County Exec Debate Presents Big Differences in Level-Headed Ways

 

Chris Abele and Chris Larson have big differences and their race for Milwaukee County executive is intensely contested.

But their one-hour debate at Eckstein Hall Thursday evening, broadcast live by WISN (Channel 12), was an even-tempered and unflashy presentation of their positions on many of the specific issues and their general approach to what the county executive should do in the next four years. In other words, it was a good way for voters in large numbers, given the television audience, to get a direct view of what the candidates say, as well as some impression of how the two handle themselves.

This is a time when people nationwide have been getting heavy doses of insults, sharp personal attacks, and posturing in debates between the candidates for president. That makes for more entertaining events, “better’ television,” and more lively material for reporters and commentators to write about. But it also leaves many people (count me in) wondering: Has political dialogue come to this?

So consider this praise of the candidates, of Mike Gousha, Marquette Law School’s distinguished fellow in law and public policy who moderated the debate, and of WISN for making serious discussion between candidates the focus of a debate and for making it available to the general public.

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Limited Terms for Justices Worth Considering, Appeals Judge Says in Hallows Lecture 

Judge Albert Diaz began his E. Harold Hallows Lecture at Marquette Law School last week by saying that he was going to offer thoughts on life tenure for federal judges ”which I’m pretty confident do not reflect the views of many, if not all, of my judicial colleagues.”

But Diaz, a judge since 2010 on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, thought the ideas he presented to be worth considering, especially at a time when concerns about the U.S. Supreme Court, including how justices are appointed, are getting so much attention.

In his Eckstein Hall lecture, Diaz outlined arguments for and against both life tenure for federal judges and election of judges. He traced the debate back to the U.S. constitutional convention in 1787 and the opposing views for and against life tenure. The former prevailed, of course.

“The act of judging is not for the faint of heart,” Diaz said. “Judging is a human endeavor” and decisions are “not always free from taint.” But it is difficult to decide what “on the front end,” i.e., in determining who will be a judge, would best minimize the chances of tainted judicial work.

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Address Evictions to Address Poverty, Author Tells Law School Audience

When he was a graduate student at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Matthew Desmond searched for research on the impact of evictions on low-income people. He found close to nothing written by academics, policy makers, or journalists.

No more. Almost a decade later, Desmond has written a book that is already attracting major attention nationwide and changing the conversation about evictions and related housing issues for low-income people.

The book, which was officially released on Tuesday, is set in Milwaukee and is based on Desmond’s emersion in the lives of renters and landlords in 2008 and 2009 and on his research into tens of thousands of records on evictions.

And he chose an “On the Issues with Mike Gousha” program at Marquette Law School on Tuesday as the first event on a national book tour.

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