Sanfelippo, R-New Berlin, and other Assembly Republicans — including Rep. Dean Knudson, R-Hudson, named by Assembly Speaker Robin Vos as the lawmaker who will shepherd a GAB overhaul bill — want to change the GAB to have the same structure as the FEC. The federal commission has six members: three Democrats and three Republicans.
The GAB is nonpartisan, made up of six former judges appointed by the governor and confirmed by the state Senate.
The notion that people are unbiased or nonpartisan is unrealistic. Yes, people can be fair, but everyone has their biases. It is part of the human condition. Our Founding Fathers knew that, which is why our government is set up as a set of balancing interests – states vs. federal; executive vs. legislative; party vs. party; prosecutor vs. defense attorney. This forces the government to gain support from a majority of opposing factions before levying the coercive power of the government against the liberties of the individual. It is far better to be honest and transparent about people’s biases than to try to pretend that anyone can be an unthinking, unemotional robot with no opinions on what’s going on in the world.
Sanfelippo wrote “If it works for the Federal Trade Commission, there’s no reason it won’t work for Wisconsin as well.” It doesn’t work for the Federal Trade Commission. The model is “one of gridlock and dysfunction” and is “like setting up a disaster relief-agency and saying your going to use the FEMA handling of Hurticane Katrina as your model”. When the former general counsel of the FEC, who has no dog in this fight, makes such a damning statement we should listen. This is reactionary politics and wouldn’t be happening if the GAB leaned “right”. Should we overhaul government every time it doesn’t go one parties way or leans in the other parties direction? What’s next… overhauling the U.S. Supreme Courts and replacing it with something even more dysfunctional because you disagree with a ruling. The U.S. Supreme Court hands down opinions that are full of bias and emotion. Those with ethics, morals and integrity have no problem following the rule of law despite the bias and emotion. Get rid of grand juries, overhaul the GAB and burn the witch!
Oops… Correction, “Federal ELECTION Commission”
Owen,
You are right. Everyone is partisan, or biased.
Anyone who says they are not partisan, or unbiased, is just incapable of admitting it.
Given that, we should just wipe out election regulators, it ends up being a partisan tool to try and destroy the opponent and free speech ends up being the victim.