Wisconsin Right Now

It’s not that Republican lawmakers don’t want to give the University of Wisconsin any more money, one legislator says the problem is the university is reluctant to tell the legislature where the money it currently gets is being spent. Rep. Amanda Nedweski, R-Pleasant Prairie, was on News Talk 1130 WISN Wednesday, and said the UW System is likely not getting more money until school leaders improve their relationship with the legislature. “It's hard to be confident in institutions that are seeming so reluctant to share simple information with the legislature,” Nedweski said. “I mean, the lack of transparency and accountability shown by the system in the last two decades has resulted in so much distrust between the legislature, the system and the taxpayer.” University President Jay Rothman earlier this week announced plans to ask the legislature for $914 million in the next state budget. Rothman said the UW needs the money to cover the costs of pay raises, to provide wrap-ar

(The Center Square) – A Tennessee Republican senator called for President Joe Biden to resign immediately after the 81-year-old dropped out of the presidential race early Sunday afternoon.   U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn said Biden must resign as president.  "If Joe Biden is too weak to stay in the race for the presidency, he should RESIGN as our Commander-in-Chief immediately," she wrote in a post on X.  Democrats praised Biden's work in office.  "President Biden has been an extraordinary, history-making president – a leader who has fought hard for working people and delivered astonishing results for all Americans," California Gov. Gavin Newsom wrote. "He will go down in history as one of the most impactful and selfless presidents." California Governor Gavin Newsom announces his revised May 2024 budget proposal. Office of the Governor of California Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, said the first debate bet

Some of Wisconsin’s Republican congressmen say there is a problem with Gov. Tony Evers’ latest problems with the state’s political maps. Evers this week asked the Wisconsin Supreme Court to take a look at the state’s congressional maps. "MONDAY: I signed fair maps for Wisconsin’s Legislature," Evers tweeted Wednesday. "NEXT UP: fair maps for our congressional districts." The liberal law firm The Elias Group has already asked the Wisconsin Supreme Court to reconsider the state’s congressional maps, just like the court reconsidered the state’s legislative maps. The high court tossed those state maps back in December. But Wisconsin lawmakers ended the court’s review and replacement by passing Evers’ preferred maps for Assembly and Senate districts. Western Wisconsin Republican Congressman Derrick Van Orden on Wednesday pointed out the Congressional maps are also Evers’ own. “The maps are a 100% product of the Dems,” Van Orden said in a tweet. “Evers drew

The top Republican in the Wisconsin Assembly says the legislature has done what the Wisconsin Supreme Court suggested and passed new maps. Now, he says it’s time for the court fight over redistricting to stop. Republicans in the Wisconsin Assembly and Wisconsin Senate on Tuesday approved Democrat Gov. Tony Evers’ preferred maps. The vote is part of a strategy to head off maps that do even more damage to Republicans in the state from the Wisconsin Supreme Court. Assembly Speaker Robin Vos told reporters that the strategy is aimed not just at getting the least-worst maps for Republicans but also aimed at getting on with the 2024 elections and avoiding a multi-million-dollar court battle. “To actually be and we begin the campaign talking about ideas and why our side is better for Wisconsin, I think that is a better answer than drawn out court battles and going through millions of dollars of taxpayer expense when there's really no need to do so,” Vos said. The legislature sen

Abbott has ordered the Texas National Guard to continue building the wire barriers. Twenty-five Republican governors said Thursday they back Texas Gov. Greg Abbott's decision to defend the state's border with Mexico. Abbott invoked the invasion clause of the U.S. Constitution on Wednesday and said the federal government broke its compact with the states. The "Guarantee Clause" of the U.S. Constitution (Article IV, Section 4) "promises that the federal government 'shall protect each [State] against invasion." Fifty-one Texas counties have declared an invasion , citing an imminent threat created by transnational criminal organizations bringing in enough fentanyl to kill the entire state's population, and expressing support to defend Texas' sovereignty. The governors said they support Abbott. "Because the Biden administration has abdicated its constitutional compact duties to the states, Texas has every legal justification to prot

