Wisconsin Justice Department Challenges Judge's Ruling

The left lost at the ballot box, they lost in both houses of their state legislature, and they lost when Governor Scott Walker signed the bill into law that would eliminate collective bargaining from public sector union contracts. Oh, there was also a couple of parts to the bill that required union workers who are already funded with taxpayer dollars to actually have to fund some of their own pensions and health care.

The law was apparently so egregious in the eyes of the left, that an activist judge named Maryann Sumi (ironically pronounced 'Sue Me') issued an order that temporarily blocked Wisconsin's Secretary of State, Doug La Follette from certifying the new law.

It's really an unprecedented ruling. Via WTMJ:

The state Justice Department asked an appeals court Monday to lift an emergency order blocking the state's contentious new collective bargaining law, saying the judge overreached and improperly inserted herself into the law-making process.

Agency attorneys Maria Lazar and Steven Kilpatrick said in a petition to the 4th District Court of Appeals that Dane County Circuit Judge Maryann Sumi trampled the Legislature's ability to create laws. She can rule on a law only after it takes effect, they said.

"There is absolutely no authority for the broad, overreaching step taken. In the interests of the administration of justice, it is necessary -- nay, it is imperative -- that this (appeals) Court step forward and undo this inappropriate act," their filing said.

Democratic Dane County District Attorney Ismael Ozanne asked for the emergency order blocking publication in a lawsuit he filed last week. The suit alleges that Republican legislative leaders violated the state's open meeting law during debate on the proposal and La Follette should therefore be barred from publishing the law. Publication is the last step before a law can take effect in Wisconsin.

Interestingly, the appeal identifies La Follette as the petitioner. However, he appears to be taking issue with that.

Via The Cap Times:

The "Petition for Leave to Appeal" filed by the Department of Justice lawyers concludes with the words "Secretary La Follette respectfully requests... an ex parte order granting temporary relief from the TRO entered by Judge Sumi on March 18, 2011..."

The state's lawyers argue that Judge Sumi's order impedes La Follette from doing his ministerial duty of publishing the bill by March 25, the last day of a 10-day period for publication allowed under the state constitution.
But the Department of Justice attorneys did not consult La Follette about whether he has any objection to Judge Sumi's order.

The secretary of state says he has not complained about the judge's order.

Any guesses as to what party La Follette is registered with?

Democrats (cough, cough).

Remember, George Soros spearheaded a strategy to target Secretary of State seats all across the country for reasons just like this. La Follette had already made known that he was going to take the full ten days he had at his disposal to certify the law. This bought the unions the time they needed to re-negotiate their contracts.

h/t Big Government