Wisconsin Attorney General candidate Jon Richards made stops in Superior, Ashland and Bayfield Wednesday. The Milwaukee representative and member of the Joint Finance Committee threw his hat into the ring in October.
“One of the reasons I’m running is I think that Wisconsin needs a good, strong lawyer in the Attorney General’s office who is going to act as the people’s lawyer,” said Richards, a democrat. “I’ve been in office for 15 years; a lawyer for 20 years. I think it’s important that we have someone who stands up for the values that have always been important in Wisconsin - keeping our community safe and making sure consumers get a fair shake, that we stand up for our environment, stand up for health care, that we make sure we enforce the open meetings law and the open records law.”
There hasn’t been a single enforcement action on open records law in eight years, Richards said, and the Attorney General’s office has been working to erode it, taking the position that the Legislature shouldn’t be bound by the open meetings law.
“I think that undermines public confidence, ultimately,” said Richards, who has drafted a constitutional amendment that would ensure the state Legislature is bound by the open meetings law. “When people feel that they can’t see what’s going on, of course they’re going to be suspicious.”
A representative for 15 years, Richards has been working with people around the state on a wide range of issues, from public safety and environment to taxes and health care. He was the author of the statewide smoking ban, a bipartisan initiative.
“I think what Wisconsin needs right now is someone who can work with both sides to get things done but also stand up for our values, and that’s what I bring to the race,” Richards said. The Attorney General should be independent, answering to the people of Wisconsin, he said, not serving as a rubber stamp for the governor or Legislature.
Richards does not support the voter ID law.
“Voting is the most important American right; it’s our most fundamental right, and when we’re erecting hurdles for people to vote, that’s something we should be looking at very, very carefully,” he said.
He also voted against legislation pertaining to taconite mining in the Penokees. It’s a situation that needs to be monitored closely, Richards said.
“I think the Department of Justice needs to be much stronger enforcing environmental laws, and I call for restoring the office of the public intervener,” the lawmaker said. He also wants to create stronger partnerships with local law enforcement to protect the environment and consumers.
The legislator worked with Governor Scott Walker to get prosecutors their first pay raise in more than a decade. The next challenge is to create a bipartisan coalition to work on staffing levels in prosecutors’ offices throughout Wisconsin.
“And that is something I have more experience in than any other people seeking this office,” Richards said.
The Attorney General has a great deal of power to do good for the people of Wisconsin, Richards said. “We need to have a strong, experienced AG in that position to really stand up for the people of Wisocnsin and the values that always made us a unique state.”
Other Attorney General candidates include democrats Jefferson County District Attorney Susan Happ and Dane County District Attorney Ismael Ozanne, Waukesha County District Attorney Brade Schimel, a Republican; and Libertarian candidate Thomas Nelson of Madison.
