Wisconsin News and Sports
The founder of Foxconn says the Wisconsin plant is still on schedule to open this year. Bloomberg News reports that Terry Gou made that announcement at a New Year’s Party.
He’s quoted as saying that he will be spending more time in the US this year. Gou recently stepped down as chairman of the company to run for office, but is still on the board of directors and is the largest shareholder.
U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin says she’s ready to hear the case against President Trump. The Senate trial begins on Tuesday. Baldwin, on WISN’s “UpFront” Sunday program, said Democrats want to hear from four witnesses, including White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney and former National Security Advisor John Bolton.
“If you think of a trial, you think of witnesses and evidence and documents,” Baldwin said.
In the the most recent Marquette Poll, a narrow majority of respondents did not want the president removed from office. “This isn’t a matter of polling,” Baldwin said. “We just took an oath, to do impartial justice on a trial that has yet to have its arguments presented.”
Baldwin said she’s committed to being fair and impartial, but would like to hear the President present his side of the case. Wisconsin’s other U.S. Senator, Republican Ron Johnson, has said there are no grounds for removing the president from office.
Also over the weekend, Congressman Jim Sensenbrenner predicted the needed two-thirds of Senators will not vote to remove President Trump from office. During a visit to the district Sunday afternoon, the veteran congressman said impeachment shouldn’t be used just because people don’t like the results of the 2016 election. Sensenbrenner is the former chairman of the House Judiciary Committee.
The folks who make cheese in Wisconsin are happy to see a new trade deal with Canada and Mexico. The Wisconsin Cheese Makers Association, the American Dairy Coalition, and the Wisconsin Farm Bureau on Friday all said the new agreement will open-up new markets to Wisconsin cheese and milk.
From @WisBusiness: Farm groups, manufacturers in #Wisconsin hailing #USMCA #Senate passage as major victory https://t.co/QUQeGyayiN pic.twitter.com/qyknzqTa5b
— WisBusiness.com (@WisBusiness) January 17, 2020
The U.S. Senate approved the USMCA last week. It’s now waiting for President Trump to sign it into law.
The next head of the University of Wisconsin System may not come from academia. The system’s search committee on Friday talked about what they want to see in their next president.
The committee is not requiring the next president to have a doctoral degree. That means someone from the business or political world could get the job.
The next president simply needs 10 years of experience in a ‘significant senior executive position’ and an understanding of public higher education.
The Search Committee convened in December to begin the national search. Faculty, staff, students, and other stakeholders will have several opportunities to provide input on the qualities sought in the next UW System President. The Committee also invites comments.
It is anticipated the new UW System President will be appointed in late spring.
Leaders of the Catholic Church in La Crosse are naming 25 priests who’ve been accused of sexual abuse. The Diocese of La Crosse released the list last week. Eighteen of them have died, but all were removed the priesthood.
The diocese says eight of the priests worked in Eau Claire. Seven others worked in Chippewa Falls. You can find a full list of the men accused of abuse online.
No arrests have been made yet, in a Dane County homicide. Initial indications were that the death was a hit-and-run. Witnesses saw Nicholas Day running near Mount Horeb last Wednesday, and he was dressed in running clothes when his body was found.
Following an autopsy, Sheriff Dave Mahoney said the 26-year-old Navy veteran and father was the victim of an “extremely brutal” and “very calculated ” homicide. A GoFundMe page has been established for Day’s family.
Madison police are investigating the city’s first homicide of the new year. A man killed in s shooting on Saturday in Madison has been identified as a 20-year-old from Chicago.
Police found Antonio Stidhum in an apartment on Madison’s southwest side. The person who lives in the apartment wasn’t there at the time, although police say they’ve been cooperating with the investigation.
No other details have been released on a suspect. This is Madison’s first homicide of 2020.
WIBA
Rep. Bob Kulp
A Central Wisconsin legislator won’t be seeking re-election next year. Representative Bob Kulp (R-Stratford) announced on Thursday that he will not run for reelection when his term is up in January of 2021.
Kulp has served as representative for the 69th district since 2013 in a special election. “I’ve learned a lot personally, grown in every human way imaginable, but now it’s time to make way for someone new to bring their best to this job,” Kulp said in a statement.
Kulp said he plans to finish his term, which expires in January of 2021.
WSAU
The Wisconsin Department of Justice is asking the Wisconsin Supreme Court to delay taking up a judge’s order to revise the state’s voter list. The office of Attorney General Josh Kaul has requested that the state’s high court wait to take up the case until sometime after the April Election.
The DOJ said requiring voters re-register before the elections in February and April could do what it calls “irreparable harm.” A judge in Port Washington last month issued his order to remove voters who’ve moved or not updated elections officials about where they live.
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The Wisconsin Supreme Court will have to rule on a judge’s order that could remove 234,000 people from the state’s voter rolls.
The Wisconsin Court of Appeals declined to take-on the case Tuesday.
The court said it’s allowing the state Supreme Court to decide the issue.
There’s a legal battle going on after a judge in Port Washington ordered the voters removed last month. A judge will decide next week whether to hold the Wisconsin Election Commission in contempt because it has not abided by that order.