The MacIver Report: Wisconsin This Week: Recent Episodes
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Dr. Trevor Tomesh, a computer science professor at UW-River Falls, made a splash online following the assassination of Charlie Kirk. He pointed out that the university was uncharacteristically silent about that traumatic event, despite having a long history of weighing in on other supposedly traumatic events (such as a Christian woman coming to campus to talk about celibacy.) Tomesh penned a comment on Facebook that received hundreds of interactions and national media coverage. He joins Bill Osmulski on this episode of the MacIver Newsmakers Podcast – Campus Report to share how the university responded.
MacIver Intern Courtney Graves shares the latest news about the University of Wisconsin’s reaction to heightened political tensions following Charlie Kirk’s assassination and how conservatives on campus are continuing to attract excitement and build momentum. Plus, she shares her research on the new state budget’s impact on Medicaid reimbursement rates.
All summer long my YouTube feed was flooded with compilations of recent American graduates and young professionals who are desperately looking for work. Stem graduates, ivy league schools, advanced degrees, even with a few years’ experience - completely out of luck.According to the White House, the unemployment rate for recent computer science majors is 6.1%. For computer engineers, it’s 7.5%. On top of that, tens of thousands of Americans are getting laid off every month from the tech industry.And yet, there are two and half million foreign workers in the us with green cards in high-tech fields. In fact, 65% of us it jobs are held by foreigners. Face it, they’re a lot cheaper than American workers.And so, knowing all that, I thought what president trump did on Friday night was brilliant. He signed an executive order to increase the application fee for h1b visas from $1,000 to $100,000 a year, every year - even for those who already had green cards.It was bold, and it seemed like the answer to countless prayers from unemployed Americans.“Voters gave President Trump a resounding mandate to put American workers first, and he has worked every day to deliver on that commitment,” according to the White House press office.Unfortunately, by Saturday, the white house was walking it back. It insisted that the higher fees only apply to new applicants. Not to the millions of foreign workers who are already here.“This is NOT an annual fee. It’s a one-time fee that applies only to the petition,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt wrote on Saturday. “This applies only to new visas, not renewals, and not current visa holders.”Oh well. Guess I’ll keep seeing those YouTube videos for a while.
MacIver Intern Courtney Graves describes how the assassination of Charlie Kirk has energized conservatives on UW-Madison campus and is driving record interest in groups like the College Republicans and Young America’s Foundation.
The new Wisconsin state budget has now been in effect for almost 2 months, and the MacIver institute just released its in-depth report about it. This is the 9th state budget that we’ve reviewed, and in many ways, it the worst one we’ve ever seen. We’ll be talking about this for a while, so I just highlight one thing for you today.In last budget, the state promised to give local governments a 20% cut of its sales tax revenue.But the state has yet to make room for that transfer in its budget. So instead, it’s paying the locals out of the general fund surplus - about $1.6 billion a year.You probably remember a lot of people talking about a $4.4 billion surplus earlier this year – well that’s where it’s going. And because of it, we’re expected to end this biennium with just $714 million in the account. That's definitely not enough to keep paying the locals $1.6 billion a year. That means we’ll be going into the next budget cycle with another multi-billion structural deficit, but one that the state won’t be able to cover up simply by dipping into its savings.We’ll have a lot more to say about the budget in the coming weeks, and what the state could do to get us out of this mess.
Do you ever wonder where the mainstream news media gets its news. Well, here’s a clue.On Sunday, Gov. Tony Evers tweeted that he authorized the National Guard to help with the flooding response in Milwaukee. MacIver wanted more details, especially since the governor hadn’t declared an emergency at that point. He didn’t visit the area or declare an emergency until Monday afternoon.The National Guard’s public affairs office promptly responded to MacIver’s inquiry. It explained that only the Wauwatosa Fire Department had requested help from the guard. That was the request that Gov. Evers had authorized, hence the tweet. However, only a handful of guardsmen were activated, and it turned out that Wauwatosa cancelled its request before that could get on the scene. No other communities had asked for help, and so, as of Monday morning, the guardsmen were sitting in an armory in Madison just in case.Meanwhile, most news stations across the state reported that Gov. Evers had sent in the National Guard, even though he didn’t. There had been no press releases and no executive actions. The only place anyone wouldn’t gotten that idea from, is Twitter.So now you know where the mainstream media gets it news.
So, Governor Evers has decided to hang it up. Don’t think for moment that it’s because he couldn’t win a third term. That’s the kind of misplaced confidence that won him a first and a second term as governor.Liberals are playing the long game here, and they haven’t exactly been secretive about their strategy. They fully expect that a democrat will be elected president in 2028. The president’s party is always at a disadvantage in the midterms, which is when Wisconsin always holds its gubernatorial election. The left wants a strong democrat incumbent in the governor’s office for that 2030 election, and there is no way that Governor Evers was going to run for a fourth term that would keep him working well into his 80s.And so, the Democrats are taking a calculated risk now for long term gains. It’s a perfect example of giving up a bird in the hand for two in the bush, leaving republicans with a golden opportunity if they can figure out how to exploit it.
Ron Johnson tells MacIver why he ultimately supported the Big Beautiful Bill, even though it doesn't go nearly far enough to correct the country's long term fiscal problems.
The new state budget is in effect.A lot of people on both sides of the aisle claim it’s a conservative budget, but the numbers tell a different story.The last budget was $100 billion. Evers wanted 120 billion this time. It wound up at $114.That’s a 15% jump in spending. The biggest increase in at least 20 years.We started this budget with a $4.4 billion surplus. We’ll end it with just $700 million.And yet, this budget still borrows $3.2 billion. That’s four-and-a-half times more than in the last budget, and the highest level of borrowing since Jim Doyle was governor.Sure, you’re getting a $1.5 billion tax cut, but your healthcare costs are going up $2 billion, your property taxes are going up 3-quarters of a billion dollars, drivers fees are going up $150 million, and even camping fees are going up 6 million bucks.If all that adds up to a conservative budget, I shudder to think what a liberal budget would look like.
Would you believe that the state legislature writes the state budget every two years without using a spreadsheet? We couldn’t believe it either. That’s why MacIver did it for them. But, that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Bill and Mike explain exactly how the state assembles its budget, and why everything about it is wrong. At the end of the day, the state knows exactly where it gets its money from, but it only has a vague idea of where it goes…Bill and Mike also share the 400-year history of American tax uprisings, and why Americans don’t share their ancestors’ sense of outrage over out-of-control government.All that and more on this episode of the MacIver Report.
Governor Evers thought he’d play a game of chicken with the legislature over school funding, and last week, he lost big time. Unfortunately, Evers wagered your property taxes.When he pulled that line-item-veto stunt last session, Evers enabled school districts to increase their revenue limits by $325 per student every year for the next 400 years. That comes out to about a quarter of a billion dollars each year with the state’s current student population.School districts can get that extra money through one of two ways: more state aid or higher property taxes. Evers thought it was a safe bet that lawmakers would increase state aid, so that most taxpayers would never have a clue about his unprecedented power grab and his absurd 400-year-line-item veto. Instead, the legislature took a pass and left Evers holding the bag.So now when you get that higher property tax bill this December, be sure to thank gov. Tony Evers.
The legislature made a key decision on the state budget last night when it choose to make Gov. Evers own the real world consequences of his 400-year-veto stunt. Bill and Mike talk about what that means for your property tax bill next year and every year after that for the next 400 years. Also, don't forget the left has a big rioting plans for this weekend. We tell you where in Wisconsin they plan to make a scene on this edition of the MacIver Report.
The negotiations between republican lawmakers and governor Evers over the state budget broke down last week and it’s just as well. Republicans had nothing to gain and Evers had nothing to lose.Republicans wanted assurances from Evers that he wouldn’t veto their tax cut plan, and Evers wanted to increase total spending by 20 billion dollars (20% more than the current budget).Even if republicans got assurances from Evers, his word is worthless. He stabbed them in the back after they had assurances for the last state budget. Anyone remember the 400-year-veto stunt?As far as Evers is concerned, he doesn’t need to convince republicans to increase spending. They’re already doing it. So far, they’ve just gotten low cost, routine items on the budget, and they’ve already increased spending by $1.3 billion.Looks like the budget was going to balloon with or without negotiating. Check mate, Evers.
Republicans ended budget negotiations with Gov. Evers this week after reaching an impasse. Bill and Mike explain why they should never have tried negotiating with Evers in the first place, after he stabbed them in the back after the last budget had been negotiated. Evers could have had a really tough week too, had Republicans exploited two great opportunities he handed them. Evers' people ended the Senior Employment Program and treated to defund the State Historical Society. There was plenty of drama in Washington, as Trump and Musk exchanged barbs, resulting in some amusing social media content. All that and more on this episode of the MacIver Report.
The Wisconsin senior employment program places low-income senior citizens in temporary jobs and subsidizes their $7.25 an hour wage. About 300 of Wisconsin’s most vulnerable residents participate in the program. For them, it’s the difference between making ends meet and being homeless.The Evers administration just made the abrupt and unilateral decision to end the program, sending local coordinators scrambling to head off 300 individual tragedies.It’s unknown how this decision was made. Adding to the mystery, Evers never even mentioned the program in his budget request, and the legislature has just gotten started writing the next state budget. You can’t blame trump. He hasn’t touched the federal funds tied to the program. In fact, congress is still working on the next federal budget.No, it’s pretty clear that this decision was made entirely within the Evers administration without even consulting all the major stakeholders.It just goes to show how bad government can screw up even a simple charitable program – and why the legislature really needs to take a closer look at exactly what’s in and is not in the state budget.
Bill gives an insider update on the state budget, and Mike walks us through exactly what the Big Beautiful Bill would do to the county's balance sheet. Plus, you won't want to miss highlights from MacIver's documentary on the State Street race riot.
Bill and Mike go through President Trump’s “Big, Beautiful Bill” and why Ron Johnson has concerns about it. That’s a perfect setup for a discussion about Wisconsin’s current budget dilemmas. Finally, they have a frank discussion about three different maps and what they mean for Wisconsin’s political future.
It was a disappointing, but all too predictable, start to the state budget writing process last week.The Joint Committee on Finance began by tossing the governor’s $120 billion budget proposal – choosing instead to use the current budget as its starting point.The current $100 billion budget.In other words, they don’t plan to cut anything.Current spending is now locked in – and throughout the executive hearings this month, committee members will just be adding to the pile.How much more do they plan to spend?Well, that will depend on the new tax revenue estimates that are scheduled to come out this Thursday.Sen. Marklein wants to increase spending on public education and healthcare.He says the estimates will determine how high they can go.It would have been nice to see the committee start the budget at $0 and make every agency and program justify all its funding.Instead, it’s just business as usual in Madison, and no one can say they’re very surprised.
Bill and Michael walk you through three of the top issues playing out in Wisconsin state politics right now from a free market perspective. Get the latest lowdown on: the state budget debate, Democrat immigration enforcement opposition, and Democrat lawfare.Budget Stories:JFC Bosses Look to Evers-proof Next State BudgetSchoemann: We Need to be Honest About Size, Cost of UW SystemJFC Democrats slam Republicans for Slashing Evers’ BudgetBudget Analysis:MacIver’s Guide to the 2025-27 State BudgetBudget '25: Transportation AnalysisBudget '25: Children and Families AnalysisImmigration:Wisconsin’s Liberal Leaders Stand Against the Rule of LawGov. Evers: "I’ve Never Encouraged or Directed Anyone to Break any Laws”Make No Mistake: Hannah Dugan is a Criminal | Video | MacIverThe Mantra of Due ProcessLawfare:Wisconsin A-G Joins Another Lawsuit Against Trump Administration
One of the secret perks of being governor is the ability to take foreign vacations on the taxpayer dime.Oh sure, officially they’re called “trade missions,” and their purpose is to promote Wisconsin products overseas, but their results are nothing to write home about.Evers’ first big trip was to Japan in 2019. Of course, he took his wife. There were 28 people in the delegation all together. Since then, total annual exports from Wisconsin to Japan have dropped 11%. That’s $83 million a year. Agricultural exports even worse. They’ve plummeted by 35%.Evers choose Europe for his second vaca- trade mission. That was two years ago. He visited Belgium, a fast-growing market for Wisconsin goods – at least it was until Evers’ visited. Since then, exports have dropped by 15%.Now, Evers just got back from a third trip. This one was to Germany, another hot market for Wisconsin goods. We’ll see if it stays that way now that Evers stopped by to shake hands.
Mike gives an update on MacIver's research about Wisconsin's utility companies, their owners, and their efforts to expand their monopoly in Wisconsin. Also, against the backdrop of Germantown's controversial TID project, Bill gives a couple quick lessons for local officials on how TIF is supposed to function and where local revenue actually comes from. Finally, a story that should send shockwaves throughout society barely registered as blip on most people's radar. What it says about our culture that no one cares that the government is sterilizing people based on their income level.
If you make less than $48,000 a year, the state of Wisconsin will pay to have you sterilized.You heard that right.The state of Wisconsin actually has a program that sterilizes poor people.It’s all part of the department of health services’ family planning only services program, which falls under medical assistance.Apparently, this has been going on for the past 40 years.It flies below the radar because DHS never mentions it in its budget requests – and the department doesn’t really keep track of it either.When the MacIver institute asked for the costs and participation numbers in its sterilization program, DHS said the records were buried its database and could not be easily retrieved.So, sinister and unaccountable.The whole idea of sterilizing poor people harkens back to progressive era eugenics programs, that sought to improve the gene pool.Wisconsin banned the practice back in the 1970s, but apparently, progressives simply rebranded it as “family planning.”
Wisconsin Republicans are coping with their Waterloo moment (losing the Supreme Court in the April 1st election) by doubling down on crony capitalism. They’re rebranding the toxic ROFR bill as the Wisconsin Energy Reform Act. Meanwhile, they’re shirking the fight for a responsible state budget. And speaking of Waterloo, the City of Waterloo has an authoritarian new policy masked as a concession to private property rights. Bill Osmulski and Michael Lucas have all the details on this edition of the MacIver Report Podcast.
Nothing in life is simple or easy when the government gets involved. Take the city of waterloo Wisconsin for example. Not really a liberal place. Trump won there. But when some residents wanted to get backyard chickens – the city government lost its mind.Following months of committee meetings, draft proposals, hearings and debates, it finally hatched a plan. The city will issue up to six licenses at $50 each. There are 21 requirements.Seven different breeds are not allowed. And the best part – this is only a 2-year pilot program to figure out whether residents should be allowed to keep chickens or not. The city can pull the plug on the whole thing at any time.You might get all ruffled up about what’s going in Washington or even in the state capitol – but this is a great example of what happens when you overlook what’s going on in your own backyard.
No one ever questions the Wisconsin Legislative Fiscal Bureau (LFB) and with good reason. It is a non-partisan office of absolute professionals who serve as the legislature’s official accountants. But they are dead wrong when they say that Gov. Evers’ budget would raise taxes and fees by $2.6 billion. It’s not even close. $2.6 billion is less than half of what it would actually be.The biggest omission is Evers’ plan to increase hospital assessment fees by $3.3 billion to increase funding to Medicaid. Hospitals will, of course, shift those costs onto other patients who are not on Medicaid. That brings Evers’ total up to at least $5.9 billion.There’s even more to this story that you can apparently only get from the MacIver Institute.
What do you do when you wake up one morning and learn your local government is hell-bent on making a terrible decision. It could be anything – a bad real estate deal, an idiotic public works project, maybe it’s a high-density housing project in your sleepy suburban downtown.I get calls about these things all the time, and I hate to say it, but it’s usually too late to do anything about it. Sure, you might be able to flood the council chambers with enough angry residents to move the needle, but you’re just throwing a “Hail Mary” at that point.You have to realize that when you elect someone to public office, you give them the authority to make decisions on your behalf. So, you have to make sure to elect the right ones up front. Then you have to attend their meetings regularly to make sure they stay on track. You can’t just expect to pop in at the 11th hour and exercise a “citizen’s veto,” because there’s no such thing.I call these situations painful lessons in civics, and they’re going to keep happening until conservatives start taking their responsibilities as citizens seriously.
Wisconsin is dealing with another mental illness outbreak, with drag queens campaigning for Crawford in Madison, Bernie Sanders' opening act signing vulgar songs about God, and Democrats arguing that there are just as many hermaphrodites in the US as redheads... MacIver's Bill Osmulski and Mike Lucas don't mince words about what's going on here, and why Republicans are playing defense despite overwhelming public support on these issues.They also talk about all the issues that will be impacted by the outcome of the state Supreme Court election on Tuesday. Hear about all that, plus a review of MacIver's biggest stories from the past month.
Two weeks ago, Bernie Sanders came to Wisconsin parading some crossdresser around who was singing the most vile and vulgar songs about God in front of cheering crowds of everyday liberals.Last week, a democrat representative from Ashland lectured republican lawmakers about how there are just as many hermaphrodites in the us as there are redheads.You would think stunts like these would alienate the left from the general public, and yet, they only seem to be getting bolder, louder, and crazier. That’s probably because the right keeps voluntarily giving up ground to them.Bernie and his friends essentially got a pass on their outright blasphemy. No one dared correct that democrat in committee about her make-believe transgender statistics. For some reason, the right allows the lunatic left to set the terms, conditions, and definitions for all public discourse. Until they decide to get serious about pushing back – the culture war will continue to be a rout against rational thought.
Girls’/women’s sports advocate Riley Gaines explains what’s truly driving the transgender movement, why so many people are afraid to confront it, why Democrats are so committed to it, and how Republicans are finally growing a backbone to stand up to it.
The Wisconsin State Legislature debated the ROFR bill on Tuesday that would establish a monopoly in the private sector for Wisconsin-based electric transmission companies, and on this edition of the MacIver Report, Bill Osmulski and Michael Lucas focus on one exchange between a lobbyist and the committee chair about "laissez faire, Adam Smith capitalism.”They also talk about Gov. Evers' plans to expand Medicaid and replace lead pipes in the state budget, and the latest Marquette Law School Poll. As usual, Bill and Mike take plenty of side trips to highlight MacIver's free market philosophy and how it relates to current events in Wisconsin.
MacIver's Bill Osmulski and Michael Lucas review all the content that the institute produced over the past week. These included stories about:Republican Lawmakers Alarmed by Gov. Evers’ “mother” Changes - The governor changed “mother” to “inseminated person” in a budget line about IVF. The governor also dropped the words “father” and “husband” from other parts of the budget. He even suggested changing "mother" to "parent who gave birth to the child" in another part of his plan.Evers Calls Budget “realistic,” Worried About Federal Changes - Gov. Evers said his budget, which would spend nearly $9 billion more than this year’s budget, is not ‘Dead on Arrival’ at the statehouse like Republicans have promised.Congressman Tiffany: Medicaid Changes not Cuts, but “Common Sense” - Tiffany said requiring people who can work to work, and ending benefits for people who are in this country illegally are both very popular.Judge Issues Fine Over Missing MPS Resource Officers, Okays Another Delay - Borowksi said if the police department can have the officers trained, in school, and provide a list of the schools where the officers will be by March 15th, the fine will be lifted.The DNR’s Scientific Integrity Policy = Unaccountability - The proposed DNR budget needs to be thoroughly deconstructed, and then the agency’s internal scientific regime, especially its corrupt so-called scientific integrity policy, needs to be scrapped.Brad Schimel: Expensive Supreme Court Race an Admission of High Stakes - The Wisconsin Democracy Campaign first reported on Tuesday that the total cost of the race between Schimel and Crawford is now over $18 million.Wisconsin Legislative Audit Chiefs Want Learning Standards, Grant Reviews - Wisconsin’s next deep-dives will look into the decision to change the state’s learning standards, and look into $44 billion worth of state grants.Sen. John Jagler Breaks Down Evers' "Year of the Kid" - MacIver Content Director Bill Osmulski sat down with Wisconsin State Senator John Jagger (R-Watertown) to point out the hypocrisies and the hidden agenda behind Gov. Evers' "Year of the Kid."Kaul Facing Ethics Complaint and Lawsuit for Corruption - “This case presents the question whether the Wisconsin Department of Justice is for sale.”
MacIver Content Director Bill Osmulski sat down with Wisconsin State Senator John Jagger (R-Watertown) to point out the hypocrisies and the hidden agenda behind Gov. Evers' "Year of the Kid."
MacIver's Bill Osmulski and Michael Lucas review Gov. Evers' budget proposal and introduce MacIver's budget coverage for the 2025 Wisconsin state budget debate.
Today is Tuesday, February 18th, and tonight Gov. Evers will tell us how he plans to tackle the state’s $860 million structural deficit.What’s that? You thought we had a $4 billion budget surplus? Well, that’s how much the state expects to have in the general fund this June. However, based on spending requests from Evers’ agencies, two years from now Wisconsin will be deep in the red. Now to be fair, agencies don’t get everything they ask for, but they did base their requests on Evers’ direct guidance. So now Evers is going to have figure out where to cut $860 million from, or where he wants to increase taxes and borrowing to make up the difference. Whatever he comes with, it’s sure to be a mess, so don’t be surprised when the legislature scraps his entire budget and starts over from scratch, as usual.
MacIver Institute content director Bill Osmulski and economist Michael Lucas tackle some tough mysteries about Wisconsin public policy in this edition of the MacIver Report. The state senate just introduced a bill this week that would give electric transmission companies a monopoly over future projects in the state. Also, Milwaukee Public Schools' audit came back exploring why the district is a constant financial basket case. And last, but definitely not least, a mom complains about the food her kids get at school while Gov. Evers demands every kid get free breakfast and lunch at school.
MacIver's Bill Osmulski and Michael Lucas review all the content that the institute produced over the past week. These included stories about:- Wisconsin Supreme Court to Decide Meagan Wolfe non-nomination on Friday- Wisconsin’s Own USAID Scandal- Northwoods Congressman Questions Gwen Moore’s ICE-evasion Advice- Milwaukee County Leaders Call Republican Immigration Plan “Dangerous”- How Democrats are Using the Supreme Court Race to Rig the Midterms- Wisconsin Lawmakers Begin Push to Raise Learning Standards in State’s Public Schools- Sen. Hutton Pitches Legislation to Block Future John Doe Prosecutions
MacIver's Bill Osmulski and Michael Lucas review all the content that the institute produced over the past week. These included stories about:No Place for Parents in Gov. Evers' "The Year of the Kid"Republicans Pitch Constitutional Amendment to Limit Evers’ Veto PowerLegislative Audit Committee Waiting for full UW DEI AuditGov. Evers asks Trump Administration to Pause Federal Grant FreezeGov. Evers Warns of Chaos Even After Trump White House Reverses Spending FreezeNortheast Wisconsin Lawmakers Propose new Flag Rules for Wisconsin Government BuildingsOn the Ballot: City and Village ReferendumsWaukesha County Sales Tax Proposal “Officially Dead”Wisconsin Reading Scores Fall AgainBrittany Kinser: State Superintendent’s Race Should be about Reading, not Politics
Gov Evers has declared 2025 to be the year of the kid, and if you’re a parent it should make your skin crawl.In Evers vision, everything your kid needs is provided by the state. You’re not even in the picture. When your kids are in school, they’ll get fed, taught, and nurtured by government employees. When your kids aren’t in school, they get fed, taught, and nurtured by daycare workers. If this messes them up, Evers wants $300 million for mental health services. And if they end up trans, Evers vows to protect them from anyone not being accepting and inclusive. You better believe that includes you, their parents.
MacIver's Bill Osmulski and Michael Lucas review all the content that the institute produced over the past week. These included stories about: - Democrat reactions to Trump's second inauguration- MacIver's state budget coverage- Evers' State of the State address- Post-Constitutional Wisconsin
When Gov. Evers wants something, he doesn’t let anything stand in his way, and the thing usually standing in his way is the state constitution.During covid, he led us through one constitutional crisis after another while trying to seize autocratic control over the state. Fortunately, Evers lost those fights in court, but ever since liberals won a majority on the state supreme court, he’s had the legislature on the ropes.First, he stripped away its constitutional authority to draw voting maps. Then, he eroded its power of the purse. Now, he’s trying to stop its oversight of regulations and rulemaking.Evers’ next big move is cutting lawmakers out of the lawmaking process. He wants the “people” to be able to write laws and pass them through statewide referendums – hoping to mobilize the mob to push through his radical agenda piece by piece.So, you might say Wisconsin is on the verge of entering a post-constitutional era, and it seems like Gov. Evers can’t wait to get us there.
Tony Evers did not become governor to drain the swamp in Madison, but he might accidentally do just that.He’s suing the legislature because he doesn’t think it should have any say in what rules and regulations his bureaucrats write.The supreme court heard the case last week, and Evers might get more than he bargained for. It seems there’s nothing in the state constitution that gives bureaucrats the authority to write rules and regulations at all.Justice Rebecca Bradley said the legislature never had the authority to transfer that power to the bureaucracy. Justice Hagedorn described it as a gentlemen’s agreement between the governor and the legislature to do it anyway for the past the hundred years.If the supreme court sides with Evers and rules that lawmakers can’t provide oversight to the rulemaking process, or if they go further and rule that bureaucrats don’t have the authority to write rules in the first place, well as the defendant’s attorney explained, the natural consequence is, “the administrative state’s got to go.”
MacIver's Bill Osmulski and Michael Lucas review all the content that the institute produced over the past week. These included stories about:- Everyone in the Biden Administration covered for Joe's mental decline- Gov. Evers wants to bypass the legislature by allowing "the people" to pass laws through referendum- Major medical records leaks under Biden's watch- Budget priorities- School performance
MacIver's Bill Osmulski and Michael Lucas review all the content that the institute produced over the past week. These included stories about:- Everyone in the Biden Administration covered for Joe's mental decline- Gov. Evers wants to bypass the legislature by allowing "the people" to pass laws through referendum- Major medical records leaks under Biden's watch- Budget priorities- School performance
Charity is on a lot of our minds this time of year, and hospitals throughout Wisconsin thought it was perfect time to brag about their supposed largess.The Hospital Association just released a report about all the charity that non-profit hospitals are doing and claimed things like that don’t happen in the free market. Too bad for them, the MacIver Institute, Wisconsin’s premiere free market think tank, saw that report, and decided to look into that claim.We quickly found multiple academic studies from places like Harvard and John Hopkins that show for-profit hospitals actually provide more charity care than non-profits both in Wisconsin and across the country. Also, according to the IRS, non-profits are required by law to provide that care. True charity doesn’t come from government compulsion. It has to be given freely, and the only place you’ll find the conditions to do that is in the free market.
So, you got your property tax bill, and you’re wondering why it went up so much for the school district.Across the state, school district property taxes went up $327.2 million this year. That comes out to 5.7% A lot of that was because of referendums, but that’s not the whole story.You probably forgot the big budget deal republicans made with gov. Evers last year.They agreed to increase the revenue limits for school districts by $350 per pupil last year and again this year. There are two ways that $350 gets paid, either with more state aid or with higher property taxes. There wasn’t that much more state aid.Last year, property taxes went up $150 million to make up the difference. This year, it was $65 million. It’s going to get worse. Gov. Evers really doped republicans in that deal. He used his line-item veto to make the annual increase go on for another 400 years. That means, lawmakers can either use money from your income taxes to increase state aid, or they can let you pay it directly through higher property taxes. Either way, the school districts will get theirs, and you’ll be paying for it.
Why is it so expensive to own a home or rent in places like Madison, Wisconsin? The MacIver Staff delves into all the ways that centralized planning from local government makes a bad situation worse and why the free market is the only way out.
According to the Bureau of Economic Analysis, between 2021 and 2022:- Personal income in Wisconsin went up less than 3% while inflation went up 6.5%.- Housing expenses in the state went up almost 11%, the 19th highest in the country.- Energy expenses went up a whopping 37.5%, the fourth highest jump in the country.
The MacIver Staff discusses a new MacIver report that reveals major state agencies in Wisconsin have no budget. How is that possible? Also, why didn't the Republican Party of Wisconsin run candidates in half of the state's district attorney races? And what about that upcoming State Supreme Court race? It's all in this episode of the MacIver Report.
Elections have consequences, which is a concept that liberals struggle to grasp.Take the city of Madison for example. It’s trying to figure out why housing costs are out of control.The median rent in the city is now over $1,400 a month, far above what the median household can afford. And those rents keep going up. One guy on the local news just said his rent has gone up 35% over the past four years.Of course, the city has its theories; greedy land developers only building luxury homes is a popular one. Here’s one theory no one in Madison wants to consider. Its residents just voted to approve three referendums this month: one for the city and two for the school district. Combined, those will increase the average property tax bill in Madison by $1,600 a year – about $130 a month – that’s a 25% increase from last year.You’d think at some point, Madison residents would start to see a connection.We’ll see if it comes up next month when property tax bills are mailed out, and the rent increase notices inevitably follow.
The MacIver Staff discuss various strategies and factors that impact any potential challenge to Wisconsin's US Senate Race between Eric Hovde and Tammy Baldwin. Also, this week, the Wisconsin Supreme Court heard a case about whether the state's 1849 abortion ban actually banned abortion, and how liberal justices behaved more like a Supreme Legislature than a Supreme Court. All that and more on this week's edition of the MacIver Report.
On election day in Wisconsin, the polls are open from 7 am to 8 pm, and as long as you’re in line at 8 pm, you still get to vote.Wisconsin state law is very clear about this.That’s why what happened in whitewater on Tuesday night is so alarming. The DNC filed a last-minute lawsuit, because of long lines on campus there. A county judge then ordered that two polling sites stay open until 10:30, and as long as you got in line by 10:30, you could vote. That’s 2 and a half hours longer than what is permitted by state law.There is nothing in state statutes that allows a county judge to extend voting hours. In his order, the judge cited a statute explains what to do if a federal judge extends voting hours. He, himself, is not a federal judge.Democrats didn’t look that gift horse in the mouth. The call went out to get every potential voter on campus to the polls. It’s possible that this won them an extra assembly seat. Their candidate in that district only won by 840 votes. But even more important, if one rogue judge could get away with this now, there’s nothing to stop others from doing the same thing in future elections.
MacIver's staff dives into the results from the 2024 election with a special focus on the outcome in Wisconsin. More importantly, they identify special areas of concern going forward that Wisconsin conservatives must address now before it's too late.
Why do government organizations actively promote the occult around Halloween? In this episode, Rebecca the Intern visits the Wisconsin Historical Society (WHS) and learned how to read palms and tarot cards before watching a seance demonstration. Want to learn more, head over to your local public library where you can check out a multitude of how-to spell books. With budget season right around the corner, this was the perfect opportunity to highlight two of the lesser debated parts of the state budget and how much they rely on taxpayer support.
2024 is not 2020, and the left is finding that out the hard way.Multiple national crises gave liberals an excuse to break every election law they thought they could get away with.Absentee voting was key by maximizing turnout among low information voters willing to go with the flow. It was aided by illegal ballot harvesting operations in cities across the state. Ballot drop boxes figured prominently in their plans.This year, they can’t blame a republican incumbent for the nation’s problems. Absentee ballot requests are way down in battleground Wisconsin. There were twice as many absentee ballots floating around Wisconsin at this point in 2020. There are fewer drop boxes too. Only a fraction compared to 2020.It must be frustrating, because they’re clearly lashing out. Ask Mayor Diny in Wausau about that. He can tell you, don’t underestimate what liberals are capable of. When the left thinks it’s losing, that’s when it’s the most dangerous.
Join the MacIver Institute's staff as they discuss how the election is shaping up in Wisconsin, review their previous predictions, and present a voter's guide to "strategic voting."
For the second year in a row, the MacIver Institute hosted Tucker Carlson in Wisconsin. This year with the 2024 presidential election looming, Carlson talked about what is at stake and what conservatives need to do to bring home the win.
You probably haven’t given much thought to the next state budget yet, but the budget writing process is already underway, and fortunately the MacIver institute is on top of it.Last week state agencies submitted their individual budget requests to the governor, and they are fascinating.Every agency is required to include a self-assessment on their performance over the past two years. The criteria are measurable and objective, but the agencies themselves get to pick them. They do their best to set themselves up for success.For example, none of the criteria for the Department of Public Instruction have anything to do with academic achievement. But, even with their fingers on the scale Wisconsin’s major state agencies are failing to achieve even half of their performance goals.That says a lot about government effectiveness. And it’s something we hope lawmakers bring up during agency briefings this coming spring.
Work on the next state budget has just begun, and Governor Evers is already struggling to keep up.Every state agency is required to submit its funding request to Evers by Sep. 16th, according to the deadline he set. However, the Wisconsin Elections Commission (WEC) says that Evers still hasn’t released all the details agencies need to complete that request. WEC decided to submit a partial request for now and amend it later to meet the deadline.Evers better get his act together fast. The deadlines for work on the budget are going to start piling up fast. His budget proposal is due in February. Five months might sound like a long time, but not when you’re talking about preparing a 750-page document that spends around $100 billion - especially when it depends on the input from 68 state agencies that are being kept waiting because of you.Not a great start to what’s sure to be yet another contentious budget cycle.
