Connect with us

The Center Square

WILL’s Esenberg: Dugan case shows judges, presidents don’t have unlimited power | Wisconsin

Published

on

www.thecentersquare.com – Benjamin Yount – (The Center Square – ) 2025-04-30 17:13:00

(The Center Square) – The Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty’s president is out with a new piece that says Milwaukee County Judge Hannah Dugan violated one of the most basic principles of our Democracy if the federal charges against her are true.

“The issue is institutional fidelity,” Esenberg wrote on X Wednesday. “A ‘independent judiciary’ does imply an unfettered power to do whatever a judge thinks is ‘right.’”

Esenberg and WILL’s Dan Lennington co-wrote a piece for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel where they talk about how Dugan is accused of helping a Mexican foreign national charged with battery escape her courtroom to avoid ICE agents.

“There is a time and a place to express opposition to President [Donald] Trump’s immigration policies or the way some of them are being executed,” the two wrote in their op-ed. “But respect for democracy includes respect for the laws that our elected representatives have enacted. It means honoring the rule of law and not simply ignoring laws that we do not like.”

Esenberg has been critical of Dugan since her arrest last week, but not because of her opposition to President Trump’s deportation plans. Instead, Esenberg has criticized Dugan for injecting her politics into her role as a local judge.

“It’s only one case, but a state court judge obstructing federal law enforcement is interposition. It’s not normal. It’s not proper,” Esenberg wrote Monday. “I understand that [the] judge may not like border enforcement or the way in which the administration goes about it. But that’s not her call.”

In his Wednesday tweets, however. Esenberg also criticized Trump’s handling of immigration rulings from the court that the president disagrees with.

Ironically, overstepping this way in not unlike what the Trump is doing in ignoring due process requirements. He thinks that the presence of millions of people in the country unlawfully is, to use Dugan’s word regarding immigration enforcement, ‘absurd’,” Eseberg wrote. “He thinks that the limitations on his power to do what the believes to be right are unjust. But our democracy doesn’t work that way.”

Dugan is looking at two federal charges, including one felony.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court on Tuesday suspended her but made a point to say that Dugan is on paid administrative leave.

The post WILL’s Esenberg: Dugan case shows judges, presidents don’t have unlimited power | Wisconsin appeared first on www.thecentersquare.com



Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.

Political Bias Rating: Center-Right

The article presents a critique of a judge’s alleged actions from the perspective of individuals associated with the Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty, which is generally seen as a conservative-leaning legal organization. The language used emphasizes respect for the rule of law, institutional fidelity, and opposition to judicial overreach, themes often highlighted in conservative discourse about judicial conduct and immigration enforcement. While it reports on the alleged misconduct and related legal processes, the framing reflects a clear ideological stance favoring strict adherence to the law and criticism of perceived judicial activism, especially in the context of immigration policies associated with the Trump administration. The brief acknowledgment of criticism toward Trump’s actions adds complexity but does not neutralize the overall bias leaning toward a conservative viewpoint.

The Center Square

Affidavit: Minnesota shooter bought Buick, electric bike to escape | Minnesota

Published

on

www.thecentersquare.com – Jon Styf – (The Center Square – ) 2025-06-17 08:29:00


Vance Boelter, accused of assassinating Minnesota House Speaker Emeritus Melissa Hortman, her husband, and shooting state Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, attempted to evade authorities by purchasing a Buick sedan and electric bike from a stranger. A 20-page affidavit reveals Boelter’s premeditated actions, including fake police plates, weapons, $10,000 cash, and passports in his SUV, alongside GPS data targeting politicians’ homes. He sent cryptic texts to family indicating violence and warned of armed visitors. Authorities found notebooks with politicians’ information, silicone mask sources, and tactical gear. Surveillance footage and recovered items detail his movements during the shootings.

(The Center Square) – The accused Minnesota shooter bought a Buick sedan and electric bike from an individual he met at a bus stop as he worked to escape authorities before being cornered and arrested near his home in Green Isle, Minnesota, according to a 20-page affidavit filed regarding 57-year-old Vance Boelter.

Boelter has been charged with stalking and killing Minnesota House Speaker Emeritus Melissa Hortman and her husband along with the shooting of state Sen. John Hoffman, DFL-Brooklyn Park, and his wife. The Hoffmans are expected to make a full recover.

