Wisconsin Supreme Court docket Justice Rebecca Bradley, who has been whiny and sad ever since conservatives misplaced their stranglehold on the state’s highest court docket in 2023, simply can’t take it any longer. So, she’s not going to run for re-election in 2026.
Gosh, how will Wisconsin ever get alongside with out the justice who thinks that safe-at-home orders throughout a worldwide pandemic are the identical as interning Japanese American individuals throughout World Battle II?
Bradley’s announcement about her exit was some completely pouty child stuff:
For years I’ve warned that underneath the management of judicial activists, the court docket will make itself extra highly effective than the legislature, extra highly effective than the governor. That warning went unheeded, and Wisconsin has seen solely the start of what’s an alarming shift from considerate, principled judicial service towards bitter partisanship, private assaults, and political gamesmanship that haven’t any place in court docket.
The jurist wasn’t almost so apprehensive in regards to the court docket making itself too highly effective when her conservative colleagues had been within the majority and had been in a position to strike down Democratic Gov. Tony Evers’ safe-at-home orders—which is when Fshe bought to make her unhinged comparability to Japanese internment—or bought to assist cement the state’s absurdly gerrymandered maps. However the court docket’s conservative majority was damaged when Justice Janet Protasiewicz received a seat in 2023, and that’s apparently when issues grew to become no enjoyable for Becky.
Bradley’s brow-furrowing over partisanship and private assaults is wealthy coming from somebody who has used her judicial opinions to personally assault public well being officers, by identify, over public well being choices throughout COVID-19. After the progressive candidate Susan Crawford received a 2025 election for a seat on the court docket however earlier than she took the bench, Bradley wrote an opinion randomly attacking Crawford’s marketing campaign. For good measure, she additionally attacked Protasiewicz over her 2023 marketing campaign. Such considerate, principled judicial service!
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Although Bradley can’t appear to close up in regards to the sums Democrats spent to elect Crawford, she has proven no such consternation at multibillionaire Elon Musk’s antics on behalf of Crawford’s conservative opponent, Brad Schimel, which type of provides away the sport right here. Musk actually gave $100 to individuals to signal a petition opposing “activist judges”—aka Crawford, handed $1 million prizes to 2 particular person Schimel voters, and donated $3 million to the state GOP to switch to Schimel. His PAC spent an extra $11.5 million on promoting and voter turnout efforts.
That’s apparently completely high-quality so far as Bradley is worried. Certainly, maybe as soon as she is off the bench she will help Musk within the lawsuit he nonetheless faces in Texas over his different $1 million giveaway stunt from the 2024 presidential election.
What Bradley is admittedly mad about is that conservatives not have a lock on the state’s highest court docket and may’t simply ship victories for hard-right insurance policies whatever the precise regulation. Based on Bradley, “the best path for me to rebuild the conservative movement and fight for liberty is not as a minority member of the Court.”
It looks like one shouldn’t have to inform a at present sitting state supreme court docket justice that she isn’t presupposed to be on the court docket to assist construct a conservative motion, however as a substitute to use the legal guidelines totally and pretty, however right here we’re.
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She additionally in all probability doesn’t suppose a lot of her election probabilities, despite the fact that she wouldn’t admit that. Conservatives haven’t received a seat on the court docket since Justice Brian Hagedorn prevailed in 2019, and that was a 0.5% squeaker of a victory. In distinction, in 2023, Protasiewicz received by 11 proportion factors, a barely bigger obliteration than Crawford’s 2025 victory by 10 factors in her race towards Schimel. If Musk’s hundreds of thousands can’t purchase a conservative a state supreme court docket seat, what is that this world coming to?
Bradley will little doubt have a mushy touchdown it doesn’t matter what path she chooses subsequent. She’s young-ish, appropriately petty and cruel, and prepared to do what it takes to make right-wing insurance policies the regulation of the land. She simply desires to be someplace she will all the time win. Donald Trump will in all probability discover her a federal judgeship or another plum gig to just do that.
