Schimel’s record is anti-freedom, anti-health care, and defined by corruption

Over the weekend, extremist MAGA Wisconsin Supreme Court candidate Brad Schimel joined his chief billionaire benefactor, Elon Musk, on a Twitter Space after it was reported that Musk’s PAC is now paying Wisconsin voters $100 to sign a petition opposing “activist judges.” 

This isn’t surprising – Musk is attempting to buy a Wisconsin Supreme Court seat and Schimel is more than willing to be his lackey. In fact, Schimel’s record is defined by his anti-freedom and anti-health care agenda, along with his willingness to bend the rule of law for Musk and Trump. 

The only way to beat a billionaire’s money is by organizing everywhere, and that’s why last week the Democratic Party announced that it would be making 2 million phone calls to Wisconsin voters before next Tuesday’s elections.

Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin issued the following statement: 

“As Elon Musk continues to flood money into Brad Schimel’s campaign in hopes of buying a seat on Wisconsin’s highest court, it’s important to remember what’s at stake in the April 1 elections. Schimel has an anti-freedom, anti-health care agenda that will put billionaires like Elon Musk ahead of working families. Next week, every Wisconsin voter can send a message to Musk and the country that our elections aren’t for sale by voting for Susan Crawford and other candidates that will move Wisconsin forward.”

Schimel’s record at a glance:

History of failing sexual assault victims:

• Delayed justice for survivors of sexual assault: During his first two years as attorney general, Brad Schimel tested only nine out of over 6,000 untested rape kits, allowing violent offenders to walk free. But Schimel’s failures go back even further. As Waukesha County district attorney, Schimel allowed at least 26 rape kits to remain untested.
   
• Blamed survivors of sexual assault: Brad Schimel blamed sexual assault victims for their own “bad judgment” and falsely suggested that their choices were at fault for the rape kit backlog.
   
• Falsely claimed there was no backlog: Brad Schimel later lied about the rape kit backlog, falsely claiming that “a few hundred” backlogged kits had been tested when only nine had actually been processed.
   
• “Wait for a bargain price”: As untested rape kits piled up, Brad Schimel chose not to utilize in-state resources to test rape kits and instead searched for a bargain price from private, out-of-state labs.
   
• Splurging taxpayer funds on commemorative coins: While searching for a discount on testing the backlogged rape kits, Brad Schimel then spent $10,000 in taxpayer funds on commemorative coins emblazoned with his motto: Kicking Ass Every Day.

Anti-abortion record:

• Brad Schimel thinks the 1849 criminal abortion ban is “valid”: As a candidate for the Wisconsin Supreme Court, Brad Schimel has reaffirmed his support for overturning reproductive rights and enforcing Wisconsin’s 1849 criminal abortion ban, which doesn’t include exceptions for rape or incest. Schimel has said, “the Wisconsin 1849 law is valid – there’s nothing in that law to make it invalid.”
   
• Brad Schimel wanted to keep the 1849 abortion ban on the books: Once again behind closed doors, Brad Schimel said he wanted to keep the 1849 abortion ban on the books before the fall of Roe just in case the court struck down reproductive freedom and the law could be enforced again.
   
• Brad Schimel claimed “there is not a constitutional right to abortion” in Wisconsin: In reporting by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Schimel was revealed to have said behind closed doors, “There is not a constitutional right to abortion in our state constitution. That will be a sham if they find that.”
   
• Brad Schimel questioned “what is flawed?” about Wisconsin’s 1849 abortion ban: As Waukesha County district attorney, Brad Schimel actively defended the 1849 ban by signing onto a legal white paper agreeing that it should be enforced if Roe was struck down. Schimel recently said “They’ve [the WI Supreme Court] got several issues in front of them. One is the 1849 ban on abortions, which, by the way, what is flawed about that law?”

Trying to rip away affordable health care coverage:

• Brad Schimel said the ACA was a “train wreck.” He called the law, which today is helping over 313,000 Wisconsinites get access to affordable health coverage, “a colossal failure.”
   
• As attorney general, Schimel helped lead a lawsuit with Texas seeking to strike down the Affordable Care Act and rip health care away from hundreds of thousands of Wisconsinites.
   
• Brad Schimel’s lawsuit would have allowed insurance companies to deny coverage to Wisconsinites with preexisting conditions, and Schimel’s solicitor general told a judge that “the entire ACA should fall.”
   
• After Brad Schimel lost reelection, a Texas judge ruled in favor of Schimel’s lawsuit to overturn the ACA. Schimel gloated about the lower court decision, saying he was “glad” he “got one more win” as attorney general.
   
• Though Wisconsin withdrew from Schimel’s lawsuit in 2019 under Attorney General Josh Kaul and Governor Tony Evers, Brad Schimel wasn’t done losing. Schimel was dealt a final blow in his fight to overturn the ACA in 2021 when the U.S. Supreme Court tossed Texas’ lawsuit that Schimel had joined which challenged the law. The final decision was 7-2.

Corruption:

• Schimel gave a sweetheart plea deal to a man caught with child porn after the man’s lawyer gave his campaign thousands of dollars.
  
• Schimel has previously said he wants to be part of a “support network” for Trump and that the Wisconsin Supreme Court “screwed over” Trump by keeping a third-party presidential candidate off the Wisconsin ballot in 2020.

• Now, Elon Musk is pouring in millions to buy this Supreme Court seat while his company sues the state.

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