Battleground Wisconsin

This week we discuss the ongoing fallout of the disastrous State Budget and the GOP immediate shift to a renewed culture war offensive. We are joined by State Representative Supreme Moore Omokunde for the entire show and in the final segment by Minocqua Brewing Co. owner Kirk Bangstad. We start with the painful vote Milwaukee Common Council was forced to take this week to raise a regressive sales...

In this week’s episode we assess the budget debacle and offer an inspiring model for a brighter political future. In the first half of the show, we assess the damages from the GOP State Budget, signed into law Wednesday by Governor Evers with a series of partial vetoes. Did Evers use the magic of his veto pen to fix a deeply irresponsible and damaging budget? Or did the Governor lose the budget ba...

The Canadian Wildfires have wafted back into Wisconsin this week making climate change up close and personal. It also reinforces our recent success in helping the Milwaukee Common Council to pass the groundbreaking Milwaukee Climate and Economic plan to fight climate change! The new MU Law Poll dropped yesterday and it predictably sets up the battleground status of Wisconsin for the 2024 election....

We are joined by State Representative Kristina Shelton to discuss the state budget battle in Madison and why she voted in “radical solidarity” against the structurally racist Shared Revenue-Education deal. In more positive news, we look beyond the state budget and discuss Rep. Shelton’s vitally important BadgerCare Public Option bill that will be reintroduced in the Legislature later this year and...

We discuss the Shared Revenue “compromise” between Governor Evers and the leaders of the Gerrymandered Legislature and dissect how it is more of a capitulation than an agreement between co-equal branches of government. We are joined by Sen. Chris Larson who voted against the bill and Amy Mizialko the president of Milwaukee Teachers Education Association to talk about why the deal is terrible for p...

We comment on the wildfires choking skies across Canada and America and their direct connection to climate change. The dangerous air should teach us all about what it really feels like every day for billions on the planet. We update the state budget drama and encourage you to join Citizen Action organizers and members making calls in support of expanding BadgerCare in the state budget (every Monda...

We discuss the federal “debt deal” that passed the House on Wednesday, setting up its passage by the Senate just ahead of the June 5th default deadline. Did President Biden effectively diffuse a figurative terrorist bomb, or did he get taking to the cleaners? Did Speaker McCarthy and the MAGA Republicans get their way, or lose their nerve, and release their figurative hostage (the American economy...

We dive into the precarious “Debt Crisis” drama in Washington. How did the GOP and the media turn it into a debate on “spending,”when Republican Presidents are the ones that ran up the national debt with tax breaks for the ultra wealthy benefactors? Why doesn’t President Biden inject the billionaires tax into the debate? Is the President being outmaneuvered or does he hold the top cards? We analyz...

We discuss the shared revenue plan rammed through the State Assembly late on Wednesday by Speaker Vos. The plan harms Milwaukee by providing less shared revenue than other cities and towns, and contains poison pills opposed by Milwaukee voters and leaders. Now that Vos has called the Governor's bluff, we call on Gov. Evers to wield his veto power if the Senate does not dramatically improve the bil...

We discuss our state budget veto campaign that went on a statewide media tour this week in La Crosse, Eau Claire, Wausau, and Green Bay to support Gov. Evers using his strongest in the nation veto pen to drag the Speaker Vos and GOP leadership to the negotiating table. Our panel reviews the latest on the “debt ceiling” debate in Washington, D.C. where House MAGA Republicans attempt to hold the cou...

We discuss Speaker Vos and the gerrymandered Legislature’s removal of 545 items from Governor Tony Evers’ budget. Citizen Action is calling for Evers to use his powerful veto for leverage against Vos and the Republican leadership to force them to negotiate. We expose the outrageous Republican shared revenue ransom note from GOP leadership that attacks local democracy and forces a tough on crime bu...

We welcome new regular panelist Priscilla Bort, Citizen Action’s Movement Politics Director. Priscilla shares more about herself with our listeners. The panel dives into the state budget battle brewing that will consume the Capital for the next few months. Robert reports back on the final Joint Finance Committee (JFC) public hearing held in Minocqua where Republicans again pretended to listen to t...

Happy 420 Day (the annual day of action for Marijuana legalization). Unfortunately, in Wisconsin this freedom remains elusive and is costing the state $165 million in revenue. We recap Tax Day this Tuesday where Citizen Action released a new report from Americans for Tax Fairness which shows that when billionaires and corporations dodge taxes, American families pay the price in threats to critical...