The affidavit shed light on the activities that led to and included the shooting of four people – two who were killed – early Saturday in what has been described by authorities as an assassination of elected officials.

Boelter allegedly texted his family members including his wife and children at 6:18 a.m. on Saturday, writing “Dad went to war last night … I don’t wanna say more because I don’t wanna implicate anybody.”

He also allegedly then texted his wife, writing “words are not gonna explain how sorry I am for this situation … there’s gonna be some people coming to the house armed and trigger-happy and I don’t want you guys around.”

The affidavit detailed that two handguns, $10,000 and passports for Boelter’s wife and children were found in the car with them.

Boelter’s SUV included a fake plate with the letters “POLICE” on the back from items he purchased at Fleet Farm. It also included a Garmin GPS device with the addresses of the politicians whose homes he went to along with the addresses of at least two other state officials.

It also included an address to a home he shared with a roommate, which authorities then searched and found notebooks with the names and addresses of Minnesota politicians.

Another notebook included the websites of three companies that sold silicone masks like the one he was allegedly wearing when he showed up at the homes of the individuals he is accused of shooting.

A receipt showed that Boelter allegedly bought a flashlight, tactical rifle case, ammunition and the materials used to make the license plate.

The affidavit also detailed what security cameras saw at the homes where he is accused of the shootings.

Many of the items described were found outside of the Hortmans’ home after Boelter allegedly fled to elude police.

The post Affidavit: Minnesota shooter bought Buick, electric bike to escape | Minnesota appeared first on www.thecentersquare.com



Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.

Political Bias Rating: Centrist

This article from *The Center Square* presents a factual account of a violent crime involving elected officials without inserting ideological commentary or partisan framing. It reports on the actions, evidence, and legal charges related to the accused without implying political motivations beyond what law enforcement has described. The focus is on the affidavit’s content, forensic details, and timeline of events, maintaining a neutral tone throughout. While it references Democratic officials as victims, it does so in a purely informational context, not as a vehicle for partisan sympathy or critique. Thus, the reporting remains balanced and fact-driven.

Continue Reading

News from the South - North Carolina News Feed

Third Trump trip to North Carolina won’t be for NAACP Convention | North Carolina

Published

on

www.thecentersquare.com – By Alan Wooten | The Center Square – (The Center Square – ) 2025-06-17 07:59:00


NAACP President Derrick Johnson announced President Donald Trump will not be invited to the NAACP’s national convention in Charlotte due to his perceived attacks on democracy and civil rights. Johnson criticized Trump for unconstitutional executive orders, military misuse, and undermining democracy for personal gain. If upheld, Trump would be the first sitting president in 116 years denied an invitation. Despite this, Trump has boosted support among Black voters, especially younger Black men, and historically won North Carolina three times. The NAACP, advocating civil rights, continues to litigate against Trump’s administration. North Carolina’s political landscape has shifted, with growing unaffiliated voters and a divided state government.

(The Center Square) – Citing democracy and civil rights differences, NAACP President and CEO Derrick Johnson said President Donald Trump will not be invited to Charlotte for his organization’s national convention July 12-16.

“Right now, it’s clear – Donald Trump is attacking our democracy and our civil rights,” Johnson said. “He believes more in the fascist playbook than in the U.S. Constitution. This playbook is radical and un-American. The president has signed unconstitutional executive orders to oppress voters and undo federal civil rights protections; he has illegally turned the military on our communities; and he continually undermines every pillar of our democracy to make himself more powerful and to personally benefit from the U.S. government.”

Trump, second-term Republican, would be the first sitting president in 116 years to not receive an invitation, should it hold. The nation’s 47th commander in chief has worked from a campaign slogan of making America “great again,” implementing a series of orders that reverse several Biden-era policies, the majority of which Congress is yet to codify.

The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People has backed several litigations against the presidential administration, and the Republican majority General Assembly of North Carolina, often alongside with Democrats or their advocating entities. Trump has won North Carolina three times in presidential races, and in November swept the electoral college votes of seven swing states 93-0 against Democrat Kamala Harris.

Trump, in comparison to 2020 against Joe Biden, doubled his share of Black voters against Harris, and in the under age 45 category of Black men, he also doubled his share. Harris’ father is from Jamaica, her mother from India.

