Author
Public-school advocates gather in La Crosse
On Monday, August 5, parents, teachers, administrators and public-school experts and advocates from around the state will meet at La Crosse Central High School for the Wisconsin Public Education Network’s fifth annual Summer Summit. Gov. Tony Evers and Superintendent of Public Instruction Carolyn Stanford Taylor are scheduled to address the group in the morning, and […]
Critics see ‘power grab’ in lawsuit to limit Evers’ veto
On Wednesday, the conservative Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty (WILL) announced that it is filing an original action with the state Supreme Court, seeking to undo several of Gov. Tony Evers’ partial vetoes of the state budget sent to him by the Republican-controlled legislature. “It’s important to get the constitution right,” WILL’s executive director, […]
Justice Abrahamson’s last day at work
Today is the last day on the Wisconsin Supreme Court for Justice Shirley Abrahamson, the longest-serving justice in state history and a pathbreaker who opened the way for women in the legal profession. At a farewell ceremony on June 18, former Gov. Jim Doyle remembered when his father first hired Justice Abrahamson, the former chief […]
Baldwin pushes climate-ready infrastructure
Rebuilding roads, bridges and other infrastructure projects after they are wiped out by storms, floods and other disasters is increasingly urgent as climate change drives severe weather events. But “too often, highway infrastructure is rebuilt to pre-disaster specifications, leaving roads and bridges vulnerable to another disaster,” U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin said in a statement on […]
GOP leaders deny “discussion” of redistricting plan
Republican leaders in the Assembly and Senate reacted to yesterday’s report in the Wisconsin Examiner about a possible behind-the-scenes plan to redraw Wisconsin’s voting maps without consulting Gov. Tony Evers. Both told Scott Bauer of the Associated Press that they had never “discussed” a plan to redraw Wisconsin’s political maps by joint resolution. “That approach […]
GOP could dodge Gov. Evers to gerrymander Wisconsin again
Advocates on both sides of recent redistricting battles in Wisconsin have told the Examiner they believe that the Republican-controlled legislature might draw new, gerrymandered voting maps after the 2020 census, using a process that would avoid sending the plan to Democratic Gov. Tony Evers for his signature or veto. Democrats and advocates for a fair […]
Gonzo journalist who antagonized Scott Walker dies
Friends and colleagues of journalist and satirist Ian Murphy, former editor of the recently revived Buffalo Beast, an alternative online news site in Buffalo, NY, report that Murphy has died. Murphy passed away on July 17, 2019, Buffalo Beast staff said. He was 40 years old. The cause of death has not been confirmed. Murphy […]
Tour to protect immigrants, restore driver’s licenses
On a humid Saturday morning, with temperatures climbing into the 90s, about 100 community members gathered at the Centro Hispano community center in Madison for a bilingual teach-in on what to do in the event of an ICE raid, and to organize a statewide campaign to restore driver’s licenses for undocumented immigrants. The two issues […]
John Nichols: Crisis in journalism is a crisis for democracy
There is no more ardent champion of Wisconsin’s progressive tradition than John Nichols, national affairs correspondent for The Nation and associate editor of The Capital Times and the author of many books, including “The Genius of Impeachment,” “The Death and Life of American Journalism” (with Robert McChesney) and “The Capital Times: A Proudly Radical Newspaper’s […]
Rep. Pocan calls for oversight of private Florida detention center
On Tuesday, U.S. Rep. Mark Pocan held a press call to report on his recent trip to the Homestead Influx Facility in Miami, Florida — a temporary shelter for migrant children run by the private prison operator Caliburn International. Pocan, a Democrat who represents Wisconsin’s 2nd District, sits on the House Committee on Appropriations. He […]
Welcome to the Wisconsin Examiner
As tanks and armored vehicles rumbled through the streets of Washington, D.C., on the Fourth of July, the kids in my neighborhood were pedaling their bikes, festooned with American flags, in a local parade that passed close by the home of our new Democratic governor, Tony Evers. Evers, a former science teacher, recently ousted Republican […]
GOP’s ‘historic investment’ in public schools fails to fill gaps
One of Gov. Tony Evers’ trickier maneuvers in his budget battle with the Republican legislature was to use the line-item veto to actually increase school spending. By crossing out the first year of the legislature’s education spending in the biennial budget, Evers effectively expanded an increase slated for the second year, adding $65 million more […]