Nobody likes a smarty pants: Why Warren and Obama irk pundits so much
Elizabeth Warren has never succeeded in charming the pundit class, which tends to describe her in oh-so-flattering terms like professorial, scold, elitist, lecturing, strident and schoolmarmish (she was a Harvard professor before being elected as...
Black History Month revisited
During one of his frequent visits to Milwaukee, the late African-comedian Dick Gregory cracked a joke during a Black History Month ceremony:
“Y’all know they just had to give us the one month with all...
Bloomberg and Trump: Two peas in a pod
It seems that having money, plenty of money, must somehow bestow a certain sense of omniscience upon the very wealthiest in society, making some of them feel that they are uniquely qualified to hold...
Water Quality Task Force bills pass with some debate
Water quality wouldn’t seem like a partisan issue, and for the most part it appears the two sides of the Wisconsin’s legislature are approaching it with agreement. A package of 13 bills to address...
State Assembly pushes to amend the U.S. Constitution
In 2017, the Wisconsin Legislature passed a resolution calling for a constitutional convention of the states for the purpose of amending the U.S. Constitution to require a balanced federal budget. On Tuesday, the Assembly...
Divided budget committee passes Republican tax cut
On a party-line vote, the Wisconsin Legislature’s Joint Finance committee on Monday advanced a $250 million tax cut proposal that Republicans introduced Friday after learning in January that state revenue projections were $452 million...
Home is where the heart is — and lungs, and mind, too
To improve the health of families in poverty, improve their homes and help them stay there.
That’s the thinking behind a new report released today by the Community Advocates Public Policy Institute in Milwaukee that...
Appropriations Committee member Rep. Pocan holds forth on Trump budget
It’s a Friday morning media ritual that U.S. Rep. Mark Pocan indulges in from time to time when he’s back in Wisconsin: The Democratic 2nd District congressman holds forth in an informal, open-ended news...
A woman’s journey to heroin recovery with a new Sauk County approach
It was January 2017 when Jameson (Jame) Winn of Portage walked into a Reedsburg medical clinic to see Dr. Gina DeGiovanni. When DeGiovanni came into the treatment room and introduced herself, Winn looked her...
What is Wisconsin doing to address violence against women?
Nationally the Violence Against Women Act has expired, and in Wisconsin bills to help women have been politicized or ignored.
One year ago, Feb. 15, 2019, the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) expired in Congress...