Legal AF by MeidasTouch - Election Win Sticks the Dagger in Trump & MAGA in Wisconsin

Episode Date: July 2, 2025

In stunning fashion, the 4-3 liberal majority of the Wisconsin Supreme Court just struck down a 176-year-old ban on abortion on the state books, pushed by MAGA to deny a woman her reproductive freedom, and declared that abortion is legal in Wisconsin and protected by more modern state statutes. Michael Popok explains how elected State Supreme Courts are on the front line to protect democracy, and Wisconsin provides the roadmap on how to resist at the state level. Get 20% off when you go to https://Liquid-IV.com and use code LEGALAF at checkout! Subscribe:  @LegalAFMTN  Visit https://meidasplus.com for more! Remember to subscribe to ALL the MeidasTouch Network Podcasts: MeidasTouch: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/meidastouch-podcast Legal AF: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/legal-af MissTrial: https://meidasnews.com/tag/miss-trial The PoliticsGirl Podcast: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/the-politicsgirl-podcast The Influence Continuum: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/the-influence-continuum-with-dr-steven-hassan Mea Culpa with Michael Cohen: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/mea-culpa-with-michael-cohen The Weekend Show: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/the-weekend-show Burn the Boats: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/burn-the-boats Majority 54: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/majority-54 Political Beatdown: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/political-beatdown On Democracy with FP Wellman: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/on-democracy-with-fpwellman Uncovered: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/maga-uncovered Coalition of the Sane: https://meidasnews.com/tag/coalition-of-the-sane Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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well they just ruled four to three that the abortion ban on the books in Wisconsin for 176 years since 1849 is no longer good law. That the Wisconsin legislature had put in place a series of statutes that allows for choice for reproductive rights for freedom of choice of women and that allows for the abortion to be part of that choice up until the moment of viability or at about 21 weeks. So now we have a state Supreme Court stepping forward to protect women. And I'm here for it.

And so are you, your on Midas Touch and Legal AF. Supreme Court of Wisconsin, you may recall, we spent a lot of time talking about it over the last several months as Elon Musk spent $20 million to try to get his chosen candidate and an anti-abortion candidate at that Elected Brad Schimel. He lost to Susan Crawford But Susan Crawford is not part of the four to three because she hasn't been seated yet the four to three She'll preserve the four to three

liberal majority of the Wisconsin Supreme Court. But the person who really can be thanked for breaking that tie and making it four to three to protect women's rights is Justice Janet Protasewicz. She's been on the Midas Touch Network. Justice Protasewicz, her actual campaign when she ran, because these are elected officials in Wisconsin, like some states for the Supreme Court,

she said she was running on a pro right to choose platform. She got her chance right now in a case that we refer to as a call, which is the attorney general of the state versus Irmansky. It was a way to bring this to the United States, to the Wisconsin Supreme Court by way of a declaratory judgment action. It's a relatively short decision, opinion,

delivered by and written by Judge Dalley. Here's Rebecca Frank Dalley. This is what she said. In Dobbs versus Jackson Women's Health in 2022, the United States Supreme Court overruled decades of precedent, including Roe versus Wade, and held for the first time that the United States Supreme Court overruled decades of precedent, including Roe versus Wade and held for the first time that the United States Constitution does not protect the right to an abortion. In the wake of that

decision, let me break here for a minute, we have these springing statutes, where states had on the books that if Roe versus Wade was ever rescinded, because they've been campaigning to get it rescinded for 50 years, if it was ever overturned, that whatever statute was on their books from old timey times would spring back to life and would be the law of that state. And so there was this springing statute problem because on the books of Wisconsin, the argument was that in 1849, they criminalized abortion. However, since that time, in the subsequent years, in the 60s and 70s and 80s,

the Wisconsin legislature didn't criminalize it and set up an entire structure, an entire statutory scheme to regulate reproductive rights, including abortion. So the argument that the Supreme Court of Wisconsin adopted is that the Wisconsin legislature superseded the earlier law by rewriting it and revising it. And that's the law that now comes back into effect. Now that the Supreme Court has taken away

the federal constitutional right to choose. Let me read to you from the order. We conclude that comprehensive legislation enacted over the last 50 years regulating in detail the who, what, where, when, and how of abortion is so thoroughly covers the entire subject matter of abortion that it was meant as a substitute for the 19th century near total ban on abortion. as a substitute for the 19th century near total ban on abortion. That's on page two of her order. They then say on page three that the central question before us

is whether that statute bans abortion. That subsection or precursor to it has been on the book since 1849 and prohibits intentionally destroying the life of an unborn child, subject only to a narrow exception for a therapeutic abortion that is necessary to save the life of an unborn child, subject only to a narrow exception for a therapeutic abortion that is necessary to save the life of the mother.

