Wisconsin Supreme Court debate; abortion, Musk donations take center stage

MILWAUKEE - The stakes are high as control of the Wisconsin Supreme Court is up for grabs.

Supreme Court debate

What we know:

Both candidates sparred in their one and only debate on Wednesday, March 12, at Marquette University. All seven current Wisconsin Supreme Court justices sat in the front row.

Republicans back Waukesha County Judge Brad Schimel and Democrats support Dane County Judge Susan Crawford.

Liberals have a 4 to 3 majority, but one of their seats is up for grabs.

Abortion rights

A challenge to an 1849 state law that bans nearly all abortions is currently pending before the Wisconsin Supreme Court.

Schimel, who is supported by anti-abortion groups, said he believes the 1849 ban "was a validly passed law. I don’t believe it reflects the will of the people of Wisconsin today."

SIGN UP TODAY: Get daily headlines, breaking news emails from FOX6 News

Schimel said the future of abortion rights should not be up to the Supreme Court, but should instead be decided by voters.

Crawford declined to take a position on the pending abortion case.

But she said she was proud to have supported Planned Parenthood in a pair of abortion-related cases when she was an attorney in private practice. She also spoke against the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling that overturned Roe v. Wade.

"This is a critical issue in this race," Crawford said. "My opponent has said he believes the 1849 law in Wisconsin is valid law and he’s trying to backpedal from that position now."

Donations from billionaires Musk and Soros at issue

Crawford said that Musk, a close adviser to Trump, "has basically taken over Brad Schimel’s campaign."

Groups funded by Musk have spent more than $10 million in support of Schimel on television ads and going door to door canvassing for his candidacy. One of those flyers says that Schimel would defend Trump's agenda as a member of the court.

"This is unprecedented to see this kind of spending on a race," Crawford said.

She said it was "no coincidence" that Musk started spending on the race days after his electric car company Tesla sued the state over its decision blocking it from opening dealerships in Wisconsin.

Schimel fired back, "If Elon Musk is trying to get some result in that lawsuit, he may be failing because I enforce the law and I respect the laws passed by the Legislature."

Schimel said he has no control over outside donations, or the messages they spread.

He was asked, in light of the donations from Musk, if he would rule against Trump.

"If President Trump or anyone defies Wisconsin law and I end up with a case in front of me, I’ll hold them accountable as I would anybody in my courtroom," Schimel said.

Donald Trump Jr. and political activist Charlie Kirk plan to co-host a town hall on Monday in Wisconsin that’s being billed as a get-out-the vote effort for Schimel.

Crawford has benefited from donations from prominent national Democrats such as Soros and Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker who gave the state Democratic Party $1.5 million, which then donated it to Crawford's campaign.

Schimel called Soros "a dangerous person to have an endorsement from."

When asked what the difference was between the Musk and Soros donations, Crawford said, "I have never promised anything and that is the difference."

Union rights

As an attorney, Crawford sued in an attempt to overturn the state’s law that effectively ended collective bargaining for public workers. That law, known as Act 10, was the centerpiece of former Republican Gov. Scott Walker’s tenure and made Wisconsin the center of the national debate over union rights.

A Dane County judge last year ruled that the bulk of the law was unconstitutional, and an appeal of that ruling is expected to come before the state Supreme Court.

Crawford said she "most likely" would recuse herself from a case challenging Act 10 if it were focused on the same provisions in the lawsuit she brought. But she said the current lawsuit is on different parts of the law.

When Schimel was attorney general, he said he would defend Act 10 and opposed having its restrictions also applied to police and firefighter unions, which were exempt from the law.

FREE DOWNLOAD: Get breaking news alerts in the FOX LOCAL Mobile app for iOS or Android

Schimel did not say in the debate whether he would recuse himself if a challenge to the law came before the court.

Voter ID

A measure on the April 1 ballot would enshrine Wisconsin's voter ID law in the state constitution.

Schimel said he will vote for the amendment. Crawford, who sued to overturn the voter ID law, declined to say how she would vote on the amendment.

Congressional redistricting

A challenge to the state's congressional district boundaries is expected to come before the court.

Crawford appeared at a briefing with donors earlier in the campaign that was billed in an email by organizers as a "chance to put two more House seats in play."

Crawford said in the debate that she didn't talk about redistricting during the call and the email sent by the organizers was "not an appropriate way to announce a judicial candidate."

Schimel said it was hard for him to believe Crawford.

"We have to take my opponent’s word for it what happened on that phone call," he said.

What the polls say

A new poll shows the two candidates are tied, with liberals backing Crawford, conservatives Schimel, and 5% undecided. 

The Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce favors Schimel and commissioned the statewide poll. OnMessage Inc. conducted it.

Response from the candidates

Crawford's campaign spokesman Derrick Honeyman released the following statement:

"Tonight on the debate stage, Wisconsinites saw two very distinct candidates: Judge Susan Crawford, who is a fair and common sense prosecutor and judge who has always fought to protect our state, and Brad Schimel, an extreme and far-right politician who has always put partisan special interests ahead of Wisconsinites.

Brad Schimel has called the 1849 abortion ban ‘valid,’ let 6,000 rape kits sit untested on shelves for more than two years, and gave a plea deal to a child predator after the perp’s lawyer gave $5,000 to his campaign. Wisconsinites cannot trust Brad Schimel with a decade-long term on our state’s highest court, and on April 1st, voters will reject him once again."

WisGOP Chairman Brian Schimming provided the following for Schimel:

"Susan Crawford exposed her true colors in tonight's debate, aligning herself with the extreme liberal agenda of her billionaire backers. In contrast, Judge Brad Schimel demonstrated his unwavering commitment to fairness and objectivity as a judge. When voters head to the polls on April 1st, they will make the obvious choice, Judge Brad Schimel, who will defend the rule of law, not Susan Crawford, a far-left puppet serving the interests of elite Democrat donors."

PoliticsWisconsinNews