Last episode, Bill and Michaels took a trip through the next 100 days to make a series of bold, yet realistic predictions about the election and world events. (Spoiler alert: they’re still all on track).There’s more time travel in this episode, as Bill and Micheal transport themselves to Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024: Kamala Harris just won the presidency. How did this happen? What did Republicans get wrong? Can this future be avoided?You don’t want to miss this podcast. If you don’t want to hear it now from MacIver, get ready to hear it on Nov. 6th from everybody!
Since the last presidential election, the price of food has gone up 21 percent, so has rent. Electricity is up over 30 percent. No wonder inflation and the economy are the most important issues for voters this year.A national poll conducted just last week found the vast majority of Americans think the country is on the wrong track, over half say the economy is getting worse. But don’t think for a moment that everyone understands why the economy is getting worse or how to fix it. Remember, over a third of Americans believe in socialism. What are the chances that they understand that out-of-control federal spending is driving inflation? To them, kamala Harris’ plan of price controls and nationalizing whole sectors of the economy likely sounded music to their ears. And that poll from last week does have Harris ahead by two points.Trump and the rest of the republican need to realize that just because the economy is really bad – doesn’t mean voters are going to automatically turn to them and the free market to solve it. They must be won over.
The MacIver Institute relaunches its “MacIver Report” podcast with a list of bold, yet calculated predictions for the next three months. Join MacIver’s content director Bill Osmulski and lead policy analyst Michael Lucas as they argue exactly why they believe:•The “October Surprise” will be Jimmy Carter passing away•Joe Biden will resign or die in office right after the election•Kamala Harris will be president by the end of this year whether she wins or not•The US will not be dragged into a war before the election•An armistice will be declared in the Ukraine
No one in Wisconsin should be surprised that Kamala Harris has all but secured the Democrat nomination for president without a single vote in the primaries.We got a good look at the Democrat party’s ironically undemocratic methods during the 2022 mid-terms.Remember how there were originally 8 candidates running for the Democrat nomination for US Senate?One-by-one they all dropped out before the primary to clear the way for Mandela Barnes.Can’t have your voters making important decisions like that!Sarah Godlewski was the last one to bow out – just one month before the primary and with momentum on her side.It all worked out for her in the end though.Doug La Follette won his race for secretary of state and just two months into the term decided to retire.Gov. Evers coincidently appointed Godlewski as his replacement, raising all kinds of suspicion but with absolutely no fear of consequences.After all, it’s not like voters had a say in any of these democrat decisions in the first place.
You might have seen Samar Alatout’s name in the news last month.He is the faculty advisor for students for justice in Palestine at UW Madison.There are videos of him repeatedly attacking police when they tried to take down an illegal encampment there. He’s even seen interfering with an arrest.These are serious crimes, and Alatout was arrested that day.It is Dane County, though, and so hours later he was released without any charges.However, even if he was charged with felonies and convicted, it’s unlikely the university would have done anything about it.It would only have risen to “serious criminal misconduct” under the university’s administrative code if Alatout had seriously injured someone – which he clearly did not.And so, we have a system, where a UW faculty member was seen on camera committing felonies on university property – and even if he was convicted, there is nothing the university could have done about it.No wonder why protesters think they can get away with anything on campus.
Joe Biden had a great day in Wisconsin last week.He showed up in mount pleasant to announce that Microsoft is building a new data center there, and everyone bent over backwards to give him all the credit, which was really tricky because he had nothing to do with it. But that’s why the mainstream media has told you next to nothing about the project.Here’s the short version:Six years ago, state and local leaders set that land aside and started prepping it for FoxconnThree years ago, the Wisconsin economic development corporation realized that Foxconn only needed a third of the property and started marketing the rest of it to other companies. State and local groups worked together to get Microsoft’s attention. Then the Governor and state lawmakers put a sales tax exemption for data centers in the last state budget. After that, Microsoft was all in.Finally, Joe Biden showed up and took credit for everything blasting the republican leaders who laid the groundwork that made it possible in the first place.Read the entire story at maciverinstitute.com.
Wisconsin lawmakers will soon vote on a plan to bail out the City of Milwaukee.It would allow Milwaukee to create a special 2% sales tax to help with its unfunded pension liability.Lawmakers say the alternative means Milwaukee will go bankrupt, just like Detroit did in 2013, which they say would be devastating for the entire state.Well, we checked to see what happened to Michigan after Detroit’s bankruptcy. No loss of industry, no loss of population, and no impact on its credit rating. James Hohman of the Mackinac center says there’s no reason to think there would be any impact to Wisconsin’s credit rating either if Milwaukee declared bankruptcy.“I just don’t see a lot of reasons why letting the city government resolve its own debt would reflect poorly on the State of Wisconsin to pay off its debt,” Hohman explained in a recent episode of the MacIver Newsmakers Podcast.Suddenly, Milwaukee’s self-made financial problems might seem a lot less urgent to the rest of the state.
Wisconsin lawmakers are fast tracking a plan to bailout Milwaukee to prevent it from declaring bankruptcy. They claim it would be devastating for everyone in Wisconsin if that happened."We understand that bankruptcy for the City and County would be detrimental for the entire state," said Sen. Mary Felzkowski, one of the bill's authors. She says AB245 would "hopefully prevent them from spiraling into a post-bankruptcy Detroit."It's funny she brings up Detroit. Like Milwaukee, it's the largest city in a midwestern state with a strong manufacturing background. It also calls into question any claim that Milwaukee declaring bankruptcy would have any impact on outstate Wisconsin.Michigan tried everything to bail Detroit out of its self-made financial problems, including several revenue raising options not available to any other city in the state, direct intervention, and eventually allowing it to declare bankruptcy. MacIver's Bill Osmulski talked to James Hohman, Director of Fiscal Policy at Michigan's Mackinac Center for Public Policy, about the situation surrounding Detroit, and what it might mean for Milwaukee.For example, Did Detroit's bankruptcy affect Michigan's bond rating? Did Michigan lose population because of Detroit's bankruptcy? Did MIchigan lose industry because of Detroit's bankruptcy? Listen to this edition of the MacIver Newsmakers Podcast to find out!
Ranked choice voting - it’s hard to imagine a more complicated way to hold an election.Voters have the option of picking more than one candidate in each race.Clerks count one set of the votes, eliminate candidates, then count another set of votes, eliminate more candidates, then count yet another set of votes, and so on until they declare a winner.The candidate with the most initial votes often does not win, casting even more doubt on elections than was already built in.Several states have at least partially adopted ranked choice voting, and it’s already cost republicans two seats in congress.It’s easy to see why democrats would love to bring ranked choice voting to Wisconsin. What’s not so clear, is why some republicans are working with democrats to make that happen. A bi-partisan bill is in the works – and we’re looking forward to hearing them explain their logic.
Governor Evers has a big problem with the Wisconsin Constitution.It goes back to 2020 when he shut down churches, tried to extend the term lengths for local elected officials, and continually invented new ways to declare public emergencies.This past summer, he used the Frankenstein veto to expand school funding increases for the next 400 years – even that’s been unconstitutional since 2008.Evers is constantly challenging the legislature over its clearly defined constitutional responsibilities. He’s still trying to wrestle away its constitutional authority to draw district voting maps.Now he’s upset over checks and balances. The legislature has refused to confirm several appointees, and it won’t approve pay raises for the university. Evers claims the legislature is violating the state constitution, and he’s actually suing over it.Just looking at record, the biggest threat to the state constitution these days is actually Gov. Evers.
As far as a liberal is concerned, government can never have too much money. So, it was no surprise when Governor Evers vetoed three tax cut bills that would have provided desperately needed relief to Wisconsin’s middle class (especially retirees.) What was surprising was his claim that those tax cuts would essentially bankrupt the state, and it would no longer be able to fund its basic duties.The state budget grew by $10 billion this past year. Total spending this biennium will be $100 billion. On top of that, the state is collecting so much in taxes – it’s currently sitting on a $7 billion budget surplus. Those tax cut bills that Evers refused to sign would have reduced tax collections by a combined $3 and a half billion over the next two years.No one seriously believes that’s going to slow down the state government from its continual exponential growth. But some guys, like Gov. Evers, will say anything to hang on to other people’s money.
It’s a dark day for constitutional government in Wisconsin.The constitution puts the legislature squarely in charge of drawing district maps. The left pulled no stops to make sure that didn’t happen this time around.A liberal-controlled supreme court threw the old maps out and created a new requirement out of thin air that’s not in the constitution for them to be “politically neutral.” Next, Governor Evers drew his own maps that gerrymandered many republican lawmakers out of their own districts.In the face of this outright assault on constitutional government, with the other two branches ganging up on them in a brazen power grab, did the legislature earn themselves an heroic place in the annals of democracy? Did they earn their profile in courage?Absolutely not.They sheepishly voted for Evers maps claiming it was the best they could do, and Evers really rubbed their faces in it in when he signed those maps into law on Monday, twice referring the maps as “my maps.”Seeing how the legislature stands up for its own constitutional rights should give every Wisconsinite pause for what that means the next time their constitutional rights come under attack.
Almost since day one of his first administration, Gov. Evers has led Wisconsin from one constitutional crisis after another.Most of those incidents have involved him trying to assume powers that the constitution specifically assigned to the legislature. Redistricting, confirming appointments, and, of course, the power of the purse.The legislature gets to decide how to spend state funds. Wisconsin’s $3 billion in covid relief from the feds was different. That was federal money and the federal government gave the governor full control of it.However, while that money was sitting in the bank waiting for Evers to spend it, it was accruing interest, almost $100 million dollars in interest. The feds didn’t give Evers that money. It was generated in a state bank account making it state money. That means the legislature should have control over it. Evers, of course, claims its federal money and regards it as his personal slush fund. The non-partisan legislative audit bureau discovered the funds and disagrees with the governor.Will the governor do the right thing and relinquish the funds?Stay tuned for more drama as this story unfolds.
In Wisconsin, Democrats might have more voters, but Republicans have more people, and lawmakers represent all people not just people who vote.This is why Democrats are so successful at statewide races, and why Republicans are so successful in legislative races. Of course, that’s completely unacceptable to the left.The liberal controlled state supreme court is trying to figure out a way around the Republicans’ natural advantage. That means they need to find new maps that will allow lawmakers to only represent people who vote, rather than all the people. And so, they created a new redistricting requirement called “political neutrality,” that is Democrat candidates must have a fighting chance even in parts of the state that reject everything they stand for.The trick will be drawing new maps that accomplish this without violating actual constitutional requirements. So far, liberals are having a hard time finding that sweet spot. But with the left firmly in control of the branch of government that gets to decide what is and is not constitutional, they know they really have nothing to worry about.
Wisconsin republicans hope to create a dilemma for Gov. Evers.Evers has said he will not give an inch on abortion, but Evers is also very fond of the motto, “the will of the people is the law of that land.”Republicans are trying to test that belief with their latest bill that could lead to ban on abortions after 14 weeks. It’s currently 20 weeks. The bill, itself, would not change that. It calls for a statewide referendum that would allow the people to exercise direct democracy and do it, if that is what they want.After all, public polling shows 91% of Wisconsinites are pro-abortion. Then again, only 28% say there should not be any limitations on abortion. So maybe a majority of voters would support a 14-week ban. Regardless, it’s a moot point.No one actually believes that the governor would sign the bill. The will of the people might be the law of the land, but when it comes to abortion, Evers isn’t about to take any changes.
MacIver News Minute: New District Maps Could Change How Lawmakers Represent Wisconsin Residents by The MacIver Institute
MacIver Newsmakers Podcast: Sen. Ron Johnson and Ranked Choice Voting by The MacIver Institute
MacIver Newsmakers Podcast: Sen. Duey Stroebel and Ranked Choice Voting by The MacIver Institute
MacIver Newsmakers Podcast: Rep. Glenn Grothman on Ranked Choice Voting by The MacIver Institute
Happy new year Milwaukee. By now you’ve realized that your sales tax just jumped from 5.5 to 7.9%. It’s hard to feel sorry for you. After all, you voted for this, or rather you voted for the people who openly said they wanted to do this.For years, your local leaders have complained that Milwaukee was the largest city in the country without a local sales tax. They fought against conservative reforms that would help them lower costs and better manage the city budget. They scoffed at their quarter of a billion dollars in annual state aid, saying it was never enough. While they blew what money they did have on things like the street car and diversity equity and inclusion programs. Then they turned to threats how if Milwaukee went down, they would take the whole state of Wisconsin with it, and how they would lay off hundreds of police officers if the state didn’t let them raise the sales tax, while they assured you that out-of-towners would be paying most of it.We at the MacIver institute warned you not to fall for it, but you have been falling for everything the left’s told you for over a hundred years. This 7.9% sales tax is just the latest example of what happens when you believe them.
Wisconsin’s Christians are still celebrating the 12 days of Christmas leading up to Epiphany, and it’s a good thing they have thick skin. Otherwise, they might be really offended over Gov. Evers’ messaging over the past couple of weeks.First, just days before they celebrated the birth of the baby Jesus, Evers released a video message reaffirming his commitment to abortion.Then, in his actual video message for Christmas, Evers listed off all the ways he could of to celebrate the holiday. Going to church somehow didn’t make the list. (Evers ensured that everyone understood the meaning behind Kwanzaa, however, in his video message for that holiday).Finally, Evers is openly mocking the 12 Days of Christmas with his 12 Days of Wisconsin campaign, where he brags about all the ways he’s spending taxpayer funds around the state on his pet causes.Fortunately, a lot of us still understand that the spirit of Christmas does not include being generous with other people’s money, and that government will never be the reason for the season.
A proposed amendment to the Wisconsin constitution would clarify that only US citizens can vote in our elections.I know what you’re thinking.Is there really anyone out there saying that non-US citizens should be voting in Wisconsin elections? You better believe it.There are people out there who think illegal aliens should even have that right. Just ask Wisconsin voices policy director Jamie Lynn Crofts – who testified at the state capitol last week.At that same hearing, Democrat Representative Clint Anderson from Beloit added that we shouldn’t be doing anything to prevent illegal aliens from casting fraudulent votes, because they often get caught afterwards. Never mind that those votes still get counted.It’s hard to believe we can’t even agree on something as basic as not wanting illegal aliens to vote in our elections, but here we are.
The current state budget included a pay raise for University of Wisconsin employees. They’ll get it as soon as the university eliminates its Diversity, Equity, and Inclusions (DEI) programs.The UW, however, is not budging. Meanwhile, lawmakers are under pressure to approve the pay raises anyway. Assembly Speaker Robin Vos is offering a compromise.Right now, the UW is the only state agency that gets to create new positions without any oversight from the legislature. That’s how it ended up with so many DEI positions in the first place, and why the number of administrators has doubled over the past 15 years. Vos says if the UW needed the legislature’s approval to create new positions, just like all other state agencies, then lawmakers could be convinced to approve the pay raises even with current DEI programs in place.Unfortunately, the UW does not seem interested. In fact, it plans to increase DEI with or without the raises.
The Wisconsin Constitution puts the legislature squarely in charge of redistricting.Gov. Evers really hates this, and he’s spent much of his time in office fighting it. He’s talked a lot about creating an independent commission to draw the maps, just like they do in Iowa. He’s been pushing that idea for years.This week, assembly republicans finally agreed to that compromise. They plan to vote on it today (Sep. 14th).Evers is about to get exactly what he’s wanted for so long.Maps drawn by an independent commission instead of republican lawmakers.Think he’s happy about it?Absolutely not.Now he’s upset that the legislature would still be part of the approval process.Which he calls a “last-ditch effort to retain legislative control”Unfortunately for Evers – that legislative control is guaranteed by Wisconsin’s Constitution.
You know the motto “Never Forget.”Never forget 9/11.For those of us who lived through that day – how could we?The confusion at the first news reports of the day.The shock when the second plane hit.The horror when the towers went down.The disbelief when they got the pentagon.The exasperation when we heard about Pennsylvania.The panic over the fate of our fellow countrymen.There’s something else we should never forget about that day.The outburst of patriotism, unity, kindness, and prayer everywhere you turned.I will never forget congress standing on the steps of the capitol – democrats and republicans together singing God Bless America.There’s not much I care to revisit from that day, but I long for the day when our leaders in Washington once again come together in unity and demonstrate that we are truly one nation under God.
Before the first Republican presidential debate in Milwaukee, a national organization called Moms for Liberty met downtown with its local members.
They say two of the biggest problems in Wisconsin’s public schools are a lack of curriculum transparency and dismal math and reading scores. Moms for Liberty say parents can change that situation by getting involved, asking tough questions, and even running for the school board.
With a message like that, of course, the left has branded them as an extremist hate group. The groups co-founder Tiffany Justice told MacIver News that’s backfired on the left big time.
“I should be sending Gavin Newsom a thank you note, to be honest with you. He sent out lots of nasty emails about me, and we’ve only gotten more money and more members,” she said. “By the end of the year, I believe that we’ll have chapters in all 50 states. We have over 120,000 members and over 300 chapters. So just expect a lot of growth from Moms for Liberty. We’re just getting started.”
Which is why when the left starts calling you names – you should never back down for even a moment.
In January, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) issued a rule making pistol braces illegal. Polk County Sheriff Brent Waak immediately pointed out the new rule contradicted other ATF rules. He argued the new rule was unconstitutional, and publicly announced he would not allow the ATF to enforce that rule in Polk County. On this edition of the MacIver Newsmakers Podcast, Waak explains how sheriffs are the final line of defense the American people have to protect their constitutional rights from out-of-control bureaucrats.
The new liberal majority on the Wisconsin Supreme Court wasted no time making big changes to how the Court operates. Within the first week, they fired the state court system director and established a committee that assumes the constitutional duties of the chief justice. Justice Rebecca Bradley says these changes violate the state constitution, politicize the court, and undermine the public’s trust in the state’s justice system. On this edition of the MacIver Newsmakers Podcast, Justice Bradley explains how this is playing out behind the scenes and what the public can expect going forward.
Now that liberals have a majority on the state supreme court, it’s supposed to be game over. Right?
From now on, they get to decide what the constitution says, and they’re going to make sure that liberals always like what they hear.
So, you might as well just say goodbye to every law, rule and procedure that gets in their way.
That’s what they want you to think anyway. They’ve certainly been acting as if that’s the case. Afterall, they were meeting in secret and making personnel decisions even before that fourth liberal judge was officially sworn in. But who’s going to tell the supreme court they aren’t allowed to do whatever they want?
Well, they might have the majority, but the chief justice is still Annette Ziegler, a conservative. It’s a two-year term and she was just elected in march, and there’s nothing those four liberal justices can do about it. The constitution says she’s the “administrative head of the judicial system” she’s already using that constitutional authority to try and push back. If nothing else, it lets those liberal justices know that conservatives aren’t about to throw in the towel quite yet.
We hope everyone out there is having a good summer. We know the climate change lobby certainly is. All summer long headline after headline has been pushing its narrative declaring “record setting heat” and “hottest temperatures in history.” And the only way to stop it is by cutting carbon emissions.
The public doesn’t even seem to question that connection anymore, but maybe it should. Afterall, we cut carbon emissions by 9% in 2020 – thanks to the lockdowns. It was the biggest reduction in 180 years. The result, according to the national weather service, average temperatures around the world went up in 2020 and then up some more in 2021.
Strange.
All same, just to be safe, the Biden Administration is working to ban gas stoves, hot water heaters and portable generators.
Maybe more people should start asking questions.
Republicans negotiated a deal with Governor Evers over education funding.
Evers stretched the limits of his veto authority to break that deal and create his own 400-year education funding increase.
Republicans negotiated a deal with the City of Milwaukee to allow it to levy a 2% sales tax and stave off bankruptcy.
The city now plans to sue the state to get out of its end of the bargain.
You might call this burning bridges. Liberals don’t think so.
Evers now wants to negotiate with Republicans over taxes.
Milwaukee now wants Republicans to agree to pay for all its sports stadium upgrades.
They must think Wisconsin Republicans are world-class suckers. Well, they aren’t! Are they?
We don’t expect politicians to like each other. However, in a demographic society, we do expect them to be able to negotiate, find common ground, and compromise with each other.
Those are things you can do with someone you consider to be an opponent or an adversary. Those are not things you can do with an enemy, which is apparently exactly what Milwaukee Alderman Russell Stamper considers all republicans to be.
Stamper declared that Republican state lawmakers “are not our friends, and if they are not our friends, then they are our enemies. Make no mistake about this. They are our enemies.”
It would probably be a good idea for stamper to apologize or for his colleagues on the Milwaukee common council to condemn his comments.
That is if they ever hope to negotiate with republicans again the next time the city is hard up for cash.
And knowing Milwaukee, that won’t take long.
Wisconsin taxpayers will never see it, but they certainly heard a lot of lawmakers bragging about a $3.5 billion income tax cut they put in the state budget.
The same income tax cut that Gov. Evers promptly vetoed out of the state budget.
Nobody should have been surprised by that.
After negotiating with the governor to ensure they got more funding for local governments and school choice, Republican lawmakers made the deliberate decision not to talk to Evers about the tax cuts.
MacIver news questioned the logic of this at a press conference last month.
“Doesn’t that just increase the risk that he’s just going to veto them?”
“That’s always a possibility. We made tax cuts last time and the governor approved them, signed them into law, and he ran on those tax cuts last fall,” Sen. Howard Marklein (R-Spring Green) replied.
Well, the governor’s not up for reelection this time around. Did anyone really believe the big government building, prolific waster of taxpayer money Tony Evers was going to sign the tax cut into law when it wasn’t part of the negotiations…or was it all just a P.R. stunt?
Either way, the Wisconsin taxpayer is apparently the only special interest who didn’t come out ahead in this historically bad state budget.
Gov. Evers promised a 10% middle-class tax cut.
No seriously, we have him on tape saying it in his budget address just five months ago.
"Under my plan, if you’re a single filer making less than $100,000 or a married joint filer making less than $150,000, the cornerstone of my tax plan will cut your taxes by 10 percent."
Republicans tried to do him one better and cut everybody’s income taxes and by more. Under their plan, those filers Evers mentioned would have gotten a 14% income tax cut that would have put hundreds of dollars back in their pockets. In total, it was a $3.5 billion tax cut.
Unfortunately, Evers had a major change of heart this week and vetoed those tax cuts down to practically nothing.
The $3.5 billion tax cut turned into $175 million. Most Wisconsin taxpayers, including those middle-class filers Evers mentioned in his speech, are now looking at a 1 percent income tax cut. $37 bucks for single filers, and $49.35 for married filers. That’s hundreds of dollars less than Evers himself promised just five months ago.
We hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness...
To secure these Rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just Powers from the Consent of the Governed, and whenever any form of Government becomes destructive of these Ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it...
We, therefore, the Representatives of the UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, (in General Congress), do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly Publish and Declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be, FREE AND INDEPENDENT STATES, that they are absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political Connection between them and the State of Great-Britain, is (and ought to be) totally dissolved;
Happy Independence Day Everyone. Here’s to the greatest country ever on the face of the planet.
Wisconsin’s republic lawmakers thought they had struck some great deals with the other side of the aisle.
They were willing to give a little to get a little – and liberals told them they were too.
And so, republicans passed a law allowing Milwaukee to raise its sales tax by 2% to avoid bankruptcy – but only if that money went to the city’s pension and public safety problems.
Republicans increased public school funding by a billion dollars – but they wanted more money for school choice too.
The governor signed both deals into law.
Liberals got exactly what they wanted, and now they’re bringing in their lawyers to block republicans from getting what they were promised in exchange.
Apparently, a deal’s a deal – unless of course you made it with Gov. Evers and his liberal supporters.
After weeks of radio silence on cutting taxes in the next state budget, republican leadership had some big news to share at their state convention this past weekend.
Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu and Assembly Speaker Robin Vos say the plan is to cut income taxes by at least $3 billion. That would be the biggest income tax cut in state history. And that’s right on the heels of a $2.4 billion income tax cut in the last state budget, which was the largest tax cut at that time.
Now things are about to get really interesting.
Democrats criticized the tax cut in the last state budget so fiercely, that expectations were high that Gov. Evers would veto the entire budget over it. Not only did he end up signing that budget, but he took credit for those tax cuts and it helped him win reelection.
Now that Evers isn’t facing an election, and Democrats are likely to be even more upset about the tax cuts this time, what happens next is anyone’s guess.
Not long ago, Wisconsin taxpayers had good reason to be excited.
Lawmakers were starting their work on the next state budget with a projected $7 billion surplus… many of them agreed that meant the state collected $7 billion more from taxpayers than it needed.
And they started tossing ideas around about how best to give that money back. The state senate even proposed a 3.5% flat tax, which would have meant a tax cut for everyone who pays Wisconsin state income tax.
Then the government’s own taxpayer funded lobbyists got involved, and the debate suddenly shifted to how to give government more money. State lawmakers weren’t talking about the flat tax anymore. They weren’t talking about any tax reform ideas at all.
In fact, under the deal that was just cut - taxes actually are about to go up in Milwaukee and Milwaukee County to prop up their mismanaged pension funds, while counties, cities, towns, and school districts throughout the state will all see historic funding increases. Unfortunately, in all the excitement it seems everyone in Madison forgot all about those taxpayers. Funny how that happens.
If the state of Wisconsin bails out Milwaukee – do you think the city will learn its lesson about fiscal responsibility?Don’t bet on it.The legislature hasn’t even approved Milwaukee’s exclusive 2% sales tax yet – and Alderman Bob Bauman’s already trying to figure out how to get another 1% to support the trolley and clear the way for even more spending.So even if lawmakers do bail out Milwaukee – don’t be surprised when the city’s back looking for another handout before long.
Title 42 is over and President Joe Biden says expect more chaos at the US southern border. Title 42 allowed the border patrol to people they caught trying to sneak across the border right back into Mexico. Now they’ll likely be released and allowed to stay in the US. There are already around 6 million illegal residents in the US.The crisis isn’t limited to unrestricted illegal immigration. It’s also a humanitarian crisis with brutal drug cartels controlling the flow migrants south of the border. Rape, murder, and robbery are common. Additionally, the nationwide fentanyl crisis is directly tied to the border situation.The House of Representatives passed the Secure the Border Act on Thursday, May 11th. Democrats have already indicated it will never get past the Senate or the President.Rep. Tom Tiffany joins this edition of the MacIver Newsmakers Podcast to detail the implications of the border crisis and what must be done to stop it.
The very first two bills introduced in the Wisconsin State Legislature this session would replace our antiquated progressive income tax with a 3.25% flat tax.The flat tax is simple and fair and, at 3.25%, everyone who pays income taxes in Wisconsin would see a tax cut.Lots of states of making this switch right now – and not just conservative ones.In fact, at the moment, most states with a flat tax are blue states.Senate majority leader Devin LeMahieu – who wrote the senate bill – says unfortunately liberals in Wisconsin have decided to make the flat tax a partisan issue.“It appears especially the governor and maybe some democrats in the legislature would rather play class warfare, and pit the rich against the working class, when that’s not really what we’re doing here. We just trying to provide an even playing field for everybody. So everybody’s paying the same tax rate,” he told MacIver News.Hopefully the governor and his allies can put divisive politics behind them and embrace this rare opportunity for bipartisanship.After all, the flat tax is one of the few issues both democrats and republicans throughout the country agree on. There’s no reason why they can’t work on it together in Wisconsin too.
Tax increment financing. TIF. As in TIF districts.Just the sound of it is enough to put any taxpayer to sleep, and local officials like it that way. They tell you TIF is basically free money.We take out a loan, use the money to lure in new developments, and then we tax those new developments to pay back the loans. Brilliant – right?What they don’t tell you, is that new development increases the local tax levy… and new developments in TIF districts don’t pay into that tax levy – and so everyone else in town not in the TIF district has to make up the difference… that means higher property tax rates all around.The MacIver Institute has been warning you about this scam for years – but now Wisconsin’s legislative council has released a memo providing independent, non-partisan confirmation of this reality…That TIF districts raise property tax rates… by a lot.Now that’s a wake up call.Want to know how much TIF districts have jacked up your property taxes? Read MacIver's report here: https://www.maciverinstitute.com/2023/04/your-property-tax-bill-is-higher-because-of-tif-districts-legislative-council-confirms/
If all the nonstop and mindless campaign commercials weren't reminder enough, today is not just another Tuesday everyone, today is Election Day in Wisconsin. Top of the ticket is the race for control of the state Supreme Court, which has garnered national attention and millions of dollars from outside Wisconsin - not sure how donors from the East and West coasts think they should be able to pick for us the candidates that represent Wisconsin, but at least those outsiders aren’t allowed to vote. Well, at least for now non-Wisconsinites can’t vote. The ability to freely vote however we see fit is one of the hallmarks of our great country and something that each and every one of us should cherish. So, take a minute today out of your busy schedule, remember your photo id and vote early and often. Just kidding, you only need to vote once but you do need to vote today.
The death of George Floyd in Minneapolis in 2020 triggered riots all across the country. In Wisconsin, the worst violence broke out in Madison.After pillaging state street, looters swarmed an unattended police cruiser.They busted its windows and headlights, spray painted it, set it on fire and stole two assault rifles out of it. Believe it or now, they recorded it all on their phones. Naturally police detectives scoped up the videos and used them to solve those crimes.The videos are vulgar, brutal, and shameless - and seemingly had no impact on the liberal judges in Dane county who handled the cases. Fortunately, it was just a matter of time before the MacIver institute found those videos through an open records request.We organized them into a 25-minute documentary – so you can see the malice behind the state street riots up close for yourself, and come to your own conclusions about the justice system in Wisconsin’s liberal stronghold.Watch it now, at https://www.maciverinstitute.com/2023/03/one-night-in-madison-film/
Happy Act 10 Day everyone, the only true holiday that celebrates you, the Wisconsin taxpayer.It has been 12 years since Governor Scott Walker signed common sense collective bargaining reform into law here in Wisconsin and to date, this one tiny change, asking government employees at the state and local level to pay a small amount, minuscule really, towards their health insurance and retirement benefits has resulted in almost 17 billion dollars in savings. $17 billion dollars!That’s over $3,700.00 for every adult in the state.Now, some will ask, how can that be? $17 billion, there is no way?Remember that prior to Governor Walker, the vast majority of government workers in Wisconsin paid zero, nothing, nada for their plantinium benefits. Nothing.Now that they pay something, even a small amount, the savings to taxpayers really adds up.
Deep within the morass of Governor Evers' Budget lies his plan to give your hard-earned tax dollars to sports teams and other private businesses.Everyone has heard already about the Governor’s proposal to hand over $290 million for the Brewers so they can make improvements to American Family field.Not sure what all of the money we have spent on tickets, or all the money we were forced to hand over in the higher sales tax - what all of that was spent on but luckily for us taxpayers, it seems that the handout to the Brewers is dead, at least for now. But you probably haven’t heard that Evers also wants to spend millions of your tax dollars on the semi-pro hockey team in Janesville and the yet to play semi-pro soccer team here in Milwaukee.In total, Governor Evers wants to give over $60 million tax dollars to quote “Non-state” agencies, private businesses and entities that apparently cannot survive or compete without help from taxpayers around the state.Luckily, Evers is very generous with your money.
National school choice expert Corey Deangelis joins us on this edition of the MacIver Newsmakers Podcast to share all the good news about the school choice program around the country and what needs to happen in Wisconsin.
On Sunday, the Wall Street Journal broke the news that the U.S. Energy Department has issued a report stating that the coronavirus likely spread to the public because of an accident at a lab in China. Oh really??!! It wasn’t that long ago that if you brought up the mere possibility that perhaps the covid virus could have started in, you know, the Wuhan Institute for Virology, it’s in the name, you were ridiculed as a conspiracy theorist and racist by Dr. Fauci and his hacks, you were censored and silenced by government bureaucrats and their Big Tech lackeys, and you were relentlessly attacked as a foreign agent spreading misinformation by the corrupt corporate media. The next question that needs an answer - why did the US Government, US Government employees and US media companies go to such great lengths to protect the Chinese Communist Government?As the kids say, it's all about the Benjamins.
While we warned you that Governor Evers was likely to introduce a state budget that was devoid of any common sense and a pathetic partisan hoax, even we were shocked at what he proposed last week.Despite sitting on a $7 billion surplus - again, its not really a surplus, it means you the taxpayer have been overtaxed - despite sitting on that $7 billion dollar surplus, Evers has proposed increasing taxes again by over $1.5 billion dollars and increasing total spending in the next budget by a mind-blowing $14 billion dollars, state spending will total almost $104 billion dollars.That means if Governor Evers gets his way, government spending will increase by roughly 36% in just a few short years.Quick question for you, has your paycheck increased 36% in the last few years so you can pay higher taxes for all this reckless spending?I didn’t think so.
