This morning at the Wisconsin state capitol in Madison, the Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty will be rolling out its new Center for Competitive Federalism. We’re honored to have several distinguished speakers in the lineup, including Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch, State Sen. Duey Stroebel, and State Rep. Dale Kooyenga. Also speaking will be my WILL colleagues Rick Esenberg, Jake Curtis, and I. We will be releasing a report, “Wisconsin not Washington,” on how states can fight back against the coercive federal takeover of state governments. It’s a topic I’ve written about quite a bit for NR over the years.
States must band together to end federal intrusion into their government affairs. The separation of federal and state government operations (fiscal and regulatory) should be as cardinal a principle as the separation of church and state, or the separation of powers among the branches of the federal government. Unfortunately, all these divisions of power, so carefully orchestrated by the drafters of our brilliant Constitution 250 years ago, are dissolving in the great consolidation of power in an increasingly unrestrained presidency, as America continues its slow-motion abandonment of constitutional government.
No better place to rally for James Madison’s vision of a sustainable Constitution than in the city that bears his name, in the building that just a few years ago was overrun by a barbarian invasion howling execration at a badly needed and now totally unopposed reform of public finances, namely Gov. Scott Walker’s signature Act 10. All are welcome to join the event, which is open to the public, and will be held in the Senate Parlor at 10am local time.