The College Democrats of the University of Wisconsin are extremely pleased to present our excellent Democratic candidate for attorney general, Josh Kaul.
Josh Kaul was raised in Oshkosh and Fond du Lac. As a child, he attended Wisconsin public schools. Kaul attended Yale as an undergraduate and then Stanford Law School, where he was President of the Stanford Law Review. Since entering the legal world, Kaul has proven his commitment to keeping families safe as well as protecting citizen’s right to vote. As a federal prosecutor in Baltimore, Kaul worked closely with law enforcement to prosecute a multitude of violent criminals in one of America’s most dangerous cities.
In Wisconsin, Kaul fought against unfair voting restrictions imposed by the state legislature, such as reductions in early voting and the elimination of options for voting registration. It is clear that Kaul shares our goals of keeping Wisconsin safe and ensuring the right to vote for Wisconsinites.
DOJ launches website tracking backlog of untested sexual assault kits
We see it as vital that Kaul is elected due to the negligence shown by his opponent, incumbent Brad Schimel. During his time as attorney general, Schimel has overseen a massive backlog of untested rape kits and delayed DNA and toxicology tests that have accumulated in evidence rooms and hospital storage areas across the state of Wisconsin. Although the backlog is not complete, the extensive amount of time it took to test them meant that a potentially staggering amount of criminals who should be facing justice continue to roam freely under Schimel’s watch.
In 2015, the Department of Justice was given $4 million to undergo the testing of rape kits. Yet despite receiving such a generous grant, only nine rape kits had been tested in the first two years after the grant. In a television interview, Schimel asserted there was no backlog, a claim that was given a “pants on fire” rating by Politifact. We find Schimel’s negligence on this important issue to be both embarrassing and dangerous for Wisconsinites.
Kaul has made it clear he will direct the DOJ to begin aggressively investigating rape kits on day one instead of waiting for an election cycle when it is politically convenient. College Democrats of UW stand with survivors of sexual assault, and that is why we urge voters to choose Josh Kaul Nov. 6.
State Attorney General argues Wisconsin has strong case to win redistricting challenges
Across the board, it is no secret that Kaul’s priorities differ greatly in comparison to our current attorney general. We believe Kaul will stand up to corporate interests for the sake of working Wisconsin families, unlike Schimel, who settled a case in which a major air-polluting corporation paid zero dollars in fines. We believe it is time for an attorney general with the guts to stand up to corporations for the sake of our cherished natural resources.
Josh Kaul has proven to be an outstanding citizen and an impeccably qualified candidate to lead Wisconsin’s Department of Justice as attorney general. The College Democrats of UW urges voters to support Josh Kaul for attorney general because he will make up for years of failed leadership, stand up to big corporations and get Wisconsin’s DOJ moving forward once again.
Sam Schwab ([email protected]) is a senior junior majoring in political science and English. He is also Press Secretary for the College Democrats of UW.
