Disappointed and Disgusted!

Over the weekend, I told the reader about Cedric Cornwall's failing and flailing campaign that tried to resurrect the ghost of McCarty by smearing his opponent for exercising her constitutional right.  He first tried to pander to the left and to the unions and had actually gotten the endorsement from the Milwaukee Area Labor Council (MALC), of which I am an executive board member.

But even as he was pandering to the left, he was also pandering to the extremist right, as evidenced by his use of McCarthyism.  When the right wingers learned of the MALC endorsement, he started to lose their support.  When the left learned of his pandering to the right and his use of McCarthyism and his betrayal, they started to pull support.

That includes the support of MALC.  The following is a letter issued on Monday by MALC Secretary/Treasurer Sheila Cochran:

Click to embiggen

The MALC Executive Board did meet on Monday and passed a motion to rescind the endorsement of Cornwall and give it to Laura Gramling Perez.  The delegates will vote on it after the election is over, but a message had to be sent and Sheila did it ever so eloquently.

Cornwall Shows Himself To Be Unfit For Circuit Court Seat

In Milwaukee County, there is a number of judicial elections coming up on Tuesday, but only one of those races - the one for Branch 32 - is a contested race, meaning that there is more than one candidate.  The two people running for that seat are Laura Gramling Perez and Cedric Cornwall.

Gramling Perez has been working her campaign for months, appearing at numerous events and getting her name out.  She has gotten the support of many judges, court commissioners, lawyers, elected officials and labor unions.  She is very personable and professional and has some great ideas to improve the judicial system and make it more friendly to the people that find themselves in the system.  In the interest of full disclosure, I endorsed Gramling Perez at the beginning of the year.

Cornwall's campaign has been quieter.  He has not been as visible and has not been out and about nearly as much as his opponent.  He has also gain the support of many judges, court commissioners and lawyers, but many of them appear to be people that work at the Children's Court Center where he works in his current position.

The race, until Friday, had been relatively quiet.

But on Friday, Cornwall's campaign started to implode with an increasingly rapid pace.

The implosion started when it was learned that his campaign had sent out these fliers to voters:

Cornwall went all McCarthy on his opponent.  He cited a right wing front group, Wisconsin Election Launch, to give the impression that Gramling Perez couldn't be impartial because she exercised her constitutional right to sign a recall petition.

If Cornwall paid more attention to the law than right wing propaganda blogs, he would have learned that there is nothing wrong with Gramling Perez signing a recall petition, as constitutional law scholar Professor Edward Fallone of Marquette University clearly points out.

But - say it with me - there's more.  There's always more.

Cornwall's campaign has admitted that these mailers were supposed to go to only conservative voters.  Progressive voters were supposed to get another mailer which cited a quote from Judge Carolina Stark.

In other words, he was trying to play both sides of the aisle with his misleading fliers.

These actions - the McCarthyism and the duplicity - started people to reconsider their endorsement of Cornwall.  There have been at least three names reported to Cog Dis that have withdrawn their endorsements.

As these events were transpiring, yet another problem for Cornwall was discovered.

Cornwall has been claiming the support of people that never did endorse him.  The most notable of these people is Robert Hansen, who not only did not support Cornwall, but has been in full support and actively canvassing for Gramling Perez:

I just saw Cedric Cornwall's new mail piece attacking Laura Gramling Perez for signing the recall. I am fully behind Laura Gramling Perez in this election and encourage you to get out and vote for her for circuit court judge. I am sending Mr. Cornwall a message expressing my disappointment and am asking him to remove my name from his website, on which I found out I am listed as a supporter. To be clear I have been helping Laura since the beginning and intend to do all I can to see her elected to this position.

Laura Gramling Perez

In summary, Cornwall, who claims to be concerned about impartiality, has been playing both sides of the political aisle through disingenuous and flagrantly false fliers and has been falsely claiming the support of people who have never supported him and were even actively working for his opponent.

Instead of falsely maligning his opponent about impartiality, it would have behooved Cornwall to remember that even more important qualities for a judge are ethical conduct and integrity, both of which Cornwall has shown himself to be severely lacking.

Once again, I urge Milwaukee County voters to support Laura Gramling Perez, a strong, impartial and ethical judge.

Gramling Perez Looking Strong In Race For Branch 32

Laura Gramling Perez issued a press release which shows she is in a strong position for the final two months leading up to the April 1 election for Milwaukee County Circuit Court Branch 32:

Laura Gramling Perez, candidate for Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge, Branch 32, filed her campaign finance report on Friday, which showed her campaign raising more than $80,000 over the course of 2013. The campaign is in a strong position, with more than $58,000 cash on hand and numerous recent endorsements from elected officials and law enforcement groups.