  Ohio Republican Gov. Mike DeWine banned transgender transition surgeries on minors with an executive order Friday. The move comes a week after he vetoed House Bill 68, which banned the practice and required single-sex sports teams to be established at schools, colleges and universities throughout the state. “A week has gone by, and I still feel as firmly about that as I did that day,” DeWine said. “I believe parents rather than government should be making those important medical decisions.” DeWine’s order and subsequent rules proposed for transgender health care for adults and children were the only issues addressed by DeWine on Friday. “This is something that the entire time when I talked to families, not once did they mention they want to have surgery on their minor child. That was never mentioned,” DeWine said. “This just assures everybody that that will never happen.” The rules up for public comment with the Ohio Department of Health and the Ohio Department of Menta

The Republican who led the first investigation into Wisconsin’s 2020 election says she does not trust the effort to count the state’s absentee ballots early because she doesn’t trust election officials in Milwaukee. State Rep. Janel Brandtjen told The Center Square there are serious security concerns with the Monday Count plan moving ahead at the Wisconsin Capitol. “I get the concept, but Milwaukee has not been a trustworthy partner in elections as I have witnessed in recount, and central count elections,” Brandtjen said. Brandtjen said her experience with former Milwaukee Elections Commission Director Kim Zapata adds to her distrust. Zapata sent Brandtjen three military ballots ahead of the 2022 election. Zapata said she did so to expose a loophole in Wisconsin’s military ballot law. Brandtjen said she’s not so sure. “FYI if her VPN hadn't failed we would have never known who had sent the ballots, and I would have been under suspicion,” Brandtjen said. The Monday Cou

“Final five or ranked-choice voting has to be one of the most foolish pieces of legislation I've seen introduced this session, and that's saying a lot” - Rep. Barb Dittrich There is not a lot of Republican support for a plan to change how Wisconsin would vote in upcoming elections. The Senate Committee on Elections heard a plan to introduce ranked choice voting in the state. “Right now, the parties are incentivized to hold power, and they do that through party primaries,” former Wisconsin Republican Congressman Reid Ribble, said during the hearing. “What final five [voting] does is eliminate partisan primaries.” The ranked voting plan has support from both Republicans and Democrats at the Wisconsin Capitol. A score of Republicans criticized the plan after the hearing. Rep. Rick Gundrum, R-Slinger, said ranked-choice voting makes elections less secure and less transparent. “It will reduce voter confidence, and threaten accurate ballot counting, Gundrum said. Re

The top Republican in the Wisconsin Assembly says the deal to swap University of Wisconsin DEI jobs for pay raises is still on the table, but he also says it’s not changing. Speaker Robin Vos told News Talk 1130’s Jay Weber on Monday morning he’s willing to give UW regents time to reconsider, but he’s not going to soften his stance on ending diversity, equity and inclusion spending on UW campuses. “The deal was negotiated in good faith,” Vos said. “We are not changing one thing in this deal. We are not going backwards. If anything, I’d prefer to go forward. But, you know, a deal is a deal, and you have to keep your word. So, it’s going to last for a little while. But this is not forever. Vos didn’t say how long he’s planning to leave the deal on the table, but he suggested regents could reconsider and vote again after the holidays. UW regents on Saturday voted 9-8 against the deal that Vos agreed to with UW President Jay Rothman. Some regents felt the agreement “sold out”

The top Republican in the Wisconsin Assembly says he is encouraged by the University of Wisconsin’s plan to focus on in-demand degrees, but it's not enough to move him off his block of the university's pay raises. Speaker Robin Vos told reporters at the Capitol that without an agreement to pull back on diversity, equity, and inclusion spending there won’t be any movement on raises for university workers. “Hopefully, once we're able to conclude some kind of a deal on changing how we deal with diversity, equity, inclusion will be able to have that come up,” Vos said. “We have the engineering building, and we have the pay raises. They're all kind of part of one big package. So, my hope is that that is just one of many that can happen once we have an agreement.” Republican lawmakers put a hold on those raises last month. That came after Vos ordered a $32 million cut to the university’s budget over DEI. Vos says the school spends about $32 million a year on nearly

