Wispolitics Midday

In this week's WisPolitics Capitol Chats podcast, Rep. David Steffen, R-Green Bay, argues the state has delayed replacing the aging Green Bay maximum security prison, built in the 1890s, too long. He says the politics of constructing a new prison while the administration has focused on criminal justice reform have let long term infrastructure, safety and staffing issues languish.

In this week's Capitol Chats podcast, Wisconsin Conservation Voters Government Affairs Manager Peter Burress explains why the group opposes a GOP bill to combat PFAS contamination. Burress argues a provision in the bill would protect polluters and shift the cost to fight pollution to taxpayers.

In this week's Capitol Chats episode, Rock County Clerk Lisa Tollefson, also the Wisconsin County Clerks Association's Legislative Committee co-chair, says a bill to allow absentee ballot processing before election night will absolutely help clerks do their jobs. But she says she's not sure if clerk protections the Legislature recently passed will do enough to deter harassment that has driven many election workers away since the 2020 election.    

In this week's Capitol Chats podcast, U.S. Rep. Mark Pocan, D-Town of Vermont, says he and other House members are asking Israel to describe what the end of its latest conflict with Hamas will look like. He argues the Israeli bombing campaigns that have taken innocent lives "isn't a plan." The Congressional Progressive Caucus chair emeritus also says the White House should also do more to bring a ceasefire to the conflict between Israel and Hamas.

In this week's Capitol Chats podcast, Sen. Romaine Quinn says his package of abortion-related bills would provide support for women and families. The Cameron Republican also pushes back on a lawsuit arguing abortion is legal in Wisconsin, saying abortion is clearly prohibited under state law.

In this week's Capitol Chats podcast, acting State Public Defender Katie York is in the office to talk about how she's doing since outgoing SPD Kelli Thompson gave her the reins earlier in the year. She says recent pay raises have helped some with staff vacancy issues, but she has a lot of other projects to work on now too.

In this week's Capitol Chats episode, Rep. Shelia Stubbs discusses a bill she has reintroduced to establish a task force on missing and murdered African American women and girls. The Madison Dem says she is hopeful the bill will be signed into law considering its bipartisan support.

This week's Capitol Chats podcast features an interview with redistricting expert John Johnson. The Marquette University Law School Lubar Center research fellow says the state Supreme Court could take a few different paths to tackling how to redraw the state’s legislative boundaries if it rules against the current maps. He said if the court draws new districts, he would expect to see “a map that bears no relation to what we currently have.”

In this week's Capitol Chats episode, Rep. LaKeshia Myers explains why she voted with Republicans on a nonpartisan redistricting bill. The Milwaukee Dem also explains her past concerns with Gov. Tony Evers' People's Maps Commission.

In this week's Capitol Chats episode, Assembly Speaker Robin Vos in his first interview for the podcast says he's skeptical about releasing any kind of report or findings from the panel looking into impeachment. The Rochester Republican also says he doesn't want it to come to impeachment, but he still wants to know what sort of conduct might be impeachable.

In this week's Capitol Chats episode, Rep. Rob Brooks, R-Saukville, talks about the details in a proposal to spend more than $600 million on Milwaukee Brewers stadium maintenance and improvements efforts. The deal would keep the team in Wisconsin through 2050 and proponents argue it would bring a major economic boost to the local area and the rest of the state.

On this week's Capitol Chats episode, Wisconsin Democratic Party Chair Ben Wikler says Republicans pushing to impeach liberal Supreme Court Justice Janet Protasiewicz are basically shooting themselves in the foot. If they go through with an impeachment, Wikler says it will likely turn many voters away from the GOP and open the door to more impeachments he says will also be politically motivated.

In this week's Capitol Chats episode, Assembly Campaigns and Elections Committee Chair Scott Krug says the committee is focused on bipartisan solutions to election issues going into 2024. The Nekoosa Republican says allowing absentee ballots to be counted before Election Day is one priority.

In this week's Capitol Chats episode, U.S. Rep. Mike Gallagher, R-Allouez, says the U.S. will always been a trade partner with China since the country relies on American goods such as Wisconsin soybeans. Still, he argues America must reduce its reliance on Chinese manufacturing and production to insulate itself against a possible economic and demographic collapse that Gallagher says could lead Chinese leader Xi Jinping to make volatile moves.

In this week's Capitol Chats episode, Dem AG Josh Kaul won't say if he plans to charge any of the 10 fake electors in Wisconsin as other AGs have brought similar cases in their states. He also talks about pushing for closure for survivors of clergy abuse and the future of his lawsuit to make the state's 1849 abortion ban unenforceable.

In this week's Capitol Chats episode, freshman Rep. Melissa Ratcliff, D-Cottage Grove, talks about why she and Rep. Ryan Clancy, D-Milwaukee, formed the Transgender Parent and Non-Binary Advocacy Caucus. She also talks about the importance of expanding broadband access.

In this week's Capitol Chats episode, Secretary of State Sarah Godlewski talks about how she plans to run her new office, specifically how she wants to help clerks and other election workers do their jobs. She also talks briefly about her role as chair of the Board of Commissioners of Public Lands.          

In this week's Capitol Chats episode, State Treasurer John Leiber warns the Town of Sanborn's property tax revenue issue could be just the beginning of revenue problems for municipalities that previously collected the taxes from tribal members. A recent federal court ruled tribal members don't have to pay property tax, which leaves Sanborn looking to fill a huge hole in its budget. Leiber also talks about the other work his office handles.

In this week's Capitol Chats episode, nonprofit owner Rebecca Cooke talks about her second bid for western's Wisconsin's 3rd CD -- this time to unseat U.S. Rep. Derrick Van Orden, R-Prairie du Chien. The Eau Claire Dem also talks about finding shared values with voters across the aisle.

In this week's Capitol Chats episode, League of Wisconsin Municipalities Government Affairs Director Toni Herkert talks about how important the shared revenue deal that increases state aid to local governments by at least 20 percent is such an important measure. She also talks about why some municipalities got more than others, and why the Milwaukee-specific provisions are so contentious.