Gov. Evers presented his budget plan on Feb. 15th that included $1.6 billion in new taxes, a 16% increase in overall spending, and dozens of policy items that only appeal to the most extreme liberals. In short, it was not a serious proposal. It was merely a political statement, and ensured there was no opportunity for negotiations with the Republican-led legislature. Consequently, Evers cut himself out of the budget-writing process.Republicans, predictably, rejected the entire document, which means Evers lost any ability to negotiate over the items that truly matter to him and his supporters. JFC Co-chair Rep. Mark Born talked to the MacIver Institute about how that affects the budget process, and how the Republican-led legislature plans to proceed.Evers still has a line-item veto, but he has no control over what the legislature hands him.
Governor Tony Evers is set to introduce his 2023 2025 state budget this week and early indications suggest that it will be a spending tsunami.Despite having a $7 billion dollar surplus - it is not accurate to call it a surplus, it really means you the taxpayer have been overtaxed by $7 billion dollars - despite state government bursting at the seams with an extra $7 billion of your tax dollars, the Governor still wants to increase taxes by hundreds of millions on hard-working Wisconsinites.The Gov’s perpetual attempts to dramatically increase taxes and punish those of us who actually pay taxes, even when he is sitting on a mountain of cash, tells you how unserious he is when he claims to be a champion of working families and what an absolute joke his budget proposal will be.Let’s hope the Legislature throws out the Evers budget and builds a budget that puts you the taxpayer first.
With the state anticipating a $6.5 billion budget surplus, lawmakers have plans for a major overhaul of Wisconsin’s income tax structure. Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu says the senate is currently working on plans for a phased-in 3.5% flat tax.Although championed by conservatives, the flat tax is not party specific. Wisconsin’s democrat stronghold neighbors, Illinois and Michigan, both have a flat tax. Reliably Republican Indiana also has a flat tax, and Iowa is currently phasing one in.Grover Norquist told the MacIver Institute early this week that voters of all stripes strongly support flat taxes. In 2020, Illinois voters overwhelmingly cast ballots for Joe Biden and to keep their flat tax in place.The MacIver Institute has promoted a “Glide Path to a 3% Flat Income Tax” for over five years.LeMahieu says he believes the Assembly is also working on a flat tax plan, but doesn’t know any details yet. With the state collecting $6.5 billion more from taxpayers than it needs, the legislature certainly has plenty of options on how to finally make this important policy a reality in Wisconsin.
There is a new report out that details how federal covid grants are being spent by schools and Wisconsin, once again, is receiving national attention for all the wrong reasons.School Boards were supposed to use their billions in Covid funding to open our schools safely, keep the schools open and finally, fix the learning loss that many of our children experienced when they were forced to do virtual learning. The Whitewater School District decided to use their Covid educational funds to...you guessed it…install artificial turf for the football and softball teams. You cannot make this stuff up, even if you tried.The Whitewater School District is spending $1.6 million out of their total funding for turf and just $400,000 will go towards learning loss.It is shameful what the educational establishment is doing to our children.It is an even bigger tragedy that we parents are letting them do it to our children.
Grover Norquist joined the MacIver Institute’s Newsmakers Podcast to explain why the flat tax is so popular with voters, and why conservatives shouldn’t be so down about the future of the country.
Dec. 6, 2022New Twitter CEO Elon Musk made public last week internal documents that show how President Biden, his team and other political operatives worked to quash the Hunter Biden laptop story just before the election.Hunter’s laptop contained images and documents outlining his illegal behavior and the Biden family's illicit business dealings with questionable actors in foreign countries.Partisan officials at the FBI apparently had regular meetings with social media giants where the government, think about this for a second, our government set up a system so the government could tell Facebook, Twitter and others what stories they should shadow-ban and make disappear, including it seems the Biden laptop bombshell.The mainstream media then gleefully joined in suppressing the public discussion of the suspicious Biden family deals and the American public knew nothing about it when Biden won election.Just like they planned. Thanks to Musk, now we know.
After another turbulent year highlighting just how deeply divided our country has become, we want to share with you the wisdom of President Abraham Lincoln from his proclamation establishing our country’s first Thanksgiving holiday shortly after the end of the civil war.
The year that is drawing towards its close, has been filled with the blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies. To these bounties, which are so constantly enjoyed that we are prone to forget the source from which they come, others have been added, which are of so extraordinary a nature, that they cannot fail to penetrate and soften even the heart which is habitually insensible to the ever-watchful providence of Almighty God.
In the midst of a civil war of unequalled magnitude and severity, which has sometimes seemed to foreign States to invite and to provoke their aggression, peace has been preserved with all nations, order has been maintained, the laws have been respected and obeyed, and harmony has prevailed everywhere except in the theatre of military conflict; while that theatre has been greatly contracted by the advancing armies and navies of the Union.
Needful diversions of wealth and of strength from the fields of peaceful industry to the national defense, have not arrested the plough, the shuttle or the ship; the axe has enlarged the borders of our settlements, and the mines, as well of iron and coal as of the precious metals, have yielded even more abundantly than heretofore. Population has steadily increased, notwithstanding the waste that has been made in the camp, the siege and the battlefield; and the country, rejoicing in the consciousness of augmented strength and vigor, is permitted to expect continuance of years with large increase of freedom.
No human counsel hath devised nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who, while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy. It has seemed to me fit and proper that they should be solemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged as with one heart and one voice by the whole American People.
I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens. And I recommend to them that while offering up the ascriptions justly due to Him for such singular deliverances and blessings, they do also, with humble penitence for our national perverseness and disobedience, commend to His tender care all those who have become widows, orphans, mourners or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife in which we are unavoidably engaged, and fervently implore the interposition of the Almighty Hand to heal the wounds of the nation and to restore it as soon as may be consistent with the Divine purposes to the full enjoyment of peace, harmony, tranquility and Union.
Happy Thanksgiving everyone from the MacIver Institute.
The state Department of Public Instruction released this year’s version of the supposed report cards for our school this week.
I say supposed because the report cards are literally not worth the paper they are printed on.
Consider this: The most recent round of standardized testing, the same standardized testing that you would think the report cards are based on, revealed that 60% of our children are failing in English Language Arts and 58% are failing in math.
Don’t forget that Wisconsin has the worst achievement gap in the country.
Yet, somehow, magically, according to the education establishment, 95% of our school districts and 84% of our schools are meeting or exceeding expectations.
Meeting expectations? Sixty percent of our children are failing in math and English Language Arts and you say are schools are meeting expectations?
How can we fix this problem when Governor Evers and Superintendent Underly insist on lying to parents and taxpayers?
James O'Keefe joined Vicki McKenna on her radio show to talk about his upcoming event with the MacIver Institute on Dec. 5th in Milwaukee and about his investigations into what children are exposed to in public schools. Visit maciverinstitute.com for more details.
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison is in a tight race for reelection and in a desperate attempt to keep his job, Ellison Is now trying to blame the rise in violent crime and murder in his state on… a Wisconsin company.
Democrat Ellison is a big proponent of so-called criminal justice reform that pushes the idea that we cannot hold someone accountable for his or her criminal activity because to do so would be racist and unfair to the criminal.
Ellison believes in scold-and-release sentencing, bail reform that puts dangerous criminals back into our neighborhoods, and defunding the police.
So when two felons with long rap sheets shot up a bar, killing one woman and injuring 14 others, Ellison, rather than admitting his reckless policy ideas were to blame for the carnage, sued a lawful Wisconsin company that provides thousands of jobs to people all over the Midwest.
Despicable, even for a politician.
Last Saturday, the first debate between incumbent US Senator Ron Johnson and challenger Mandela Barnes took place in Milwaukee.
While most of you did not watch the debate, you can probably guess the approach the mainstream media took in asking questions.
With inflation at historic levels demolishing everyone's paycheck and nest egg, violent crime and murder running rampant all over the state, K12 education achievement scores cratering, and the economy on the brink of a recession, the supposedly nonpartisan journalists asked exactly zero questions of the candidates on the issues about which you care most. Zero.
It should be pointed out that all of these crises are the result of public policy decisions made by reckless and irresponsible politicians, but you wouldn’t know that if you relied on the media to be fair and impartial...
or if you watched their pretentious and biased sermon. Sorry... I mean debate.
It’s been over two years since riots tore apart the city of madison in the name of social justice.
More than enough time for those responsible to be brought to real justice.
The Maciver Institute checked into that. We found less than 100 individuals who were charged with crimes for participating in the riots. Only 1 looter is in state prison. The feds busted 3 for arson and 2 felons with firearms. They’re in federal prison.
However most of the rioters who were caught, got off with a slap on the wrist. Whether they destroyed a public monument, looted a small business, Or brutally beat up Senator Tim Carpenter. The Dane County justice system let them off with little or no punishment at all.
This is what justice looks like to the left – and it’s the type of justice they want for all of us.
In his speech from Philadelphia, President Biden called anyone who dares to disagree with him, a clear and present danger to democracy and our country.
What a vile and reprehensible charge to make, Mr. President.
No, those who disagree with your destructive economic policy that has resulted in historic inflation; or your dangerous scold and release push that puts violent criminals back into our communities; or your unconstitutional plan to have taxpayers pay the private college debt of willing adults... NO, Mr. President, that does not make us domestic terrorists as your administration has previously tried to brand us.
We are simply American citizens who will not sit quietly as you and your Administration try to bully us into submission or silence us into compliance when we question your ideas or your leadership.
Mr. President, we will always fight for a government of the people, by the people and for the people.
On August 16, 2022, Joe Biden signed the "Inflation Reduction Act" into law. Wisconsin Congressman Scott Fitzgerald isn't the only one skeptical of that title.
In this edition of the MacIver Newsmakers Podcast, Fitzgerald explains what consequences the $740 billion law will have on Wisconsin's economy and the average American. The law funds an additional 87,000 IRS agents, who Fitzgerald says will be coming for everyone - not just those making over $400k.
Fitzgerald also addresses what it will take to rein in rogue federal agencies like the FBI and the DOJ.
“They clearly don’t care that they’ve politicized those agencies and I think there’s going to be fallout over it.”
He says members of Congress are talking about the possibility of defunding the FBI.
President Biden and Democrats in the United States Senate have reached a deal on another massive and wasteful spending bill, falsely calling it the Inflation Reduction Act.
According to one non-partisan and trusted analysis, the bill will have zero impact on inflation.
In fact, the analysis shows that inflation will increase in the short term because, again, the federal government is printing new money to pay for all this unnecessary new spending we cannot afford.
The Inflation-Inducing Act, as it should be called, will also increase taxes on the poor, the middle class, and businesses -- in the middle of a recession.
Taxpayers with incomes below $75,000 will pay $136 billion in higher taxes.
The manufacturing industry, and all the family-supporting jobs manufacturing provides, will be hit the hardest with $73 billion in higher taxes.
Hang on everyone, Mr. Biden's Wild Ride is about to get worse.
Today is election day in Wisconsin.
Voters will choose which candidate will advance to the fall election in the races for US Senate, Congress, the Governor’s office, Attorney General, and various other state offices.
I know with inflation running rampant and all of us scrambling to make ends meet that it may not be a top priority to swing by your polling location on your way home -- but you need to vote.
In our republic form of government, we get the politicians we deserve. We pick. We decide.
Voting is your opportunity to voice what you think is the biggest issue we face - rising crime, recession, the indoctrination of our children, high gas prices - or, if you are like me, it’s all of the above.
So, please take a few minutes out of your busy day and make your voice heard - please vote.
A legislative committee voted to stop a proposed rule from the Wisconsin Elections Commission that would have allowed election workers to alter absentee ballot envelopes.
WEC proposed this rule despite the fact that Wisconsin law is clear that an absentee ballot with incomplete information may not be counted.
After all, complete and accurate information is critical to the integrity of the voting process and only the voter should supply that confidential information.
Remarkably, just minutes after the decision, the leading democrat on the WEC board tweeted out that clerks can continue to ignore state law and the duly-elected legislature.
Clerks be forewarned. Legislators believe if you continue to break the law, you are opening yourself up to civil and possibly criminal charges.
Maybe that's what it's going to take for everyone to finally follow the law.
Runaway inflation has put Democrat politicians in a difficult position going into the 2022 mid-term elections. Brian Riedl, senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute, explains why Dems believe it is in their own best interest to ignore it, the country be damned, until after the election. That’s going to be difficult to do, because Riedl says inflation is the number one issue facing the US in 2022.
In this edition of the MacIver Newsmakers Podcast, Riedl explains how decisions by the Federal Reserve, the Biden Administration, and Congress combined to create this problem. With the US currently holding $24 trillion in debt, there’s no easy way to solve the problem without creating even more catastrophic problems.
Hear Riedl’s dire predictions in this edition of the MacIver Newsmakers Podcast and his nine-point plan to end inflation and bring the country out of recession.
Just when you thought the news couldn’t get any worse for President Biden and his economic plan…the new numbers came out.
Inflation is up 9.1% in June, a new 40 year high. The President and the Democrat Party told us last year that inflation was only temporary.
When inflation persisted, Biden blamed Putin, Covid, the supply chain, greedy businesses, and even the past administration.
Gas is up 60%. Eggs 33%. Butter 21%.
The blame for this disaster and the hardship it is causing hardworking taxpayers lies solely with the President and his party’s decision to print so called "free covid money"that we couldn’t afford and hand it out to anyone and everyone even if they didn’t need it. Period.
The politicians, of course, will whine how it is not their fault and try to make up excuses - all in an attempt to save their precious jobs.
Just remember, Democrats control everything out in DC. This was their plan.
We hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness...
To secure these Rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just Powers from the Consent of the Governed, and whenever any form of Government becomes destructive of these Ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it...
We, therefore, the Representatives of the UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, in General Congress, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly Publish and Declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be, FREE AND INDEPENDENT STATES, that they are absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political Connection between them and the State of Great-Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved;
Happy Independence Day, everyone! CHEERS to the greatest country on Earth!
Ryan Walsh is a Madison-based attorney who began his career as a law clerk for Justice Antonin Scalia. He shares his unique insight into the Court and the Dobbs decision in this edition of the MacIver Newsmakers Podcast. He explains the sound legal argument that the US Supreme Court used to overturn Roe v. Wade. Walsh also addresses the unprecedented leak of the decision and what could happen to the person responsible.
On Friday, the US Supreme Court issued a ruling that overturned one of its previous rulings.
It’s really that simple.
You see you see 50 years ago, the Court fabricated a so-called right to abortion.
Last week, the Court finally got around to correcting that mistake. Simply put – it’s not in the Constitution and the Court overstepped its authority back in 1973 by pretending it is.
As justice Alito explained “the constitution makes no reference to abortion and no such right is implicitly protected by any Constitutional provision.” – period.
So ends the era of Roe v. Wade.
Of course, congress could always pass a law to legalize abortion. The Wisconsin legislature could do the same thing at the state level. Lawmakers always had that power, but for some reason – despite many opportunities over the past 50 years – liberals never did that.
Now they’re crying foul; running amok across the country; absolutely unhinged that the Court essentially said it’s not willing to legislate from the bench on this one.
And so, the Supreme Court gave the power to decide what to do about abortion back to the voters – and the left could not be more furious.
The City of Milwaukee is set to break a record but tragically it's not a good one.
Over the weekend, there were two more killings in Milwaukee bringing the total number of homicides in the city to 96 so far in 2022.
Milwaukee is on pace to, once again, shatter the all-time homicide record of 197 in one year, which, incidentally, was set just last year.
96!
Think about that for a second. Ninety six lives lost so far this year.
Ask yourself why is this happening?
We were told that if President Biden were elected, all injustices would be wiped from the face of the earth and every wrong in this country would magically end.
Ninety six. Could it possibly be that the radical left’s soft-on-crime agenda to defund the police, keep violent criminals on the street, and not charge offenders with serious gun crimes, have anything to do with the record number of homicides in Milwaukee and across the country?
Nah, that couldn’t be it.
Last week, a 26-year-old California man traveled to United States Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh's home with the intent to kill him.
The suspect had with him a knife, pistol, ammunition, pepper spray and zip ties. Thankfully, the suspect was arrested before he could do any harm to the Justice or his family.
Of course, the mainstream media largely ignored this story because the target of the violence was a conservative and the accused was a radical liberal.
If the mainstream media had covered the story as warranted, they would have shared with the public the threats US Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer recently made against Kavanaugh, saying that he would pay the price and that he wouldn’t know what hit him if Kavanaugh dared to issue a legal decision with which the radical left disagreed.
If Schumer had been a Republican, there would have been weeks of wall-to-wall coverage and calls for his removal...
maybe even an elaborately-produced show hearing.
Last week, 19 year-old Cammy Funches was was murdered on the streets of Milwaukee.
According to reporter Nick Bohr of Channel 12 News, Cammy rose above several challenges in her life to become the salutatorian of her high school class last year.
Cammy will be missed by many.
Not surprisingly, one of the three individuals charged with opening fire on Cammy was recently released from jail on a signature bond for a different reckless homicide charge from last year. In that killing, this same teenager is accused of gunning down 26-year-old Jasmine Brown.
While Cammy’s murder is heart-wrenching, remember, it does not have to be this way.
The radical left believes it is wrong to hold those who commit violent crimes accountable and that the self-esteem of the criminal is more important than keeping all of us safe.
The tragic murder of Cammy proves again we need politicians and judges who keep dangerous criminals off the streets.
June 6th marked the 78th anniversary of D-Day, the day when thousands of brave US soldiers stormed the beaches of Normandy to free Europe from Nazi tyranny and end World War II.
To honor all those who fought so bravely, we read from General Eisenhower’s letter to the troops.
"The eyes of the world are upon you. The hopes and prayers of liberty-loving people everywhere march with you.
Your task will not be an easy one. Your enemy is well trained, well equipped and battle-hardened. He will fight savagely.
I have full confidence in your courage, devotion to duty and skill in battle. We will accept nothing less than full Victory!
Good luck. And let us beseech the blessing of Almighty God upon this great and noble undertaking."
Please take a second to say a prayer for all who have served our country and are currently serving.
Last week, Wisconsin Department of Health Services Secretary Designee Karen Timberlake said everyone should get a booster shot.
She said it helps protect you from severe illness, hospitalization and death from Covid 19.
At the same time, she released data proving that’s not true at all.
According to DHS’ illness after vaccination webpage – you have a 20% higher chance of catching covid if you’ve been boosted than someone who’s unvaccinated.
Compared to someone who’s only gotten the primary series – you’re twice as likely to catch Covid, three times more likely to be hospitalized with it, and if you’re under the age of 65, slightly more likely to die from it.
The only thing worse than getting boosted, is getting a 5 – 11 year old child vaccinated at all. That triples their chances of catching covid and slightly increases their chances of being hospitalized with it.
Either DHS doesn’t look at their own data before making recommendations, or they just hope that you don’t.
Congress Bryan Steil (R-Janesville) explains why Democrats and Republicans agree on supporting Ukraine and banning Russian oil. However, Democrats are unwilling to replace that lost capacity with other fossil fuels, because of their fanatical position on climate change. He argues we are not in a position to be picky about what kind of energy we use.
Steil is also sounding the alarm over the national debt. As the Federal Reserve raises interest rates to fight runaway inflation, Steil points out that also increases our interest payments on the debt - which ballooned to over $30t during the pandemic.
Another week, another round of bad economic news for President Biden and the Democrats who control congress.
Inflation hit 8.3% in April, the highest it has been in nearly 40 years.
Grocery prices have increased almost 11% from last year with chicken up 16%, eggs 23% and milk 15%.
Energy overall is up 30% and the price of a gallon of gas is up 44% from a year ago. This week, the price of gas hit a record high of $4.40 a gallon.
Inflation-adjusted wages continue to slide during this turmoil, with workers taking home 2.6% less than last year.
Skyrocketing prices on necessities, lower pay for those of us who actually choose to work and President Biden says Covid and Putin are responsible.
The American people are not fooled, nor stupid, Mr. President. We know exactly who is to blame for this mess and we will hold you accountable.
President Biden is apparently considering a plan that would forgive college loan debt for millions of millennials.
Are you kidding me? We taxpayers are going to pay off the loans of every supposedly oppressed, self-loathing barista and social media influencer who refuse to get real jobs?
No one forced you to party your way through six years of college. No one forced you to go to a college you cannot afford. No one forced you to get a useless degree in 12th century Romance languages.
How is it fair to all those hard-working students who paid their own way through college; to all those responsible families that scrimped and saved to help their child get a degree? How is it fair that we pay off the loans of a plastic surgeon or a high-priced lawyer who make more in one year than what we make in 20 years?
It's not fair! It's pathetic that Biden would pander in a such desperate attempt to save his own hide.
Have you ever wanted to grill a national pundit or interrogate the local talk show host? Have you ever wanted to dig deeper on a current issue or share your brilliant political wisdom with all around you?
Here is your chance.
The MacIver Institute presents Battleground Wisconsin, a conversation with WISN 1130’s Dan O’Donnell on Wednesday, May 25th at the Brookfield Conference Center.
What’s at stake in 2022 here in Wisconsin and across the country? Will Republican in-fighting turn the red wave into a missed opportunity? What does the parent revolution mean for the future of education and critical race theory? Will President Biden bring down Governor Evers and the rest of his party?
Visit maciverinstitute.com for the details and to reserve your seat. You won’t want to miss Dan O’Donnell’s insight and insider analysis. Come with your questions and bring a friend.
Judge Jim Troupis, lawyer extraordinaire, former Dane County Circuit Court Judge, and counsel to several Presidential campaigns including Trump 2020, joins the MacIver Newsmakers Podcast to discuss the recent State Supreme Court decision on redistricting, drop boxes, ballot harvesting, and the general state of the judiciary in our country.
Governor Evers announced his latest vetoes of legislation, and anyone holding out hope that the Governor might show some common sense was no doubt disappointed by his actions.
Gov. Evers vetoed bills that would have made it clear that educators work with, not against, parents and a bill that would have outlawed discrimination against those who refuse the covid vaccine. He vetoed a bill providing the opportunity for every single child, not just the privileged few, to attend the best school. And he vetoed a bill encouraging the expectation that every able-bodied adult with no children must work to receive food stamps.
Take a second and think about that - what is so controversial about letting parents make important decisions for their children or requiring those down on their luck to put forth some effort in order to receive help from taxpayers?
None of these are controversial which why it is so discouraging that Evers played partisan games--again!
Happy Tax Day, Wisconsin! There is nothing happy, joyful or even remotely redeeming about handing over our hard-earned money to our wasteful government!
It might be hard to believe, but Tax Day in Wisconsin could be a lot worse.
Since Republicans took control of the Legislature in 2011, taxes have been cut by an astonishing $22 billion. $22 billion, with a “b”.
That works out to a $3,700 tax cut for every person in the state.
Republicans also stopped Governor Evers from passing billions of dollars in tax increases and forced Evers to sign the largest tax cut in state history, even though he threatened to veto the entire budget because he wanted to spend more, not tax you less.
Remember that when the Governor attempts to take credit for cutting taxes because it's an election year.
Another week, another round of bad economic news for you and your family.
Over the past year, inflation has increased 8.5%, the largest year-over-year increase since 1981. The price of gas is up 48%, milk 13%, fruit 10%.
Meanwhile, wages have increased just 2.9%, making it impossible for families to make ends meet and even more difficult to get ahead.
The Biden Administration is trying to blame Putin, and everyone else, in a desperate attempt to fool the American Public.
But consider this: in the month after Biden took office, inflation was 1.7%. By fall, it was close to 7%. And now, more than a year after Biden was sworn in, inflation is between 7.5 and 8.5% each month.
The economic pain we are all feeling is because Biden recklessly spent over $7 trillion dollars in 2021 despite a widely available vaccine and Covid on the decline.
Don’t be fooled by the spin, Biden is to blame for inflation, plain and simple.
Wisconsin would eliminate its state income tax under a Republican plan being floated in the State Senate.
Senator Roger Roth (R-Appleton) tells the MacIver Institute how the state’s record revenue surpluses can be used to buy down income taxes, and eventually eliminate it all together while still fully funding state government operations.
Former Vice-President Mike Pence is trying to rally conservatives around a common cause after the disastrous consequences of the 2020 election. Over the past year, he launched a non-profit called “Advancing American Freedom” (AAF), which has just released the “Freedom Agenda.”
So far, he’s the backing of dozens of high profile conservatives including former Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker, Newt Ginrich, Rick Santorum, and Jim DeMint to just name a few.
Recently, AAF Executive Director Paul Teller and Rudy Olivo sat down with the MacIver Institute to answer some tough questions.
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How is the “Freedom Agenda” different from Paul Ryan’s 2012 “Path to Prosperity”?
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Mike Pence is a polarizing figure on the right. How do you overcome that?
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How do you bridge the gap between the Trump and never-Trump camps?
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Did Mike Pence launch this non-profit as a precursor to running for office again?
Read the Freedom Agenda at: https://advancingamericanfreedom.com/freedom-agenda/
Tony The Liar, Not Tax Cutter
Governor Tony Evers gave his annual State of the State address last week and because this is an election year, Evers is trying to sell us that he likes tax cuts?
Governor Evers actually took credit for the Republican’s income tax cut, the largest tax cut in the state’s history.
For a lifelong educator, Evers sure isn’t very good at history. Or, you know, facts.
Fact - Evers criticized Republicans for their tax cut for which he is now trying to take credit!
Fact - Gov. Evers tried to increase taxes by a billion dollars in both of his budgets.
Fact - Evers also tried to make it easier for local governments to raise property taxes and the local sales tax.
Fact - Evers vetoed a tax cut just so he could take credit for it later.
Now, does that sound like an actual tax cutter or just another politician in an election year?
Rep. Robert Wittke (R-Racine) is responsible for 9 education bills designed to turnaround Wisconsin’s failing schools. His bill to break MPS into 4-8 smaller districts grabbed headlines earlier this month, but Wittke is also backing school choice for all and stricter reading requirements. Rep. Wittke told MacIver News all about it in this week’s MacIver Newsmakers Podcast.
In response to the uproar over DA Chisholm’s catastrophic soft -on-crime doctrine, Milwaukee politicians are now trying to convince us that it is working well.
On the floor of the Legislature, elitist liberals actually said that Milwaukee proves pre-trial monitoring programs work.
You have got to be kidding me.
After trying to kill the mother of his child, Darrell Brooks was out on pre-trial release when he mowed down all those innocent kids and grandmas in the Waukesha Christmas parade.
This sick lie came just hours before another Milwaukee Police Officer was shot by...a dangerous criminal who should have been behind bars!
Remember, all of this mayhem and carnage is preventable. We need to protect the public from dangerous criminals instead of worrying about their emotional well being and making excuses for their criminal behavior.
We the people can change this IF we hold the politicians accountable.
Remember last year when the National School Boards Association sent a letter to the Biden Administration saying that parents who speak out at school board meetings are a domestic terrorism threat?
Attorney General Garland used this letter to direct the FBI to target disruptive parents who speak out about masking or the use of the anti-America and racist CRT in our schools.
It turns out, the request to brand parents domestic terrorists might have started with--wait for it--the Biden Administration!
Thanks to an open records request from a group called Parents Defending Education, we now know that, according to a member of the School Boards Association, it was Biden’s own Education Secretary who asked the group to write the letter to the White House.
It was shameful when the Justice Department decided to target parents for exercising their god-given right to speak out against their government, but it is absolutely despicable that our own government, the Biden Administration, came up with this unconscionable dirty trick.
Assembly Speaker Wants Election Investigation Wrapped Up Next Month
Speaker Robin Vos hired Justice Mike Gableman to lead the Assembly’s investigation into the 2020 election. That’s focused on how local governments interacted with outside interest groups to run the election. He wants the final report by next month, so he can get some bills up for floor votes in March.
Vos wants conservative activists to know there has never been a more important election cycle and urges them to stick together.
While the law-abiding taxpayers in Wisconsin continue to wait for Governor Evers to decide if Milwaukee County District Attorney John Chisholm will be fired from his job over the Waukesha Parade tragedy, and the low bail his office set for a violent previous offender, a permanent solution may-- thankfully--be on the way.
State Senator Bradley of Franklin, Senator Nass of Whitewater and Representative Wichgers of Muskego, recently introduced legislation that would set minimum bail amounts for criminals who have already been convicted of a felony or a violent misdemeanor.
Keep in mind, the alleged killer in Waukesha was in jail for several months and was only released after a sympathetic judge reduced his bail to only $1000. This legislation would prevent judges from reducing bail for violent offenders.
Well, if Gov. Evers is not going to do the right thing, at least these legislators are trying to stop this from happening again. Thank you to Bradley, Nass and Wichgers.
Rep. Mark Born talks about the challenges the Wisconsin legislature faces trying to get people back to work and students back to school with the Evers Administration constantly pushing back.
On behalf of everyone here at the John K. MacIver Institute for Public Policy and our board of directors, we would like to wish you a happy, healthy and prosperous 2022.
As the new year begins, we want to hear from you - what do you think will be the biggest story of 2022?
Will President Biden stay in office the entire year? Will Covid continue to dominate our lives and local officials take away our freedoms? Will kids recover from lockdowns and lost learning?
Will Republicans uncover wide spread voter fraud? Will Biden-inflation continue to hammer the lower and middle class?
Here is your opportunity to play pundit and to show everyone just how brilliant you truly are - go to the MacIver Facebook page and share your pick for the year’s top story.
The Waukesha parade tragedy has brought into focus the radical left’s push to get rid of bail and hand out lenient sentences for serious crimes.
While the mainstream media has largely given Gov. Evers a pass on DA Chisholm’s low bail for the parade murderer with a violent past, taxpayers need to remember what candidate Evers ran on back in 2018: to cut Wisconsin’s prison population in half.
How do you cut Wisconsin’s prison population in half? You keep dangerous people like the Waukesha parade murderer out of prison instead of behind bars.
Rather than immediately firing Chisholm and making changes to keep us safe by demanding that stiffer sentencing and bail requirements be implemented, Governor Evers now says everybody should take a deep breath first and that he MIGHT be open to higher bail for some.
C’mon Governor, stand up for the innocent victims of heinous crimes, not the criminals!
"And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men." (Luke 2:8-14)
From all of us at the MacIver Institute: Merry Christmas!
Far left activists have been pushing to defund the police and eliminate bail for many months now because supposedly everything in this country is racist, including wanting to live and to be safe.
New FBI crime statistics show just how stupid and devastating this idea is.
Last year, aggravated assaults (across the country) rose by 12.4 percent, while the murder rate increased by 29 percent—the largest increase ever.
(The city of) Milwaukee set an all-time record with 189 homicides in 2020 and Wisconsin’s statewide homicide rate increased by 70%.
If these statistics are too impersonal to convince you, consider the alleged crimes of Rondino Fleming. According to news reports, Fleming was awaiting trial in Dane County for first degree sexual assault, kidnapping and substantial battery when Judge McNamara lowered his bail so he would be released from jail.
The next day, Fleming reportedly went on a crime spree committing two more sexual assaults and several armed robberies.
Fleming should have been in jail.
What is Integrated Comprehensive Systems for Equity (ICS Equity)? How do they impact my child's education?
Listen to two parents, Marc Renault of the Middleton-Cross Plains School District, and Emily Donohue of Elmbrook Schools, who have done the research to learn about ICS Equity, and why it's so dangerous.
Contrary to common media rhetoric, ICS Equity and similar firms are not just "teacher training." Both Emily and Marc have seen the practical implications of ICS in their districts: from the elimination of grades in elementary school to equity content in honors biology classes to mandatory CRT courses in high school.
As the MacIver Institute has previously reported, Critical Race Theory preaches that the United States was founded on racism, grew to become the successful nation that we are today because of this racism and that our country, still today, is fundamentally defined by our racism and racism is found in everything that we do and that we do not do. This divisive ideology is infiltrating classrooms, workplaces, and everyday life.
On this edition of the MacIver Newsmakers Podcast, Rep. Brandtjen talks to the MacIver Institute about her efforts to restore integrity to Wisconsin’s elections and what roadblocks she faces trying to get that done.
Congressman Glenn Grothman talks to the MacIver Institute about the direction Democrats are taking the country.
While the nation remains gripped over the botched evacuations in Afghanistan, Democrats in Congress are trying to hammer out a $1.2 trillion infrastructure and $3.5 trillion budget deal.
The Senate was all good with the infrastructure bill (which includes $550 billion in new spending). It passed with the help of 19 Republicans on Aug. 10th. The Senate then passed the budget bill separately on a partisan 50-49 vote.
The House had already approved the budget. Instead of voting on the infrastructure bill, Speaker Nancy Pelosi attached it to the budget bill and sent it to reconciliation. (She also attached the “Voting Rights Act” bill to it, which would federalize elections).
All that might be too much for Senate Democrats to manage. It’s all playing out right now in DC this week. Grothman says if it goes through it will result in a “very different America.”
I know you were just as shocked and utterly gutted as I was by the images this weekend from Afghanistan and the airport at Kabul.
The video of Afghanis falling thousands of feet to their deaths after trying desperately to hang on to the outside of a plane leaving the country is one that will haunt me forever.
Whether you agree or disagree with the decision to leave Afghanistan, we can all agree that President Biden’s execution of his plan to leave has been a complete and utter disaster.
