Tuesday’s historic election, the Citizen Action lawsuit that expanded access to early voting, and more...

STATEWIDE - We review Tuesday’s historic election that swept Tony Evers, Mandela Barnes, Josh Kaul, and Sarah Godlewski into statewide office and overwhelmingly re-elected Tammy Baldwin to fight the Trump administration in Washington. We look at highlights and a few lost opportunities.

We welcome Anita Johnson to discuss her organizing work and her role in the Citizen Action lawsuit the expanded access to early voting, which had a decisive late night role in Walker's defeat. We are also joined by Robyn Vining. who narrowly upset Matt Adamczyk in a Republican district in suburban Milwaukee, and Citizen Action organizer Jeff Smith, who overcame the growing urban/rural divide and won election to the State Senate in Western Wisconsin.

LISTEN NOW - EPISODE #367
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The voters of Wisconsin on Tuesday clearly relegated the politics of 'divide and conquer' to the dustbin of history. Speaker Vos should work with Governor-Elect Evers to build a bipartisan partnership.

MILWAUKEE - Milwaukee and Dane Democratic Party County Chairs Christopher Walton and Michael Basford released a statement slamming Assembly Speaker Robin Vos for his remarks saying that state legislative maps weren’t meant to represent Milwaukee & Madison.

“Speaker Vos is even more tone deaf than we ever thought possible. He had the audacity to say that the state isn’t gerrymandered because, "If you took Madison and Milwaukee out of the formula, we (republicans) would have a clear majority." Milwaukee and Madison are as much part of Wisconsin as Racine, Onalaska, Green Bay, and Plover.

How frankly racist of the Speaker to say that if you get rid of the areas where about 95% of the African American people in the state live we’d have a Republican state legislature. But we all know that erasure is primary focus of the Republican Party platform.

As the Chairs of the Democratic Parties of Milwaukee and Dane Counties, We believe that the voters of Wisconsin on Tuesday clearly relegated the politics of 'divide and conquer' to the dustbin of history. If Robin Vos spent more time listening to all voters in Wisconsin than continuing to further divide Wisconsinite against Wisconsinite, perhaps his party wouldn't need this extreme gerrymandering to hold onto what power it has left. Speaker Vos work with Governor-Elect Evers to build a bipartisan partnership rather than continue that divide and conquer politics of the last 8 years.”

Signed:

Christopher Walton, Democratic Party of Milwaukee County

Michael Basford, Democratic Party of Dane County

Evers Election Means Partisan Rigged Maps of 2011 Cannot Be Repeated in 2021.

“Our state does better when we all work together" says Sen. Jennifer Shilling.

MADISON, WI – Senator Jennifer Shilling (D-La Crosse) offered the Democratic weekly radio address highlighting the challenges ahead in 2019 and the Democratic solutions to help Wisconsin families.

“Our state does better when we all work together. Rather than pitting families against one another and favoring out-of-state corporations at the expense of home-grown businesses, we should work to level the playing field and make sure that everyone who works hard has the opportunity to succeed.” Sen. Jennifer Shilling

The audio file of this week’s address can be found here.

A written transcript of the address is below:

“Hi, I’m State Senator Jennifer Shilling.

“With a new legislative session just around the corner, Senate Democrats are committed to advance clear ideas and a balanced approach to address the challenges facing our state.

“In order to grow our economy, we must invest in our local public schools, support small business growth and build the infrastructure needed to compete in the 21st century. Democrats will continue to push for solutions that grow our middle class, encourage innovation and promote economic opportunities.

“Our state does better when we all work together. Rather than pitting families against one another and favoring out-of-state corporations at the expense of home-grown businesses, we should work to level the playing field and make sure that everyone who works hard has the opportunity to succeed.

“Senate Democrats remain united in the Wisconsin Way Forward that expands access to affordable health care, expands the family medical leave act, and invests in our infrastructure and local public schools.

“These are the issues that impact families across Wisconsin and these are the issues that families want fixed.

Thank you.”

We discuss how important it is to vote on Tuesday, November 6th, the white nationalist terrorist attack in Pittsburgh, the despicable new Trump ad vilifying immigrants, and much more...

STATEWIDE - We welcome Citizen Action coop member Sarah Godlewski who is in the final stretch of her amazing campaign for State Treasurer. Sarah reminds us how important it is to vote all the way down the ballot on Tuesday, November 6th.

We discuss the terrorist attack by a white nationalist in Pittsburgh and how the tragedy is a direct consequence of the hatred sewn by Donald Trump, and the Republican politics of division. We discuss the despicable new Trump ad vilifying immigrants, which some believe is even worse than the infamous Willie Horton ad. We review the new MU Law Poll and discuss the importance of getting involved in GOTV canvassing efforts the last 4 days of the election.

Robert reviews a new Citizen Action report finding that allowing Wisconsinites to buy-into Badgercare as a “Public Option” would slash premiums and deductibles by as much as $24,000 for a family of four. The report also found the healthcare cost gap with Minnesota is widening.

Listen Now - Episode #366
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http://newiprogressive.com/images/stories/S5/scott-walker-photo-jeramey-jannene-2018-02-09-s5.jpgFormer Walker Cabinet insider reveals how the Governor’s lack of ethics and continued efforts to conceal the operations of government from public view stopped him and others from providing the best, cost effective services to Wisconsin's citizens.

