We are under two weeks out from Election Day, but you don’t have to wait to make your voice heard. So get out and vote early, Wisconsin!

MADISON - Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes Thursday delivered the Democratic Radio Address on the start of early in-person voting in the state, including some important reminders for Wisconsin voters in order for them to vote safely.

Audio file of radio address.

Hey Wisconsin! This week marked the start of early in-person voting in our state.

Here are just a few things to remember about early in-person voting:

One - hours and locations depend on where you live, so go to myvote.wi.gov to find in-person absentee voting options or contact your local clerk’s office to find out where and when you can vote early.

Two - when you go vote, make sure you don’t forget to bring your photo ID, your mask, some hand sanitizer, and your own black or blue pen if you can.

Three - if you aren’t registered at your current address yet, no problem. You can register at your early in-person voting location. Just be sure to also bring a proof of residence. Check if you’re registered and learn more about proof of residence at myvote.wi.gov as well.

We are under two weeks out from Election Day, but you don’t have to wait to make your voice heard. So get out and vote early, Wisconsin!

Long-Sought change will help those in need of substance use recovery and treatment.

MADISON - State Senator Jon Erpenbach (D-West Point) applauded an announcement by the Wisconsin Department of Health Services and the Wisconsin Department of Corrections today that beginning on October 24th, they will be implementing a new policy that will suspend health care benefits for individuals enrolled in Medicaid or BadgerCare Plus who become incarcerated, instead of terminating them.

“This issue was brought to my attention nearly five years ago by advocates working with inmates on medication assisted recovery programs in Sauk County, a program that was then called C.A.R.E. This group found that it became difficult to continue successful treatment for the people they worked with once they were released from custody because they lacked access to health insurance,” said Erpenbach. “It was then that we began advocating for a change.”

The new suspension, instead of termination of benefits process will increase access to health care services immediately upon release from jail or prison. Wisconsin is currently one of only nine states that terminate Medicaid benefits for jailed inmates and one of only eight states that do so for those entering prison.

“I would like to thank Secretary-Designee Palm, Secretary Carr, the Evers Administration and all of the advocates who worked to change this policy,” said Erpenbach. “We know that formerly incarcerated individuals often struggle with physical and mental health complications in addition to substance use disorder and this policy change will most definitely make a difference in the lives of many Wisconsinites.”

It is estimated that nearly 70% of individuals leaving custody are eligible for Medicaid services. This new policy will allow access to much needed health care services while reducing the burden on hospital emergency rooms, community organizations, and free clinics.

You can read more about the new policy here

STATEWIDE - Another week, another set of record COVID-19 infections, deaths, and hospitalizations in Wisconsin. Will the do-nothing Republican Legislature start doing its job at this moment of great peril, or is undermine Govenor Evers all they care about? We discuss the Supreme Court confirmation hearings of Amy Coney Barrett, who has been the most evasive Supreme Court nominee in modern history. She would not even commit on the right to birth control, or that climate change is a threat, let alone Roe v. Wade and the Affordable Care Act. Robert talks about the civil rights violations by Wauwatosa Police in their outrageous and discriminatory response to peaceful protesters. Finally, we are joined by State Assembly candidates Kriss Marion and Shaun Murphy-Lopez who are challenging Republican incumbents in the “driftless” region of the state.

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MADISON - If you haven’t voted already, please get ready to do so.

If you’ve got an absentee ballot, make sure you fill it out correctly and get a witness to sign it, and then either mail it in or hand it in at your local clerk’s office or in a municipally designated drop box (City of Madison Clerk lists locations here).

If you’re planning on voting in person, please consider voting early, which is what I’m going to do.

Early voting starts statewide next Tuesday, Oct. 20. However, each city, village and town in Wisconsin is responsible for setting the dates and hours for their municipality. So check with your municipal clerk’s office about the hours and locations. Be sure to bring your driver’s license or passport or other approved ID.

Remember, you can register at the polls either when you go to vote early or on Nov. 3. Just bring a utility bill or other proof of residence along with your ID.

Wisconsin used to have the second highest turnout in the country, right behind Minnesota. But we slipped to fifth place in 2016.

Let’s get to first place this time!

I’d like to see a turnout of 80 percent in Wisconsin, like they have in Scandinavian countries.

One word of caution on Election Night: We might not know who the winners are, especially in the presidential race, since it’s doubtful that all the absentee ballots will be counted by midnight. We’ll need to be patient and recognize how important it is to count every vote.

One way to speed things up would be to change the law in Wisconsin as to when poll workers can start counting absentee ballots. I wrote about this here:

Chris Larson’s Good Idea

I look forward to celebrating Wisconsin’s massive voter turnout with you in a post-election note.

Thanks for doing your part!

Best,

Matt Rothschild
Executive Director
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Secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs urges veterans to protect each other, and everyone else, from the virus by wearing masks.

MADISON —​ Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary Mary Kolar today delivered the Democratic Radio Address encouraging Wisconsinites to help keep Wisconsin's 350,000 veterans safe by staying home and wearing a mask.

Audio file of radio address.

Hello. I’m Mary Kolar, Secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs. I hope you and your loved ones are well.

Unfortunately, too many of us in Wisconsin, including family, friends and neighbors, are not well. More people, every single day, get sick from the coronavirus. COVID-19 is sneaky, some will not experience symptoms and others get very ill. Some die.