“The support I’ve received so far in my campaign has been truly phenomenal,” said Laura Gramling Perez. “I’m very thankful to all of the people who have endorsed me and contributed financially. It is because of them that my campaign is in such a strong position going in to the last two months of the election. I’m looking forward to continuing this momentum and building even more support among the people I hope to serve as Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge.“

Over the past few weeks, the campaign has also announced the endorsements of the Milwaukee County Deputy Sheriffs’ Association, the Milwaukee Police Supervisors’ Union, and the Milwaukee Building and Construction Trades Council. Gramling Perez also has the endorsement of more than two-thirds of mayors and village presidents in Milwaukee County, as well as hundreds of attorneys and community leaders.

“It’s been amazing to watch Laura’s support grow across Milwaukee County,” said Matthew O’Neill, shareholder at Fox, O'Neill & Shannon, S.C. “She has the knowledge and the experience to be a valuable member of the Milwaukee County Circuit Court. I know that Milwaukee County will be well served with her on the bench.”

A look at her list of endorsements reveals that she is indeed in a good position and is receiving support across the political spectrum. It is also worth noting that along with an impressive number of judges, court commissioners and attorneys, Gramling Perez has also earned the endorsements of former DA Michael McCann as well as the Deputies' Association and Police Supervisors' Organization.

I would also point out that Gramling Perez has recently been the subject of a (rather feeble) smear campaign by the corporate special interests, which tells us that she would be a judge that will enforce the law and not the wishes of the special interests.

I am proud to be among those that support Gramling Perez and I look forward to voting for her on April 1.

To learn more about Laura Gramling Perez, please visit her website or her Facebook page.  If you wish to support Gramling Perez, you can contribute to her campaign here.

Endorsement: Laura Gramling Perez for Milwaukee County Circuit Court Branch 32

Sadly, school board and circuit court races are the most uncovered races by the mainstream media.  More often than not, the media won't even mention that there is even a race until just days before the election and even then, their coverage is very minimal and gives little information about the candidates.  These races are just not as juicy as the bigger races in the fall.

Laura Gramling Perez

This is extremely unfortunate when one considers how much impact they can have on our lives and the lives of our families.

One of these races is for Milwaukee County Circuit Court Branch 32.

One of the candidates vying for that bench is Court Commissioner Laura Gramling Perez.

Gramling Perez, who announced her candidacy several months ago, has been very active in getting her name out there.  For the past few months, I have seen her at union meetings, at fund raisers and just about every event she can humanly be at.

Last night, I had the opportunity and privilege to speak with her about the race and her campaign.

As is my wont, the first question I asked her was why she chose to run.

Gramling Perez said that she wants to continue to reform the legal system, to make it more streamlined and improve it for the people who appear in the courts.

She said such reforms that she has been part of as a court commissioner was leading the way to set up a payment plan system for people that are fined by the courts so that the people can meet their obligations and not lose their licenses or their freedom.

Another issue that Gramling Perez was very passionate about is her work in setting up community-based legal clinics to teach people how to file pro se petitions and how to represent themselves in court so that they be properly prepared with the information they will need.

Gramling Perez said that she would be even more effective as a judge in making improvements to the legal system.

I then pointed out that her opponent is also qualified for the seat they are vying for.  I asked why voters should choose her over her opponent.

Gramling Perez said that she has a broader range of experience, having worked in private practice and with community groups.  She said that she has also consistently demonstrated a willingness to go beyond just the duties of her bench, but to improve the legal system and to help the community.

Gramling Perez does come with an impressive history.  She graduated from Columbia University and got her law degree from the University of Michigan.  She has been a presiding court commissioner for seven years, working in small claims, criminal and children's courts.

Gramling Perez has worked at private law firms in New York and in Milwaukee.  She has also been involved with the Veterans Legal Workgroup of Milwaukee and helped establish the Milwaukee Veterans Family Law Clinic.

Gramling Perez has her many other accomplishments listed on the "About Laura" page of her website.

It should also be noted that Gramling Perez has an impressive list of supporters coming from all walks of life and from all ranges of both the socioeconomic and political spectrums.

Because of her wide ranging and deep level of experience and her commitment to the community, I believe that Laura Gramling Perez is the most qualified to assume the bench of Branch 32.  I am proud to endorse her for this race and will be glad to vote for her on April 1.

To learn more about Gramling Perez, please visit her website and her Facebook page.

You could also meet her for yourself at a fundraising event being held in her honor.  The event is Tuesday, January 14, from 5-7 pm and will be held at the Wisconsin Club, 900 West Wisconsin Avenue.