  Republican 2024 presidential candidates will gather Wednesday night in Miami to duke it out as the primary season continues. The Republican National Committee released a full list of candidates who meet the donor and support criteria and who are expected to debate tonight: Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie Florida Governor Ron DeSantis Former South Carolina Governor and Ambassador Nikki Haley Businessman Vivek Ramaswamy Senator Tim Scott, R-S.C. The list of candidates has narrowed in recent weeks as candidates dropped out after failing to gain momentum. The biggest dropout among them was Vice President Mike Pence, who stepped out of the race at the end of October saying “it is not my time.” Notably, former President Donald Trump will skip the debate and hold a rally in Hialeah, a Florida city adjacent to Miami and just minutes from the GOP debate. Trump has said the voters know who he is and that he should not have to debate opponents s

The top Republican in the Wisconsin Assembly is not saying there will never be a vote to impeach the state’s elections chief, but there won’t be a vote anytime soon. [caption id="attachment_95919" align="alignleft" width="200"] Robin Vos[/caption] Assembly Speaker Robin Vos told reporters at the Capitol on Tuesday there’s not enough support among Republicans to call for a vote to oust Meagan Wolfe as Wisconsin Elections Commission administrator. “We had a brief discussion about it, and we are nowhere near a consensus,” Vos said. A handful of Republican lawmakers are demanding Vos call for an impeachment vote. They want Wolfe out for how she handled the 2020 election, and how she has responded to Republican questions about her job performance since then. Part of the GOP demands include a threat to oust Vos if he doesn’t act. State Rep. Janel Brandtjen, R-Menonomnee Falls, on Monday accused Vos of protecting Wolfe. “Why is Speaker Vos so c

  House Republican Jim Jordan of Ohio has picked up several key endorsements heading into a scheduled Tuesday vote for the next speaker of the House. Mike Rogers, R-Ala., became the center of controversy over the weekend after news broke that he was reportedly considering working with Democrats to elect Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries given the Republican party's inability to pick a speaker so far. By Monday morning, Rogers publicly endorsed Jordan. “[Jordan] and I have had two cordial, thoughtful, and productive conversations over the past two days,” Rogers wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter. “We agreed on the need for Congress to pass a strong NDAA, appropriations to fund our government's vital functions, and other important legislation like the Farm Bill. “Since I was first elected to the House, I have always been a team player and supported what the majority of the Republican Conference agrees to,” he added. Jordan, who sent out a letter to fellow Republi

A Wisconsin Republican congressman is amping-up the war of words against TikTok. Congressman Mike Gallagher was on Fox News’ Sunday Morning Futures over the weekend, and talked about China and its influence over TikTok. “TikTok should be banned. Senator Marco Rubio and I have legislation that does exactly that. TikTok is digital fentanyl addicting our kids, and just like actual fentanyl, it ultimately goes back to the Chinese Communist Party.,” Gallagher said. TikTok is owned by a Chinese tech firm called ByteDance. The company says more than a billion people use TikTok each month. Gallagher says that means China is essentially spying on a billion people each month, including a lot of young people in America. “TikTok is owned by ByteDance. ByteDance is controlled by the CCP. That means the CCP can track your location. It can track your keystrokes. It can censor your news. Why would we give our foremost adversary that amount of power?” Gallagher asked. Gallagher’s criticism

The Assembly Republican majority caucus re-elected Robin Vos (R-Rochester) as Speaker for the 2023-2024 legislative session and said he’s willing to work on “solutions” with Gov. Tony Evers. Vos on Thursday said he sees Republicans offering the governor compromises on abortion, school choice and taxes. “I think when you look at where we are, we need to make some potential changes to the 1849 [abortion] law. One of the things that I want to make sure of is that we have a law that can withstand court challenges,” Vos told News Talk 1130 WISN’s Jay Weber Thursday morning. “When Tony Evers said he wouldn’t even consider making exceptions for rape and incest because he wants radical, up-until-birth abortion laws, let’s put something in front of him and see if he really believes that.” The governor said during the recent campaign that he wouldn’t sign an abortion exemption law because it would continue to ban most abortions in the state. Many other Republicans in the legislature have

