Briefs
Ron Johnson: ‘I don’t agree’ with Trump’s tweet
In an interview on CNN’s “State of the Union” Sunday morning, U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson of Oshkosh, said he didn’t agree with President Donald Trump’s latest attack on four Democratic congresswomen of color, but fell short of calling the president racist. When host Dana Bash first asked if Johnson agreed with the president’s Sunday morning […]
At rally, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez stands her ground
U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez hit back at President Trump on Thursday night, proclaiming in a speech in Silver Spring that she and other newly elected female lawmakers have no intention of stepping back from policy debates — or returning to the land of their ancestors. Speaking to a large, jubilant crowd of left-leaning activists in […]
Vos gives insight into state Assembly’s fall agenda
Democratic and Republican legislators do a Weekly Radio Address, addressing what they see as the “hot” issue each week. You won’t be surprised to learn from earlier coverage in the Wisconsin Examiner this week that the topic chosen by Rep. Robyn Vining (D-Wauwatosa) is “Fair Maps for a Fair Wisconsin.” The key example of the […]
Racine joins trend to ban conversion therapy for LGBT minors
Racine became the fifth city in Wisconsin this week to ban conversion therapy — attempts by professional counselors to change the sexual orientation or gender identity of gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender people — from being used on children under the age of 18. The city council voted 11-3 Tuesday night to ban the practice […]
U.S. House quashes effort to consider impeachment
WASHINGTON — The U.S. House on Wednesday refused to consider impeachment articles against President Donald Trump, with most Democrats siding with Republicans to kill the effort. Rep. Al Green (D-Texas) attempted to use a procedural mechanism on the House floor to prod his colleagues to vote on his impeachment resolution stating that Trump “is unfit […]
U.S. House holds top Trump officials in contempt over census citizenship question
WASHINGTON — The U.S. House on Wednesday voted to hold two of President Trump’s top officials in contempt of Congress for refusing to hand over documents related to the administration’s plans to add a citizenship question to the 2020 census. The chamber voted 230-198, largely along partisan lines, to hold Attorney General William Barr and […]
Student debt earns Wisconsin a bad ranking
Student debt is a hot topic in politics and campaigns, in no small part because after mortgages, it is the largest type of debt in the United States. This month the financial literacy site Wallet Hub ranked the states on “most to least” in student loan debt. Wisconsin placed as the 18th worst on the […]
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 […]
Fair Maps lawmakers, activists pressure gerrymandering opponents
Lawmakers and activists seeking to end partisan gerrymandering and create a nonpartisan system for drawing legislative districts sought to turn up the heat Tuesday on current Assembly and Senate leaders to give the proposals a hearing. At a crowded Capitol press conference, the sponsors of companion Senate and Assembly “Fair Maps” bills called on the […]
Wisconsin dairy farmers’ struggle featured on PBS NewsHour
In a PBS NewsHour story that aired Sunday, weekend anchor Hari Sreenivasa visited dairy farms in Clark County, Wisconsin, to tell the story of dairy farmers’ fight for survival in their struggling industry. He began the piece noting that 2,700 dairy farms went out of business last year and that one-third of those farms were […]
Milwaukee’s high homicide rates rooted in segregation
A recent report by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel draws an explicit link between the city’s homicide rates and its historic segregation. It’s part of a larger pattern that criminologists have been aware of for years, a leading Wisconsin criminologist tells the Wisconsin Examiner — and one that demands a deeper conversation over social structure that […]
Appleton’s Rep. Stuck is running for Congress
State Rep. Amanda Stuck doesn’t see a lot of people like herself in Congress. She notes that 16 years ago while a student at UW-Oshkosh working multiple jobs, she became pregnant. After her son was born, she recalls sitting in the hospital holding him, not sure where to go, uncertain if her family would welcome […]