We continue to debrief the historic Supreme Court election, including Ron Johnson urging the Republican Party to reduce its reliance on advertising and invest in a ground game and college students voting. We welcome Attorney Matt O’Neill, who represented the Janet Protasiewicz campaign, to discuss the campaign’s successful effort to remove from broadcast a false and trashy ad by the WMC. Matt prov...

We debrief the smashing victory for democracy in the pivotal Wisconsin Supreme Court race, the most important election in the U.S. of 2023. The resulting shift in the Supreme Court presents progressives in Wisconsin with significant organizing opportunities, including recruiting, training, and electing a new generation of reform leaders. Robert updates us on Congressman Bryan Steil’s attempted int...

We preview the home stretch of the critical Supreme Court race heading into the final weekend. It’s time for progressive leaders and activists to volunteer and Get Out The Vote for Janet Protasiewicz! SIGN UP NOW >> https://bit.ly/CAWGOTV2023 We review the closing week of the campaign, including an ugly and false Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce (WMC) smear against Judge Protasiewicz which is...

We discuss the economic “double talk” in D.C. that rationalizes bailing out the banks (and ultra-wealthy) and not the people. Just this week, the Fed tempered their projected interest rate hikes, which were resisted by banks and their allies because of the threat to banks who have placed risky bets on low interest rates. The Fed and the banks show no such concern for unemployment, the real victims...

We have a special interview with U.S. Rep. Mark Pocan to discuss his fight against the Big Health Insurance take over Medicare. These profit hungry corporate behemoths are running multi-million dollar campaign falsely promoting Medicare Advantage programs as Medicare, duping seniors into inferior coverage and bilking the federal government. In reality, these programs are rife with abuse, and threa...

We welcome Sarah Godlewski to the show to discuss the “Rally for Our Rights” events across Wisconsin she is organizing with PPAWI, Citizen Action and other progressive allies to highlight the critical importance of abortion rights in the Supreme Court election. This week the WMC dropped $3.2 million into a disgusting crime ad targeting Janet Protasiewicz that was topped by another shameful attack...

We welcome Michelle Mackey, the Executive Director of Kids Forward, to discuss their transition to an anti-racist policy center. We ask her what parts of Governor Evers’ state budget can make the biggest impact for equity. We also review the supreme hypocrisy of Dan Kelly refusal to commit to recusing himself from cases involving his wealthy campaign donors. Finally, we have a full serving of Robi...

We debrief the Spring Primary Election, which saw historic voter turnout and a decisive victory by Judge Janet Protasiewicz. We take a deep dive into this first phase of the critical Supreme Court race, including the big money expended on scorched earth TV ads on behalf of three of the four candidates. Despite its short term success, did the messages set Democrats up for failure by reinforcing rig...

It’s Get Out The Vote weekend for next Tuesday’s critical Spring Primary Election. Governor Evers delivered his budget speech on Wednesday evening, launching the legislative phase of the budget battle. We discuss the highlights and shortcomings of the governor’s plan. We welcome back our in-house economist, Dr. Micheal Rosen, to discuss the misguided decision to include $290 million for the owners...

We debrief President Biden’s State of the Union speech. Does Biden progressive economic agenda represent a break with recent Democratic Presidents? We preview Governor Tony Evers’ plan to increase state shared revenue in his state budget he will release next week. We encourage him to follow Biden's lead, and include forcing the ultrarich to pay their fair share. We welcome Citizen Action Northcent...

Robert is away from the show this week so we are joined by long time show producer, Brian Wooldridge, to get his perspective on producing over a decade of Battleground Wisconsin Podcasts. We discuss Citizen Action’s release of state survey data this week that found 59% of Wisconsinites experienced at least one health care affordability burden over the last year and 39% struggled to pay the resulti...

We discuss Citizen Action’s duel endorsement of Judge Janet Protasiewicz and Judge Everett Mitchell as we head towards the critical February 21st Supreme Court Primary Election. After debriefing Governor Evers’ State of the State speech and the Republicans' cynical response, we welcome back our in-house economist Dr. Micheal Rosen to discuss Republicans' scheme to create a phony “debt crisis” and...