That's from 1849. But then the court ruled, we focus our analysis on plaintiff's argument and conclude that under the unique circumstances presented here, the legislature impliedly repealed that provision I just read you as to abortion by enacting comprehensive legislation about virtually every aspect of abortion, including where, when, and how health care providers may lawfully perform abortions. That comprehensive legislation so thoroughly covers the entire subject matter

of abortion that it was clearly meant as a substitute for the 19th century near total ban. This show is sponsored by Liquid IV. Sometimes when my family is fast asleep and nobody's watching but the family dog, I get my big pile of car magazines and the Sunday paper with a sleeve of chocolate chip cookies and a glass of oat milk. Love looks different for everyone,

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Treat yourself to extraordinary hydration from Liquid IV. Get 20% off your first order of Liquid IV when you go to liquidiv.com and use code LegalAF at checkout. That's 20% off your first order with code LegalAF at liquidiv.com. We call that in another context, ouster, that some regulation has so occupied the field, the

subject matter, that it has ousted all other attempts at regulation. Once they reach that conclusion, then it was easy for them to say that the statute that's in play is the statutes developed by the Wisconsin legislature that will allow abortions under certain circumstances up through viability. And they then destroy the argument made by the Sheboygan prosecutor who was standing in for the religious right in their arguments.

And they said in conclusion, on page 17 of their order, this case is about giving effect to 50 years worth of laws passed by the legislature about virtually every aspect of abortion. The legislature, as the people's representatives, remains free to change the laws. But the only way to give effect to what the legislature has done,

actually done for 50 years, is to conclude that it impliedly repealed the 19th century ban. That shows you elections have consequences. That connectivity between elections and judges sometimes is lost in the electorate and among voters. And sometimes I blame us for not being able to better explain it. When you elect a Donald Trump, even for one narrow reason,

he is also responsible for reshaping the face of the federal judiciary by putting on hundreds and hundreds of federal judges on the basis of the federal judiciary by putting on hundreds and hundreds of federal judges through the appellate courts, through the United States Supreme Court. The United States Supreme Court will continue to be a right-wing MAGA majority

for at least the next two decades because of Donald Trump, because he's gonna likely get the next two picks when Alito and Thomas leave or otherwise are replaced. And even if we get back the presidency in 2028, which is likely, the best we can hope for is that Roberts resigns, retires, or dies, and we get to elevate somebody like Katanji Brown Jackson into the Chief Justice seat and then select a replacement.

That's the best we can hope for. I mean, it wouldn't be bad. I would take, if we have to only have one seat, I'll take the Chief Justice seat and I'll take Katanji Brown Jackson in it. But that's why elections matter. And your state elections matter. And your state elections matter. And your state judges matter. And a lot of them run for election. Don't just go, I don't know who any of these people are.

We have to learn who these people are. I'll bring them on the show. We'll talk more about them. At the Supreme Court, we were able to rebel and resist against Elon Musk and Donald Trump who tried to step into Wisconsin and buy a Supreme Court seat. The Wisconsin voters rejected that and the good news is now with the addition of Susan Crawford the four to three majority on the Wisconsin Supreme Court so we can expect rulings like this stays in place until 2028 and hopefully more will be swept in on the coattails of whoever the Democratic nominee for president is at that time. Elections matter. Supreme courts are often in control

and they're often quasi-political and often elected. So pay attention to who is on your Supreme Court. And if when there's a retention vote or a vote for a seat, we need to oppose the most radical members that are running for those seats. It is important. It is going to be the states, and has been the states, both the attorneys general, the governors,

the state houses and the Supreme courts that are going to help rein in Donald Trump through lawsuits, through legislation and through their Supreme courts. I'll continue to follow it right here on the Midas Touch Network and on Legal AF. Take a moment, slide over to Legal AF, the YouTube channel, hit the subscribe button. That's the way you can vote for this kind of content. So until my next Legal AF, I'm Michael Popak. Can't get your fill of Legal AF? Me neither. That's why we formed the Legal AF Substack. Every time we mention something in a hot take, whether it's a court filing or a oral argument, come over to the Substack,

you'll find the court filing and the oral argument there, including a daily roundup that I do call, wait for it, Morning AF. What else? All the other contributors from Legal AF are there as well. We've got some new reporting, we got interviews. We got ad-free versions of the podcast and hot takes. Where? Legal AF on Substack. Come over now to free subscribe.