While the President will attempt to blame others for his incompetence and ineptitude, let’s remember what the President had to say just a few weeks ago.
Quote “The likelihood there’s going to be the Taliban overrunning everything and owning the whole country is highly unlikely.” Unquote.
Unfortunately for the President, the pictures out of Afghanistan tell us everything we need to know.
During the 2020 presidential election, a non-profit organization funded by Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg got directly involved in how local governments conducted the election through massive donations. In Green Bay that funding came with a Democrat political operative who effectively took over the city’s election process. The problem wasn’t limited to Wisconsin.
Congressman Scott Fitzgerald (R-WI) is worked with Congresswoman Claudia Tenney (R-NY) to draft a resolution that would stop non-profits from providing direct funding to government elections officials. On this episode of the MacIver Newsmakers Podcast, he explains how this will put those organizations on notice that the jig is up.
There are currently several good efforts to end the teaching of Critical Race Theory (CRT) in public education. Leading the charge against CRT in Wisconsin Schools are Scarlett Johnson of Mequon-Thiensville and Alyssa Pollow of Germantown Schools.
They joined the MacIver Newsmakers podcast to discuss specific instances of how their districts seem to be going out of their way to avoid providing transparency -- especially around CRT-related issues. Tune in to hear their insight on what has worked, how to get information in spite of pushback from administration, and how to gain traction in your community.
Wisconsin Republicans will vote on their version of the next two year budget this week.
As we shared with you last time, that budget includes the largest tax cut in state history. Haliluah.
What you probably don’t know, based on the predictable complaints of the K12 education establishment, is that our schools will receive a large increase in funding.
School leaders across the state say K12 education is starving. But their math just doesn’t add up.
In fact, schools in Wisconsin will receive $2.6 billion in new aid, a stunning 17% increase that brings overall education funding to almost $18 billion over the next two years.
A 17% increase in funding somehow equates to our schools are starving?
Sounds like our school leaders are practicing new math where 1 + 1 doesn’t necessarily equal 2 just as long as you can talk through your feelings and give yourself an emotional hug.
Rep. Tom Tiffany just got back from a trip to Panama, where he was investigating America's border crisis from a different angle. He visited the Darien Gap, a treacherous area migrants pass through on their way from South America to the USA. He talked to MacIver about the humanitarian and security crisis that Joe Biden created with his open borders policy.
House Democrats are pushing through a lot of radical bills this year. One of them is the so-called PRO-ACT, short for "Protecting the Right to Organize." That would eliminate all state laws and other protections workers have from union organizers.
In Wisconsin it would mean the end of Act 10 and Right to Work. Act 10, alone, has saved state taxpayers $13.9 billion since it was enacted ten years ago.
Erica L. Jedynak, Director of Economic Opportunity at Americans for Prosperity, gives us the lowdown on this episode of the MacIver Newsmakers Podcast.
On Thursday, the Republican-controlled legislature will begin its work on Governor Evers’ 2021-2023 state budget.
The Budget Committee released a list of policy items that will be removed from the budget and will be debated as separate pieces of legislation.
Gone from the budget - Evers’ push to legalize marijuana, government-run health care, forced unionization of working people, the undoing of the taxpayer-friendly Act 10, artificially higher wages for government projects, an attack on a parents’ right to choose the education that best suits their child and giving government in Wisconsin the power to seize private property to build bike and pedestrian paths.
Also gone, the billions in increased taxes Governor Evers proposed.
In total, almost 300 different policy items were removed.
Sounds like the state budget is getting off on the right foot...
Teachers in the Madison school district, who don't want to get laid off had better get woke fast. The school board adopted a new employee handbook that makes wokeness the most important factor in deciding who gets laid off.
As a member of President Trump's legal team, Judge Jim Troupis played a key role in investigating election irregularities in 2020 and fighting them in court. Here's an inside look of Wisconsin's election problems and what needs to be done to fix them.
Rep. Scott Fitzgerald talks to the MacIver Institute about his first impressions of DC as Democrats ram an aggressive agenda through Congress while the military patrols the perimeter.
Speaker Pelosi famously once said "We have to pass the bill so that you can find out what is in it” - so now that Congress has passed President Biden’s American Rescue Plan, just what is in it?
A massive amount of spending that the professional politicians didn’t have the spine to pay for so it will be the responsibility of your children and your grandchildren.
To put this unsustainable and reckless credit card spending into perspective, in 2018, the amount of public debt per person in this country was just under $50,000.00. In 2021, it has jumped to $67,000 for every American.
And according to the Heritage Foundation, a baby born today will have over $111,000 in debt by the time he or she turns 18 and that will grow to almost $200,000 by age 30.
Think about that for a second. Before our children have done anything in life, before they have even taken their first precious breath, the idiots in Washington are suffocating them under an avalanche of debt that will be impossible to escape from.
Ever thought about exactly how much 2 trillion dollars is or try visualize what a huge number 2 trillion is?
Rep. Mark Born, Co-Chair of the Joint Committee on Finance, shares his concerns over Gov. Evers' approach to the 2021-2023 Wisconsin Budget.
Today marks the ten year anniversary of Act 10, Scott Walker’s most consequential government reform and clearly our state’s most successful public policy initiative by far.
A new analysis at maciver institute.com shows that Act 10 has saved Wisconsin taxpayers over $13.9 billion dollars since it was enacted 10 years ago. That is 13.9 billion with a b.
(That is almost $3,000 dollars in taxpayer savings for every adult in Wisconsin.)
While Big Labor and the professional protesters tried to convince you that collective bargaining reform would see our school children wandering the countryside aimlessly, prisoners loose on the streets and the general end of modern civilization here in Wisconsin,
remember that the 13.9 billion in savings has gone towards significant tax cuts at the state level, more funding for education at the local level and kept some local governments out of bankruptcy.
Thank you Governor Walker for, despite the outrageous tantrum of a few, passing Act 10 and thank you Governor Evers for keeping this historic taxpayer protection reform in place.
President Biden has been busy during his first week in office. The President has signed over 30 executive orders during that time. By comparison, President Trump signed 4 during his first week in office, President Obama just 5.
You might wonder how that could be given that, just this October, Biden told George Stephanopolous “you can’t legislate by executive order unless you’re a dictator.”
Despite criticizing Trump for being a dictator, that appears to be exactly how Biden is acting. Biden recently signed an executive order to stop the Keystone XL Pipeline project and the 11,000 jobs it supports.
Wisconsin based companies Michaels Corporation and Precision Pipeline are building the Keystone pipeline, or should I say, were building the pipeline and now with the President’s decision, according to the companies, thousands of Wisconsin jobs will disappear and billions of dollars in economic activity.
If this any indication of how President Biden is going to govern, the American worker and the economy are in for a rough ride.
MacIver’s Abbi Debelack talks to three mothers from the Waukesha School District about the impact virtual learning has had on their children and how the school board has sidelined their concerns.
State Sen. Roger Roth talks about the IRS’ decision to tax the Payroll Protection Program (PPP) contrary to the intent of Congress and the President.
As we watched the events unfold at the Capitol in Washington DC yesterday, we felt once again like our very soul was being ripped from our body.
Unfortunately, it is the same feeling that overwhelmed us when Minneapolis burned, kids attacked good samaritans on State Street, anarchists tried to firebomb the police in Madison and violence erupted in Kenosha after the Jacob Blake shooting.
We understand that people are frustrated. We, like you, are frustrated with our government, most politicians, covid but violence is never the answer. violence can never be the answer. Just as we said it was wrong of Antifa and BLM rioters, it is also wrong of conservatives or Trump supporters.
No matter how upset we are, no matter how frustrated we get with the direction of our country, no matter how crazy those on the opposite side of the political spectrum drive us, we cannot let it boil over, we cannot lose touch of basic human decency, we cannot resort to violence of any kind.
Never.
Rep. Macco, Chair of the Assembly Ways and Means Committee, says Wisconsin is in great financial shape, and that didn't happen by accident. It took years of responsible budgeting and mature longterm planning. He says that must continue into the next budget, despite calls for massive new government spending.
The Madison election official was kind to this poll watcher - until she signed in as a Republican. What happened next brought back memories of growing up in the USSR.
In the aftermath of the Nov. 3rd election, rumors of watermarked ballots, secret marking ink, recount strategies, and come-from-behind election wins are everywhere.
Sen. Kathy Bernier (R-Chippewa Falls) spent many years as the Chippewa County Clerk and oversaw many elections there. She sat down with the MacIver Institute to set the rumors straight.
Bernier explains: where ballots come from, who prints them, how they’re regulated, how they’re marked, and what a recount might reveal.
She also lays out some election integrity priorities for the Wisconsin State Legislature in the next session.
Last week, the Evers Administration announced that the state’s covid tracking website would be paused this past weekend while system maintenance was carried out.
On Monday, we found out that despite not telling the public ahead of time, it appears that the Evers Administration took this opportunity to add in to the system a bunch of backlogged Covid tests.
How many? Roughly 121,000, which is significantly higher than the typical amount of tests entered into the system for a weekend.
Of the 121,000 tests entered, 113,000 were negative and 7,700 were positive. That equates to a 6.8 positive test rate, which is much different than what is being reported by the mainstream media.
Something doesn’t add up. Are local health departments once again falling behind entering complete covid data into the system or has the Evers administration fumbled the ball one more time?
A MacIver News Service investigation has discovered another discrepancy with the COVID data that the Evers Administration is presenting to the Wisconsin public.
Everyday, the Department of Health Services publishes the COVID positive test rate and you see this number repeated all over the mainstream media.
The problem is this number does not include every test result the state gets back.
The state only looks at test results from people who have never been tested before.
If someone tests negative – but they’re already in the system – that result doesn’t count.
If someone is tests positive more than once, only the first positive result is counted.
All together – about 700,000 test results have been tossed aside – out of just over two million tests.
Because of this – Wisconsin’s official daily positive test rate could be 40 to 50% higher than reality.
Looking at all COVID tests administered Wisconsin, not just some of the tests, gives us a more complete and accurate look at the progression of the virus.
Sean Ryan of the Milwaukee Business Journal is reporting that Mayor Barrett’s streetcar is in trouble.
Ridership is down 60% this year compared to last, no surprise really because of COVID-19 and the decision by local politicians to shutdown the economy.
The temporary federal grant used to get the streetcar up and running is done and the Mayor is planning to use almost $3 million from the city’s parking ticket and meter fund to fill the hole.
Problem is the parking fund is in the red from - you guess it, Covid 19 and the shutdown.
Which just means that it is likely general tax dollars, not a user fee as it should be, will fill the streetcar’s budget hole.
Which begs the question - why should taxpayers on the north and south side of Milwaukee, or any taxpayer for that matter, pay for Tom’s trolley that only moves tourists and a couple of office workers a few blocks around downtown?
Can’t wait to hear the Mayor try to explain his way out of this one...
A MacIver Investigation last week discovered that the Evers administration was misleading the public by publicizing a Covid positive test rate that only analyzed some of tests administered to Wisconsinites, not all of the tests.
The administration even went so far as to get their buddies at Politifact to rate our investigation as, no surprise here, pants on fire.
Politicfact however is probably surprised, and a little upset quite frankly, that just hours after carrying water for Evers, the Administration actually did a 180 and publicized the positive rate using all tests administered.
Awkward!
If our investigation was so ridiculous Politifact, why did the Evers Administration publicize the exact data that MacIver asked about?
You won’t be surprised to find out that if you include all tests administered when calculating the positive test rate, the percentage drops significantly. Check it out for yourself.
After Milwaukee County DA John Chisholm decided not to bring any charges against Police Officer Mensah, protestors took to the streets of Wauwatosa, carrying on long into the night and destroying property along the way.
One Wauwatosa homeowner pleaded with the thugs to leave his neighborhood alone.
Everything was good to go for private and religious schools to hold in-person instruction this fall throughout Dane County. After spending thousands of dollars and countless staff hours the schools had met all the county’s requirements for coronavirus mitigation. Then the county changed its mind.
Friday evening on Aug. 21st, the county health department notified the schools that they could not reopen – even though some of them were scheduled to begin class that Monday morning.
St. Ambrose Academy, a Catholic junior and senior high school in Madison, is leading the legal fight against Dane County. Its Enrollment and Learning Services Director, Angela Hineline, tells the MacIver Institute about its fight on this episode of the MacIver’s News Makers Podcast.
Everyone has heard of the heartbreaking stories of those, forced out of work by COVID, waiting forever to receive unemployment checks from our state government.
Secretary Frostman and DWD were clearly caught off guard by the avalanche of unemployment claims that started in March.
The real travesty is that months later, tens of thousands of Wisconsinites are still waiting for their checks.
To better understand the response of the Evers Administration, MacIver filed an open records request asking for all emails to or from Frostman concerning unemployment claims over a 30 day period.
Frostman turned over 5 emails. Just 5.
In one of the only emails he did turn over, Frostman responded to the news that unemployment claims went up by 3 million nationwide by exclaiming “Wowzers."
Frostman’s agency could not answer the phone calls of the unemployed, could not keep up with taking claims and failed to get people their checks - wowzers indeed.
Normally, today’s MacIver News Minute would be all about Election Day and the need for everyone to get out to vote.
But, we cannot let what happened Saturday night in Wauwatosa go without comment.
After protesting once again at Mayfair mall earlier in the day, a large group of over 50 descended upon Police Officer Mensah’s personal home, where his family lives. The mob vandalized the house, shot off fireworks and once again acted like a bunch of thugs.
We know, we know, they were just peaceful protestors expressing their well thought and common sense views of how they want the world to be.
Problem is, this mob attempted to beat Officer Mensah when he tried to speak with them and then they fired a shotgun at Mensah. The mob literally tried to kill a police officer at his home.
(If you consider yourself a peaceful protestor, you need to turn in the thugs who did this and speak out against this lawlessness and anarchy. If you are a progressive lawmaker walking with these thugs, you need to uphold your oath of office and tell the police so we can get those responsible off the streets before they kill someone.)
Law abiding citizens and taxpayers need to stand up, speak out and make it clear that we will not be bullied or silenced by the rioters and the mob. We cannot let this stand.
Enough is enough.
Last week, the MacIver News Service reported on a discrepancy with the State’s COVID-19 data because some counties decided not to record the number of negative tests at the same time as they inputted the positive. We still haven’t figured out who signed off on that piece of genius.
Now MacIver has discovered another serious discrepancy in the COVID data.
At the end of July, the Milwaukee County Medical Examiner’s office recorded 384 deaths from COVID-19.
The problem is, according to the State of Wisconsin, Milwaukee County had 438 deaths from COVID-19, NOT 384. That’s 54 more deaths or 14% higher than what was recorded by Milwaukee County.
Well, how can that happen?
And how can we as Wisconsinites have faith in our Governor and his administration if we continue to find mistakes in the COVID-19 data that they publish?
It’s becoming more difficult each day.
Last week, Dane County government quietly published a note on its COVID update website that they were behind entering the number of daily negative tests, calling into question the accuracy of the statewide test total published by the Evers Adminstration.
After Dane County finally got around to entering the 17,000 backlogged negative tests, their weekly positive rate plummeted from 13.4% to 2.1%, a reduction of 84%.
When asked about the bad COVID data from Dane County, all the Evers Administration would say is that a number of local jurisdictions were behind entering complete data. Secretary Palm did not say how many local jurisdictions were reporting incomplete data or for how long this had been going on.
So how can our government make decisions restricting our businesses and our movement, how can they decide to mandate masks, if they cannot accurately track covid diagnoses?
Protestors have targeted Wauwatosa recently because they believe officer Joseph Mensah should be fired. Officer Mensah, who is black, has been besieged by the Black Lives Matter movement after he killed a teenage suspect who fired a gun at him first at Mayfair Mall. The incident is under review.
On Tuesday, the Tosa City Council held a public listening session. Some were there to make threats.
“I’ve got a issue with the damn police because they were created to catch slaves, and we’ve got modern day slavery in America. And I know a few of you are scared of me, and that’s okay. I’m not scared of y’all,” Henry Lee said. “I don’t even need three minutes. But I’m going to tell you like this. Go ahead, fire Webber and convict Joseph Mensah. And if y’all don’t convict Joseph Mensah and all you do is suspend him and he come back, I’m a ride around Tosa with a broken headlight until he find me.”
Astonishingly, no one from the City Council spoke up to condemn this threat against Officer Mensah.
In response to a information request from MacIver, Governor Evers' Adminstration revealed this week that 81% of the Wisconsinites who have passed away from COVID-19, died having another serious, underlying health condition or a what is known in medical circles as a comorbidity.
81%.
According to DHS, only 1% of the deaths have been caused by COVID only, no other conditions, the rest are unknown because of questions about how the death information was recorded.
While we believe that any loss of life is tragic, the fact that the vast majority of the deceased in Wisconsin had another comorbidity seems like a pretty important piece of information that the public has a right to know.
Makes you wonder why the Evers administration didn’t share this information with the public for over four months and then only did so because a media organization forced them to.
If we are to get through this together, we all need access to all the COVID-19 information.
For the MacIver News Minute, I’m Jen Healy
Happy Belated Independence Day Everyone.
Hope you were able to take a few minutes from the festivities to really think about how truly blessed we are to be living here in the United States of America and how extraordinary it was for the founding fathers to create a new nation built on freedom, liberty and justice for all.
Given the recent unrest that embroils the country, now more than ever, it is important to remember what binds us together as a people and celebrate the greatness of our nation.
Yes, we must do better, individually and collectively, but the desire by some to dwell only on our past failings in an attempt to fundamentally change our way of life ignores all the progress we have made.
Let’s work together to make better what needs to be better but we cannot allow oppressive tyrants who hate everything about our country and believe anyone who disagrees with them is evil, to tear us apart.
Only then, together, will the greatest country in the world become even greater.
Last week in Madison, a government building was fire-bombed, a state senator was attacked by the mob, a driver was pulled from his car and beaten and two statutes were torn down at the capitol.
The supposed reason for all this rage and violence - the arrest of protest leader Devonere Johnson.
According to numerous reports, Devonere Johnson was arrested after allegedly harassing a customer at a restaurant on the capitol square, using a bullhorn to call the man an f'ing racist while carrying a baseball bat on his shoulder.
After Johnson was arrested, he attempted to escape from the police twice.
Later Johnson was charged with extortion for demanding money and free food in exchange for sparing businesses from destruction.
For this guy, for Devonere Johnson, the perpetually aggrieved and the professional protestors attempted to burn down a government building and destroy a statute of a Wisconsin hero who died fighting the Confederacy and the end to slavery.
What has our world come to…
If you thought that the unnecessary and arbitrary COVID-19 lockdown was a thing of the past when the State Supreme Court ruled that the Evers Adminstration’s Safer at Home order was unconstitutional, think again.
Ever since that ruling back in May, county governments all across Wisconsin have been attempting to pass local ordinances that give an unelected bureaucrat unchecked authority and a great number of powers to combat disease.
Some of the local ordinances go so far as to allow the use of quarantine guards with police powers to force you to stay at home, give the public health officer the ability to enter private property and levy fines as high as $25,000 per violation of the order. If you are someone who values your freedom and the precious rights given to you under the Constitution, you might want to call your local County Board member and ask he or she if a public health emergency ordinance is being debated in your community.
The non-partisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau is tracking the impact of the COVID-19 lockdown on the state’s economy and the news isn’t pretty.
Tax collections for April 2020 are down $870 million compared to last April and tax collections for the year are down $380 million compared to last.
Some of the drop in tax collections can be attributed to the delayed July filing date for taxes but clearly the unnecessary statewide lockdown is having a huge impact on your wallet and the state’s fiscal condition.
Imagine that - we shut down the economy, force businesses to close and put hundreds of thousands of Wisconsinites out of work to supposedly protect us from a surge that never happened and lo and behold, we taxpayers don’t have money to hand over to our government.
Just remember that our government did this to us, pushed our state into this fiscal crisis when they come around next year telling us we have no choice but to pay more taxes to make up for lost lockdown economic activity.
Last week, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported on a recent phone call between Governor Tony Evers and Legislative leaders.
Why is a phone call between politicians newsworthy, you might ask? Because an Evers staffer secretly recorded the phone call without notifying the leaders and then that staffer leaked the recording to the media.
Governor Evers so far has refused to identify the staff person responsible for secretly recording his political rivals or say anything about how the recording found its way to the mainstream media. Until Evers reveals the name of the person responsible, the recording of the phone call may not only be a dirty trick but actually illegal here in Wisconsin.
When the Governor’s legal counsel was asked which member of the Adminstration recorded the call, the Governor’s lawyer refused to answer the question directly and attempted to shift blame on the legislature.
Just be honest and open with the people Governor. No games or non-answer answers Governor. Just be honest.
There will be a lot of discussion in the coming months about what needs to change in the wake of the tragic death of George Floyd.
One idea being talk about is the defunding of the police or the complete elimination of the police department in your community.
While some politicians and certain members of the media have attempted to present this radical idea as not really, that radical or the protestors don’t really mean dissolve the police department completely, that is exactly what they want. Complete elimination of the police.
Don’t take our word for it, go to the MacIver website, watch the video and decide for yourself.
Asked what would happen when a crime occurs in a world without a police department, Freedom Inc talks about a transformative butt whupping administered by the community.
Somehow, in their mind, such a butt whupping wouldn’t qualify as violence, but revolutionary self defense.
While the mainstream media may feel too uncomfortable to ask questions or challenge bad ideas, that means the rest of us must.
Yesterday was, of course, Memorial Day in the United States, the day we set aside to remember and honor all of the brave souls who have served our country in the military and paid the ultimate price to secure the freedom and liberty that too many of us take for granted.
Memorial Day is not just another three-day weekend, the unofficial start of summer or a convenient time to fire up the grill.
Memorial Day is a vital reminder that freedom isn’t free.
Memorial Day is an important patriotic holiday that must be revered and the importance of its meaning must be passed down to our children and our grandchildren.
So if you were just too busy yesterday working out in the garage or running errands, take a few minutes to appreciate the brave men and women of the United States Armed Forces.
To all the spouses, the families and the loved ones of a service member who died protecting our country, we say thank you.
To all who have given their life to preserve our way of life, we say thank you. We will never forget your sacrifice.
Remember the MacIver News story back in March reporting that 43 Wisconsinites had been referred by the Wisconsin Elections Commission to local law enforcement for investigation into possible double voting in the 2018 general election?
Of course you don’t. Anything that happened in this world pre Covid-19 seems like it was eons ago.
We are finally starting to find out more about the circumstances surrounding this alleged voter fraud.
While the Elections Commission denied MacIver’s rrequest for the actual names, we now know that of the 43 separate incidents of potential voter fraud, 29 voted in person at the polls in Wisconsin and 14 voted by absentee ballot.
Dane County led the way with 8 incidents, Walworth County 7 and Milwaukee and Kenosha Counties had 5 each.
26 of these individuals supposedly voted in both Wisconsin and Illinois.
Now the important question is will the local District Attorneys actually investigate these 43 individuals and prosecute the fraud or will they ignore the problem?
For more visit: https://www.maciverinstitute.com/2020/05/state-suspects-voter-fraud-committed-in-19-wisconsin-counties/
With the Evers Administration’s Safer at Home order declared unlawful, invalid and unenforceable, we thought this would be a good opportunity to remind everyone where Wisconsin is in our fight against COVID 19.
As of Sunday, out of 5.7 million Wisconsinites, 152,000 have been tested for COVID 19.
Out of the 152,000 Wisconsinites tested for COVID 19, 92% of them came back negative.
Of the approximately 12,500 who have tested positive, just over 6,500 have recovered, 5,500 are currently sick and 453 Wisconsinites have tragically passed away.
Of the 5,500 currently sick, only 361 or 6.5% are hospitalized statewide and just 129 or 2.33% are currently in an ICU setting.
Think about that for a second - just 6.5% of those diagnosed with COVID 19 are serious enough to require a hospital bed.
While we value all life and do not want to minimize loss of any life, just 361 hospitalized is a far cry from what we were told would happen at the start - everyone would get sick and we would all end up in the hospital hooked up to machines.
To see all the important COVID 19 statistics, visit MacIverInstitute.com
The long awaited decision from the State Supreme Court in the Legislature’s lawsuit filed against Gov. Evers and Secretary Palm’s decision to extend the lockdown to late May has finally been issued.
Late yesterday, the Supreme Court sided with the Legislature, saying that the Safer at Home order was actually a rule because it sought to impose criminal penalities on those who failed to comply and, because it didn’t go through the rules process, it is “unenforceable.” Hallelujah.
The decision continues quote “We further conclude that Palm’s order confining all people to their homes, forbidding travels and closing businesses exceeded the statutory authority upon which Palm claims to rely.” End quote.
In the end, the Supreme Court’s 4-3 decision means if Gov. Evers wants to continue the lockdown on our travel, our businesses, our fundamental freedoms, he is going to need the approval of the legislature.
For more analysis of the Supreme Court’s decision and how it will impact you, your family and your job, go to MacIverInstitute.com.
The time to reopen Wisconsin is now.
Every week that our families cannot go to work, every month that goes by without a full and immediate reopening of Wisconsin, unthinkable damage is being inflicted upon our economy that will forever change the lives of hundreds of thousands of Wisconsinites.
The goal of the public health emergency was to slow the spread of the COVID-19 and to prevent spikes that could further strain our healthcare system and risk more lives.
We have accomplished these goals.
Let’s follow the lead of the vast majority of Wisconsin businesses, those lucky enough to be deemed “essential” by the benevolent government, that have figured out a way to operated safely.
Let’s allow everyone to open and replicate what has worked and what continues to work all over Wisconsin.
Government can shift its focus to swiftly targeting problems and guarding the vulnerable.
Gov. Evers, let Wisconsinites control their own lives and let us get back to work so we can make tomorrow better than today.
We can do this Governor.
In this edition of MacIver Newsmakers, we interview Wisconsin physician Dr. Nicole Hemkes to get her take on what Wisconsinites should know about COVID-19, and where our state should go from here.
The Wisconsin Supreme Court compared the State Constitution to DHS Secretary-Designee Andrea Palm's recent decisions to keep Wisconsin locked down until she decides the coast is clear. Justices had some tough questions featured on this MacIver News Minute.
This week, the Wisconsin State Supreme Court is scheduled to hear oral arguments in the Emergency Petition filed against Secretary designee Palm.
Legislative leaders believe Palm overstepped her authority when she extended the Evers shelter in place order until May 26th.
The stakes in this case could not be higher.
A shocking 480,000 Wisconsinites have recently applied for unemployment and we now have 725,000 out of work in this state thanks to the Covid crackdown. Some say the unemployment rate could be as high as 27% in Wisconsin, 8 times higher than last year.
If wait, as Evers wants, to slowly begin the process to gradually and methodically go through phases to reopen Wisconsin, it will be too late.
Here’s hoping, for all who have lost their jobs and the businesses owners who are struggling to survive, that the Supreme Court will reach a decision soon… before it is too late.
On Tues. Apr. 21st, the legislature filed a lawsuit directly with the State Supreme Court against Health Services Secretary-Designee Andrea Palm, claiming she overstepped her authority in extending Wisconsin's public health emergency indefinitely. If the legislature losses, democracy in Wisconsin will never be the same.
Thousands of Wisconsinites took to the streets this weekend to protest Gov. Evers’ decision to extend the Safer At Home order to May 26th, the order which requires everyone to shelter in place, severely restricts which businesses can stay open and is doing incredible damage to our way of life.
Clearly, Wisconsinites are frustrated that, even though we have stopped the spread of Covid 19 and prevented our hospitals from becoming overwhelmed, shelter in place remains, the damage to our economy continues and many of our friends and neighbors are out of work.
On Monday, seemingly in response to the protests, Governor Evers announced his plan to gradually reopen Wisconsin’s economy in phases.
Problem is, if you actually read the plan, not just the headlines, the plan really is a non-plan to begin to plan on how to develop a plan to reopen Wisconsin some time later this fall. Well maybe.
Go to MacIver Institute.com and decide for yourself. Should Wisconsin open now or does Wisconsin need to wait.
With Election Day now behind us and a concerted effort underway by some to blame Legislative Republicans for holding the vote, it is important to remind everyone how we got here.
On March 17th, Evers was asked about postponing the election and responded during a press conference that we could not move it because elected positions should not be left open.
On March 20th, Governor Evers told the Associated Press that quote “Moving this date is not going to solve the problem. We could move it to June, it could be worse in June.” Close quote.
Evers during this time was taking steps and extra precautions to make sure the election would be carried out safely.
Governor Evers did not change his position until Aril 2nd, the same time frame that Evers started receiving some heat from other democrat politicians and organizations.
If Governor Evers believed back in early March we needed to postpone the election, he should have told the public back then instead of waiting for weeks.
We need you to lead Governor Evers, not shift the blame.
One of the parts of the Covid 19 response that has not received enough attention is the vital and inspiring work of entrepreneurs and businesses as they mobilize to help our country and our state get through this public health emergency.
Businesses like Jockey International based in Kenosha.
CEO Debra Waller announced last week that Jockey would be donating 20,000 masks to Kenosha government and restart manufacturing of critically needed protective wear for hospital workers.
Thank you Debra and thank you to all the employees of Jockey.
Businesses like Surfacide Manufacturing and Universal Electronics in Whitewater, Wisconsin.
Surfacide produces medical decontamination equipment for hospital rooms and now, with the help of Universal Electronics, these machines will be adapted to sanitize N95 masks.
Thank you Surfacide. Thank you Universal Electronics.
Thank you to all the businesses and entrepreneurs that are stepping up, answering the call to help in our country in our time of need.
Wisconsin Senate President Roger Roth got an odd request from the communist Chinese Consulate in Chicago. They wanted him to introduce a resolution praising the People's Republic's response to the coronavirus crisis. His response is the opposite of what they hoped for.
Roth also reacts to Gov. Evers' last minute call for a special session to delay the election.
Things have been bit crazy around here lately.
So let’s pause, set aside all the noise and take stock of where we are.
According to the CDC, the best way to prevent illness is to avoid being exposed to the virus. You do that by: 1) Cleaning your hands often. 2) Avoid close contact with people. 3) Stay home if you’re sick. 4) Cover coughs and sneezes 5) Clean AND disinfect frequently touched surfaces daily.
6) If you feel sick, separate yourself from others and call your doctor.
Following these steps from the CDC will go a long way to putting this behind us. We will get through this, we always do. No need for Panic, that will only make it worse.
Take a second to check on your neighbor, the elderly or anyone who might need a helping hand. Because that is what we as Americans do.
Stay calm, be well and follow the advice of the professionals, not the professional chatterboxes.
Rep. Janel Brandtjen walks us through her efforts to improve ballot integrity before this year’s emotionally charged elections.
Rep. John Nygren (R- Marinette) talks about the policies that led to Wisconsin’s $800 million budget surplus and how Republicans have helped the K12 system by cutting costs and increasing aid.
“In addition to those increases, we have been seeing declining enrollment throughout our entire state. Fewer kids, but more money,” Nygren told the MacIver Institute. “Republicans have not been cutting education. We’ve been committed to it. Some would say it’s time for us to get results out of that K12 system, and I think that’s an appropriate conversation for us to have.”
When Gov. Evers said he wants to increase US dairy exports from 15% to 20% of domestic production, he didn't pull that goal out of thin air. It was established by the US Dairy Export Council as a solution to the US' excess dairy supply. US Dairy Export Council CEO Tom Vilsack talks with the MacIver Institute about that goal, how close the new Trump trade deals get to it, and what possible impact a state can have with a token investment of $8.5 million. Vilsack also responds to attacks from environmental groups on the dairy industry.
When Gov. Evers said he wants to increase US dairy exports from 15% to 20% of domestic production, he didn't pull that goal out of thin air. It was established by the US Dairy Export Council as a solution to the US' excess dairy supply. US Dairy Export Council CEO Tom Vilsack talks with the MacIver Institute about that goal, how close the new Trump trade deals get to it, and what possible impact a state can have with a token investment of $8.5 million. Vilsack also responds to attacks from environmental groups on the dairy industry.
New projections have the State of Wisconsin collecting an extra $800 million in taxes by the end of the current biennium. Gov. Evers was cautious about the news at first, but now wants to create new permanent ongoing commitments with it. The MacIver Institute has another idea.
Congressman Glenn Grothman took some time out of his busy schedule on Feb. 10 to give MacIver listeners an update on current events in Washington and what to expect in the year ahead.
As a physician assistant, Khou Xiong can only provide medical procedures that her supervising physician is also qualified to perform. Every time she gets a new supervisor, the list of services she can provide changes. That can mean turning away patients for routine care she previously provided. For those patients it's no minor inconvenience. The next nearest provider can be an hour away. That's why Khou says Wisconsin needs to reconsider its law on PAs.
WAPA President Eric Elliot testified in the Wisconsin Senate on Jan. 15 about a bill that would make it easier for PAs to practice medicine in the state. Elliot explained to the MacIver Institute how current law ignores a PA's education and training placing them under the direct and restrictive supervision of an MD. WAPA wants the state to put as much trust in PAs as it does with NPs.
