Capitol Notes

Last week saw historic visits to Wisconsin from President Trump and Democratic nominee Joe Biden. Both candidates went to Kenosha in the wake of the police shooting of Jacob Blake. Trump surveyed the damage that happened following looting and burning of businesses, and then held a roundtable with business leaders and law enforcement officials. Then, Biden visited Kenosha two days later and met wit...

President Trump is expected to visit Kenosha Tuesday, nine days after the police shooting of Jacob Blake. Trump's appearance happens among pleas from Gov. Tony Evers and Kenosha Mayor John Antaramian not to come to the city.

The mostly virtual Democratic National Convention is behind us now. Even though it wasn’t actually held in Milwaukee because of the coronavirus, the convention did have a bit of a Wisconsin flavor to it each night. Congresswoman Gwen Moore, Gov. Tony Evers and U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin all spoke. Now, we turn to the Republican National Convention, which begins Monday in North Carolina and runs throu...

Monday marks the start of the long-awaited Democratic National Convention. The four-day event when it was announced a year ago was originally going to take place in Milwaukee, dropping $200 million into the regional economy and attracting 50,000 visitors. But now, it’s mostly virtual because of the coronavirus pandemic. Joe Biden will accept his party’s nomination from his home state, Delaware. Mo...

Voters will go to the polls on Tuesday to cast ballots for the August partisan primaries. In this special edition of Capitol Notes, we look at some of the more interesting races. One that’s received a lot of attention in the Milwaukee area is a two-way Republican primary for retiring GOP Congressman Jim Sensenbrenner’s seat. The district covers areas north and west of Milwaukee. Longtime state Sen...

Democratic Gov. Tony Evers’ statewide mask requirement took effect over the weekend as coronavirus cases continue to rise in Wisconsin — and Republicans who control the Legislature are threatening to block it. Evers declared a public health emergency in order to issue the mandate, which applies to anyone over 4 for all indoor spaces except a person’s home. It also applies to bars and restaurants w...

Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers has directed state agencies to slash $250 million from their budgets in the coming months to make up for revenue losses incurred by the coronavirus pandemic.  The cuts would serve as a blueprint for when Evers and the Legislature craft a new state budget early next year. The cuts are in addition to the $70 million the governor ordered a few months ago, which took effect J...

Vice President Mike Pence was in the battleground state of Wisconsin last week, campaigning for another four years of him and President Donald Trump. Pence made a couple of stops, including one in Ripon, the birthplace of the Republican Party. Trump narrowly won Wisconsin in 2016 and is trailing former Vice President and presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden in the polls.

The Wisconsin Republican Party held its annual state convention over the weekend in Green Bay.  About 300 people attended the two-day in-person event in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic. Masks were available, but few people wore them, and participants sat close to each other. The GOP took the opposite approach of state Democrats, who held an all-virtual convention last month.

A federal appeals court panel has upheld some voting restrictions in Wisconsin just four months before the November presidential election. They include limits on in-person early voting hours to two weeks before an election -- and a return to requiring people to live in a district for 28 days, not 10, before they can vote.

President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence made separate stops in Wisconsin last week, while surrogates for presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden held a virtual event here. Both sides took swipes at each other during their appearances.

Former Republican Gov. Tommy Thompson is back in the public eye. The Board of Regents announced late last week that Thompson will be the interim UW System president while the search continues for a permanent replacement for Ray Cross, who is retiring. Thompson will assume the job on July 1, after the lone finalist for the position took himself out of the running.

The Democratic Party of Wisconsin held its annual state convention on Friday night, virtually instead of in-person because of the coronavirus. Elected officials gave speeches, and then it was time for the headliner – presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden.

Protests continue across much of Wisconsin, after George Floyd died at the hands of Minneapolis police. Democratic Gov. Tony Evers has asked the Republican-controlled Legislature to immediately pass a bill designed to reform use of force policies in Wisconsin

Department of Workforce Development Secretary Caleb Frostman testified before a state Senate committee last week about why many Wisconsinites still haven’t received unemployment benefits. Of about 2.5 million claims filed, nearly 750,000 are unpaid.

A group of Wisconsin residents filed a federal lawsuit late last week challenging some local stay-at-home orders that were put in place after the state Supreme Court threw out Gov. Tony Evers’ statewide policy. The lawsuit asks a federal judge to declare the local orders unconstitutional.

The conservative Wisconsin Supreme Court overturned Democratic Gov. Tony Evers’ safer-at-home order last week, effective immediately. Schools are still closed, but most nonessential businesses can resume operations — unless local governments have their own stay-at-home restrictions. At this time, there's no statewide plan for protecting public safety or reopening the economy.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court is expected to decide soon whether to overturn Gov. Tony Evers’ safer-at-home order, which closed nonessential businesses and put other restrictions in place to slow the spread of the coronavirus. The order is set to expire on May 26. Republicans who control the Legislature are challenging the order, largely citing its impact on the economy.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court has agreed to hear a lawsuit brought by Republicans in the state Legislature, challenging Democratic Gov. Tony Evers’ safer-at-home order. Republicans cried foul when Evers extended the order to May 26, amid concerns over the spread of the coronavirus.

Police estimate that 1,500 people rallied at the State Capitol on Friday, demanding that Gov. Tony Evers lift his safer-at-home order, so non-essential businesses can reopen. Evers recently extended the order about a month to May 26 because of the continued spread of the coronavirus.

Gov. Tony Evers has extended his safer-at-home order to May 26 due to fears over the coronavirus. He also announced that schools will be closed through the academic year. Republicans who control the Legislature are opposed to the extension, saying they want the economy to reopen, and have threatened to file a lawsuit with the Wisconsin Supreme Court.

The results of Wisconsin’s presidential primary, state Supreme Court race, and spring local elections will be released Monday, under unprecedented circumstances related to the coronavirus.

Wisconsin appears to be moving ahead with Election Day on Tuesday, April 7, despite multiple lawsuits to move the date because of the coronavirus – and an 11th-hour plea from Democratic Gov. Tony Evers. He called the Republican-controlled Legislature into a special session to push the date to late May and conduct an all-mail election. The GOP went into special session Saturday as required, and the...

Gov. Tony Evers and the Republican-controlled Legislature are still working on an agreement that would provide state assistance to those affected by COVID-19. Evers asked lawmakers Saturday to approve more than $800 million, according to wispolitics.com. The sweeping bill would halt enforcement of Voter ID, ban evictions, and prevent layoffs of school employees during a public health emergency. Bu...

It was another week of major changes in lifestyle and in the workplace because of the coronavirus. Gov. Tony Evers ordered bars and restaurants in Wisconsin to close, except for pickups and deliveries. He also directed salons, barbershops, spas and tattoo shops to shut their doors. Now, the Democratic governor and Republican leaders say they're working together on a legislative aid package to help...