brostrom because of her past support for liberals and the fact that she serves on the bench in Milwaukee County.

It is not a secret that Roggensack would likely not seek reelection.  She is 81 years old.  She was elected to the Supreme Court in 2003 and served on the Court of Appeals for seven years prior to that.   She is the Court’s former Chief Justice and with Rebecca Bradley and current Chief Justice Annette Ziegler, she has been part of a rock solid conservative bloc on the Court.   The court’s three liberals, Dallet, Ann Walsh Bradley and Jill Karofsky are as solidly liberal as the other bloc is conservative.

Hagedorn has bitterly disappointed conservatives with his frequent siding with liberals.   Hagedorn was strongly backed in his campaign for the Court by conservatives especially after Wisconsin liberals attacked him for his conservative Christian beliefs.   Given what happened with Hagedorn, Brostrom will have a hard time convincing conservatives that she is one of them.

Legal observers have long praised Brostrom as one of the best judges in Milwaukee County and she is extremely well-liked.

There is no seat up for election on the Court in 2022.   If any Justice retires in the next year, Democrat Governor Tony Evers gets to name the replacement.   After next year, whichever candidate is elected Governor will fill all vacancies via appointment for the next four years.   Ultimately, all justices have to win election.  With the terms being ten years and with most incumbents winning reelection, battles for open seats like the one coming in 2023 are critical.

Mark Belling

December 20, 2021

EXCLUSIVE: Summerfest To Offer Refunds To All Amphitheatre Shows Because Of New Covid Rules
By Mark Belling, WISN-AM

Summerfest President Don Smiley tells me the festival will offer refunds to all paid American Family Amphitheatre shows at next month’s festival for individuals who do not want to comply with the new requirement of either showing proof of vaccination or a positive Covid test. Smiley says Ticketmaster will handle the refunds and people will have a “window” to request them.

Smiley said he doesn’t know when the timetable for the window will be.

Mark Belling
August 10

By Mark Belling, WISN-AM

A letter from the attorneys for the Milwaukee Catholic Archdiocese claims the investigation into decades-old allegations of abuse of children by priests lacks any legal basis. The letter, signed by attorney Francis LoCoco of Husch Blackwell, further states the investigation is the result of “anti-Catholic bigotry.”

The letter, sent today, (a copy of which was obtained by me), argues that 99% of cases of abuse by priests in the Milwaukee Archdiocese occurred before 1998 and the statute of limitations for prosecution has expired. The letter states that the basis for the probe by Attorney General Josh Kaul violates the First Amendment of the Bill of Rights by violating the “establishment clause” and targeting a specific religion.

Kaul’s investigation seems to be based on a probe in Pennsylvania that uncovered abuse by Cardinal Theodore McCarrick and ongoing cover-ups of it. But the Milwaukee letter states there is no evidence of any ongoing criminal conduct. The letter specifically accuses Kaul of targeting only the Catholic Church. “While the Attorney General, when pressed, has offered platitudes that the investigation will address other groups, in every official statement the Attorney General makes clear that the Catholic Church is the target of the investigation.”

The Milwaukee Archdiocese filed for bankruptcy several years ago after settlements with a number of individuals who were abused by priests. A database of the abusers has been established.

Kaul’s investigation comes one year before he runs for reelection. Several years ago, Milwaukee County District Attorney John Chisholm indicated he may initiate an investigation but never moved forward. Chisholm’s predecessor, former DA E. Michael McCann, was aware of numerous allegations against priests and took no legal action. Former Archdiocesan leaders often consulted McCann about these cases of abuse.

Former Archbishop Rembert Weakland, who, along with predecessors, was alleged to have covered up abuse by re-assigning priests resigned in disgrace after revelations he paid hush money to an adult accuser. The names of Weakland the late former Archbishop William Cousins have been removed from diocesan buildings.

In recent years, there have been numerous instances of public school teachers have sexual relationships with students. There has been no coordinated legal effort to investigate whether there has been an epidemic of sex abuse among teachers or whether any such abuse has been covered up.

Publicly, the Milwaukee Archdiocese has said it intends to cooperate in Kaul’s investigation. But the language of the letter from the Archdiocese’s lawyers indicates church leaders believe they are being targeted without legal basis in a probe that stems from religious bigotry.

Mark Belling
June 1

By Mark Belling, WISN-AM

A Menasha man charged today in connection with the death in Milwaukee Saturday night of a three year old boy is a habitual criminal that was let out of the Waukesha County Jail only two weeks earlier on a mere signature bond despite being charged with armed robbery.

A signature bond doesn’t require the accused criminal to put up any money.  All you have to do is sign your name.   The Waukesha County Court Commissioner is Linda Saafir, who I have commented on in the past for her proclivity to set small or no bail for dangerous felons.

Devons Armour, 34, of Menasha is facing charges in connection with the death Saturday night in Milwaukee of three-year old Cire Walker.   The criminal complaint says Armour was in a home at 32^nd and Michigan and the little boy got Armour’s gun and shot himself.  Armour has an extensive criminal record and is not allowed to possess firearms.  In the criminal complaint, he allegedly admitted buying the gun a few days earlier.

On April 29, Armours was released from the Waukesha County Jail on a $10,000 signature bond set by Saafir after he was charged with armed robbery with threat of force.  His criminal record in Wisconsin dates back to 2013 when he was first convicted of the same crime—-robbery with the threat of force.  As a felon he is not allowed to possess guns.

I have long criticized the practice of Waukesha County Court Commissioners who release people charged with dangerous felonies on minimal or no bail.  These criminals are often free for up to two years as their cases proceed.  In the case of Armours, it only took him two weeks to bring a gun into a home that resulted in the death of a three year old child.

Waukesha County Chief Judge Jennifer Dorow has consistently defended the lenient bail decisions made by the court commissioners.   These commissioners often set extremely high bail in murder cases or others that attract notoriety.   But armed robbers and the like are often given little or no bail.  In the case of Armour and his long criminal record, he certainly knew the drill.   Saafir’s “get out of jail card” gave him time to buy the gun that resulted in a child’s death.

Armour is now facing multiple felony charges in Milwaukee County in connection with the little boy’s death.  One of the charges is “bail jumping,” for violating the conditions of Saafir’s signature bond.   A lot of good those conditions did…….

Mark Belling

May 12