TIF districts have a free hand in Wisconsin to spend money on projects and incentives supposedly to spur economic growth. Oftentimes that means handing tax-funded cash incentives directly to developers. Sen. Stroebel says it's time to curb that practice - and the entrenched special interests will do anything to stop him.
As 2019 comes to a close, the MacIver News Service takes a moment to reflect on the booming Trump economy and the impact it has had on the lives of most American workers.
On Friday, a Wisconsin judge made national headlines when he ruled that over 200,000 old and out-of-date voter registrations needed to be removed from the state voter list. State law requires local officials and the Wisconsin Election Commission to remove the names of voters if it cannot be verified that they still live at their old address. Rick Esenberg, President and Chief Legal Counsel at the Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty, joins the podcast to talk about WILL’s victory and why everyone should care about ballot integrity.
Across the country, physician assistants are playing a big role in increasing health care access in underserved areas. Current law in Wisconsin prevents that from happening, because PAs can only practice under the direct supervision of a licensed physician. Changing that could lead to better access and lower costs in Wisconsin.
Milwaukee County has been using data-driven decision making for years to lower crime rates and jail time. Too bad the vendor, Justice Point, struggles to provide even the most basic data about its work. Meanwhile, FBI data shows crime has skyrocketed since the county started on this path.
Read more: http://www.maciverinstitute.com/2019/11/milwaukee-courts-data-driven-debacle/
With over forty deaths recently attributed to vaping of black market THC products, there is a debate raging here in Wisconsin and across the country about the regulation of tobacco, e-cigarettes and vaping.
In Wisconsin, there is a bill making its way through the legislature that would raise the legal age to purchase and use tobacco to 21.
Joining the MacIver Newsmaker Podcast today to discuss why increasing the age to use tobacco to 21 makes sense is Jennifer Hunter, Senior Vice President for Corporate Citizenship for Altria.
Listen to our wide-ranging and informative conversation so you can decide for yourself - should the age to use and purchase tobacco be raised to 21?
Sen. Ron Johnson and Rep. Bryan Steil share their thoughts on the first of the public impeachment hearings with the MacIver Institute at the Conservative Political Education Conference (CPEC) this weekend.
Only about 40 percent of Wisconsin's public school students are proficient at reading and math. When Rep. Jeremy Thiesfeldt (R - Fond du Lac) said the vast majority of students are failing, Politifact disputing the meaning of the word "vast" and called him a liar. Rather than back down, he talks to MacIver about the challenges facing Wisconsin public schools and why edu-crats refuse to address them.
Few would have thought it possible - Democrats and Republicans agree it's time to end a tax. Will the special interests let them do it?
MacIver News Minute: Wisconsin Leads Nation (in achievement gap) by The MacIver Institute
Almost 60 percent of public school students in Wisconsin are not proficient in math or reading. Rep. Jeremy Thiesfeldt sounded the alarm saying the "vast majority" of students are not proficient. Politifact bypassed the crisis to go after Thiesfeldt's call to action.
It's hard to find a building that's not built to code, but you probably have no idea where that code comes from. Right now a group called the International Code Council is writing the new 2021 codes at its national convention. Those codes will be implemented worldwide. ICC's Senior Vice President of Tech Services, Mike Pfeiffer, explains who comes up with the code and how it becomes legal regulation.
Gov. Evers called a special session of the legislature to address red flag gun laws. Even though those laws would be unconstitutional because they would violate a person's right to due process under the law, the governor wants to get Republicans on the record opposing them. It's a game of political brinksmanship that might not play out the way Evers hopes.
Wisconsin is making national headlines for its Public Finance Authority (PFA), which is responsible for 10 percent of all municipal bond defaults so far this year. The PFA is sells bonds to investors and lends that money to private organizations with risky projects. Those private organizations are ultimately responsible for paying back investors. When the projects fail, those investors are out of luck.
You can't sue someone if you can't prove damages, but that doesn't stop Democrats from trying - especially when it's not costing them any money to do so.
On October 1st, Wisconsin drivers began paying an extra $200 million a year through higher vehicle fees. Don't expect a thank you from the DOT though. DOT Secretary Craig Thompson, Gov. Tony Evers, and Wisconsin's road lobbyists are still pushing for their gas tax hike.
Apparently the evidence of President Trump's wrongdoing is so damning, Democrats had to fabricate an entire dialogue between Trump and the Ukrainian president to start off the impeachment inquiry. Attempting to mischaracterize the key piece of evidence doesn't lend much confidence to Democrats' chances of ousting Trump - a goal they've been chasing since the day he took office.
Gov. Evers jumped headfirst into the national gun control debate by saying he would support gun confiscation in Wisconsin, a state where hunting is a way of life.
Only 39 percent of Wisconsin's public school students can read and write at grade level, and the signs of this academic collapse are starting to show in the labor force.
The House of Representatives recently passed a bill to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour. While the Democrats who control the House talk about looking out for the little guy, one group would be decimated by a $15 an hour minimum wage – the Differently Abled.
The latest achievement results are in for Wisconsin's education system, but achievement might not be the best description. Only 39 percent of students are proficient at English and only 31 percent are proficient at math. It's an education crisis that the state's top officials want to ignore.
Children who want to operate lemonade stands in Wisconsin have a lot of red tape they need to cut through. Sen. Dale Kooyenga has a bill that would allow them to sell lemonade without going bankrupt paying government fees and without skirting the law.
Eric Wilson talks about his son Christopher, who has Downs Syndrome, but is able to find meaningful work through a provision in the minimum wage law. Democrats in Congress recently passed a bill that would raise the minimum wage to $15 with no exceptions. Eric explains how that would affect his son and others like him.
As the school year begins, it’s time to measure how Wisconsin students and our schools are performing. MacIver’s annual state of K-12 education report finds slight improvements in some areas, but our toughest problems persist.
89.6 percent graduated high school on time, up a hair from last year. But on-time graduation rates for black students stood at 69 percent—the achievement gap persists.
The standardized Forward exam showed an abysmal 42.4 percent of students proficient in English, and just 43.8 percent proficient in math.
A bright spot for Wisconsin students continues to be AP exams. Total exams taken is up 2.5 percent, while the number of passing scores increased. That’s good.
But the average ACT score dropped from 20 to 19.8.
There are some bright spots, but far too little progress on stubborn problems. We must do better.
Remember when President Obama promised the so-called Affordable Care Act would reduce premiums by $2,500?
He wasn’t joking, but now the joke’s on us.
Nearly a decade later the facts show Obamacare is an unmitigated disaster.
Premiums increased 20 percent in 2017 and 2018. Plans are now so expensive that middle class people who don’t qualify for subsidies are leaving in droves, with unsubsidized enrollment down 40 percent since 2016.
Thankfully, the Trump administration has introduced a slew of free market reforms that give Americans more options with less red tape.
Obamacare zealots claim these efforts are sabotage, but the numbers don’t lie. States that embraced Trump’s innovations will see premiums drop 7 percent. Those that didn’t will see premiums rise 3 percent.
Rather than sabotage, it sounds more like Trump is trying to fulfill Obama’s promise by saving Americans from his signature failure.
Opportunities can be hard to come by on Milwaukee’s north side.
MacIver’s Bill Osmulski was there last week, studying how unemployment could remain such a problem in this nearly full-employment economy.
Then, he met three young entrepreneurs selling bottled water car-to-car in the summer heat.
Some politicians just can’t let go.
That seems to be the case with Gov. Tony Evers, who wants to revive the failed Paris Climate accord. In an executive order last Friday, Evers sets out to ensure Wisconsin meets the accord’s renewable energy benchmarks.
His agenda looks like the Obama-era “Clean Power Plan,” a costly proposition for employers and families.
In Wisconsin alone, Obama’s plan would have cost 20,000 jobs and cut disposable income by billions over 15 years, according to a MacIver Institute study.
An inconvenient truth for climate alarmists is that Evers’ effort is purely symbolic. Even if the entire U.S. stopped all carbon emissions right away and went back to living in caves, global temperatures would only decrease a fraction of a degree.
Clinging to a green pipe dream hasn’t gotten cheaper since the Obama days. But the cost is worth it for photo op seeking politicians like Evers.
"Democracy" isn't what it used to be, at least if you're a radical progressive. For the progressive group Indivisible, it's a code word for rigging the nation's electoral system to make sure they never lose control of government again. Of course step one is seizing the White House and Congress in 2020. Step two is reforming American democracy. Translation--a fundamental transformation of America. Their plan calls for creating new states, and Democrat senators, by granting statehood to Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico. They would overhaul how we vote for Congress, stack the Supreme Court and term-limit justices, expand voting rights to illegal immigrants, criminals, and 16-year-olds, and break up media companies and subsidize local journalism, a recipe for a propaganda machine. Indivisible bills its plan as a way to save American democracy. But between the lines, it reads more like a manifesto for erasing the Constitution.
It seems Gov. Tony Evers doesn’t want to answer the really hard questions.
For the past eight months, the governor’s team has blocked MacIver News reporters from key email lists and press briefings, silencing the taxpayers’ voice in Evers’ east wing. That’s why the MacIver Institute sued Evers last week. The federal case says the administration is violating MacIver’s rights to free speech, freedom of the press and equal access.
Legal experts agree MacIver’s case is strong. One UW law professor told the Associated Press, “It’s practically a slam dunk,” while his colleague said Evers’ actions raise legitimate First Amendment concerns.
Freedom of Information Council President Bill Lueders hit Evers hardest, saying he should be able to handle reporters from a conservative outlet if he has what it takes to be governor.
Our country relies on a vigilant press asking tough questions. Does Evers have what it takes to answer them? MacIver’s lawsuit will be a key test.
Imagine hiring an industry’s top lobbyist to lead the state agency in charge of handing out contracts to that very industry.
In Wisconsin, we don’t have to imagine. Just look to the Department of Transportation, where Secretary Craig Thompson wasn’t even on the job a week before he signed off on two single-bid contracts worth almost two million dollars.
In his first eight months running the DOT, Thompson has approved $320 million in single-bid contracts. That’s just $12 million less than his predecessor under Governor Walker approved in two years.
A 2017 audit found tens of millions in wasted taxpayer dollars thanks to single-bid contracts, doled out without a competitive bidding process.
Until Thompson took over, stamping out that waste had become a crusade at DOT. But under the lobbyist-turned bureaucrat’s leadership, that has apparently come to a screeching halt.
Imagine that.
Did you know 65 of Wisconsin’s 72 counties have at least one area with a shortage of dental providers, according to federal data?
Access to dental care is a big concern when it comes to children, the elderly, and the disabled. It’s a real problem with real health implications. But the free market has a solution—a recent study by the MacIver Institute describes a new profession, dental therapy. Dental therapists are licensed to perform more procedures than hygienists, and allowing them here would help increase access by adding to the pool of qualified professionals.
Tomorrow a Senate committee will hear testimony on a bill by Sen. Dave Craig doing just that, allowing those who complete required education and pass state exams to be granted a dental therapy license.
Dentistry is just one area where regulation stands in the way of solving real-world problems. But soon, lawmakers will have the chance to bust one of those barriers.
Fresh off his most recent trip to the US southern border, Rep. Glenn Grothman describes the crisis, what's being done, and what he thinks needs to happen next.
In December, the legislature passed a law preventing "sue and settle," a business crushing tactic where the attorney general sues a company, settles out of court, and keeps the money for himself and his liberal allies. Attorney General Josh Kaul wants a piece of the action. He granted himself the power to pick and choose when to follow the new law, opening the door for him to sue private sector enemies and rake in huge settlements without giving lawmakers a seat at the table. Legislative leaders don't care much for that. Last Thursday they sued Kaul to force him to comply with the law.
It doesn’t take a crystal ball to see Governor Tony Evers’ new payroll fraud task force appears to be a gift to Big Labor. The task force, heavily slanted toward union interests, has the stated goal of cracking down on alleged payroll fraud—often just mistakes thanks to a thick web of red tape. But Labor’s outsized role has business advocates nervous it could become a cudgel to hammer employers.
Ronald Reagan famously compared government to a big baby: an insatiable appetite at one end, and no sense of responsibility at the other. The ink is barely dry on the latest state budget, and DOT secretary Craig Thompson is already hungry for more. Raising the gas tax remains very much on the table, he recently said, despite an influx of new money into his bloated agency. It’s a reminder to taxpayers that government’s hunger for your money never ends.
In this special edition of the MacIver Newsmakers podcast, MacIver Institute President Brett Healy sits down with Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Brian Hagedorn the day after his inauguration. Hagedorn, a judicial conservative who faced blistering attacks over his Christian faith during a hard-fought election, won in what many considered a surprise election. He takes over for longtime liberal Justice Shirley Abrahamson and shares his thoughts on everything from the campaign to Christian Yelich, exclusively with MacIver.
During budget deliberations, Gov. Tony Evers urged Republicans in the Legislature to "fix the damn roads," as the governor's salty slogan went. The GOP obliged, adding tens of millions in assistance for local road repair projects. But last week, DOT Secretary Craig Thompson said the funding would go toward a competitive grant program, which could go toward Milwaukee's boondoggle trolley.
After Gov. Tony Evers used his power veto pen to add $87 million in education spending to the 2019-21 budget, Sen. David Craig and Rep. Mike Kuglitsch aimed to put a stop to the veto magic trick Evers used. Craig sits down with MacIver to discuss the budget, the veto, and his proposed amendment to the state constitution on this edition of the MacIver Newsmakers podcast.
Wisconsin’s governor may have the most powerful veto pen in the country. Governor Tony Evers thinks it’s a magic wand. Somehow Evers managed to use his line-item veto power to increase K-12 spending by $87 million. This week's News Minute explains how he did it. Thankfully, Senator Dave Craig and Representative Mike Kuglitsch are pulling back the curtain, proposing a Constitutional amendment to prevent such tricks from soaking taxpayers in the future.
This week started with Amazon Prime Day, the online retail giant’s annual day of discounts. But those unbelievable deals are illegal in Wisconsin, thanks to the state’s antiquated Minimum Markup law, a relic of the Great Depression, when the Amazon was just a river. The law effectively outlaws low prices in the name of protecting “mom and pop” shops. In reality, it’s an anti-free market enemy of consumers that forces Wisconsinites to pay higher prices on everything from prescription drugs to gasoline.
Freedom fighter Ismael Hernandez was a card-carrying communist - a true believer in the Cuban revolution - an all-consuming belief system that defined most of his young life.
Then he came to the United States to attend college at the University of Southern Mississippi.
Throughout college, his point of view gradually transformed as he realized the stark differences between American-style freedom and Cuban-style communism.
He began a personal transformation. It was a truly spiritual change from the quasi-religion that is collectivism and Marxism to the mindset that all individuals have their own, God-given dignity.
Hernandez went on to work in the ministry in southwest Florida, where he became disillusioned with the way the poor are treated by well-meaning but ineffective government programs.
“I was in ministry in the inner cities of southwestern Florida and I began to see the paternalistic, condescending ways that we see the poor,” Hernandez told MacIver at a recent presentation in Milwaukee.
“We basically give them stuff. That’s what we do, we give them free stuff and free stuff, and the person is waiting to be spiritually awakened and I did not like that.”
As part of his long journey from Marxist to free market fighter, he left his job to start the Freedom and Virtue Institute, a group with a mission of transforming how we treat the poor, and a mission of truly helping the poor lift themselves out of poverty through opportunity instead of handouts.
“We don’t believe in this paternalistic, condescending attitude toward the poor, that they’re just mouths to be fed and bodies to be clothed. No, they are unique, unrepeatable persons made in the the likeness of God and they have that moral capacity of self-realization,” he said.
The poor will never prosper unless they’re viewed as dignified people capable of transforming their own circumstances.
“If you believe in that about the poor, you will see them prosper. If you don’t believe that, the best you can do is get out of the way. Get out of the business of the helping the poor because you will do more harm than good.”
Doing good for the poor and changing the way we approach the plight of poverty is what Hernandez’s life mission has become. And contrary to mainstream thinking, he preaches a different kind of message, one of hope - that the poor can lift themselves out of poverty if government gets out of the way.
“Only freedom can do that. Only economic freedom can do that. Only opportunity to be free in the economy can do that for the poor.”
We spoke with Ismael Hernandez and present his speech in Milwaukee in this edition of the MacIver Newsmakers Podcast.
Madison is 30 square miles surrounded by reality. Case in point: the recent debate over K-12 funding. The GOP budget increases K-12 funding by $655 million over two years, the largest increase ever in Wisconsin history. But out-of-touch activists claim this amounts to a $900 million cut...only in the alternative universe of Madison. But taxpayers still live in the real world, where people have to spend what they can afford.
Just before we all left work to celebrate the nation's birthday, Gov. Tony Evers used his powerful veto pen to make significant changes to the 2019-21 budget passed by the GOP-controlled Legislature. He vetoed out common-sense work and drug testing requirements for welfare programs, despite the strong economy. But surprisingly, Evers left alone the GOP's $500 million-plus tax cut. For more on the budget and the vetoes, visit maciverinstitute.com.
MacIver News Minute: Winners and Losers in the 2019-21 State Budget by The MacIver Institute
What labor laws? State Rep. Gordon Hintz, Assembly Minority Leader and member of the Wisconsin Center board, doesn't think much of labor reform laws passed in Wisconsin, one of which bars so-called "labor peace agreements." In fact he suggested the board pursue such an agreement and opposed the hiring of a non-union security firm at a recent meeting.
With summer school about underway, here's a word problem for Madison liberals: If Tony takes away money from some people to give it to other people, is that a tax cut, or is it redistribution of wealth? Gov. Evers raises taxes north of a half-billion to finance his tax cut plan, while the GOP's tax cut is funded from surplus state revenue.
Like stubborn children who don't want to clean their room, members of the liberal Madison Common Council don't like recent laws reforming the use of Project Labor Agreements - and they don't want to follow them. A Madison city attorney had to remind them that giving union shops exclusive access to public projects is illegal now. Rules are rules, and the law's the law, even for liberals who would prefer otherwise.
Republicans on the Joint Finance Committee are a lot like Rolaids - They spell relief: Tax relief. The tax cut-package passed last week by the Republican-controlled JFC totals more than $530 million in relief for Wisconsin taxpayers. That’s on top of the $8 billion-plus the conservative majority delivered in the previous eight years.
In one of the bigger Big Government ideas coming from ostensibly free-market conservatives, the Legislature’s budget-writing committee wants to track your vehicle’s mileage. The committee last week approved a state transportation budget that explores a mileage-based fee system. Whether that would entail self-reporting, or technology that creepily tracks motorist mileage, the proposal puts Wisconsin on the road to Big Brother Land. Even more troubling, the language gives the Joint Finance Committee, not the full Legislature, the authority to approve or deny any mileage tracking plan that comes out of the study committee. That’s too much control in the hands of a few, and it has Big Brother riding shotgun.
Here’s the good, the Bad, and the Ugly of the Joint Finance Committee’s Transportation budget. -No gas tax, no indexing - or taxation without representation. That’s very good. -Transportation bonding at the lowest level in 18 years, that’s good. But at nearly $500 million, it’s a big-spending transportation budget, and it relies heavily on fee hikes. Now, the ugly. The JFC’s transpo budget includes very little in the way of reforms for a Department that has squandered billions of taxpayer dollars.
Nicole Hemkes was tired of being another "paper doctor" - just a few minutes with each patient followed by way too much paperwork. In December, Hemkes left that paper chase and opened a direct primary care clinic in the Madison area. Not only does this model of health care delivery get docs back to the basics - more time with patients and less insurance company paperwork - it has the potential to truly reduce the cost of quality health care.
British colonists started a revolution and founded a nation in large part based on a basic, rhyming principle: No taxation without representation. Two and a half centuries later, some in government still haven’t learned. Case-in-point: Gov. Tony Evers’ budget, which includes annual increases in the gas tax tied to the rate of inflation to help pay for Wisconsin’s road projects - and let future Legislatures off the hook when it comes to raising taxes.
MacIver Newsmakers: Direct Primary Care Pioneer, Dr. Nicole Hemkes by The MacIver Institute
The phrase "Ponzi Scheme" is already taken, but taxpayers could be forgiven for thinking the federal government's "free" Medicaid money pledge is a pyramid scheme in the making. Free money skeptics have plenty of reasons to think it's only a matter of time before the federal government backs off its promises to continue offering a more generous match rate for states that accept Medicaid expansion cash and leave states holding the very expensive bag.
Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson talks Mueller madness, why he’s quickly becoming the Johnny Cash of the U.S. Senate, and whether CNN’s Jim Acosta will ever find love again on this edition of MacIver Newsmakers.
Former Gov. Scott Walker called it “Reform Dividend.” Tax collections over the next three years are projected to come in $753 million higher than previously anticipated, compliments of eight years of conservative reforms. Tax and regulation relief spurred record low unemployment, business expansion, personal income growth - and all that means more money in the state treasury.
Milwaukee liberals have "lead" their constituents to believe that legislative Republicans are to blame for the city’s lead pipes problem. The fix to Milwaukee’s drinking water crisis, they insist, is more state taxpayer money. But liberals and socialists have controlled the city of Milwaukee for the better part of a century. And while Milwaukee’s citizens wait for clean drinking water, its mayor is fixated on an expensive streetcar.
A few years ago, a state audit found alarming incidents of fraud in Wisconsin’s FoodShare program. Now, it looks like Gov. Tony Evers’ administration wants to open the door to a new wave of public assistance fraud by quietly changing the Residency Verification section of the state’s food stamp program. Under the new language, critics say bureaucrats will be looking for reasons to keep nonresidents in the FoodShare program rather than deny or terminate benefits.
How far will the left go to confront and harass conservatives? To the men’s room, apparently. At last week’s meeting of the Legislature’s budget committee, an irate left-winger followed Sen. Tom Tiffany into the head and berated the Minocqua Republican while he was attending to some personal business. The left continues to take public policy opposition obnoxiously where no men and women have gone before.
As the owner of a small business, Rep. Shannon Zimmerman knows the imperative of fiscal conservatism.
Not only for his own language translation company, but also for state government. Zimmerman's business and his Assembly district are on the Minnesota border, a booming region where Wisconsin's competition with neighboring states plays out every day.
Listen to this week's MacIver Newsmakers podcast, where Zimmerman - a member of the state's powerful Joint Finance Committee - talks about budget priorities, a competitive business climate, and the Bee Gees.
For all of his lofty talk about valuing public service, Gov. Tony Evers had no problem showing 15 public servants the door — in the name of politics. In a 4-3 ruling last week, the state Supreme Court ordered the reinstatement of 15 public servants confirmed during December’s controversial extraordinary legislative session. For now, 15 public servants are back to work, thanks to a court that pushed aside political pettiness in favor of due process.
A Milwaukee-area lawmaker says he’s got a fix for what ails Wisconsin’s transportation budget. Rep. Joe Sanfelippo proposes shifting half of the sales tax revenue collected on motor vehicle-related sales from the general fund to the transportation fund. A fiscal analysis show the shift could eventually raise a half a billion annually, without a gas tax increase.
18 cents a month. That’s how little some low-income individuals are paying for insurance premiums on the health insurance exchanges. You won’t hear that from the Medicaid expansionists, who will tell you Wisconsin needs to take a boatload of federal money to ensure affordable health insurance. Affordable coverage is already available thanks to taxpayers, and that's an inconvenient truth for Medicaid expansionists.
State Rep. Bob Kulp (R-Stratford), chaired the 2018 Legislative Council Study Committee on the Identification and Management of Dyslexia that examined dyslexia and its effects. The committee, which has taken some emotional and, at times contentious, testimony on the subject, came up with some legislative proposals aimed at better reaching students with such reading disorders. Rep. Kulp is our guest on this edition of MacIvers NewsMakers.
Why have a law if you don’t enforce it? Such is the case with Wisconsin’s right-to-work law. As MacIver News Service first reported, some union shops have posted ads requiring applicants to be in a union to get the job. That’s illegal under Wisconsin law, which states no employer may require union membership as a condition of obtaining or continuing employment. While the state agency in charge of enforcing right-to-work punts to the federal government, big labor gets to discriminate against non-union applicants - with impunity.
State Sen. Chris Kapenga is no fan of big government.
In fact, the Delafield Republican is down-right cranky when it comes to the ever-expanding role of government — and the taxpayer cost of that expansion. Gov. Tony Evers’ $84.2 billion budget proposal — a massive increase from the current two-year state spending plan — isn’t improving the senator’s mood. Evers’ budget calls for hundreds more state employees, expanded programming and a host of new initiatives.
Perhaps of deeper immediate concern, Kapenga says he’s disappointed that Evers “came out of the gate” so quickly this week in vowing to veto any “born alive” abortion bill passed by the Republican-controlled Legislature. The bill, introduced last week, demands physicians to provide the same care to an infant that survives an abortion as they would to any other newborn.
The Democrat governor told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that such protections already exist under state law. But one of Evers' first acts as governor was signing an executive order prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity against state employees. He did so even though Wisconsin law bans discrimination based on sexual orientation and federal law prohibits discriminating on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.
Kapenga says Evers’ veto threat is the latest example of the antagonistic stance the governor has taken with the Republican-led Legislature. Something more important is lost in the politics, he said.
“These are infants. These are babies. We’re talking about a baby who comes out of the womb and can survive that. We’re talking about protecting life,” the senator said.
Sen. Kapenga talks budget, budget battles, and sensible shoes in this edition of MacIver NewsMakers.
After nearly two years, $35 million, and unprecedented government spying, it’s hard to see the Mueller investigation as anything but a witch hunt. The investigation clearly exonerated the president and his campaign of trumped-up charges of conspiracy to coordinate with the Russians. But bitter liberals just can’t let go. President Trump last month asked in a tweet: When will this illegal Joseph McCarthy style Witch Hunt ever end? For the left, the answer is a resounding never.
Rejoice, Wisconsin taxpayers! You are free! It’s Tax Freedom Day for Badger State Taxpayers. Well, don’t get too excited. This is the day the average taxpayer has earned enough money on the year to finally pay off the pile of tax obligations of local, state and federal governments. Contrary to the incorrect rhetoric of the left, and a general confusion about withholding tables, the federal tax cuts passed in 2017 have helped to lift the tax burden off the shoulders of the vast majority of taxpayers. Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform, joins us on this edition of MacIver Newsmakers for a little perspective on the current tax climate and the changes taking shape in the Badger State. And this anti-tax man offers some sound advice for those who die.
Highly paid UW System officials won't stop talking about how destitute their universities are. But national rankings on public higher ed funding paint a different picture. Wisconsin consistently ranks in the top 15 of per capita higher education funding - 13th in the latest StatsAmerica ranking of higher ed state and local expenditures, among other stats. The UW System will tell you otherwise, but the sky is not falling on public higher ed in Wisconsin.
The mayor of Racine and his union pals won't let facts get in the way of their hatred of school choice. The city, with the help of the local teachers union, sent out a phony flyer claiming that one-fifth of Racine's property tax levy goes to private voucher schools. It's wrong on many accounts. For one, Racine and other public school districts get to count students they're not even educating to rig the aid they get from the state - in Racine's case, that's a $13.5 million windfall for kids that aren't event attending their failing schools.
Gov. Tony Evers and his administration have an interesting definition of “small.” The governor’s $84 billion biennial budget proposal would hike taxes by some $1.3 billion over two years - a "small" tax increase in the Evers vernacular. Last week, Evers’ DPI bureaucrats told the Joint Finance Committee the governor’s budget would include a “slight increase” in property taxes of $44 million. That figure doesn’t come close to the actual impact, by the way. All that small is really adding up.
Now, it's the taxpayers' turn. The Joint Finance Committee hit the road on Friday for the first in a series of budget hearings on the road. It's the taxpayers' chance to make their voices heard about Gov. Evers' proposed $84 billion behemoth of a budget.
The word amazing gets tossed around a lot these days. But conservative Judge Brian Hagedorn’s long-shot victory over liberal Judge Lisa Neubauer in last week’s Supreme Court election was truly amazing. He was significantly outspent, forsaken by some Republicans, and dogged by liberals and the mainstream media for his Christian faith. But the conservative grassroots united to push Hagedorn to a slim victory, keeping the court in conservative control for another four years.
Sen. Alberta Darling is urging taxpayers to show up and make their thoughts on the 2019-21 state budget known as the Joint Finance Committee hits the road over the coming weeks for a series of public hearings.
Darling, co-chair of the powerful Joint Finance Committee, has plenty of disagreements with Gov. Evers' proposed budget, which grows spending by a staggering 8 percent.
"I think was Gov. Evers did, was it was a giveaway to his special interests. He doesn't care if the budget is balanced...he just divvied up the money to his friends and people he felt were supporters of his," Darling said.
Darling talks about the Evers spending plan, previews the upcoming budget battle, and offers a profanity prevention tip on this week's MacIver Newsmakers podcast.
Madison is 77 square miles surrounded by reality. Thankfully, reality ruled the day last week when a three-judge panel stayed a liberal Dane County judge's decision invalidating the laws that came out of December's extraordinary session. The activist judge simply cancelled those laws, but it now appears likely the court will find the extraordinary session was constitutional.
Somewhere between her Marxist social theory and her professor’s godless “leap of faith,” Vicki McKenna had an epiphany: Socialists are full of it.
It’s hard to believe, but Wisconsin’s Queen of conservative talk radio had to pass through the shadow of liberalism — and a few dozen jobs — before finding the right road.
Shaking off her sociologist fugue, McKenna abandoned her sociologist fate and turned to a life of media (which is like a life of crime, just not nearly as profitable.). It made sense. The Nightline with Ted Koppel junkie had a natural affinity for talk radio.
“I just tried to kick open some windows and some doors and see if I couldn’t get my foot into the business that way,” McKenna recently told MacIver News Service. “It took some time but eventually I was able to find someone willing to take a risk on a beret-wearing, espresso-drinking, Karl Marx-supporting Marxist.
Today, the reformed socialist-turned Queen of Conservative Talk is giving liberals fits and dominating the radio airwaves in Milwaukee and Madison on iHeartRadio’s NewsTalk 1130 in Milwaukee and NewsTalk 1310 WIBA.
Vicki McKenna brings the bueno, talking conservatism in the age of Trump and AOC, the union thug with the long gun, and why she is definitely not cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs on this edition of MacIver Newsmakers.
Does President Trump owe Robert Mueller an apology, a question recently posed by an NBC reporter? No. Mueller and the liberal lawmakers and mainstream media who cheered his witch hunt on for the past two years owe Trump an apology for hounding him over what have now been proven to be phony allegations that the president was a Russian stooge not legitimately elected to office.
Another liberal activist Dane County judge has struck down conservative laws, these ones passed in December's extraordinary session. That's hardly a surprise considering that court's propensity for injecting itself into duly passed legislation. But what's truly breathtaking is the chaos that Judge Richard Niess' decision caused - particularly because he chose not to stay his decision pending appeal, giving the judge's liberal comrade Gov. Tony Evers a chance to take full advantage of the chaos.
Could industrial hemp become Wisconsin’s next “huge cash crop”? State Sen. Patrick Testin believes so.
The Stevens Point Republican led legislation that created the state’s hemp pilot program — a new industry that has seen significant growth in a very short time.
Last year, the first year of production, 200 growers and more than 100 processors applied to the state to grow hemp. This year, grower applications have topped 1,400, with 700 for processors.
“So obviously, it is clear that Wisconsin farmers and growers are ready to lead this nation again in industrial hemp,” Testin told MacIver News Service.
But will Badger State growers one day soon plant industrial hemp’s psychoactive “weed” cousin next to the innocuous, multi-purpose cash crop?
Senator Testin talks hemp, very high budget numbers and March (not reefer) Madness in this edition of MacIver Newsmakers.
The mainstream media was itchy again Thursday, with rumors recirculating that special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation report was about to drop.
The press was disappointed again. The press would have to wait.
That’s been the talk of the Swamp for weeks now, Mueller’s looming report to the U.S. Department of Justice and, more so, what it will contain.
After a prolonged investigation marked by leaks and faulty reporting, U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson says the American people have a right to know what really happened. Not just with Russian interference in U.S. elections — the actual scope of Mueller’s meandering probe — but what went on at the FBI, with former director James Comey, the Department of Justice, the intelligence communities, the State Department.
While not even the leakers can deliver evidence of President or candidate Trump and his campaign working with the Russians to affect the outcome of the election, there are plenty of serious questions about the conduct and the activities of the federal law enforcement officials involved in multiple investigations.
Johnson isn’t holding his breath.
“I really don’t expect we’re going to have that full accounting from this special counsel,” the Oshkosh Republican told MacIver News Service Thursday.
If there truly were a “smoking gun,” Johnson says, it would have been leaked to a thirsty Trump-loathing press by now.
After all this time, after all those taxpayers, Johnson says the Mueller investigation has been just one “enormous political distraction.”
“We really have challenging problems right now,” the senator said. “We have Iran, North Korea, Russia, China … there are a lot of issues. How about the fact that we’re $22 trillion in debt?”
