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State legislators spar over controversial UW-Madison course on Trump presidency

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There’s dueling viewpoints from the Assembly over a UW-Madison professor’s modern politics course.

The course syllabus says Trump “gleefully flouts the norms of governing” and describes a number of scandals he’s involved in.

Assemblyman Dave Murphy says the wording could have been better. “The syllabus was somewhat over the top, and I’m somewhat concerned about how it would affect students and their feelings about taking the course.” 

Murphy says he’s working for his constituents in raising concerns over the education of students. “They pay taxes that go to the University to fund this. They have a right to be heard and we have a right to say something about this.”

Democrat Assemblyman Jimmy Anderson says this is a perfect example of the sort of protected free speech that Republicans championed last session, and they have no room to complain. “I hope that in the future Representative Murphy and Speaker Vos take more careful consideration when they are selectively applying what they determine to be free speech.” 

“[They] made a big showing of saying how important is that we have free speech on campuses, and that we allow our students and professors to be able to speak their minds, and it struck me odd that we were now criticizing a professor for doing exactly that.”

Assemblyman Dave Murphy says his concerns were over the wording of the syllabus, and that he doesn’t have any desire to change the nature or content of the course.

Senator Baldwin seeks end to government shutdown

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The long federal shutdown is putting the squeeze on Americans, and Senator Tammy Baldwin wants it to end.

She says this sort of dysfunction can’t last forever. “There are a lot of Americans, including federal government workers that live paycheck to paycheck, and I’ve been hearing, as a Senator, from a number of those folks who are in crisis already.”

She says the shutdown hurts everyone, and not just the families of government employees. “Think if both income earners work for the federal government and aren’t getting paid. We’ve heard from families in that regard, but people who are served by these agencies may also be in crisis.”

House Democrats have passed a number of bills trying to reopen the government, but the Republican led Senate has refused to take them up for a vote.

Assembly Republicans propose middle class tax cut

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Speaker Robin Vos

Republicans in the Wisconsin legislature are pitching a middle class tax cut, one that puts them at odds with Democratic Governor Tony Evers.

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos said Thursday that it will be paid for from the state budget surplus. “We actually have this huge surplus that’s been generated, and rather than allowing it to stay in Madison and be spent on growing government, we’d prefer to keep Tony Evers’ campaign promise and make sure that we have an opprtunity to do a middle class tax cut,” Vos said.

Vos and Assembly Republicans held a press conference at the Capitol on Thursday. Other members of the Assembly GOP caucus held similar press conferences in Wausau, Green Bay and La Crosse. In Wausau, state Representative Pat Snyder said he
doesn’t think that using surplus funds will be an issue as long as business growth continues. “I want to keep that momentum going, and with that momentum going, we’ll see surpluses every year.”

Governor Tony Evers

Evers campaigned on a tax cut which he’d proivide by scaling back a tax break for farmers and manufacturers. “Why jeapordize what has brought us to this point of prosperity by undoing a tax cut that has brought us to today,” State Representative John Nygren said.

An Evers spokeswoman said the Republican plan falls short of what the governor has proposed.

The governor’s sustainable plan to cut taxes for middle-class families-which is funded by rolling back tax giveaways for millionaires-would provide relief for 86 percent of taxpayers without adding to the deficit or relying on one-time funds.
In contrast, Speaker Vos’ spending plan continues to grow. Between this unfunded proposal, their refusal to accept federal funds to expand Medicaid, and growing legal fees for outside counsel to defend their lame-duck laws, Republicans are willing to leave taxpayers on the hook for hundreds of millions of dollars.

Under the Republican proposal, couples filing jointly and making between $60,000 and $70,000 would see the largest average decrease – $311.

Governor Evers promises to continue push for Medicaid expansion

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Wisconsin’s new governor says he’s going to fight for Medicaid expansion despite the protests of the Republican majority in the legislature.

Governor Tony Evers says it’s an issue that touches every community in the state. “Every small town in Wisconsin has some facility that’s healthcare related. Whether it’s a clinic, whether it’s a small hospital, whether it’s a doctor’s office.”

He says he has got the backing of both the people of the state and the medical field. “The people that are using the facilities and work in those facilities support our position on that.”

Evers says the expansion will help people across Wisconsin get the health coverage they need. “I understand that they said that it’s a non-starter. We’re not going to, you know, burn the Capital down, We’re going to disagree. If that is their position, than we will disagree.”

Evers met with all of the Legislative caucuses on Tuesday in order to present his goals for the session.

 

Walker signs ‘lame duck’ bills in Green Bay

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Governor Walker has signed all of the bills curtailing the powers of the incoming governor that were passed in lame duck session earlier this month.

Governor Walker’s office announced Friday morning that he would be in Green Bay at noon today to take action on those bills, and then signed them in their entirety with no line item vetoes.

Walker had suggested earlier this week that he might use the veto, but declined to do so. He also waited to sign this bills until after putting together a deal for Kimberly Clark, using powers that would be stripped from the Governor in the bills.

