The Michigan Supreme Court is completely out of control—but we can fix it.
To get you up to speed: A week ago, in a strictly party-line vote, the court’s 4-3 Republican majority voted to strike down a 75-year-old law because Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer had used it to declare a state of emergency to combat the coronavirus pandemic.
Yes, you read that right: The state Supreme Court declared that Whitmer cannot use the same tools every other governor has deployed to fight the virus, which has already killed 7,200 Michiganders and is once again exploding.
That tells us two things:
- The Republican justices are effectively pro-coronavirus.
- They don’t believe that Democrats, when they win office, are legitimate and entitled to govern.
Both of those are terrifying propositions. The first will lead to ever-greater losses of life and prolonged misery for the entire state. The second, meanwhile, defies the will of the public and fosters a political environment where extremists no longer accept the outcome of elections when Democrats prevail and instead do things like … plot to kidnap their own state’s governor.
There is, however, something we can do about this. One of the Republican justices on the high court hit the state’s mandatory retirement age, creating an open seat that will be on the ballot next month. If we can flip this seat, we can flip the entire court and create a 4-3 Democratic majority—one that will respect the powers of duly elected Democratic officials and the deadliness of the pandemic.
That’s why Daily Kos has endorsed progressive attorney Elizabeth Welch, who has long fought for environmental protection, voting rights, and public schools. Above all, she’ll be a fair-minded and independent jurist who will respect legal precedent and democratic institutions.
Please donate $3 now to Elizabeth Welch to set Michigan back on the right course and restore fairness to the state Supreme Court!