Senator Johnson discusses the Mueller report, securing the U.S.-Mexico border, Wisconsin’s critical state Supreme Court race, and whether we can ever watch Aunt Becky from “Full House” the same way again, knowing what we know now, on this edition of MacIver Newsmakers.
You’ve heard the adage, there’s no such thing as a free lunch. And so it goes with Gov. Tony Evers’ massive health care budget, which pins its hopes on all that “free” Medicaid money - built, of course, on the backs of taxpayers. Evers’ plan to expand Medicaid would haul in a lot of federal money, but growing our Medicaid rolls is likely to be a permanent albatross around the necks of Wisconsin taxpayers.
The Dairy State saw nearly 700 dairy farms close last year, fed by a precipitous decline in milk sales and prices. And the ag industry in general could get hit even harder if Gov. Tony Evers’ plan to roll back a critical tax credit makes the cut. While the rollback exempts farmers, it would target food processors, integrally connected to the ag sector. Raising taxes on such manufacturers is the fastest way to make a bad situation worse.
Gov. Tony Evers like to call his $83.5 billion budget "The Peoples' Budget," but it looks more like the liberal special interests budget. And no special interest won more than Big Labor. The budget brings back forced union dues and artificial wage floors, and forces the return of union exclusivity contracts. Evers' "Peoples' Budget" was built with Big Labor bosses in mind.
"Let the Sunshine In.” That’s the message we at the MacIver Institute send to all government officials this Sunshine Week. Sunshine Week is an annual nationwide celebration of access to public information. News organizations shine the spotlight on the good, the bad, and the ugly when it comes to open government - or lack thereof. It’s a bipartisan issue — that is Democrats and Republicans have often failed.
Governor Tony Evers tries to be everything to everyone, including every special interest that asked for a goodie in his 2019-21 biennial budget. Senator Duey Stroebel joined MacIver Newsmakers for this week's podcast focusing on the state budget.
The Joint Finance Committee should start with actual spending, not the base, to begin the process of rebuilding this budget, Stroebel said, in order to do what voters send politicians to Madison to do - identify priorities while protecting taxpayers and encouraging economic growth.
"You have to have constraints, you have to have control. And right now, I'm just not seeing a governor that has really put out a serious budget or has taken a serious approach to what we're trying to do in this state," Stroebel said.
The budget does address some of Stroebel's concerns over Tax Increment Financing - which is, however, just a tiny slice of the massive proposal.
Also, turns out the senator is in fact not familiar with key 90s boy band singers.
Gov. Tony Evers's massive $83.5 million budget is like the Oprah Winfrey Show of spending plans, says state Sen. Dale Kooyenga.
The Brookfield Republican said it’s just so much “political pandering” to Evers’ liberal base.
“It politically nice to go around the state doing the whole Oprah thing, saying, ‘You get a billion dollars, and you get a billion dollars, and you get a billion dollars,’” Kooyenga said, referring to the multimedia diva famous for giving away cars to her entire studio audience.
“He’s going around the state saying, ‘I got you this! I got you this! I got you this!' But he knows we can’t afford this. I think it’s a political statement, not a truly refined budget that truly balances.”
By Generally Accepted Accounting Principles, Evers’ budget is a long way from balanced.
On Thursday, the Democratic governor announced $2.5 billion more in borrowing over the next two years for a host of building projects, on top of what Evers’ calls his “People’s Budget.”
“We’re talking about a lot of money spent,” Kooyenga said. “Even the governor knows this is a lot of money to spend.”
Kooyenga talks big budgets, big bonding, and the one song that he just can’t get out of his head, on this edition of MacIver Newsmakers.
Apparently there are no consequences for the Department of Transportation, which has failed to comply with several accountability provisions in a state law, as MacIver News first reported. The codes were drawn from Legislative Audit Bureau recommendations following a bombshell report in 2017 that found all manner of waste and accountability issues at the troubled DOT.
Do you like big budgets and you cannot lie? Well then, Gov. Tony Evers has the budget for you. The Democrat’s $83.5 billion budget increases spending a whopping $7 billion to pursue a litany of liberal initiatives. Evers wants to expand Medicaid, wants $1.6 billion more for K-12 education, $600 million-plus more for transportation. His budget rolls back Walker era welfare and workplace freedom reforms, opens the door to legalized marijuana and grants driver’s licenses and IDs for illegal immigrants.
Gov. Tony Evers’ first budget proposal is a big “liberal wish list,” according to Assembly Speaker Robin Vos in a special budget night podcast exclusive.
With Republicans firmly in control of the Legislature, it's unlikely that many of the Democratic governor’s wishes will come true.
Evers' budget plan spends big -- about $7 billion more than former Gov. Scott Walker's final budget. And it taxes big to get there.
Evers' budget blueprint is built on a bigger-government agenda, calling for Medicaid expansion, over $1 billion more in K-12 education spending, and $600 million more for transportation projects.
Speaker Vos breaks down the $83.5 billion biennial spending plan in this special edition of MacIver Newsmakers.
U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson tells MacIver News Service he’s hopeful the Senate will take up another resolution that would deal realistically with security at the U.S. Mexico-border.
On Tuesday, the Nancy Pelosi-led House was moving on a resolution rolling back President Trump’s declaration of a National Emergency, in which he would tap money to complete the construction of a border barrier.
Johnson said he doesn’t know how he will vote until he sees the Senate resolution, which he hopes will be markedly different than the House bill. Johnson (R-Oshkosh) says the House resolution is much more about politics than it is about checking the constitutional overreach of the president.
Congress, after all, gave the executive branch the authority to active special powers during a crisis. If the flood of illegal immigrants and deadly drugs flowing into the United States doesn't constitute a crisis, Johnson said he doesn’t know what does.
The Senator talks Swamp sparring, tariff wars, and the “mauve New Deal” in this edition of MacIver NewsMakers.
More Wisconsin high school students than ever are taking Advanced Placement Exams, but postsecondary enrollment for all students has dramatically declined.
The latest data from the Department of Public Instruction show overall AP exams taken increased by 61 percent between 2010 and last year. And scores continue to increase.
Still, the overall participation rate remained low, at just under 17 percent in 2019.
Alarming trends continued for the post-secondary education sector. 59.4 percent of students who graduated high school in 2018 are enrolled in some institution of higher learned. That’s down from 68.3 percent in 2016.
The escalating cost of higher education certainly have something to do with declining post-secondary enrollment in the BadgerState.
As thousands more chose to take AP Exams each year, many others are opting out of college altogether.
A key talking point of Gov. Tony Evers’ “first step” proposal to legalize medical and recreational marijuana went up in smoke last week. In rolling out his wide-ranging initiative, the governor and fellow Democrats declared “drug-related offenses make up as much as 75-85% of inmate populations.” The claim is patently false - the real stat is 11%. And as MacIver News first reported, the Evers administration quietly scrubbed the bad stat from the original press release.
State Rep. Mary Felzkowski wants to fix a woeful statistic and, true to her conservative roots, she wants to use the free market to do it.
The Irma Republican, along with state Sen. Dave Craig (R-Big Bend) have introduced a bill that would create a dental therapist licensure program in Wisconsin.
Dental therapists are mid-level practitioners, similar to physician assistants. Under the general supervision of a dentist, DTs can perform routine dental procedures either at a dental practice or in satellite clinics in underserved areas.
Felzkowski said it’s time to rectify a dubious health care ranking in the Badger State, and she believes adding dental therapists to the health care workforce could help do just that.
The jobless rate for black and Hispanic Americans fell to record lows in 2018. That should be cause for excitement, right? Especially from poverty-fighting Dems like U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore. But she sounded unimpressed with the long list of positive economic news noted by a Republican colleague at a recent House Ways and Means Committee hearing.
Wisconsin lawmakers should approach the state budget with a physicians' maxim: first, do no harm. As Rep. John Nygren put it, things are going well, let's not mess it up. So why does Gov. Tony Evers insist on a middle class tax cut that also raises taxes on manufacturers? Hitting manufacturers with higher taxes now, just as this sector is hitting its stride in Wisconsin, is like giving a patient measles to cure mumps.
When announcing a lawsuit against painkiller maker Purdue Pharma, Dane Co. executive Joe Parisi spoke of the trail of destruction the opioid crisis has left in its wake. But what he failed to mention was the cozy relationship the county's largest employer, UW-Madison, had with Purdue during the rise of the crisis. That includes $1.6 million in grant funding - but critics say the UW's pain group conducted research advocacy, essentially serving as marketers rather than scientists.
How often have you heard from the big-government crowd that Wisconsin needs more money in our schools because IT’S ABOUT THE CHILDREN! Turns out, it isn’t. New data from the Department of Public Instruction show that only 54 percent of revenue for Wisconsin schools goes to instruction, with the rest marked for overhead. The release underscores how little of the $6 billion in annual state education funding actually makes it to the classroom.
Gov. Tony Evers’ Transportation Stakeholders Task Force is looking more like a Tax Farce - with one hand out and another in taxpayers' pockets. The Task Force met last Thursday and again on Monday and set a revenue-first reform-later agenda. Everything was on the discussion table, from gas tax hikes to heavy truck fees - even a mileage tax and tracking system. You know who wasn’t at the Tax Force table? Taxpayer advocates.
Are you itching to be taxed into oblivion to pay for a socialist proposal that would massively expand government and bury your grandchildren in debt? Well, do we have a deal for you -- the Green New Deal. This out-of-touch policy that would definitely touch your wallet has Green Deal Warriors right here at home — none more committed than state Rep. Greta Neubauer, a Racine Dem.
Wisconsin got more good fiscal news Wednesday, when the Legislative Fiscal Bureau released data showing a projected $2.4 billion in additional tax revenue for the next state budget.
That means Democratic Gov. Tony Evers can breathe a lot easier than his predecessor, Republican Gov. Scott Walker, did when he faced a $3.6 billion budget shortfall upon taking office in 2011.
The new governor a few weeks ago asked for input from Republican lawmakers like state Sen. Tom Tiffany. The Hazelhurst Republican said he offered some simple advice about keeping a booming economy going: Don’t raise taxes and don’t raise regulations.
“That is what has gotten us a $2 billion surplus here in Wisconsin,” he said. “And if you (Evers) want to continue to have money to be able to spend on schools, which is your priority, and other public services in years to come and budgets to come, don’t raise taxes and don’t raise regulations.”
“If you reverse course and go back to the dark (Gov. Jim) Doyle days of a decade ago, you will kill the Golden Goose and it will make things much more difficult because people do react to incentives,” Tiffany continued. “The incentive for people in Wisconsin is you get to keep more money in your pocket and therefore people are investing more.”
Sen. Tiffany talks transportation, environmental extremism, and the restorative powers of bacon on this edition of MacIver Newsmakers.
The arms of the often-overreaching Dept. of Natural Resources got a little shorter thanks to a recent state Supreme Court decision. A dozen years after the DNR gave a pair of Lake Superior property owners the go-ahead to build a pier, the agency came back to amend the permit. They don't have the authority, the high court ruled, reaffirming its new stance that it won't simply defer to state agencies' interpretations of the law.
This is what we learned from Gov. Tony Evers’ first state of the state address: Tony’s a story teller. But the bleak alternate reality Evers painted doesn't match the facts - record-low unemployment for the better part of a year, surging personal income, more good-paying jobs than there are people to fill them. It’s the liberal way: Cry poverty, expand government. Keep reality out of it.
Here’s a sad number: Students from 196 Wisconsin high schools had to take remedial math or English upon entering the UW, according to a new report from the UW system. Even more troubling, 50 percent of high schools receiving the highest, 5-star ratings on Wisconsin’s 2018 report cards sent graduates to college that needed remedial courses. More sad statistics from a public education system delivering too much failure.
Matt Kittle and the MacIver crew take the podcast on the road - or at least across the street - for this edition of the MacIver Newsmakers podcast, recorded in Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald's office. Fitzgerald reacts to Tuesday's divisive State of the State speech by Gov. Evers, previews life in a divided government, and looks into the crystal ball to see whether there will be a protracted budget showdown this summer.
MacIver Newsmakers: Rep. Joe Sanfelippo on Direct Primary Care, Pre-Existing Conditions by The MacIver Institute
Dozens of conservative organizations are receiving late Christmas presents years after the IRS handed them a lump of of coal. The federal government last month began mailing out settlement checks to 100 right of center groups wrongfully targeted for their political beliefs by the Obama administration's Internal Revenue Service.
Let’s see how far all the talk of bipartisanship and finding common ground goes.
Gov. Tony Evers has said he’s willing to work across the aisle to find solutions to Wisconsin's problems. State Sen. Dave Craig (R-Big Bend) is reaching back with an idea whose time is long overdue. He wants the new Democrat governor to champion free-market values and lead the campaign to repeal Wisconsin’s competition-killing, price-inflating minimum markup law.
Sen. Craig is our guest on this edition of MacIver Newsmakers.
Madison has long been known as a bizarre parallel universe, but things went from strange to surreal on Saturday when a throng of pasty white socialists shouted down a black Trump supporter, calling him a "white supremacist" and "bigot." The bizarro world respond: "commie" pride.
If Democrat Gov. Tony Evers is serious about cutting taxes, Assembly Majority Leader Jim Steineke (R-Kaukauna) says Republican legislators are all ears. If the governor plans to push a liberal agenda, then Republicans will strand united against left-wing initiatives, Steineke said.
The Majority Leader joined MacIver News Service Friday on the Vicki McKenna Show, on NewsTalk 1130 WISN in Milwaukee. Steineke says there are areas where Evers and the Republican majority can find common ground, but the spirit of compromise got off to a a bad start when liberal groups late last week filed a lawsuit challenging last month’s extraordinary session.
Listen to the full interview on this edition of MacIver Newsmakers.
U.S. Senator Ron Johnson has introduced a bill that would pay essential federal employees during the partial government shutdown. He says it’s a matter of simple fairness and national security.
Wisconsin’s senior senator tells MacIver News Service that the Democrats need to stop the hypocrisy and do what they promised to do before Donald Trump became president: Secure the U.S. border.
Sen. Johnson is our guest on this edition of this edition of MacIver Newsmakers.
U.S. Rep. Glenn Grothman (R-Glenbeulah) says he wants to see the partial government shutdown come to an end, and he wants congress to deliver on a long-held promise to secure America’s southern border.
Grothman, who represents the 6th Congressional District, has taken heat for voting against a House bill that gives backpay to all federal government employees, regardless of whether they work during the shutdown or not. At the same time, House Democrats declined to take up a bill Grothman co-sponsored, the No Work Without Pay Act, which would provide immediate pay for federal employees who are working during the shutdown.
As the shutdown entered its 24th day Monday, Grothman spoke with MacIver News Service about fiscal responsibility, homeland security, and the greatest rock & roll song of all time. The congressman is our guest on this edition of MacIver Newsmakers.
In the days before being sworn in as Wisconsin's 46th governor, Tony Evers did a number of media interviews - and changed his position on key issues from taxes to school choice. You could say it's a tale of two Tonys.
Gov.-Elect Tony Evers held a series of budget sessions in December, declaring that "the days of having special invites to come to things like this are over." But the sessions were packed with leaders from the far left with a veritable wish list of liberal demands.
Wisconsin taxpayers got some good news to kick off the new year. The combined state/federal tax burden is at its lowest point in nearly 50 years, according to a new report by the Wisconsin Policy Forum. In 2018, 10.5% of personal income went to taxes, down for the seventh straight year. Meanwhile, tax revenue increased, resulting in a projected $622 million surplus at the end of the fiscal year, the eighth straight year of budget surpluses.
With 2019 upon us, we have some New Year's resolution ideas for our politician friends. If you feel the urge to raise taxes or add more regulations, resist it. Resolve to limit the size of government and to do something about that $22 trillion national debt. That important task will surely require a resolution to do all of the above.
When Scott Walker was elected Wisconsin governor in 2010, he promised to fix the state’s broken budget and lead limited-government reforms that would get the Badger State’s economy working again. By just about any metric, the two-term Republican governor has succeeded. Described as one of the two most consequential governors in state history, Walker presided over a wave of far-reaching conservative reforms.
The MacIver Institute looks back at a remarkable era in Wisconsin history in our special presentation, “The Walker Years: A Legacy of Conservative Reforms” which aired on News/Talk 1130 WISN.
Eric Bott, Americans for Prosperity-Wisconsin State Director, has been on the front lines of Scott Walker's conservative revolution in Wisconsin, including serving in the Capitol during the early days of the Act 10 tumult. He shares his thoughts on the Walker years in this special edition of the MacIver Newsmakers podcast series examining the legacy of this most consequential conservative governor.
Sen. Ron Johnson joins MacIver's Matt Kittle on the MacIver Newsmakers Podcast to talk about the border wall impasse, divided government, the conservative legacy of Gov. Scott Walker, and the bipartisan appetite for unsustainable spending (when asking Santa for bipartisanship, be careful what you wish for). Also, why the Senator prefers old-fashioned Christmas carols and Tom & Jerrys.
Eric Schutt, Gov. Scott Walker's chief of staff in 2011, was with Walker during the difficult early days of massive state budget deficits and high unemployment. Schutt returned for a second act as chief of staff in Walker’s last year in office. He shares his thoughts on the Walker years in this special edition of the MacIver Newsmakers podcast series examining the legacy of this most consequential conservative governor.
From healthcare hyperbole to education funding fibs and pay-to-stay perjuries, 2018 was like any election year: filled with wall-to-wall lies. But the number one lie of 2018? Liberal fear mongering that Republicans would take away protections for people with pre-existing conditions. It was far from the truth, but to borrow from Harry Reid's Machiavellian logic, liberals won, didn't they?
Dale Kooyenga has been a partner of Gov. Scott Walker in the Legislature since both took office after the 2010 elections. Kooyenga, who won election to the state Senate in November, shares his thoughts on the Walker years in this edition of a special MacIver Newsmakers podcast series examining the legacy of Scott Walker in conversations with those uniquely qualified to tell it.
Democrats seem to have selective amnesia when it comes to a key legal battle Tony Evers won just a few months ago. While wailing about the state Legislature's move to grant itself the right to legal representation outside of the state Attorney General's office, they ignore that the state Supreme Court just a few months ago said the Department of Public Instruction was entitled to just that - its own lawyer - when it felt outgoing AG Brad Schimel wouldn't adequately represent it in court.
Mike Huebsch, Gov. Scott Walker's first Secretary of Administration, was in the middle of the maelstrom as protesters descended on the Capitol in the heady days following the introduction of Act 10, and he was at Walker's side throughout the battle to right Wisconsin's fiscal ship. Huebsch shares his thoughts on the Walker years in this edition of a special MacIver Newsmakers podcast series examining the legacy of Scott Walker in conversations with those uniquely qualified to tell it.
While leftist agitators were busy screaming "Shame!" at last week's extraordinary session of the Legislature, taxpayers were once again winning. In the latest round of tax relief, Republicans passed a bill requiring any new sales tax collected from online sales to be put to income tax relief, adding to the $8 billion-plus in tax relief Gov. Walker and the conservative Legislature have enacted over the past eight years.
Assembly Speaker Robin Vos joins MacIver's Matt Kittle for an exclusive conversation in this week's MacIver Newsmakers podcast. They discuss the extraordinary session in which lawmakers passed legislation that cements many of the conservative reforms of the past eight years. And they tackle that all-important question: Why is emo rap suddenly so popular?
Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch has been a critical partner of Gov. Scott Walker over perhaps the most consequential eight years in Wisconsin political history. And at the start of that time, she faced challenges far beyond policy disputes and protesters. Kleefisch sits down in the MacIver studio with Matt Kittle to share her journey - personal and political - as those eight years come to a close. This is the first in the MacIver Newsmaker podcast series examining the legacy of Scott Walker in conversations with those uniquely qualified to tell it.
Opponents of the GOP's package of extraordinary session proposals aimed at cementing the conservative reforms of the past eight years were reminiscent of the tactics and rhetoric of opponents of just about every other big government-limiting measure of the recent past. On Monday they got the band back together, wailing and railing against the last measures the GOP enacts before a new era of divided government begins.
Thanksgiving featured all the staples this year - turkey, stuffing, cranberries. And in Wisconsin it also featured another crime wave as retailers offered prices so low, they must be illegal. That's right, in Wisconsin the minimum markup law makes the kind of great deals shoppers found on Black Friday a crime. This anti-consumer, protectionist law is a Great Depression relic and should've been scrapped a long time ago.
In this edition of the MacIver Newsmakers podcast, Assembly Majority Leader Jim Steineke joins Matt Kittle to address the next moves for the state Legislature. Will the senate pass the Kimberly-Clark incentives package? And what can we expect from efforts to reconvene the legislature to cement conservative reforms before Gov.-elect Tony Evers takes office?
Wisconsin's executive branch took a hard turn to the left last week when voters replaced Gov. Scott Walker with Tony Evers, who promised to overturn Walker's record of conservative reforms, increase the minimum wage to $15/hr, and add massive new funding to K-12 education. But how much of that left-wing agenda can Evers hope to enact with an overwhelmingly Republican legislature?
Sen. Ron Johnson joins MacIver's Matt Kittle to talk about the midterm elections, a divided Congress, and the latest out of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. Also, Kittle clearly doesn't watch SNL anymore.
Election Day was a banner day for school referenda around Wisconsin. Voters approved an overwhelming 77 out of 82 separate school district referendum questions, for a total of $1.37 billion in new school spending, including $1.2 billion in new debt.
Big Labor scored a big win when Democrat Tony Evers defeated Gov. Scott Walker in Tuesday's election. Evers, long backed by Wisconsin's teachers union and a proponent of the union-backed "Fight For 15" crowd, will doubtless be Big Labor's best friend as Wisconsin's new governor.
The time for talking, debating, and relentless political ads is over. Final arguments have ended. It's Election Day - a day when you, the citizen, have the power to change your government. Don't give up your voice, don't give up your power. Vote.
Gov. Scott Walker joins MacIver's Matt Kittle on the MacIver Newsmakers podcast to talk about the final stretch of his re-election campaign, as well as encouraging new numbers in the battle against opioids and the latest in Walker's aggressive welfare reform agenda.
Van loads of professional protesters showed up at last Friday's gubernatorial debate at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. They were gathering to demand a $15 minimum wage, which candidate Tony Evers has pledged to deliver, at a "minimum." But research shows such drastic government mandates actually backfire on the very people the left-wing agitators claim they want to help: low wage workers. But why let facts get in the way of a good slogan?
If you're white, you're probably a racist. If you disagree, you're probably suffering from "white fragility." At least that’s what Decoteau J. Irby, Ph.D., believes is at the center of race relations and failed or stalled educational systems in America. At a recent conference sponsored by the state Department of Public Instruction, education leaders from around Wisconsin gathered to hear Dr. Irby's politically charged lecture on "white supremacy," bankrolled by taxpayers.
Here's the treat: homeowners in school districts around the state are in line to get serious property tax relief. But the trick is that the school districts want to keep that from happening, instead proposing significant new spending while claiming it won't have much of an impact on taxes. Conveniently overlooked, however, is how much taxes would drop absent the spending sprees.
With a $60 million referendum on the line, is the Cedarburg School District pro-referendum crowd stacking the deck? Documents obtained by MacIver News suggest the answer is yes. While a community survey showed 60 percent support for the spending spree, the survey appears to have been rigged to boost responses from district staff and parents, who got an email link to the survey while everyone else only got a paper version.
News/Talk 1130 WISN's Mark Belling discusses MacIver's investigation into Cedarburg's $60 million referendum, focusing on evidence contained in reams of emails that a "community survey" likely was a rigged propaganda tool from the very start.
Wisconsin public employees continue to benefit handsomely from the state’s generous “sick leave conversion program.” Public sector retirees converted $171.96 million in earned sick leave credits in 2017, according to the latest data available. That’s up 3 percent from 2016, when retired employees in the Wisconsin Retirement System turned nearly $167 million into health insurance cash.
According to a new MacIver analysis, a single payer health care takeover would be a costly power grab by progressive politicians. The analysis finds that it would cost Wisconsin taxpayers at least $30 billion in the first year alone. The left is Wisconsin likes to tout bumper sticker slogans about its health care plans, but they rarely talk about the cost. Now you know what it would cost you.
Sen. Ron Johnson calls in to the MacIver studio for a wide-ranging conversation with host Matt Kittle in our latest Newsmakers podcast. They touch on left-wing mobs, liberal incivility, the Kavanaugh confirmation, the Mueller investigation, and states' Medicaid funding gimmicks. This conversation is better than lunch with Kanye!
When the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers union pension fund demanded access to nonunion employees' private contact information, Veterans Electric owner Scott Flaugher drew the line. He recently emerged victorious from a drawn-out legal battle that ended in a court affirming that the union has no right to employees' private information that they could've used to harass and intimate people into joining.
By most definitions, 16% is a failing grade. But in public education that's effectively passing. Just 16.2% of test takers in Milwaukee Public Schools showed proficiency in math, and scores in other subjects aren't much better. While students have made slow gains, the racial achievement gap has widened. Yet, somehow MPS has once again managed to avoid the dreaded "failing" label.
The long-held dream of liberal Madison bureaucrats is to build a costly city-owned broadband internet infrastructure. That dream died at a recent meeting of the city's Digital Technology Committee. Several years of shoe leather reporting and analysis by MacIver - along with cold, hard fiscal reality - forced officials to shelve the $173 million boondoggle.
Sen. Chris Kapenga was the first Republican senator to publicly announce he won't support a proposed "pay to stay" bailout package for struggling paper manufacturer Kimberly-Clark. Kapenga discusses that and a proposed special session to take up the bill, and delves into the Kavanaugh nomination and what it says about our politics on this week's MacIver Newsmakers podcast.
Steve Nagy knows what it's like to witness private business get destroyed by government. A refugee from communist Hungary in the 1950s, he came to America to pursue the American Dream. But a new drive by politicians and special interests to suffocate small businesses like his is eerily familiar, Nagy said in a recent MacIver podcast conversation.
Catch the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
Steve Nagy fled communism in his native Hungary in the 1950s, right on the heels of the takeover of his family's foodservice businesses by communist thugs. Over the decades since, Nagy has worked hard to achieve the American Dream, opening and running a successful wedding barn business. But now, a legislative committee many believe is rigged in favor of established alcohol and hospitality industry interests is eyeing new regulations that threaten to make history repeat itself. Nagy shares his story on this week's MacIver podcast.
Thanks to early college credit programs, students and parents are able to save big bucks on college tuition - $60 million or more in total, according to an estimate by the MacIver Institute.
Catch the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
The author of last year's proposal to put Wisconsin on the road to a flat income tax isn't giving up. Rep. Dale Kooyenga plans to keep pushing to make his vision of a 3.95 percent flat tax, first introduced during the 2017-19 budget debate, a reality. The plan is similar to the MacIver Institute's "Glide Path To A 3% Flat Tax" and promises to make Wisconsin even more competitive in the 21st century.
Catch the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
Is jihad getting a bad rap in a UW-Madison political science class? One student who attended the first day of the class thinks the course, which directly ties the idea of jihad to terrorism, is biased and unfair to the notion of holy war against the enemies of Islam. Perhaps instead of just surveying the syllabus before taking his complaints to Facebook, the student should've heard the professor out.
Catch the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
Rep. Dale Kooyenga (R-Brookfield) discusses his vision for reforming Wisconsin's tax code. Kooyenga is an advocate for big, bold tax reform - particularly, getting Wisconsin on a glide path to a low, flat income tax.
Attorney General Brad Schimel recently announced the Department of Justice has resolved the longstanding problem of a backlog of untested sexual assault kits. That might puzzle the average consumer of mainstream media reports, which have painted Schimel as a skinflint who put the decades-old backlog on the back burner. The media's been ignoring key facts about the backlog in order to push a narrative - they put the facts on the back burner.
Catch the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
Too many Wisconsin graduates are unprepared for life after high school. The MacIver Institute's latest State of Higher Ed report notes that students from 184 Wisconsin high schools entered the UW System requiring remedial math or English in 2016. That's up from 175 schools the year before. The one-fifth of college freshmen paying for remedial math for zero college credit are literally paying the price for their high schools' failures.
The City of New London's $20 wheel tax generated $184,000 in the current budget, but that windfall wasn't spent on road repairs. The budget spends only $18,000 on transportation related projects. So where did the money go? There's nowhere for the money to hide in the city budget, so it appears to have been spent on other priorities - priorities other than roads.
Catch the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
The MacIver Institute's annual State of K-12 Education report shows that there's still a lot of room for improvement in a wide range of student achievement metrics. Flat ACT scores, unacceptable achievement gaps, woeful proficiency scores, and more - we simply have to do better.
Catch the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
Senator Ron Johnson takes a short break from the round-the-clock Washington news cycle for an exclusive conversation with MacIver's Matt Kittle. They discuss the Kavanaugh nomination hearings, the late Sen. John McCain, and the latest on the homeland security front.
Not all employees at Kimberly-Clark's Wisconsin plants are excited about a proposal to bail out the struggling paper manufacturer. One company insider blasted the $117 million tax incentives plan as "legalized extortion" to prop up a profitable operation and make every company employee in the state a "welfare recipient."
Catch the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
Mark Mix, President of the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation, joined MacIver's Matt Kittle to talk about the status of worker freedom on Labor Day. It's an exciting time for workers who want freedom from unions and compulsory union membership - Mix gives us an update on recent victories and ongoing challenges for worker freedom.
Free from the fetters of union driven health plans thanks to Act 10, school districts have turned to innovative and cost-saving health insurance options for their employees. Changes made possible by Gov. Walker's signature reform have allowed school districts to save $3.2 billion in benefits costs alone - much of that on health benefits.
Catch the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
Attorney General Brad Schimel's legal team scored a major victory in one lawsuit challenging Obamacare. In this conversation with MacIver's Matt Kittle, originally airing on News/Talk 1310 WIBA, Schimel announces that Wisconsin won a judgment for nearly $90 million after a District Court ruled one hefty Obamacare tax was an illegal tax on states. Just hours later, the mainstream media followed and reported the story. Schimel discusses that and a second lawsuit challenging Obamacare's constitutionality in this week's MacIver Report Extra podcast.
Gov. Walker's signature reform, Act 10, gave public employees the freedom to choose whether to be in a union - and teachers continue to vote with their feet. The latest numbers show Wisconsin's largest teachers' union, WEAC, continues a long and steep decline. Since its pre-Act 10 heyday when educators were forced to join and pay into the union coffers, WEAC has lost 67% of its members.
Catch the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
Broadband boondoggles litter the big government landscape. All across the country, cities have tried to build their own high-speed internet infrastructures only to fail spectacularly, and taxpayers have paid the price. Will city leaders in Madison learn the lesson these other cities didn't as they pursue their own fiber optic flop?
Catch the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
Now that the big primary election is over and Democrat Tony Evers is officially his opponent, Gov. Scott Walker's campaign is in full gear and barreling toward November 6th. The governor joins MacIver's Matt Kittle to talk about his opponent, his campaign, and the taxpayer success during his first two terms in office. The king of those success stories is Act 10, which MacIver recently reported saved school districts $3.2 billion just in benefits costs by allowing them simply to shop around.
Wisconsin's right-to-work law put an end to compulsory union membership as a condition of employment. But some employers and labor groups didn't get the memo, and have posted want ads stating that union membership is required to get the jobs. Big labor might be loathe to give up their power, but union bosses aren't above the law.
Catch the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
Some far-left positions aren't all that popular among voters in some key Wisconsin swing districts. That's according to a new poll by the Brookfield-based Jobs First Coalition, which found trendy liberal ideas like releasing half the state's prison population, letting nonresidents vote, and raising income taxes by $460 million are deeply unpopular in central and western Wisconsin.
Catch the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
If Wisconsin public schools are hurting for cash, why are administrators pulling in such hefty salaries? Taxpayers last year shelled out nearly $437 million for administrator salaries, and 41 percent of public school educrats enjoyed a salary north of $100,000. The average with benefits was more than $126,000.
Catch the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
Lawmakers say it's long past time to reform Wisconsin's lavish sick leave benefits program. The generous benefit, which has been described as a health care "golden parachute" for state government retirees, is unlike anything you'll find the private sector and, in some cases, beneficiaries amass staggering balances over their careers. Rep. Janel Brandtjen and Sen. Dave Craig say they want to see legislation putting a cap on this costly benefit.
Catch the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
Act 10 is truly the gift that keeps on giving. New data shows just how much - thanks to the flexibility offered by the landmark budget reform, school districts have been able to shop around for their employee health insurance benefits. Benefits cost savings add up to an astounding $3.2 billion, 60 percent lower than if the trend before Act 10 had continued.
Catch the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
The next time someone peddles a sob story about how rough government workers have it, remind them of the retiree who collected over $1 million in converted sick leave compensation, or the one who gets a pension payout of $750,000. While these examples are the exception to the rule, there are enough outliers to boil the blood of the average private sector worker, whose tax dollars still bankroll a lot of bloat in government.
