La Crosse Talk PM WIZM

La Crosse School Board candidate Deb Suchla joined to talk about her past experience on the board, as well as past, present and future referendums, student population decline and student needs. Suchla is one of eight candidates running for four seats on the board in the spring elections. We discussed the past $194.7 million new high school plan, the current $60 million operating budget referendum....

Adam Murphy, our political blowhard, failed US Senate candidate and small business owner, joins, as we go all over the map from sports gambling legalization to healthcare to Fox News lawsuits and capped it off describing how Wisconsin got a $7.1 billion budget surplus. Began the show discussing the difference between Republicans and Democrats on legalizing things like sports gambling and marijuana...

La Crosse School Board candidate Jeff Jackson joins to talk about past and present referendums, closing Lincoln MS, and even some refereeing experience. Jackson is one of eight candidates running for four seats in the district. A lot of the discussion — building maintenance, referendum questions on the ballot, teacher pay, closing Lincoln — centered around how the board and how the district should...

Wisconsin state Sen. Brad Pfaff in studio, talking about the two-year budget, a new model for funding schools and municipalities, how the state is prepared for a RR disaster and what is "milk." Began the show talking about how a 98-year-old just ran a 5k and how that sets a terrible example for the rest of us, as over 150 Republicans signed onto legislation to increase the retirement age to 70. Af...

UW-La Crosse political science professor, Dr. Anthony Chergosky joins to talk about everything from restaurant monthly subscriptions to the Wisconsin Supreme Court race between the "liberal" and the "conservative." Began the show, in regards to monthly food subscriptions, how much you'd be willing to pay for unlimited Starbucks. After that, talked about how the Roe v. Wade decision affected both s...

Wisconsin state Assembly Rep. Steve Doyle joined for the hour. Hit on a lot of things, including how Wisconsin got and what it should do with $7.1 billion in budget surplus. That included talk on fixing the roads and how to go about tax breaks. After that, we of course had to work in a conversation about snow-pocalypse and how Doyle's alpacas like the snow. Then we discussed two questions on the A...

Adam Hoffer, the director of excise tax policy at the Tax Foundation joins to talk about how we get a $7.1 billion budget surplus, the proposal to give $290 million of that to the Brewers, why Wisconsin should be in the sports gambling game and how River Point District could be a game-changer for La Crosse.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

La Crosse County Emergency Management Tracy Hameau joins. We discuss Emergency Management's role when something like a train derailment or other disaster would happen in the area.    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

She didn't right away, but we got La Crosse County clerk Ginny Dankmeyer to make a turnout prediction for Tuesday's primary election. Dankmeyer joined for a bit to break down some of the ins and outs of Wisconsin's primary. Around that conversation we talked a bit more generally about what's on the ballot for the primary and some of the questions on the April ballot, as well. See omnystudio.com/li...

UW-La Crosse political science professor in studio talking about Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers state budget release, including giving the Milwaukee Brewers $290 million for stadium renovations and dueling tax cut policies between Republicans and the governor. That led to a discussion about how politicians troll each other with legislation and get mad if someone else takes what's perceived as their ide...

Wisconsin Assembly Rep. Jill Billings joins for the hour, to break down some of the two-year budget released by Gov. Tony Evers, including childcare and family initiatives and what to do about PFAS. We also discussed the dueling tax relief plans from both parties, as well as the budget process from here on out and how the public can get involved and give their opinions on what's important to them....

UW-La Crosse Outreach Coordinator Spencer Wilken — or Mrs. Photon — in studio to talk science, including things that cannot be explained, like meat raining from the sky, how Tylenol works, why curling (the sport) stones curl and where all Earth’s water came from. The meat shower comes from a phenomenon that happened March 3, 1876, where it literally rained meat and nobody knows why. Science also c...

It's Bizarro World on this Valentine's Day with a Wisconsin Republican proposal being floated that Rick agrees with, while Gov. Tony Evers is looking to throw $290 million to a millionaire. Before that, however, we talk with WIZM's Brad Williams about some interesting episodes happening in court, already, this week, including a guy who spit at officers and threatened their lives. Then we got into...

