WATERTOWN, Wis. — In a tightly controlled debate format, Democratic Sen. Tammy Baldwin and Republican businessman Eric Hovde traded barbs Friday night in their first and likely only face-off, hosted by the Wisconsin Broadcasters Association.
Baldwin and Hovde — in a tight race Cook Political Report just changed to a toss-up with the Democrat ahead by 1 point — accused each other of lying and staked out their policy positions during the frequently contentious debate.
But both candidates agreed on one thing — undefined tough ethics standards and term limits for judges on the nation’s highest court.
One panelist on the debate’s “question team” cited a recent Marquette Law School Poll finding that 90% of national voters favor “enforcing a strict ethics code for Supreme Court justices.”
Supreme Court concerns aren’t one of the top eight election issues Wisconsin registered voters identified, but abortion policy is the third-most important for voters overall and the top for Democratic voters, per Marquette.
Baldwin, who served seven terms in the House and is running for her third Senate term, took aim at judges former President Donald Trump chose in her response.
“When we hear stories that private interests have paid off mortgages and vehicle loans, that is outrageous. We need a binding, tough standard of ethics and conduct. We’re also very distrustful now of the court because we saw three Trump-appointed nominees lie to the Judiciary Committee about their respect for precedent,” she said, presumably referring to Roe v. Wade’s overturn.
“So I think an examination of term limits for the Supreme Court in a way that doesn’t advantage one party or the other because we don’t know who will be president when those term limits come up.”
Hovde agreed — to a point. “I think we should absolutely have a code of ethics for the justices,” he said. “I don’t think they should be engaging in any kind of private investment in the stock market while they serve in that capacity.”
“And I understand the desire to have a term limit,” he continued. “I’m supportive of term limits. I think career politicians should have term limits.”
It was a clear attack on Baldwin, who’s been an elected official since 1986.
In one of the more contentious moments, moderators asked the candidates whether they would support codifying Roe v. Wade.
“I believe that women should have a right to choose early on in their pregnancy,” Hovde said, “but there’s a point in time where a baby can be born healthy and alive. And I think it’s unconscionable to terminate that child’s life.”
“What month would you stop?” Hovde asked Baldwin as she shook her head. “Is it the eighth month? It’s the ninth. Is it the ninth month?”
Baldwin fired back, “It’s very clear that he has never read Roe v. Wade, I’m pushing to have that be the law of the land. Your rights and freedoms should not depend on your ZIP code or the state in which you live.”
“What he just said doesn’t happen in America!” Baldwin exclaimed.
It’s estimated around 10,000 late-term abortions are performed each year in the United States.