Catch the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
At a recent legislative hearing, a panel of doctors illustrated why direct primary care has so many health care reformers excited. The innovative new method of delivering care by fostering a direct, personal relationship between doctor and patient holds the promise of slashing costs, especially for some of the most crucial and common treatments and drugs. The legislative study committee is considering adding DPC to state law - but they're also considering adding regulations that could strangle the practice.
Catch the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
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Grover Norquist, President of Americans for Tax Reform, joins MacIver's Matt Kittle to talk about the positive effects of last year's Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, and the prospects of a second round of tax reform that congressional Republicans have been discussing.
Wisconsin's road funding debate is paved with plenty of half-truths. A big one is that local officials have no money to do necessary upkeep, or that it's the state's fault that town, municipal, and county roads are full of potholes. Not true - a new MacIver Institute analysis found that in too many cases, local officials simply aren't making basic road repairs a top priority at budget time. And remember: most local roads are entirely a local responsibility. It's a convenient way to try wringing more money out of state government, but a disservice to local motorists.
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A 21-year-old woman battling a brain tumor might be all the evidence direct primary care advocates need that their innovative health care model works for people. The young woman's chemo would cost $24,000 over six months under traditional insurance. But her doctor, Josh Umbehr, can give her the same treatment for $1,900. That's just one of many ways DPC saves patients money and improves care. Dr. Umbehr discussed the money-saving potential of direct primary care with MacIver's Matt Kittle.
Liberals no doubt chortled when Gov. Scott Walker recently called himself the "education governor." But put aside the left-wing talking points and take a look at the facts - Walker has added funding for K-12 and, more importantly, greatly expanded the state's school choice options, giving families who aren't rich the means to send their children to a school that they decide is best for them.
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These are tough days for Big Labor. On the heels of the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark ruling in Janus v. AFSCME, the Trump administration is now taking steps to end another union cash grab. The federal CMS is moving to end a union scam diverting some $200 million in Medicaid funds into union coffers from home caregivers, who they convinced state legislatures to classify as government workers, allowing them to be forced into the union.
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The Trump administration's tariff policies are already having a harmful impact on local businesses. Senator Ron Johnson heard from constituents at a recent town hall - businesses that are facing rising costs and shrinking markets that they've spent years building. Sen. Johnson shares his thoughts, and how we can effectively confront Chinese malfeasance, in a conversation with MacIver's Matt Kittle.
For yet another year, shoppers around the globe will rush to Amazon for Prime Day, the online retail giant’s annual day of deals. Unfortunately for shoppers in Wisconsin, it’s also a day of crime thanks to our state’s antiquated minimum markup law.
The minimum markup law, also known as the Unfair Sales Act, is a relic of the Great Depression that effectively outlaws low prices. The law requires that alcohol, tobacco, and motor fuel are marked up 3 percent at the wholesale level, 6 percent at the retail level for alcohol and tobacco, and 9.18 percent at the retail level for motor fuel. It also forbids retailers from selling most other products below cost.
That means many of the millions of ridiculously good deals on Amazon Prime Day, or “Amazon Crime Day” as it’s known in Wisconsin, are actually illegally cheap.
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The Trump "Resistance" movement has resorted to the same boorish behavior -- threats, intimidation, screaming, profanity -- that they hurled at Gov. Scott Walker and his supporters seven years ago. Those thug-like tactics failed then, but will the far left learn anything from their failures in Wisconsin? It doesn't look like it.
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The former health insurance executive who helped shepherd the creation of a University of Wisconsin public health fund with the largest single gift in the UW’s history says the foundation has “strayed far from the UW’s own plan and the donor’s intent.” Instead of funding traditional public health initiatives, the foundation has become a bankroller for left-wing causes and groups with dubious, if any, impact on health.
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The U.S. Supreme Court handed a big win to workers nationwide who don't want to be part of a union. While a 1977 precedent allowed unions to skim paychecks for so-called "agency fees," the court recently overturned that decision, meaning workers no longer have to help fund a union whose political activity they may disagree with.
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July 4, 1776 was a dangerous day for tyrants, dictators, and monarchs. That's the day we celebrate not only America's declaration of independence, but the principles of our nation's founding - God-given rights to life, liberty, the pursuit of happiness, the dignity of the individual, and government by the consent of the governed.
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Wisconsin became the 25th right-to-work state in 2015. While that law ended forced dues for workers who don't want to be in a union, it didn't guarantee instant freedom. Some unions have fabricated their own opt-out periods, forcing workers to wait - and continue paying dues. That includes one union in Wisconsin that forces workers to wait 13 months before they can exercise their freedom to choose to leave their union.
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Nothing screams #Resist like a tuba. And nothing screams "oppression" like a multibillion dollar manufacturing hub with tens of thousands of jobs. That's the rallying cry of Wisconsin progressives, who are organizing their groups - including a big brass ensemble - to protest Foxconn's planned development in southeast Wisconsin, the largest of its kind in American history.
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The Tomah Veterans Affairs Medical Center, which earned the monicker "Candyland" when its deadly overprescribing of opioids was exposed - still has troubles. In December, MacIver reported that a sharp temperature spike may have compromised sensitive drugs at the pharmacy there. New information sheds light on the meltdown - and indicates the facility may have something to hide.
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Leftists are lining up their forces, intent on putting all they've got into raining on Foxconn's big parade later this month when the tech giant plans to break ground on its massive new manufacturing campus. Their ultimate aim? To derail or besmirch the $10 billion, 13,000-job development deal in "any way possible" to improve their odds of defeating Gov. Scott Walker this November.
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Direct primary care - where a doctor is paid a monthly fee in exchange for a menu of primary care services, bypassing insurance red tape - is a cost-saving, innovative way to tackle the rising price of health care. The City of La Crosse and the La Crosse School District are great examples of the potential to both improve care and save money. Adding DPC to their list of options has proven extremely popular and has saved more than $1.5 million in a few short years.
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Gov. Scott Walker's Act 10 has been a resounding win for Wisconsin taxpayers - it's saved more than $5 billion in the years since the landmark law was enacted. But the liberals running to unseat Walker have all pledged to repeal the reform, restoring a huge spigot of money into the campaign coffers of progressive candidates.
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MacIver's Ola Lisowski sits down with Rep. John Macco, chairman of the Assembly Ways and Means Committee, to talk about the committee's work on overhauling the state tax code. Rep. Macco makes sure tax talk is anything but a dry topic!
If the U.S. Supreme Court sides with Mark Janus in his lawsuit against AFSCME, the big government labor union, it would be a huge victory for worker freedom throughout the nation. Here in Wisconsin, a Janus victory would mean public safety workers like police and firefighters, who were exempted from Act 10, would be able to opt out of their unions if they wanted to.
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Liberals like to point to Minnesota as a prototypical progressive utopia, claiming fiscally responsible, conservative policies have somehow been a setback for Wisconsin. The problem is, it's not true. In fact by many measures Wisconsin has outperformed the Gopher State - discrediting nonstop attempts by the left to lure Wisconsinites into an unearned inferiority complex.
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Madison mayor Paul Soglin recently directed city department heads to limit capital expenditure proposals to only crucial projects. But true to uber-liberal form, city bureaucrats are still bent on pursuing a municipal broadband network that could cost taxpayers north of $100 million. In one of the most digitally connected cities in the country, a city-owned broadband network hardly seems like a crucial project.
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A bill led by big labor supplicants, Sen. Bernie Sanders and Wisconsin Rep. Mark Pocan, would, among other assaults on worker freedom, repeal right-to-work laws nationwide. It's sponsored by some of the most left-leaning politicians in America, including Sen. Tammy Baldwin, who heartily endorsed the campaign to take away a worker’s right to choose.
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President Trump recently did something all too rare in Washington - he asked Congress to withdraw $15 billion in spending authority for a variety of programs that are past their sell-by date. He made the request using a rarely used 1974 law. The ball is now in Congress's court to pass a bill rescinding the budgeted funds.
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Illinois has been spewing its smog over Lake Michigan for years, and southeastern Wisconsin has been paying the price. The Trump EPA realized the folly of this and reversed course recently, but that isn't stopping the smog dumpers in Illinois like the state's AG, Lisa Madigan, from throwing a fit and filing a lawsuit over the commonsense decision.
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MacIver's Chris Rochester was at the Republican Party of Wisconsin state convention last weekend. He sits down with Bill Osmulski to talk about his experience at the statewide gathering of Republican volunteers and elected officials in a critical election year. We also include Paul Ryan's last convention speech as a member of Congress, just before he was honored onstage by Gov. Walker and Wisconsin's entire Republican congressional delegation.
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Public employee unions in 11 states have convinced their legislatures to classify home health workers as government employees, essentially forcing them into union membership and diverting $200 million in Medicaid funds each year into union coffers. Other states could look to Wisconsin - which outlawed this scheme in 2011 - to stymie this union scam.
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A charitable fund established to improve health outcomes for Wisconsinites has become a funder of housing and gardening projects – as well as a variety of left-wing advocacy groups - keeping a legion of washed up progressives employed. The political spending is "close to criminal,” said a former insurance executive who shepherded the fund’s creation.
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Bill Osmulski sits down with Sen. Duey Stroebel in the MacIver studio to talk about the need for referendum reform, what's been done to protect taxpayers so far, and what else can be done.
Forget the fact that Madison is already one of the nation's most digitally connected cities. Forget the half-million dollar failed broadband pilot project. Forget that private sector internet providers are already offering options for low-income residents. Madison politicians and bureaucrats sure have - despite all those inconvenient truths, they're forging ahead with a city-owned broadband boondoggle that could cost taxpayers as much as $130 million. Isn't that the definition of insanity?
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While MPS board member Michael Bonds got all the attention when he told a Milwaukee teachers union leader to "go to hell," the real controversy should have been that same union boss's retort. She insisted that the struggling school district's budget should be doubled - to $2 billion. Bad news for the union and bureaucrats: MPS already spends $15,000 per student and continues to fail. The claim that soaking taxpayers to the tune of another billion dollars will fix the district's failures is what's truly offensive.
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Is the "Blue Wave" more of a "Blue Puddle?" If you look at a recent Milwaukee protest against last year's tax overhaul that cut taxes across the board and will save the average family $2,000, you might think so. While last year's protest drew more than 600 people, this year just 24 showed up - many paid organizers. It looks like even many liberals aren't exactly onboard with this "raise my taxes now" demand by progressive agitators.
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A recent Legislative Audit Bureau investigation of the financial relationships between UW campuses and their affiliated, but private, foundations raised plenty of concerns for taxpayers. But an even greater concern is the lack of transparency and accountability the auditors found. It's more evidence that it's high time for an independent, external audit of the UW System and all affiliated entities.
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Big Labor is pushing its weight around again, this time filing an expensive lawsuit against a service-disabled, veteran-owned electrical contractor company. The company's owner says the union pension plan is throwing everything they've got to get the names, addresses, and Social Security numbers of nonunion managers and administrative staff.
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As you know, it's Tax Day, a solemn reminder of how much government makes us work just to settle up with Uncle Sam. But Wisconsinites can take some solace in the fact that their tax bills will be paid off eight days earlier this year than last. And we can all celebrate last year's tax overhaul, making this the last Tax Day that we're subjected to the old tax code.
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It's Tax Day, the time when taxpayers settle up with Uncle Sam and throw more of their hard earned cash into the federal dumpster fire. Team MacIver offers solemn reflections on voracious politicians (and big-money road builders) who think they're entitled to more of your money. And of course, the big story of the past week: the retirement of House Speaker Paul Ryan.
Welfare reform, honest budgeting, cracking down on unemployment insurance fraud, regulatory relief, tort reform, enhancing constitutional protections, and more. Looking back on the just-completed legislative session, there is a lot for conservatives to celebrate.
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UW-Madison's socialism headquarters last week gave a lifetime achievement award to one of their own - Tariq Ali, who has spent a career giving cover to socialist tyrants like Venezuelan strongmen Hugo Chávez and Nicolás Maduro. The event sanitized the disastrous and deadly reign of socialism, which has reduced Venezuela to starvation and despotism.
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Rep. Chris Taylor put her plans for Wisconsin in black-and-white, and in so doing, gave Wisconsinites a peek into the liberal agenda should her ilk retake power in the Badger State. Among the lengthy manifesto: remove "resident" from voting law, let the state schools superintendent write his own check, roll back collective bargaining reform, and transfer enormous power from elected officials to bureaucrats.
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A special Easter message from your friends at the MacIver Institute.
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Wisconsin's self-described progressives cheer for poverty and despair in socialist Venezuela, roll out a plan to drag Wisconsin back in time ten years and transfer power to bureaucrats, and try to stop UW-Stevens Point from modernizing its majors programs. Team MacIver, joined by our favorite intern Abby Streu, discusses all of this and actual progress for conservative reforms.
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What happens when a higher ed administrator shows fiscal responsibility and pragmatism? He gets pilloried by liberals, of course. Look no further than UW-Stevens Point, where administration there decided to overhaul and modernize their academic offerings, only to meet protesters demanding the nixed majors - majors with sagging interest among incoming students - be retained.
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Team MacIver busts its brackets trying to unravel the fast-moving Legislature over the past week, which is simultaneously passing conservative agenda items and stymying other good reforms. Also, why is Eric Holder obsessed with elections in Wisconsin? And why are liberals freaking out in Stevens Point? Team MacIver has answers.
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Tens of thousands of Wisconsinites have moved out of the Badger State in recent years, taking billions in income with them, IRS data shows. Wisconsin must continue to improve its tax and regulatory climate to make our state the best place possible to live and work if it wants to get serious in the national battle for population growth.
Read MacIver's report here: http://bit.ly/2GI9b2W
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After a week off, the studio resembles a hospital waiting room as Team MacIver is all in some stage of illness, but duty calls! The Legislature is in the final days of this legislative session, but Assembly and Senate gridlock threatens some of Gov. Walker's top priorities like his school safety package and sales tax holiday. The team talks about all the Capitol intrigue and Matt Kittle interviews U.S. Navy veteran Mark Fink, who was both a caregiver and a patient at the troubled Tomah VA Medical Center.
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Eric Holder made a swing through Wisconsin to campaign for liberal Supreme Court candidate Rebecca Dallet, but the fawning media forgot about the former Obama attorney general's real legacy. The only AG ever held in contempt of Congress, Holder rarely hesitated to use the power of big government for politics - from the deadly "Operation Fast And Furious" gun-running operation, to spying on journalists, to harassing choice schools.
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New data from the Department of Public Instruction sheds light on the performance of Wisconsin's K-12 public schools, and it's a mixed bag. Graduation rates are up, students are taking more AP exams and scoring better on them, and ACT scores held steady. Notably, the number of students going on to a post-secondary institution is down significantly over the past 5 years.
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The Ozaukee County Circuit Court charges people fees for family court services. The problem is, though the county charges the fees, it neither puts the money in a required segregated fund nor offers the services it's charging for - both of which are required by state law. It's just the latest in a string of revelations about striking dysfunction in Ozaukee County's court system.
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Enough of repeat offenders making a mockery of Milwaukee's criminal justice system. It's time to stop the revolving door - that's the message Sen. Leah Vukmir shares in this MacIver News Minute. Vukmir is co-author of legislation aimed at tackling the problem of repeat offenders that recently passed the Assembly.
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After some movie talk, Team MacIver talks about all that's new but familiar. For one, Big Labor's never-ending, doomed efforts to sue Act 10 out of existence. For two, Randy Bryce's hauntingly familiar $50 trillion agenda that's copy/pasted out of the Bernie Sanders manifesto. For three, another effort to topple Obamacare's flimsy legal scaffolding in the courts (and this one could go all the way). This week's podcast also features exclusive interviews with Guy Benson on the big national issues and Senator Leah Vukmir on her efforts to clamp down on crime in Milwaukee.
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Big Labor's seemingly unending lawsuits against Act 10 - Governor Walker's collective bargaining reform that's saved taxpayers billions - just keep coming. Despite being upheld in various appeals courts, including the Wisconsin Supreme Court, unions are now suing with the Janus v. AFSCME as a pretense in yet another doomed effort to bring down the landmark law.
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Townhall political editor and Fox News contributor Guy Benson joins MacIver's Chris Rochester for a special MacIver Report Extra podcast. Guy shares his insight on the latest in the Mueller/Russia investigation, the horror that unfolded in Parkland, Florida and the renewed gun debate deadlock, and the total failure of the Democrats' anti-tax cut strategy.
Wisconsin and Minnesota face similar problems with dental care access. But in 2009, Minnesota began licensing dental therapists, seizing on a free market opportunity to expand dental care at virtually no cost to taxpayers. A similar proposal has been circulating the Wisconsin Capitol, but died in the Assembly last week. If Wisconsin truly wants to expand dental access, lawmakers would be wise to revisit the idea of dental therapy.
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Team MacIver turns the mics over to interns Jake and Abby, who tell us about what they saw at CPAC in D.C. and interview Heritage Foundation tax expert Romina Boccia. The team also talks literally all things liberty in Wisconsin, from tax cuts to civil asset forfeiture, minimum markup repeal, regulations (less of them), an unfortunate new corporate bailout, tort reform, and more. And of course, the crucial Janus v. AFSCME case and a new union lawsuit against Act 10...when will it end?
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Joshua Herr doesn't want to join the UAW. He doesn't see the value in being part of a union, and that's his right now that Wisconsin is a right-to-work state. But that doesn't matter to the union at the Kohler plant he works at. They've had "conversations" with him about the "benefits" of union membership, and posted his name above the punch clock calling him out as "not a union brother."
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Lawmakers have a chance to repeal large swaths of the state's antiquated minimum markup law. A bill doing just that recently had a long-overdue hearing. But special interests have a lot to protect from the scourge of competition, and on this, they're calling the shots. Looks like deep discounts will remain illegal in Wisconsin for the foreseeable future.
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Team MacIver talks about all the rake-stepping politicians are doing of late. In Wisconsin, they're pushing reviled alcohol regulations, ignoring a reform to the state's hated minimum markup law, and spending piles of money. Meanwhile, D.C. Democrats are finally realizing they completely botched their tax cut messaging. The team also talks about our dental therapy policy brief and Matt Kittle interviews Christy Jo Fogarty about the success of dental therapy in Minnesota.
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Just like the zombies in The Walking Dead, one particularly insidious proposal at Wisconsin's Capitol just won't die. The plan calls for beefing up Wisconsin's already-onerous three tier alcohol industry regulations and creating a powerful "alcohol czar" to lord over brewers and distillers. Such a scheme would likely run small, craft brewers and distilleries out of business. The proposal is dead, again, for now...but cronyism never seems to stay dead and buried.
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A new bill being circulated in the Legislature by Sen. Dave Craig and Rep. Joe Sanfelippo would establish a bicameral committee with the rarely used subpoena power. The aim would be to force slippery John Doe investigators and former GAB agents to sit before lawmakers and answer questions - under oath.
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Team MacIver celebrates the seventh anniversary of the introduction of Act 10 with a walk down memory lane and fond memories of throngs of protesters taking over the Capitol in 2011. But back here in 2018, it's another kind of Silly Season at the Capitol with plenty of new spending schemes. Speaking of silly, the team also talks about some outlandish statements by liberals running for governor. That, a look at the new bill to open an investigation into the John Doe investigators, and a look at the packed Capitol calendar in this week's MacIver Report!
Don’t miss the MacIver Report, new every Tuesday. SUBSCRIBE through SoundCloud, iTunes, Stitcher, TuneIn, and Google Play. And as always, please share the Report with your friends and family.
Environmentalists consider it a cataclysm when manure runoff from a farm gets into a nearby stream, but what about when a city intentionally dumps millions of gallons of raw sewage into a river? Nary a peep from the left. This is exactly what happened recently when the City of Wausau discharged 3.7 million gallons of raw sewage into the Wisconsin River.
Catch the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
A recent DOJ investigation unveiled breathtaking dysfunction in the Ozaukee County court system. The Clerk of Courts routinely oversteps her authority, the county fails to provide services mandated by law, and a judge who disrupted the normal order of dysfunction is seen as an impostor - just some of the allegations discovered in the report.
Catch the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
Team MacIver hacks its way through an episode without on-air extraordinaire Matt Kittle, who is out with a nasty bug. This week, the team takes its new podcast equipment for a test drive and talks about the state of the state, the state of the union (and dour Democrats), the latest in the Tax Cut Armageddon, some important bills at the Capitol, and more!
Listen next week as the team gets more comfortable with the new studio, tries some of the new bells and whistles, and maybe speaks into the right part of the mic.
Never miss an episode of the MacIver Report - be sure to subscribe on your favorite podcast app: SoundCloud, iTunes, Stitcher, TuneIn, and Google Play. And as always, please share the Report with your friends and family.
Perhaps the most troubling concern raised by the recently released Nunes memo were the games of obfuscation the FBI played to get a FISA court's permission to spy on an American citizen. Namely, the Steele Dossier - Democrat-funded campaign propaganda - was key to obtaining a wire tap on former Trump adviser Carter Page.
Catch the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
In this special supplemental MacIver Report interview, Bill Osmulski sits down in the MacIver studio with Mark Behrens with the American Tort Reform Association and John Beisner with the US Chamber’s Institute for Legal Reform. They discuss tort reform, class action lawsuits, and why limiting abuses of the legal system is important to job growth.
Unlike other spend-it-all politicians, Gov. Scott Walker is making good on a pledge he's made repeatedly on the campaign trail - return surplus tax revenue to the hard-working taxpayers it came from. Walker is now proposing to give $122 million back, and he can do it thanks to a larger than expected budget surplus that comes from prudent budget management.
Catch the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
Team MacIver is short one person because Bill Osmulski is out pursuing truth and justice! The rest of the team talks about Gov. Walker's State of the State speech, the whirlwind week in the John Doe saga, more news from the tax cut apocalypse, and a packed calendar at the state Capitol.
Don’t miss the MacIver Report, new every Tuesday and available through SoundCloud, iTunes, Stitcher, TuneIn, and Google Play. And as always, please share the Report with your friends and family.
Most Democrats have eagerly served as apologists for the John Doe probe and invasions of their political opponents' private communications. But one Democrat - David Halbrooks - is appalled by the episode, and last week called for Milwaukee County DA and fellow Democrat John Chisholm to lose this job for his central role in fathering the unconstitutional witch hunts.
Catch the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
For Republican members of the state Senate, the decision to reject the confirmations of Brian Bell and Michael Haas came down to a loss of faith in the two bureaucrats, who were both employees of the deeply partisan Government Accountability Board during the infamous John Doe investigations.
Catch the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
Gov. Walker last week introduced a new package of welfare reform bills - ten in all. Walker proposes that FoodShare cards include photo ID, expands work requirements, puts asset limits on certain programs, and more. With unemployment at a rock-bottom 3%, there are certainly jobs available for able-bodied adults currently on government assistance.
Read our summary here: http://bit.ly/2DgtVwg
Catch the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
Team MacIver is neck deep this week. Gov. Walker rolled out his new welfare reform package, tax cut armageddon is still creating havoc, John Doe reckoning is fast approaching, Wisconsin got good economic news...and the federal government was shut down for a short time. The MacIver team has insight about all of it! And buckets of chicken.
The MacIver Report is new every Tuesday. Subscribe through SoundCloud, iTunes, Stitcher, TuneIn, and Google Play and never miss an episode. And as always, please share the Report with your friends, family, and errant liberals.
A new bill by Rep. Jeremy Thiesfeldt addresses violence against teachers. A report by WISN's Dan O'Donnell last year exposed the growing problem of the physical assault of teachers by unruly students, but liberals think the bill is a bad idea because minority students would feel singled out.
Catch the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
Team MacIver takes some time off from their civil debate over the new Star Wars to talk about the boiling point coming up in Wisconsin's John Doe, check in on the charred ruins left behind by the tax cut apocalypse, and remind listeners about the PC police running wild at UW-Madison. That, and a highly insightful Capitol update including direct primary care legislation, a bill pre-empting locals on employment regs, and an important discussion about violence in the classroom. Oh - and who is Cookie Policy?
Don’t miss the MacIver Report, new every Tuesday and available through SoundCloud, iTunes, Stitcher, TuneIn, and Google Play. And as always, please share the Report with your errant liberal friends and change their lives forever.
Whatever happened to the apocalypse that liberal politicians predicted would engulf the planet on the way to the passage of tax cuts in December? Armageddon didn't happen, of course. Quite the opposite - millions of Americans are getting raises, bonuses, and enhanced retirement contributions.
Catch the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
Political correctness and the culture of victimhood at UW-Madison has gone so far that students are now using a "hate and bias" reporting system to get back at other students and professors over petty disputes and the smallest of micro-aggressions. That's unfortunate, because that dilutes the real stories of racism and harassment that do exist - just not in the numbers that these hate and bias reports portray.
Catch the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
Thanks to legislation by Rep. Joe Sanfelippo, the state will no longer slap Wisconsin athletes who win Olympic medals with a steep bill. In the past, heroic athletes would triumphantly return home only to face a big tax penalty on the medal and associated cash prizes. Catch the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
Team MacIver survived the bitter cold spell to bring you a report on the hotbed of hate pervading the UW-Madison student body - or at least, you might think that if you don't take a closer look at the actual hate and bias reports filed by students. Hear that and Team Mac's incredibly expert insight on a new problem at the Tomah VA, a dispatch from the front lines of the tax cut armageddon, the failure of ethanol, zombie regulations, and the latest at the state Capitol.
Don’t miss the MacIver Report, new every Tuesday and available through SoundCloud, iTunes, Stitcher, TuneIn, and Google Play. And as always, please share the Report with your friends and family.
Onerous ozone regulations left over from the Obama administration, like a flesh-fiending zombie, seemingly can't be killed. Now these zombie regulations threaten to take a bite out of the manufacturing economy in southeastern Wisconsin.
Catch the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
The MacIver News Minute takes a stroll through the top news stories of 2017.
Catch the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
Team MacIver is back from the holiday break to talk about failed New Years' Resolutions (getting in shape) and holiday promises kept (tax reform) - and talks about some proposals relevant to rural Wisconsin communities. That, and Matt Kittle talks with Deb Jordahl, one of the victims of the notorious John Doe raids, who hopes for justice in the new year.
Don’t miss the MacIver Report, new every Tuesday and available through SoundCloud, iTunes, Stitcher, TuneIn, and Google Play. And as always, please share the Report with your friends and family.
The exodus of young talent - the "brain drain" - has hit Wisconsin's northwoods especially hard in recent years. That trend could turn around if Wisconsin welcomes mining, and Gov. Walker recently signed a bill lifting a decades-old moratorium on nonferrous metallic mining in the state.
Hear the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
A Christmas message from your friends at MacIver. May you have safe travels and a wonderful Christmas with your loved ones.
Hear the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
Team MacIver plays prognosticator, wrapping up the big news of 2017, reminding you of the stories you may have missed, and attempting to read the crystal ball. That and the latest on John Doe and the final chapter of Washington's tax reform saga in the MacIver Report's year-in-review episode.
Never miss an episode of the MacIver Report, new every Tuesday and available through SoundCloud, iTunes, Stitcher, TuneIn, and Google Play. And as always, please share the Report with your friends and family.
Cutting the tax burden and letting people keep more of what they earn will lead to more jobs and stronger economic growth - 65,000 more Wisconsin jobs and $2.5 billion in higher wages in 2018 alone, according to a new study released by the MacIver Institute. But liberals have their own alternate-reality math when it comes to tax reform.
Hear the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
The infamous John Doe probe cast an even more expansive net than conservatives had feared, according to a new DOJ report on the leak of sealed John Doe documents to the Guardian newspaper. Rogue investigators even continued the probe after a judge ordered them to stop, and they kept seized documents in a file named "opposition research."
Hear the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
Team MacIver zeroes in on the latest revelations about Wisconsin's John Doe probe. According to a new DOJ report, the probe was far more expansive and intrusive than even conservatives believed. That, and Bill Osmulski (not actually a coffee bean farmer)is joined in the studio by Townhall political editor Guy Benson. Guy shares his insights about federal tax reform - sifting through the facts, distortions, and outright lies.
Don’t miss the MacIver Report, new every Tuesday and available through SoundCloud, iTunes, Stitcher, TuneIn, and Google Play. And as always, please share the Report with your friends and family.
Sen. Dave Craig (R-Town of Vernon) tells MacIver's Matt Kittle that state lawmakers should establish a bicameral commission to force highly partisan GAB staffers involved in the John Doe probe to testify under oath and face consequences. A bombshell DOJ report found they were essentially conducting "opposition research" against conservatives during John Doe.
More Jay Weber at News/Talk 1130 WISN: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/the-jay-weber-show-28167130/
Sen. Tom Tiffany (R-Hazelhurst) joins MacIver's Matt Kittle, filling in for Jay Weber on News/Talk 1130 WISN. Tiffany talks about his bill lifting a 20-year moratorium on nonferrous metallic mining in Wisconsin, soon to be signed by Gov. Scott Walker. He also calls for consequences for the highly partisan witch hunters behind the John Doe probe.
More Jay Weber at News/Talk 1130 WISN: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/the-jay-weber-show-28167130/
UW-Madison Young Americans for Liberty President and MacIver intern Tyler Brandt joins the Vicki McKenna Show to talk about an effort at UW-Madison to make sure thought crime offenders end up in ProPublica's national database of "hate crimes" - which can include almost anything that someone decides to complain about.
Read his column here: bit.ly/2Awin9J
More Vicki McKenna at News/Talk 1310 WIBA: wiba.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
Donna Murr and her siblings had no idea how intrusive government can get - until they went to sell a second lot attached to their folks' lakefront cabin. They found out the lots had been merged by bureaucratic fiat years ago and they weren't allowed to sell half the property. That property rights injustice was corrected by a newly enacted law authored by Rep. Adam Jarchow.
Hear the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
Attorney General Brad Schimel talks about the Dept. of Justice's bombshell new report on the John Doe that found extensive wrongdoing by highly partisan GAB officials, contrary to pervasive reports in the mainstream media. Kittle guests hosts the Dan Conry Show on News/Talk 1310 WIBA.
Read the MacIver News report here: http://bit.ly/2Am4xYx
More Dan Conry at News/Talk 1310 WIBA: wiba.iheart.com/media/podcast-dan-conry-danconry/
MacIver's Matt Kittle, whose work covering the John Doe abuses in Wisconsin are extensive and meticulous, talks about breaking news about a Dept. of Justice report revealing the true extent and abuse of the notorious dragnets.
More Vicki McKenna at News/Talk 1130 WISN: http://newstalk1130.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
While Mike Flynn and the FBI trumped all in the past week's media coverage, the once-in-a-generation tax overhaul effort continued to crawl toward the finish line when it passed the Senate early Saturday. Team MacIver talks about that, tort reform, expensive hemp, winners and losers of the week, the latest Detroit football failure, and unhinged Twitter trolls (and much more) in this week's MacIver Report.
Don’t miss the MacIver Report, new every Tuesday and available through SoundCloud, iTunes, Stitcher, TuneIn, and Google Play. And as always, please share the Report with your friends and family.
Keith Smith knows why tax reform is critical to the economy. A small business owner who recently moved his operation to Wisconsin from Illinois, Smith was one of more than 100 business owners who went to Washington to push for tax reform last week. Smith will use tax savings to accelerate his company's $8 million expansion.
Hear the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
Were you an accomplice to a Black Friday or Cyber Monday crime? Minimum markup, a relic of the Great Depression, effectively makes really good deals illegal and requires gas, alcohol, and tobacco to be marked up a certain percent - so beware of the Wisconsin Price Police while you do your holiday shopping!
Hear the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
MacIver education analyst Ola Lisowski joins Oliver Burrows on WXCO in Wausau to talk turkey about Wisconsin's K-12 report cards and offer insight into local schools' results.
Visit WXCO here: www.1230wxco.com
MacIver Investigative Reporter Matt Kittle joins Oliver Burrows on WXCO in Wausau for his weekly discussion of Wisconsin news and politics. Up this week - the antiquated minimum markup law.
Visit WXCO here: www.1230wxco.com
Thanks to bureaucratic sleight of hand, the state Department of Public Instruction uses "magic" tricks to make some public K-12 schools' failure look like success. Hear the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
Team MacIver survived their Thanksgiving food comas and run-ins with the Black Friday mobs and Price Police to bring you the third episode of the MacIver Report. The team talks about minimum markup, takes a deeper dive into K-12 report cards, and of course - tax reform - and so much more! Don't miss the MacIver Report, new every Tuesday!
Over in bureaucrat-world, 66 percent is a passing grade. That's the kind of magic trick that lets DPI bureaucrats say there are no failing school districts in Wisconsin. In fact, all schools get at least one gold star even if they're failing to meet expectations. MacIver education analyst Ola Lisowski discusses this and more on the Vicki McKenna Show on WISN in Milwaukee.
Read the full report here: http://bit.ly/2jfQ0Ci
More Vicki McKenna at News/Talk 1130 WISN: http://newstalk1130.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
MacIver's education expert joins the Vicki McKenna Show on WIBA in Madison to talk about new K-12 report card data and the normative scoring approach that DPI bureaucrats use to rank schools - which means which schools are deemed successful is open to question.