Former attorney for the State of WI's agency regulating the securities & investment industry says Wisconsin voters, Democrats, Independents and Republicans, need to reject the Trump Politics of Hate.

MADISON - Trump is the personification of the politics of hate. And Wisconsin politicians who seek or accept Trump's endorsement are part of the Trump Politics of Hate "Flock."

Ever since Donald Trump emerged as a Republican candidate and then later became President, he has espoused and led a divisive, "National Politics of Hate." As evidenced by his labeling of Mexicans as "criminals and rapists," by his attacking the entirety of Muslim nations as "terrorists," labeling African nations as "sh**hole countries," enacting a policy of separating families of asylum-seekers, relishing that a grand wizard of the white-supremacist Ku Klux Klan admires and supports Trump's policies, tweeting anti-Semitic images from a right-wing message board, and being an apologist for rioting neo-Nazis in Charlottesville.

America has seen the consequences of Trump's Politics of Hate in the events during the last week of pipe bombs sent by an extremist Trump supporter to prominent Democratic leaders as well as a deadly "hate crime" mass shooting in a Pittsburgh Jewish synagogue. The parallels of Trump's Politics of Hate to the the rise of Nazism under Hitler are striking.

On the basis of the principle everyone knows to be true that "birds of a feather flock together," it follows that every Republican politician who seeks or accepts Trump's endorsement means that they support his Politics of Hate and are willing participants in his "Flock". And that they therefore reject the principles the United States of America was founded upon in the Declaration of Independence that "all persons are created equal with the unalienable rights of "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness," as well as the protections of the Constitution's Bill of Rights and its subsequent amendments including "equal protection" for all citizens.

As a result, it means that Wisconsin Republican politicians like Scott Walker and Leah Vukmir, as well as any other Republican politician that seeks or accepts Trump's endorsement, are part of the Trump Politics of Hate "Flock." Consequently, voters -- whether they be Democrats, Independents or Republicans -- who reject the Trump Politics of Hate, need to reject in the upcoming election as well as in the future, every politician who seeks or accepts Trump's endorsement.

*****

Randall Schumann is a retired career attorney for the State of WI's agency regulating the securities & investment industry, including investigating & assisting prosecution of criminal investment fraud.

Walker is claiming he would enact the “exact same” protections on pre-existing conditions he’s currently suing to get rid of.

MADISON - Scott Walker’s desperation knows no bounds--this time he’s telling another blatant lie about his work to eliminate protections for the 2.4 million Wisconsinites with pre-existing conditions.

Despite staking his political career on rolling back the Affordable Care Act, including protections for those with pre-existing conditions, Walker is suddenly claiming he would enact the “exact same” protections he’s currently suing to get rid of.

“Scott Walker’s career is defined by desperate politics and shameless political opportunism,” said DGA Press Secretary Melissa Miller. “His latest lie is no different. Now that health care is the most important issue to Wisconsinites, Walker is playing politics with health care. Wisconsinites deserve a governor who won’t use health care as a political ploy and instead will protect protections for 2.4 million Wisconsinites with pre-existing conditions.”

Democrats want to expand access to affordable health care, invest in infrastructure and improve workplace flexibility for hardworking Wisconsin families.

MADISON, WI – Senator Jennifer Shilling (D-La Crosse) offered the Democratic weekly radio address highlighting the challenges facing our state after eight years of Republican control.

“Democrats want to expand access to affordable health care, invest in infrastructure and improve workplace flexibility for hardworking Wisconsin families. Together, we can address the sky-rocketing costs of childcare, expand the family medical leave act, provide student loan debt relief, and invest in our local schools.” Sen. Jennifer Shilling

The audio file of this week’s address can be found here.

A written transcript of the address is below:

“Hi, I’m State Senator Jennifer Shilling.

“While we’ve seen strong national growth over the past few years, Republican policies have cut school funding, delayed road projects, and threatened healthcare coverage for millions of people with preexisting conditions.

“Wisconsin families are working harder than ever but can’t get ahead because Republicans continue to favor the wealthy and foreign corporations. Gov. Walker and legislative Republicans are draining resources from our schools, roads and local communities in order to fund $4.5 billion in taxpayer subsidies to Foxconn.

“Democrats want to expand access to affordable health care, invest in infrastructure and improve workplace flexibility for hardworking Wisconsin families. Together, we can address the sky-rocketing costs of childcare, expand the family medical leave act, protect coverage for people with preexisting conditions, and invest in our local schools.

“I know we can do better. If we want to grow our middle class and help our next generation succeed, we need Democratic leadership to move Wisconsin forward.

Thank you.”

Panel discusses the upcoming fall election.

This week Wisconsin is ground zero for the 2018 election with the visits of President Trump and Obama. The panel discusses the effort by Trump and Wisconsin Republicans to inject immigration and other conservative issues into an election dominated by GOP failure on healthcare. We encourage listeners to vote early and volunteer on election day or work in at a polling location. We close with a discussion of the State of New York’s lawsuit against Exxon Mobil, saying It deceived shareholders on climate change and the Supreme Court intervening in another climate change lawsuit.

LISTEN NOW - EPISODE #365
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