The Court's Redistricting Ruling Sends GOP A Powerful Message

Fighting Bob honored in the decision's opening by a three-judge panel which has two appointees by GOP presidents, and the lead judge, J.P. Stadtmueller is a Ronald Reagan pick:

There was once a time when Wisconsin was famous for its courtesy and its tradition of good government. In 2006, James J. Conant was able to write that:

The most important feature of Wisconsin’s society, government, and politics during the twentieth century was its progressive nature. Wisconsin had a highly developed civil society, its elected and administrative officials continuously attempted to improve the state’s political institutions, and they attempted to enhance the economic and social circumstances of the state’s citizens. Throughout the century Wisconsin’s politics were issue- oriented, state government institutions operated free of scandal, and the administration of state policies and programs was conducted efficiently and effectively.

Students of American history still read about Robert M. La Follette, Sr., an independent thinker who came to prominence at the end of the 19th century and whose views defied the partisan pigeonholes of his day. More recently, Wisconsin has been called a “purple” state–that is, a state whose people regularly elect comparable numbers of Democrats and Republicans.

Over roughly the last half-century, six Republicans and six Democrats have served as governor. Over the same time, one of its two seats in the U.S. Senate has been held continuously by a Democrat, while the other one has been occupied by three Republicans and two Democrats.

[footnote:1 James J. Conant, WISCONSIN POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT: AMERICA’S LABORATORY OF DEMOCRACY at xv (2006).

This bipartisan tradition has not, unfortunately, exempted Wisconsin from the contentious side of the redistricting process that takes place every ten years in the wake of the United States Census

More on the judges' ruling, here.