Russ Feingold to Be Visiting Professor at Marquette Law School
From Wispolitics.com:
Back in 2002, when a disgraced Tom Ament was forced out of his office as County Executive due to a pension scandal, Marquette’s administration approached the Political Science Department, asking whether we might be willing to have him on board in some capacity. We basically said “no, we are not in the business of trying to lend legitimacy to an unethical political hack.”
Feingold is not corrupt in the way Ament was, but his haughty and arrogant liberalism was repudiated by the voters this past November. His hiring continues the trend of the Law School hiring local celebrities and giving them cushy positions.
We don’t doubt that Mike Gousha has earned his keep, mounting a fine speakers series, bringing top “movers and shakers” to Marquette. But we have begun to wonder: just how is the Law School doing in attending to its bread and butter — tenure track faculty who do the teaching and publishing?
[Update]
The Badger Catholic weighs in with a decidedly negative view of the Feingold hiring.
(MILWAUKEE) –Former U.S. Senator Russ Feingold will join the Marquette University Law School faculty as visiting professor of law beginning the spring semester 2011, the university announced today. Feingold completed his third term in the U.S. Senate January 3.Hiring failed politicians in academia to provide a bit of pizazz is a rather old tradition, so we can’t bitch too much about this.
“Senator Feingold joins Marquette Law School with a substantial academic, legal and legislative background,” said Joseph D. Kearney, dean of Marquette University Law School, in announcing the appointment. “He will draw on all of this in working with students in their analysis of some of the most complex legal issues facing our nation and world today. I look forward to his service on our faculty.”
Feingold will teach an elective course, Current Legal Issues: The U.S. Senate, to upper-level law students. He earned his undergraduate degree from University of Wisconsin-Madison, is a member of Phi Beta Kappa, a former Rhodes Scholar and an honors law graduate of both Oxford University and Harvard University. He practiced law for six years with two Wisconsin law firms, Foley & Lardner and LaFollette & Sinykin. Feingold served for 10 years in the Wisconsin Senate and 18 years in the United States Senate, where he was a member of the Foreign Relations, Intelligence, Budget and Judiciary Committees.
“As I looked at beginning to write the next chapter of my professional life, the opportunity to be in a Wisconsin classroom with engaged law students is one I found very appealing,” said Feingold. “Marquette Law School is a dynamic place, and I look forward to being part of it.”
While teaching at Marquette University Law School, Feingold also expects to begin work on a book.
Back in 2002, when a disgraced Tom Ament was forced out of his office as County Executive due to a pension scandal, Marquette’s administration approached the Political Science Department, asking whether we might be willing to have him on board in some capacity. We basically said “no, we are not in the business of trying to lend legitimacy to an unethical political hack.”
Feingold is not corrupt in the way Ament was, but his haughty and arrogant liberalism was repudiated by the voters this past November. His hiring continues the trend of the Law School hiring local celebrities and giving them cushy positions.
We don’t doubt that Mike Gousha has earned his keep, mounting a fine speakers series, bringing top “movers and shakers” to Marquette. But we have begun to wonder: just how is the Law School doing in attending to its bread and butter — tenure track faculty who do the teaching and publishing?
[Update]
The Badger Catholic weighs in with a decidedly negative view of the Feingold hiring.
Labels: Joseph Kearney, Marquette Law School, Russ Feingold
posted by John McAdams at 10:40 AM
7 Comments:
Nothing like bringing on a rabidly pro-abortion guy to a supposedly Catholic institution...
The guy wins six elections in a row, not including a hard fought primary, and he's a failed politician after losing by 5 points in a year that overwhelmingly went against his party? You're right when you say you're not bitching too much about the whole deal, I'll give you that.
As far as the abortion comment goes...you can't operate a law school based on dogmatic Catholicism. If MU did that, WI would be down to one place to get a law degree.
Let's stop this nonsense before it starts.
Plenty of Catholics are pro-choice. Plenty of Catholics eat meat on Fridays, commit adultery, divorce, use birth control, and take the name of the lord in vain.
Some also believe in paying their debts and not touching the altar boys.
If someone wants to point out the law school in this country that doesn't have a "rabidly pro-abortion guy" working for it then bring it on, but don't let your kid go there.
And do any of the warriors fans here want to get him fired for being pro war (church is against it- so was Jesus)?
Can't we just say he's Jewish?
Such an appointment would be an insult to any Catholic university, which qualification saves MU.
Thank God! For a minute there I thought you were going to accuse him of being a lesbian.
"Feingold is not corrupt in the way Ament was, but his haughty and arrogant liberalism was repudiated by the voters this past November. His hiring continues the trend of the Law School hiring local celebrities and giving them cushy positions."
What, are you implying that the course Feingold will teach has little merit and should not have been offered in the first place? That he will not take this position seriously? Please, spare me the sanctimony.
Regarding "repudiation", do you also make a similar reference when a long-standing Republican is voted out of office?
And, speaking about "arrogance", aren't you also exhibiting that trait with this post?
concerned citizen, jsonline blogger
Feingold should not have been hired and it is quite the insult to Marquette's remaining Catholicism. The hiring of any individual who espouses a legal opinion that is contrary to the natural law is egregious and doubly so when the individual is hired to teach law at a Catholic university. Such is the case with Feingold. Abortion and active support of it are not things to be taken lightly, though that is obvious what Marquette is doing here.
It is scandalous and shameful, though I think Marquette knows that as the news of the hiring of Feingold is not mentioned in the Alumni Newsletter for January 2011
http://www.marquette.edu/alumni/newsletter/2010-13/jan11.shtml
though there is this contained in the news section:
what do we mean when we say we are Marquette? In this video Marquette students and faculty from throughout campus tell you who we are. Thinkers. Educators. Searching. Welcoming. Milwaukee. Family. Jesuit. Worldly.
which underscores the problem that Marquette is perceived as being a worldly institution rather than as an intuition where one can be educated rigorously in eternal truths and where what it means to be human and what it means to be Catholic are explored within a Jesuit framework that is soundly orthodox and fully loyal to the Church.
Jesuits used to be known (and feared) for their rigorously educating of tomorrow's leaders, now what are they known for?
It seems to me that Marquette continues to show that it has forgotten what it means to be Jesuit.
Lurker #59
MU BA Theology
FUS MA Theology
Post a Comment
<< Home