The Republican lawmaker who received fake military ballots in the mail says she isn’t sure they were sent to help. Rep. Janel Brandtjen, R-Menomonee Falls, on Friday said the Democrats who run Milwaukee’s Elections Commission “ are not my friends.” “If I did not know better, and I’m not really good at being a victim, I think this is more a case of some people trying to get some revenge,” Brandtjen said. Milwaukee’s mayor on Thursday fired the city’s deputy elections director, Kimberly Zapata , after he said she admitted to ordering three fake military ballots and sending them to Brandtjen. “These are the same people who I’ve [filed] open records requests on for [The Center for Tech and Civic Life] for at least 18 months,” Brandtjen explained. “Why would she risk her job, her pension, embarrassment, jail? All she had to do is pick up the phone and tell me this.” Brandtjen added that she didn’t know Wisconsin’s MyVote system had a military ballot loophole until she got the bal

Wisconsin’s Republican U.S. Senator Ron Johnson says his proposed referendum on abortion is simple. Johnson, late Tuesday, released his suggestion for a ballot question that would allow voters in the state to decide on a new abortion law. "At what point does society have the responsibility to protect the life of an unborn child?” the question asks. Johnson then gives voters 10 options, ranging “From the moment of conception,” to “Never – an unborn child has no right to life.” Johnson told the crowd at Tuesday’s Rotary Club of Milwaukee campaign event that he believes the people of Wisconsin should be allowed to decide where restrictions on abortion belong. “Nine justices on the Supreme Court couldn’t decide. I don’t think 535 members of Congress should decide, I don’t think 132 members of the Wisconsin state legislature should decide this for Wisconsin,” Johnson explained. “I think it is time, after 50 years of delayed debate, that ‘We the People’ should decide.” Johns

After the board was announced, critics quickly raised concerns about its implications for free speech and the Constitution. Several Republican senators are demanding a hearing saying they received documents from a Department of Homeland Security whistleblower about the agency’s new disinformation governance board that allegedly show DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas misled a Senate committee when he testified about the board last month. The lawmakers sent a letter this week to Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich., chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee asking for a hearing on the issue where Mayorkas could come back for questioning. “We write to request you convene a hearing with Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas as soon as possible to answer critical questions about apparently misleading testimony before the Committee on May 4 on the Department of Homeland Security Disinformation Governance Board (the Board),” the letter said. “We are d

A study released in 2019 by the Center for Research on Education Outcomes (CREDO), reported that Baton Rouge students enrolled in charter schools performed better than students in traditional public schools. Republican U.S. senators on Tuesday questioned Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona on the issue of school choice in the public education system. In his opening statement during a hearing of a Senate appropriations subcommittee,, Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Mo., emphasized the desire for parents to have options when choosing where to send their children for school. "Coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic now more than ever, parents need to be involved. Parents want to have the flexibility, to choose the school that best meets their child's needs," Blunt said. Cardona's department has what Blunt said he considers "overreaching charter school program regulations" that act to restrict the expansion of charter schools . "I encourage you to reconsider tho

“Moms are struggling, going from store to store to store and then the stores are actually capping the amount of baby formula that they will sell them but, and this got sent to me by a Border Patrol agent this morning, and said, ‘This is disgusting. You will not believe this. They’re receiving pallets, and more pallets of baby formula at the border.” - U.S. Rep. Kat Cammack U.S. Rep. Kat Cammack and other Republican lawmakers are calling on the FDA and the Biden administration to take immediate action to solve a months-long baby formula shortage that's left parents scrambling to find healthy food for their infant children. Cammack, R-Florida, called on Americans to “demand that the administration take action putting the baby formula back on the shelves for American kids,” prioritizing them over illegal immigrants. Cammack posted photos on Twitter of stocked shelves of baby formula at a Customs and Border Protection detention facility in Texas alongside a photo of empty shelves