As the advocate for our state’s 350,000 veterans, I implore you to do all you can to keep yourself healthy and protect those in our communities who took an oath to serve our country, stand up for it, and fight if necessary. They stood up for us, now let’s stand up for them.

Many of our state’s veterans are older, and with conditions that put them in a high-risk category for complications from COVID-19. Many live in rural areas, where COVID-19 is now rapidly spreading, and are also far from a hospital. And there are veterans who live at our Wisconsin’s Veterans Homes, nursing homes where we fight every day to keep them safe from the virus.

Please, for those who have served our country and those who support them, I ask you to join me in the fight: stay home when possible, mask up and stay six feet away from others when you go out, and wash hands frequently. These are known ways we can do our part to prevent the spread of this deadly virus. This isn’t political; this is literally the possibility of long-term negative health consequences or death.

By protecting ourselves from the virus, we protect them, our veterans – our nation’s heroes.

Let’s have each other’s backs and do our part to keep each other safe. Thank you.

http://newiprogressive.com/images/stories/S5/fossil-fuel-industry-exxon-s5.jpgWe've over-weighted the amount of power that our fossil fuel producers have, and we need the people of Wisconsin to stand up for real solutions, says 5th CD candidate Palzewicz.

WISCONSIN - We discuss the continued failure to control the COVID-19 outbreak in Wisconsin, including the deliberate Republican state legislative effort to undermine any state response. We debrief the new MU Law Poll and the VP debate. Yet another police officer will have no charges brought against them for the killing of a Black teen in Wauwatosa. We close the show by welcoming State Assembly candidates Jacob Malinowski and Jessica Katzenmeyer to discuss their suburban Milwaukee campaigns.

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WISCONSIN -- Tuesday night at the vice presidential debate, Kamala Harris made it clear to Wisconsinites that a Biden-Harris administration will protect protections for pre-existing conditions. Right now, Trump and his administration are working to strip protections for people with pre-existing conditions, which could threaten over 2.4 million people in the Badger state.

Mike Pence continued to lie and distract from Trump’s attacks on our health care system and failed COVID-19 response, and refused to address any sort of plan that would protect Americans with pre-existing conditions. Read below to understand how Wisconsinite Sarah Conklin doesn’t see this election as a partisan issue, but a life and death decision because of her pre-existing conditions. 

The Cap Times: Sarah Conklin: Vote for candidates who will protect our health care

• As a resident of Outagamie County and someone who has multiple preexisting conditions, it’s terrifying to see the number of COVID-19 cases spiking as hospitals nearing maximum capacity.
• Over the last 25 years, I’ve given birth, had 16 surgeries, been diagnosed with relapsing/remitting multiple sclerosis and survived breast cancer — needless to say, I’m a “high-risk” Wisconsinite when it comes to the coronavirus.As hospitals run out of beds, I have to wonder what happens if someone like me gets sick? Where will I go if I need the emergency room, but even going to the hospital is a risk in itself?
• This is the reality Wisconsinites across the state are facing — especially those with preexisting or underlying conditions that make them more susceptible to this deadly virus. What makes accepting this worse is we know it didn’t have to be this way. The reason we’re headed in the wrong direction now is for the simple reason that the elected Republicans will not take this pandemic seriously. Just last week, the president was headed here to hold a rally that didn’t mandate mask usage or social distancing, despite Green Bay seeing its COVID-19 cases going through the roof. So really, it’s no surprise that other elected Republicans across the state are following Trump’s lead as they try to repeal the mask mandate and hold events where social distancing and masks are just a punchline for their candidates. Sen. Ron Johnson went so far as to attend an event after he knew he had been exposed to COVID-19.
• Meanwhile, Trump still hasn’t announced his health care plan, even as he relentlessly attacks the Affordable Care Act in court. After his failure to respond to COVID-19 when it could have made a difference, more than 1,300 Wisconsinites have died and our state’s economy is in turmoil. It seems the only way to fully defeat the coronavirus and reclaim our lives is by voting out every Republican at every level of office, including the administration in the White House. It doesn’t matter if they represent us in Washington or Wisconsin — they have all pretended that this virus is nothing to worry about even though nearly 210,000 Americans have died from COVID-19.
• Your political leaning doesn’t matter when our lives literally hang in the balance this November. For the sake of people like me with preexisting conditions, for your family, for your community, and for your country, please vote for the candidates who take this crisis seriously and are doing everything possible to keep us safe. Health care is on the ballot this November, and that’s why it’s critical we elect Democrats up and down the ticket.

http://newiprogressive.com/images/stories/S5/trump-wh-covid-s5.pngWillfully downplaying the severity of COVID-19, disregarding the safety of our citizens by ignoring science, and fighting every attempt the Governor makes to slow the spread, has helped make Wisconsin the Nation’s new COVID-19 hotspot, says Karl Jaeger.

WISCONSIN - We debrief the presidential “debate” this week, discuss the potential of a Trump strategy to use the state legislature to overturn electors and appoint new electors that support Trump, and sound the alarm on the deepening COVID-19 crisis throughout Wisconsin. We are joined by Kristin Lyerly and Kathy Hinkfuss who are running for State Assembly in the Green Bay area. Both are healthcare professionals who are running outstanding campaigns to win in gerrymandered districts.

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