The NAACP convention arrives in a state once blue as they come and now with a voting bloc split in thirds.

On Jan. 1, 2004, the state’s more than 5 million voters were split 47.6% Democrats, 34.4% Republicans and 17.7% unaffiliated. That was five years after the state’s 10 executive offices – the Council of State – was occupied by 10 Democrats.

Today, the more than 7.5 million voters are 37.8% unaffiliated, 30.7% Democrats and 30.4% Republicans. And the Council of State has been a Republican majority before falling back in November to a 5-5 split.

The NAACP, a 501(c)(4) rated 1 of 4 stars by Charity Navigator, says it “advocates, agitates and litigates for the civil rights due to Black America.”

A trip by Trump would have been his third since the Jan. 20 inauguration. His first venture from the White House was four days later to see the devastation in the western part of the state caused by Hurricane Helene. His second was a week ago to visit Fort Bragg as the Army celebrated 250 years.

The post Third Trump trip to North Carolina won’t be for NAACP Convention | North Carolina appeared first on www.thecentersquare.com



Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.

Political Bias Rating: Center-Left

The article presents facts about the NAACP’s decision not to invite Donald Trump to its national convention while quoting NAACP President Derrick Johnson’s strongly worded criticisms of Trump’s actions. The framing allows Johnson’s perspective to dominate early in the article, with phrases like “attacking our democracy” and “fascist playbook” left unchallenged or unexplored from alternative views. Although the article includes context about Trump’s electoral success and shifts in voter demographics, the lack of balancing quotes or responses from Trump’s team or other political figures suggests a subtle ideological leaning. However, the article refrains from editorializing in its own voice and includes verifiable data, keeping the overall tone close to factual reporting with a slight lean toward a progressive viewpoint due to emphasis and selection of quotes.

Continue Reading

The Center Square

Several guns found in Ford SUV of Minnesota shooter | Minnesota

Published

on

www.thecentersquare.com – Jon Styf – (The Center Square – ) 2025-06-16 07:41:00


Police arrested Vance Boelter after a dangerous manhunt near Green Isle, Minnesota, where he was found with AK-47-style rifles, handguns, a ballistic vest, a mask, and a list of public officials. Boelter, disguised as a police officer, allegedly shot and killed House Speaker Emeritus Melissa Hortman and her husband, and wounded State Sen. John Hoffman and his wife. The shootings were reported by Hoffman’s daughter. Boelter was seen fleeing in a Ford SUV and exchanged gunfire with police before escaping. Authorities condemned his use of a police disguise, saying he exploited the public’s trust in law enforcement.

(The Center Square) – Police found three AK-47 style rifles, a 9 mm handgun and a list of names of public officials in the Ford SUV of murder suspect Vance Boelter, according to a warrant request that was under seal until Boelter was arrested late Sunday.

Police also say they found a ballistic vest, disassembled 9mm firearm, a mask and a gold police-style badge, according to the warrant.

That warrant was released after Boelter was detained in the woods near Green Isle, Minnesota, following what Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz called a “complex and dangerous manhunt.”

Boelter is accused of dressing as a police officer and shooting and killing House Speaker Emeritus Melissa Hortman and her husband.

Boelter is accused of first going to the nearby home of State Sen. John Hoffman, DFL-Brooklyn Park, and shooting both him and his wife.

The Hoffman’s daughter, Hope, had called 911 and reported the shooting.

Brooklyn Park Police then sent officers to the Hortmans’ home, where they saw the suspect, with the same Ford SUV, shoot Hortmans’ husband.

After exchanging fire with police, Boelter escaped the area and the manhunt began.

“Boelter exploited the trust our uniforms are meant to represent,” Minnesota Department of Public Safety Commissioner Bob Jacobson said in a Sunday night press conference.

The post Several guns found in Ford SUV of Minnesota shooter | Minnesota appeared first on www.thecentersquare.com



Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.

Political Bias Rating: Centrist

The content primarily reports factual information regarding a criminal incident, detailing the weapons found, the suspects’ actions, and official responses. It refrains from expressing opinions or commentary that would align with a particular ideological perspective. The article uses neutral language and focuses on law enforcement and public safety concerns rather than engaging in political advocacy or framing the events through a politicized lens. Thus, it maintains a balanced and straightforward reporting style without promoting any discernible political bias.

Continue Reading

Trending