Read the report here: http://bit.ly/2jfQ0Ci
More Vicki McKenna at News/Talk 1310 WIBA: wiba.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
MacIver education analyst Ola Lisowski joins the Jerry Bader Show to discuss the state's recently released K-12 report cards. All schools get a gold star this year - even the ones that are failing to meet expectations, including some underperforming schools in Green Bay.
Read the report here: http://bit.ly/2jfQ0Ci
More Jerry Bader at News Talk 1360 WTAQ: http://wtaq.com/podcasts/the-jerry-bader-show/
In the left's war on free speech, common sense finally won when the UW-Stevens Point administration overturned the student government's vote to reject Turning Point USA - a mainstream free market group - when conservative students petitioned to start a campus chapter. Hear the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
In this Thanksgiving edition of the MacIver Report, the MacIver team gives you their turkey-and tryptophan-fueled insights into federal tax reform, new school report cards in Wisconsin, the state's antiquated minimum markup law, the latest saga in campus free speech, and much, much more. Also, find out what stories went below the radar and who the team thinks had a good week, and who had a bad week. Matt Kittle also talks with Rep. Joe Sanfelippo about his Direct Primary Care legislation.
Don't miss the MacIver Report, new every Tuesday!
UW-Stevens Point CR Chair Amelia Heup talks with MacIver's Matt Kittle on the Dan O'Donnell Show about the UW-SP student senate's rejection of conservative students' request to start a Turning Point USA chapter. The mainstream conservative group deserves the same access to the campus as a slough of left-wing groups and the College Republicans enjoy.
More Dan O’Donnell at News/Talk 1130 WISN: http://newstalk1130.iheart.com/onair/dan-odonnell-37717/
Rep. Glenn Grothmann (R-Glenbeulah) joins MacIver's Matt Kittle on the Dan O'Donnell show to talk about the House's recent passage of its Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. Grothmann comments on Sen. Ron Johnson's recently announced opposition to the Senate's version of the bill, and he is confident a good tax reform bill will become law.
More Dan O’Donnell at News/Talk 1130 WISN: http://newstalk1130.iheart.com/onair/dan-odonnell-37717/
MacIver's Bill Osmulski sits down in the MacIver News Service studio with Tori Whiting, Research Associate at the Center for International Trade and Economics at the Heritage Foundation. Tori discusses the state of free trade and its positive impact on Wisconsin's economy.
Liberal students at UW-Stevens Point think advocating for free markets and fiscal responsibility equates to hate and racism. That's evidently why they denied a handful of students' request to start a chapter of mainstream conservative group Turning Point USA on campus. Hear the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
Madison is on mission to add one to the basic rights best bestowed upon all men and women - they're on a costly quest to secure life, liberty, and free broadband internet for all. Of course, it's a boondoggle. Hear the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
MacIver's Chris Rochester joins Oliver Burrows on WXCO in Wausau to update listeners on the news of the week - Foxconn, a win for Wisconsin workers, and Obamacare, a never-ending nightmare for Wisconsinites.
Visit WXCO here: www.1230wxco.com
MacIver Investigative Reporter Matt Kittle joins Oliver Burrows on WXCO in Wausau for his weekly discussion of Wisconsin news and politics. Up this week - the IRS pays up, more questions about the shadowy Public Finance Authority, and Madison pursues its quest to make high-speed internet a human right.
Visit WXCO here: www.1230wxco.com
In the inaugural MacIver Report, the new weekly podcast of the MacIver Institute, the MacIver team talks about the shadowy Public Finance Authority, reforming the state tax code in 2018, the IRS paying for its targeting of conservative groups, and much more insight you won't find anywhere else. Also, find out who the team thinks had a good week, and who had a bad week. Don't miss the MacIver Report, new every Tuesday!
State Rep. Joe Sanfelippo (R-New Berlin) believes the free-market can lead the nation out of the health care mess wrought by liberals over the past several years. To that end, he's circulating legislation that would establish a state direct primary care program for the 1.1 million people on Medical Assistance in the Badger State. Sanfelippo joins MacIver's Matt Kittle, guest hosting for Dan O'Donnell on News/Talk 1130 WISN.
Read the MacIver report here: http://bit.ly/2jm8Tr7
More Dan O’Donnell at News/Talk 1130 WISN: http://newstalk1130.iheart.com/onair/dan-odonnell-37717/
State Rep. Adam Jarchow joins MacIver's Matt Kittle to discuss his package of property rights bills, including a bill overriding the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Murr vs. St. Croix County - restoring the rights of property owners to divide and sell a parcel of land. Kittle is guest hosting for Dan O'Donnell on News/Talk 1130 WISN.
More Dan O’Donnell at News/Talk 1130 WISN: http://newstalk1130.iheart.com/onair/dan-odonnell-37717/
City leaders in Madison think free taxpayer-funded internet is a human right - and they've spent at least $841,000 on this vision of life, liberty and the pursuit of broadband. MacIver's Matt Kittle discusses his latest report while guest hosting for Dan Conry on News/Talk 1310 WIBA in Madison.
Read the MacIver News report here: http://bit.ly/2i0zh6b
More Dan Conry at News/Talk 1310 WIBA: wiba.iheart.com/media/podcast-dan-conry-danconry/
Skyrocketing premiums, unaffordable deductibles, lost coverage...today's MacIver News Minute tells the horror stories of just a few Wisconsinites who are being crushed by Obamacare. Hear the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
What's in a name? The Rock River Patriots were among 400 groups with conservative-themed names illegally targeted by the IRS during the Obama administration. Patriotism isn't just an expression of love of country, but a tool used by the IRS to single these groups out. Hear the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
Eddie Greim, attorney at Kansas City-based law firm Graves Garrett, joins MacIver's Matt Kittle to talk about the seven-figure settlement the IRS has agreed to as a result of its targeting of conservative groups under the Obama administration. Kittle is guest hosting the Vicki McKenna Show on News/Talk 1130 WISN.
More Vicki McKenna at News/Talk 1130 WISN: http://newstalk1130.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
The Democrat attorney known as the "Fixer," Marc Elias, is now embroiled in the contrived Russian Dossier scandal, a discredited smear job against then-candidate Trump. The fixer, who was hired by Sen. Tammy Baldwin to paper over her inaction during the Tomah VA "Candyland" scandal, now needs a fixer of his own. Hear the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
WISN's Jay Weber highlights MacIver's latest analysis of the never-ending Obamacare nightmare. In Wisconsin, 2018 will bring a 36% premium price spike, and 75,000 Wisconsinites will lose their coverage at the end of 2017 thanks to insurers fleeing the fragile market. Callers also describe their own Obamacare nightmare.
Read MacIver's Obamacare analysis here: http://bit.ly/2z4I0vE
More Jay Weber at News/Talk 1130 WISN: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/the-jay-weber-show-28167130/
MacIver President Brett Healy joins Vicki McKenna on News/Talk 1310 to discuss the never-ending Obamacare nightmare. With open enrollment now underway for 2018, Wisconsinites will be hit with a 36 percent premium increase, and 75,000 people will lose their coverage at the end of the year.
Read MacIver's latest Obamacare analysis here: http://bit.ly/2z4I0vE
More Vicki McKenna at News/Talk 1310 WIBA: wiba.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
Assembly Majority Leader Jim Steineke hopes the Assembly's action on a bill lifting a 20-year moratorium on nonferrous metallic mining will give senators the necessary push to approve the legislation. The bill is short by one vote in the Senate. Steineke joined MacIver's Matt Kittle on the Vicki McKenna Show on Tuesday on News/Talk 1130 WISN.
Read more here: http://bit.ly/2h7urqC
More Vicki McKenna at News/Talk 1130 WISN: http://newstalk1130.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
The Halloween edition of the MacIver News Minute zeroes in on the spooky IRS, the federal blood-suckers who blocked conservative groups from exercising their right to free speech during the Obama tenure. Now, the vampire slayers have prevailed and the IRS has agreed to pay up to the tune of a seven figure settlement.
Hear the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
The left is apoplectic that President Trump would dare end Obamacare payments to health insurance companies - blatantly illegal payments because Congress never authorized them. Of course, furious liberals are using the opportunity to blame Obamacare's failures on the GOP. Hear the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
Wisconsin workers are exiting unions in droves in the wake of collective bargaining reforms that let workers choose whether to join a union. Even in Madison, union membership plunged from 21% in 2010 to 5.4% last year. Hear the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
Obamacare was a lie when it passed, and it's a bigger lie now. State officials recently announced a 36% premium increase for Wisconsin next year, and 75,000 people will lose their plans. "If you like your plan, you can keep your plan"...or not. Hear the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
José Delgado, a UW System Regent, knows the value of free speech from his experiences growing up in Communist Cuba. That's why he so strongly supported policy changes aimed at preventing campus mobs from shouting down speakers they don't like. Hear the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
The latest MacIver News Minute celebrates the end of the Obama-era "Clean Power Plan," a slate of draconian regulations that would've cost Wisconsin's economy billions of dollars. The Trump EPA announced the end of the rules on Monday. Hear the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
The latest MacIver News Minute spotlights the success of Gov. Walker's welfare reforms. New data shows that 21,000 people have gained employment after participating in FoodShare Employment Training (FSET) - and more people are taking part voluntarily. Hear the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Read the MacIver report here: http://bit.ly/2g4U1ZN Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
The latest MacIver News Minute describes how Kevin Kennedy, one of the ringleaders of the John Doe raids rightly dubbed "Wisconsin's Shame," open violated the secrecy order imposed on agents of the Doe at a confab of his fellow speech cops last year. Hear the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
Kevin Kennedy is still under the same secrecy order that his thuggish free speech police imposed on victims of the notorious John Doe raids of conservative activists' homes in 2013. That didn't stop him from flouting the law at a confab of his fellow speech police, revealing John Doe secrets. MacIver's Matt Kittle discusses this latest development in the Doe saga on the Vicki McKenna Show.
Read the MacIver report with audio of Kennedy's remarks here: http://bit.ly/2xNzJhx
More Vicki McKenna at News/Talk 1310 WIBA: wiba.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
The latest MacIver News Minute highlights the state's latest dismal test results, but that data also shows students in choice programs throughout the state outperformed their peers. Hear the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
MacIver's Chris Rochester joins Bob Schmidt on Today's Talk 1490 WLFN in La Crosse to talk about the newly passed 2017-19 state budget and why prevailing wage repeal and school choice expansion are important aspects of the new spending plan.
Read MacIver's budget analysis here: http://bit.ly/2xv2Bel
Visit Today's Talk 1490 WLFN here: www.1490wlfn.com/index.html
MacIver President Brett Healy joins Oliver Burrows on WXCO in Wausau to update listeners on what's in the newly signed 2017-19 Wisconsin state budget.
Read MacIver's budget analysis here: http://bit.ly/2xv2Bel
Visit WXCO here: www.1230wxco.com
The Sept. 28 MacIver News Minute goes after a UW-Madison "study" that uses dubious survey results to claim 17,000 people were deterred from voting in 2016 because of Wisconsin's Voter ID law. Hear the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Read the MacIver News report here: http://bit.ly/2fy3xHF
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
The latest MacIver News Minute condenses the recently enacted 2017-19 state budget into one minute - the good, the bad, and the ugly. Hear the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Read MacIver's budget analysis here: http://bit.ly/2xv2Bel
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
Governor Scott Walker discusses the 2017-19 state budget that he signed into law Thursday with MacIver's Matt Kittle, filling in for Vicki McKenna on News/Talk 1130 WIBA.
More Vicki McKenna at News/Talk 1310 WIBA: wiba.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
The latest MacIver News Minute lets the public know about last-minute budget language that would have given the shadowy Public Finance Authority the power of eminent domain. We say "would have" because Gov. Walker used his veto pen to strike the concerning language on Thursday. Hear the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
MacIver President Brett Healy joins Vicki McKenna to review the recently signed 2017-19 state budget and Gov. Walker's vetoes, which included the excising of controversial language that would've given the shadowy Public Finance Authority the power of eminent domain.
More Vicki McKenna at News/Talk 1310 WIBA: wiba.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
MacIver's Matt Kittle joins Vicki McKenna to talk about the case of Sabina Burton, who testified Tuesday in her own defense - and for her livelihood - before a jury of her faculty peers. The UW-Platteville Criminal Justice professor blew the whistle on allegations of misconduct by administrators, who she now claims are on a quest to remove her.
Read the MacIver News report here: http://bit.ly/2f8Y4U2
More Vicki McKenna at News/Talk 1310 WIBA: wiba.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
In the latest MacIver News Minute, we tell listeners that Gov. Walker recently gave DPI Superintendent Tony Evers an F for his education improvement plan required under federal law. The plan is just more squishy bureaucracy - and Walker wants the education chief to re-do his homework. Hear the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Read the MacIver News report here: http://bit.ly/2f8bZNt
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
In the latest MacIver News Minute, we highlight the champions of school choice - parents. It's parents who expand school choice, not politicians, to paraphrase Rep. Mary Felzkowski's eloquent defense of the policy. Hear the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
MacIver's Matt Kittle joins Vicki McKenna to update listeners on the status of the Wisconsin budget, including a concerning provision that could create a new bureaucracy under the Transportation Projects Commission. The budget passed the Assembly Wednesday, and is scheduled for a Senate vote on Friday.
More Vicki McKenna at News/Talk 1310 WIBA: wiba.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
In the latest MacIver News Minute, we remind listeners that eliminating a tax is as rare as last month's total eclipse. But in this budget cycle, the Legislature actually deleted two taxes from the books. Hear the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
MacIver's Ola Lisowski joins Vicki McKenna to talk about our annual report on the state of education in Wisconsin. Highlights include failures at the state's largest districts, educrat math, free computers for freshmen, and Illinois leapfrogging Wisconsin on increasing access to school choice.
Read the report here: http://bit.ly/2xfSgSX
More Vicki McKenna at News/Talk 1310 WIBA: wiba.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
In this week's MacIver News Minute, we talk about the state's antiquated minimum markup law, which makes many good deals illegal. Hear the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
MacIver President Brett Healy joins Vicki McKenna to discuss the wins, losses, and question marks in the 2017-19 state budget recently passed by the state Legislature's Joint Finance Committee.
More Vicki McKenna at News/Talk 1310 WIBA: wiba.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
Joint Finance Co-Chair Rep. John Nygren talks about Wisconsin's 2017-19 state budget, which passed its final vote in the state's budget committee Wednesday night. The budget eliminates the state's Alternative Minimum Tax and Forestry Mill Tax, and doesn't increase the gas tax or general vehicle registration fee. Nygren joins MacIver's Matt Kittle, filling in for Jay Weber on News/Talk 1130 WISN.
More Jay Weber at News/Talk 1130 WISN: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/the-jay-weber-show-28167130/
MacIver President Brett Healy joins Oliver Burrows on WXCO in Wausau to update listeners on the Foxconn deal and the state budget, which are now both moving quickly through the Legislature on their way to Gov. Walker's desk.
Visit WXCO here: www.1230wxco.com
Wisconsin is just one of six states that still has an Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT), which is now impacting middle income families. It's effectively a second income tax in Wisconsin, while other states have no income tax at all. Rep. Kooyenga explains with Matt Kittle filling in for Dan Conry on News/Talk 1310 WIBA.
Read the report here: http://bit.ly/2vCJjiG
More Dan Conry at News/Talk 1310 WIBA: wiba.iheart.com/media/podcast-dan-conry-danconry/
MacIver's Matt Kittle joins Vicki McKenna live from the Capitol as the Joint Finance Committee continues work on the state budget. Inside the hearing room, JFC deliberated K-12 funding. Meanwhile a deal on transportation - which the committee will take up next week - seems to be taking shape.
More Vicki McKenna at News/Talk 1310 WIBA: wiba.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
In this week's MacIver News Minute, we explain an astroturf campaign to plant phony letters in newspapers around the state, an effort to manufacture support for a gas tax hike. Hear the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
MacIver's Chris Rochester joins Oliver Burrows on WXCO in Wausau to update listeners on the Foxconn deal, which went through its second public hearing at a Joint Finance meeting Tuesday in Sturtevant.
Visit WXCO here: www.1230wxco.com
MacIver's Chris Rochester joins Bob Schmidt on Today's Talk 1490 WLFN in La Crosse to give a high-level overview of the Foxconn deal, where it's at on the road to approval, and what to expect next.
Visit Today's Talk 1490 WLFN here: http://www.1490wlfn.com/index.html
MacIver President Brett Healy joins Oliver Burrows on Wausau's WXCO to update listeners on the Foxconn deal, the state budget, and Moody's upgrade of Wisconsin's bond rating.
Visit WXCO here: http://www.1230wxco.com
Gov. Scott Walker joins MacIver's Matt Kittle to talk about Foxconn and Moody's upgrade of Wisconsin's bond rating to Aa1. Both are possible because of stability and reforms that have made Wisconsin competitive. Kittle is filling in for Vicki McKenna on News/Talk 1310 WIBA.
More Vicki McKenna at News/Talk 1310 WIBA: wiba.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
In this week's MacIver News Minute, we tell the story of Robert Stietz, a 69-year-old farmer who spent a year in prison after a mistaken confrontation with DNR wardens. Few are aware that the DNR can stroll onto private property without even a suspicion of wrongdoing. Legislation by Rep. Adam Jarchow seeks to change that. Hear the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
MacIver's Chris Rochester joins Matt Kittle live from the Capitol as an Assembly committee debates and votes on a historic $3 billion incentives package for electronics manufacturing giant Foxconn.
Read more here: http://bit.ly/2x0iWU4
More Vicki McKenna at News/Talk 1310 WIBA: wiba.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
MacIver President Brett Healy joins the Vicki McKenna Show to update listeners on the Foxconn incentives package and budget, which the Senate wants to advance together at the end of August.
More Vicki McKenna at News/Talk 1310 WIBA: wiba.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
In the inaugural MacIver News Minute, we tell the story of Nic and Mac Ruffi, young ice cream entrepreneurs whose goal of selling ice cream from the back of their bikes was stymied by city regulations. Hear the MacIver News Minute on News/Talk 1130 WISN every Tuesday and Thursday at 8, 11, and 2.
Listen to News/Talk 1130 WISN live: https://www.iheart.com/live/1130-wisn-4245/
Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch joins MacIver's Matt Kittle on the Jay Weber Show to talk about the potential for the massive Foxconn project to transform Wisconsin's economy and benefit industries far beyond the electronics sector.
More Jay Weber at News/Talk 1130 WISN: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/the-jay-weber-show-28167130/
Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald talks about the Senate's concerns over the timeline and content of the $3 billion Foxconn incentives package making its way through the Assembly, a process Fitzgerald says his members have been locked out of. Fitzgerald joins MacIver's Matt Kittle on the Jay Weber Show.
More Jay Weber at News/Talk 1130 WISN: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/the-jay-weber-show-28167130/
Wisconsin Democrats recently proposed opening BadgerCare to everyone willing to buy in. They ignored warnings from the nonpartisan LFB that their plan is bad - it's likely to reduce access to healthcare for everyone on the program and could cost taxpayers more money. Vicki McKenna discusses.
Read MacIver's commentary here: http://bit.ly/2vg0fhv
More Vicki McKenna at News/Talk 1130 WISN: http://newstalk1130.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
The Foxconn deal eliminates duplicative and questionable regulations for the tech giant, but businesses around the state would benefit if the same treatment were extended to them. Also, should the state Supreme Court defer to state agencies? Scott Manley of Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce joins MacIver's Matt Kittle, filling in for Dan O'Donnell on News/Talk 1130 WISN.
More Dan O’Donnell at News/Talk 1130 WISN: http://newstalk1130.iheart.com/onair/dan-odonnell-37717/
MacIver President Brett Healy joins the Vicki McKenna Show to talk about the state of Wisconsin's still-stalled budget, and discuss a report that found DOT saved nearly $50 million in bid letting over the last fiscal year.
Read the report here: http://bit.ly/2vplduG
More Vicki McKenna at News/Talk 1310 WIBA: wiba.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
Jay Weber talks about MacIver's report describing the benefits of free trade with Mexico. Since NAFTA was passed in the early 1990s, trade between Wisconsin and Mexico has increased a whopping 926%. Just last year alone, trade with Mexico produced $3 billion in economic value for the Badger State.
Read the report here: http://bit.ly/2hjE1WK
More Jay Weber on News/Talk 1130 WISN: http://newstalk1130.iheart.com/featured/the-jay-weber-show/
MacIver's Matt Kittle joins Vicki McKenna to update listeners on the now-infamous John Doe abuses. In his nostalgic lamentations over the defunct Government Accountability Board and the good ol' days when law enforcement could raid conservatives' homes in search of dubious campaign finance violations, Kevin Kennedy - former GAB head - himself might have committed a serious crime.
Read the report here: http://bit.ly/2wehJYW
More Vicki McKenna at News/Talk 1310 WIBA: wiba.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
MacIver President Brett Healy joined Vicki McKenna live from Thursday's Foxconn Rollout at the Milwaukee Art Museum. Gov. Walker and Foxconn Founder and CEO Terry Gou signed memorandums of understanding agreeing to a mega-deal that invests $10 billion and creates up to 13,000 jobs in Wisconsin.
More Vicki McKenna at News/Talk 1310 WIBA: wiba.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
MacIver President Brett Healy joins Matt Kittle, sitting in for Vicki McKenna, to talk about the big news of the day and a game changer for Wisconsin and the Midwest: Electronics mega-manufacturer Foxconn will locate a massive manufacturing campus in Wisconsin - a $10 billion investment that will create 13,000 jobs.
Read the MacIver News story here: http://bit.ly/2uYEGSU
More Vicki McKenna at News/Talk 1130 WISN: http://newstalk1130.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
Sen. Leah Vukmir joins MacIver's Matt Kittle, filling in for Vicki McKenna on News/Talk 1130 WISN, to talk about the breaking news of Wisconsin's Foxconn deal and update us on progress on the stalled state budget.
More Vicki McKenna at News/Talk 1130 WISN: http://newstalk1130.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
MacIver's Matt Kittle joins Vicki McKenna to talk about the story of Robert Stietz, who did prison time after a mistaken confrontation with unidentified DNR wardens, who have virtually limitless ability to barge onto private property. Legislation has been introduced to rein in DNR's carte blanche to violate individuals' property rights.
See the report here: http://bit.ly/2uPSYoX
More Vicki McKenna at News/Talk 1310 WIBA: wiba.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
MacIver's Chris Rochester joins Vicki McKenna to talk about his column exposing an apparent effort to place fake letters in newspapers throughout the state to make it look like average motorists are clamoring for a gas tax increase.
See the report here: http://bit.ly/2tTQVf6
More Vicki McKenna at News/Talk 1310 WIBA: wiba.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
Mark Belling discusses MacIver's report exposing what looks like a copy/paste campaign to place letters from supposedly concerned citizens demanding action on fixing the state's roads and asking for a gas tax increase.
Read the report here: http://bit.ly/2tTQVf6
More Mark Belling at News/Talk 1130 WISN: newstalk1130.iheart.com/media/podcast…-MarkBelling/
MacIver President Brett Healy joins Vicki McKenna to talk about one strange week in Wisconsin's stalled budget negotiations. Earlier in the week, the Senate presented its budget plan - and a couple days later, the Assembly announced that it has reached a deal with Governor Walker to sacrifice the gov's income tax cuts at the altar of transportation.
More Vicki McKenna at News/Talk 1310 WIBA: wiba.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
MacIver's Bill Osmulski joins Vicki McKenna to talk about Milwaukee's debt problem. While Mayor Tom Barrett claims the city's budget problems could cause the layoffs of police and firefighters and blames Republicans in the Legislature, the fact is that under Barrett the city's spending and borrowing has ballooned.
Read the report here: http://bit.ly/2uIu76V
More Vicki McKenna at News/Talk 1130 WISN: http://newstalk1130.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
MacIver's Bill Osmulski joins Vicki McKenna to talk about road bonding. Some in the Capitol want to eliminate borrowing for roads completely, while others say a reasonable amount of bonding is normal. Bill's report finds what a reasonable level of bonding is.
Read the report here: http://bit.ly/2uB2lsS
More Vicki McKenna at News/Talk 1310 WIBA: wiba.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
MacIver's Matt Kittle talks to Sarah Ruffi, whose 12-year-old son simply wants to sell ice cream from a bicycle cart as a summer project. Unfortunately for the young entrepreneur, city bureaucrats in Wausau had a long and pricey list of demands before they'd grant a government permission slip. Kittle is filling in for Vicki McKenna on her WISN show.
More Vicki McKenna at News/Talk 1130 WISN: http://newstalk1130.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
On Thursday, Gov. Walker offered a compromise plan for transportation funding that borrows $200 million less than his previous proposal. Assembly Majority Leader Jim Steineke joins MacIver's Matt Kittle to react to the governor's proposal as Kittle fills in for Vicki McKenna.
More Vicki McKenna at News/Talk 1130 WISN: http://newstalk1130.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
MacIver Institute President Brett Healy joins Eric Bott, State Director of AFP-Wisconsin, to talk about the state of the state budget, including a controversial "truck tax" idea circulating the Capitol. MacIver's Matt Kittle is filling in for Vicki McKenna.
More Vicki McKenna at News/Talk 1130 WISN: http://newstalk1130.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
MacIver President Brett Healy joins Vicki McKenna to discuss Wisconsin's lavish sick leave benefit for state workers. State workers get 16.25 days per year on average that they can roll over year-to-year, converting them to health coverage in retirement. The program's cost has grown to $168 million in 2016 alone. Vicki also reads a special email on the topic from a listener.
Read the report here: http://bit.ly/2toQ2PP
More Vicki McKenna at News/Talk 1310 WIBA: wiba.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
Last year, state employees who retired converted more than $168 million worth of unused sick leave, which was used to purchase post-retirement health care, according to documents obtained by the MacIver Institute.
Read the report here: http://bit.ly/2toQ2PP
More Vicki McKenna at News/Talk 1310 WIBA: wiba.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
MacIver's Ola Lisowski joins Vicki McKenna to share her analysis of the Democrats' K-12 education plan rolled out last week. The plan is a Frankenstein assembled from pieces of Gov. Walker and Assembly Republicans' plans, but with - wait for it - a ton of more spending.
The analysis: http://bit.ly/2tcQjVt
More Vicki McKenna at News/Talk 1310 WIBA: wiba.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
MacIver Institute President Brett Healy joins Eric Bott, State Director of AFP-Wisconsin, to talk about the week in Wisconsin politics. MacIver's Matt Kittle is filling in for Dan O'Donnell.
More Dan O’Donnell at News/Talk 1130 WISN: http://newstalk1130.iheart.com/onair/dan-odonnell-37717/
MacIver's Bill Osmulski joins Vicki McKenna to share his report on how Marquette County manages to have the highest-quality roads in the state while getting nearly the lowest amount of state aid per mile. Meanwhile, counties with the highest state aid have the worst roads.
Bill's report: http://bit.ly/2sPROIS
More Vicki McKenna at News/Talk 1310 WIBA: wiba.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
MacIver's Matt Kittle joins Vicki McKenna to talk about the state of the media and his experience as a panelist on the Cap Times' forum on media bias in Wisconsin.
More Vicki McKenna at News/Talk 1130 WISN: http://newstalk1130.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
Rep. Rob Hutton (R-Brookfield) joined MacIver's Matt Kittle on the Dan O'Donnell show to talk about why the state's Prevailing Wage law should be repealed, and debunk a so-called study about the repeal peddled by legislative Democrats.
More Dan O’Donnell at News/Talk 1130 WISN: http://newstalk1130.iheart.com/onair/dan-odonnell-37717/
Rep. Dale Kooyenga joins MacIver’s Matt Kittle on the Dan O’Donnell Show. Rep. Kooyenga makes the free market case against an attempt by anonymous special interests to change Wisconsin’s alcohol regulations and box out small craft brewers and wineries. He’s also optimistic about budget negotiations on K-12 funding.
More Dan O’Donnell at News/Talk 1130 WISN: http://newstalk1130.iheart.com/onair/dan-odonnell-37717/
Heritage Foundation legal scholar Hans von Spakovsky joins MacIver's Matt Kittle on the Dan O'Donnell show to talk about the U.S. Supreme Court taking up Wisconsin's redistricting lawsuit. The high court recently granted a stay in an earlier order to redraw the legislative maps by November.
More Dan O’Donnell at News/Talk 1130 WISN: http://newstalk1130.iheart.com/onair/dan-odonnell-37717/
Congressman Glenn Grothman joins MacIver's Matt Kittle filling in for Vicki McKenna to give an update on The Swamp. Rep. Grothman talks about the federal budget, redistricting going to SCOTUS, and more.
More Vicki here: http://newstalk1130.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
MacIver's Matt Kittle fills in for Mark Belling and is joined by Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform, who notes that Wisconsin is about to be the first state in the nation to pass its own state-level REINS Act.
More on the REINS Act here: http://bit.ly/2rci10g
More Belling here: newstalk1130.iheart.com/media/podcast…-MarkBelling/
MacIver's Bill Osmulski joins Vicki McKenna on June 9 to talk about recently released budget papers that outline 11 ways Republicans on the Joint Finance Committee could raise taxes to fund transportation, including a nearly billion-dollar sales tax increase.
That report here: http://bit.ly/2rb0hT2
More Vicki here: http://newstalk1130.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
MacIver's Matt Kittle fills in for Mark Belling and talks with Sen. Leah Vukmir, who says the state Senate is doing its job and ironing out budget details as the Assembly hit the road to publicize its K-12 education plan.
More Belling here: newstalk1130.iheart.com/media/podcast…-MarkBelling/
MacIver Institute President Brett Healy joins Eric Bott, State Director of AFP-Wisconsin, to talk about the busy week at the Wisconsin state Capitol. MacIver's Matt Kittle is filling in for Dan Conry.
More Dan Conry: http://wiba.iheart.com/media/podcast-dan-conry-danconry/
MacIver Institute President Brett Healy talks with Vicki McKenna about the Assembly GOP's impromptu road show publicizing its K-12 plan, the ongoing budget impasse, and where it all will lead. Walker, after all, holds one of the most powerful veto pens in the country.
More Vicki here: wiba.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
Matt Kittle joins Vicki McKenna to talk about the annual "RadFest" - now called Forward 2017 - organized by UW-Madison's Haven Center, where anti-Capitalists, socialists, and "the resistance" are gathering this weekend. http://bit.ly/2qOojlS
More Vicki here: wiba.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
MacIver President Brett Healy joins Vicki McKenna on WISN to talk about an anonymous proposal slithering its way through the Legislature that would create a new bureaucracy and strangle the growing craft brewery, winery, and distillery business in Wisconsin.
More Vicki here: http://newstalk1130.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
MacIver Institute President Brett Healy joins Matt Kittle, filling in on the Mark Belling Show, to talk about the latest with Wisconsin's budget. Will Republicans agree with Gov. Walker's plans to lower taxes?
More Belling here: http://newstalk1130.iheart.com/media/podcast-mark-belling-show-podcast-MarkBelling/
MacIver Institute President Brett Healy talks about the GOP in-fighting over the state budget, from transportation to taxation to self-insurance. Can legislators strike a deal that Gov. Walker will sign?
More Vicki here: wiba.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
MacIver Research Intern Jessica Murphy discusses some of the over-the-top blowback from campus leftists, including a professor, in reaction to her report on wasteful courses in the UW System.
Read coverage at The College Fix: bit.ly/2qnKS0u
More Vicki here: wiba.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
MacIver Research Intern Jessica Murphy discusses some of the over-the-top blowback from campus leftists, including a professor, in reaction to her report on wasteful courses in the UW System.
Read coverage at The College Fix: http://bit.ly/2qnKS0u
More Jerry Bader: http://player.listenlive.co/29221/en/show/5
While MacIver's Matt Kittle filled in for Dan Conry on WIBA, MI President Brett Healy joined him on-air to talk about the ongoing controversy over the status of the UW System's slush fund.
More Conry here: http://wiba.iheart.com/onair/dan-conry-55518/
MacIver's Matt Kittle talks about burdensome occupational licensing laws in Wisconsin - including a 14-year plumber who is fenced out of his own profession by Wisconsin's laws.
More Vicki here: wiba.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
MI President Brett Healy joins Vicki to talk about the five most useless, worthless courses offered at UW System campuses.
More Vicki here: http://wiba.iheart.com/onair/vicki-mckenna-29300/
MacIver's Matt Kittle joins Vicki to talk about the dire situation with free speech on campus. More Vicki here: http://wiba.iheart.com/onair/vick-mckenna-29300/
MacIver's Bill Osmulski describes an inconvenient truth about crumbling local roads: most of them won't be fixed with a gas tax hike. More Vicki here: http://wiba.iheart.com/onair/vick-mckenna-29300/
Gov. Scott Walker on Wednesday reminded some of fellow Republicans in the Legislature that it’s okay to let go of a state property tax, also known as the Forestry Mill Tax.
In short, if you love something, set it free.