Jillian Olson joins to discuss some of the big plans and potential plans for the Outdoor Recreation Alliance. The group is looking to purchase 277 acres of land on La Crosse’s southside. Olson, ORA’s operations director, talks about what they intend to do with that and how La Crosse County might help. Olson also discusses what ORA does in general and some of the other big projects they have ongoin...

UW-La Crosse political science prof. Dr. Anthony Chergosky in studio. Spent a big part of the show breaking down some very important stories over someone stealing $1.5 million with of chicken wings from a school district, how one Chick-fil-A restaurant had to be torn down because it was too busy and a 22-year-old coach impersonating their 13-year-old JV player and dominating in a game. We also got...

Common Cause Wisconsin executive director Jay Heck joins to discuss the upcoming Wisconsin Supreme Court race and how that could affect Wisconsin voting lines that were just drawn last year. The state Supreme Court ruled on those redrawn lines and could do so again when a new justice is elected — one that could potentially swing the court from, basically, Republican to Democrat. Wisconsin is often...

John Havlicek in studio, to talk about what's at stake in the Wisconsin Supreme Court race. With the balance of the state Supreme Court on the line, Havlicek talks about how issues that could come before it may be ruled on more politically — like redistricting or the 174-year-old abortion ban in Wisconsin. Havlicek is a longtime Central High School Spanish teacher, and we began the show talking ab...

La Crosse County Sheriff John Siegel joined for the hour. Spent a big part of the show talking about the Memphis police killing of Tyre Nichols and how that resonates within his department. That also played into a conversation about the county's police study committee. Another county initiative we discussed, was free phone calls for jail inmates, and where we're at with that being enacted. Capped...

La Crosse Mayor Mitch Reynolds joins for the hour. Spent a big part of the show going through some of the ins and outs of homelessness and how it's being handled in La Crosse and what might be coming in the near future — and distant future — to help. Opened the show discussing what exactly is a "supper club," as the library hosted a documentary called "Old Fashioned." Bottom half of the show was a...

Adam Murphy, our political blowhard, filling in on a Friday, as the nation is consumed with a balloon, apparently from China. So, we hit on that a bit, but more along the lines of how the U.S. government talks about China to the public. Before that, however, we spent a lot of time talking about how media, in general — like TV vs. streaming — is changing, and what we say is the most popular — like...

UW-La Crosse outreach coordinator, Spencer Wilken, or "Mrs. Photon," in studio talking about using incredible Artificial Intelligence (ChatGPT) in everyday ways, the unexpected effects of salting our roads — which, apparently, are butterfly steroids and, of course, Puxatony Phil and Groundhog’s Day. That did beg the question, ‘What would La Crosse’s groundhog-like mascot be?’ Wrapped up with some...

Gundersen registered dietitian Laura Birkel joined to break down some of myths out there in the food world, how to navigate protein as a vegan, those pre-made dinners we see everywhere and some discrepancies with the new food compass — plus much more. Some of those food myths included whether things like eggs or coffee are healthy. We also talked about some sports myths, like drinking pickle juice...

La Crosse Education Association — otherwise known as the teachers' union — president Jesse Martinez joined for the hour. Among the many things covered were the February and April elections with the La Crosse School Board on the ballot, as well as a $60 million operating budget referendum question. Martinez, who teachers Middle School at Logan, also discussed Lincoln Middle School closing. We hit o...

The primary for the spring elections is just weeks away. Chris Haskell from the League of Women Voters of the La Crosse Area joins to discuss some of the things we might see on the ballot. After that, a bit of a rant on how these elections are nonpartisan by name only and how politicians play with the ballot with their partisanship, even though the issues at hand are very much defined by voters al...

UW-La Crosse political science professor, Dr. Anthony Chegosky in studio. Kicked off the show with another guest, La Crosse Airport director Ian Turner, to continue our ongoing saga of "What's going through TSA today?" And we recapped that saga of duct-taping passengers, carry-on frozen chickens and he emotional support boa constrictor named Bartholomew. After that, we talked about a 29-year-old w...