Walker said that Governor-Elect Tony Evers will continue to enjoy some of the strongest powers of any governor in America, including having the line item veto.

The outgoing Republican governor used a Venn diagram to illustrate the continuity of the powers he employed for eight years, and those available to Evers.

There are a number of changes that the bills bring to the executive branch. Evers will not have the power to decide the head of the board of the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation until 2019. Evers has campaigned on dissolving the board and rebuilding the state commerce department.

Under the new laws, the executive branch will also have to get permission from the Joint Finance Committee before making changes to medical assistance and insurance programs that require federal waivers. Republicans recently won the right to require single adults without dependant to be employed while receiving state aid.

The state attorney general’s office will also have to ask permission from the legislative Joint Finance Committee before entering or leaving lawsuits over state statutes. Republicans have worried that incoming attorney general Josh Kaul would pull out of defenses of the state’s voter ID law or it’s legal challenges against the Affordable Care Act.

The bills also restrict early voting to two weeks. In statements to the media at the signing, Walker said that he likes early voting but that it needs to be fair, and that allowing large cities like Milwaukee and Madison to have up to 6 weeks of early voting is unfair to residents in other parts of Wisconsin. A measure like this one has already been thrown out by a federal judge as being discriminatory in nature.

 

Governor Walker says he’s ready to sign lame duck bills

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Governor Walker is now deciding how, and not if, he’ll be signing lame duck legislation passed last week that curtails the powers of incoming Governor elect Tony Evers.

Walker indicated at a Pewaukee press conference that his staff is deciding how best to sign those bills, and if changes need to be made.

“Right now it’s most likely that we’ll probably do a series, at least one if not multiple, line item vetoes, is what we’re looking at most closely.”

He says that Democrats and the media have been inflating the impact the bills will have. 

“I could veto everything, I could sign it all, or I could do a line item veto. No matter which of those three options I do, Tony Evers come January 7th, will have some of the strongest powers of any governor in America.”

Walker has not yet officially received the bills from the Legislature. 

‘Lame duck’ laws likely to be litigated

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Speaker Robin Vos (WRN file photo)

There could be legal challenges, to portions of the Republican “lame duck” legislative agenda. “Everything’s on the table to stop this pernicious attack on our democracy, said state Representative Chris Taylor, a Madison Democrat. “I think absolutely there are probably going to be some legal challenges.”

Under provisions of Republican legislation passed by the extraordinary session, lawmakers will have the ability to hire their own attorneys to file litigation for the state, a role previously taken by the attorney general.

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos said he’s not worried. “I believe, and the advice that I have been given is, everything that we have done has been within the bounds of the constitution, and I think it will be found that way. But of course they have the right, that’s our process.”

Incoming attorney general Josh Kaul predicts Republican efforts to restrict the power of the AG’s office will end up in court. “Probably there will be multiple litigations that result from this, maybe in multiple courts,” he said. “And one of the impacts of this is that the state is going to be mired in litigation in 2019.”

In additions to the changes to the attorney general’s role, Republican lawmakers would gain full control of the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation, and the Legislature could block the new governor’s ability to write new regulations.

Lawmakers approve GOP lame duck agenda

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Assembly Majority Leader Jim Steineke, Speaker Robin Vos (Photo: Andrew Beckett)

A long 24 hours of debates, caucuses and voting ended early Wednesday morning as Republicans in the Wisconsin legislature pushed through legislation limiting the powers of incoming Governor Tony Evers and Attorney General Josh Kaul, and limiting the time frame for municipalities to offer early absentee voting.

Assembly Minority Leader Gordon Hintz called out the process before the final vote was cast in the Assembly.

“It’s a massive deal. Not just for what it means, not just for what it means for the governance of our state. But for the signal that it sends, the lengths that people are willing to go to to retain power,” Hintz said “Rushing it through on three days notice, in a ridiculous last 24 hours of debate? Does anyone honestly think this is the right way to do business?”

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos chided Democrats for their lack of decorum during the lame duck session, and said the bills are all to even out the powers of government.

“You have to start at a place where you have equal footing to negotiate. That’s what these bills are all about. Equal footing to negotiate,” Vos said  “While I know that some have spent the day angry and exaggerating, I would ask that we all cast a green vote as we look to rebalance the powers.”

Rep. Gordon Hintz (D-Oshkosh)

The entire package of bills now heads to Governor Scott Walker for his signature. He has signaled he’d sign them before he leaves office.

Legislation that would have that would protected health care coverage for pre-existing conditions failed to clear a Senate vote Wednesday morning, with all Democrats and two Republicans voting against it. During his reelection campaign, Governor Scott Walker had promised to get that bill enacted into law.

Republican Senators David Craig and Chris Kapenga defeated the bill by voting against it. They wanted the state to create a high risk insurance pool, but that was not part of the bill.

Also not headed to the governor is a proposal to move the date of Wisconsin’s presidential primary from April to March. That measure never made it out of the legislature’s finance committee earlier this week.

Among other measures approved by both chambers:

A work requirement for single, able-bodied adults who are on BadgerCare. The legislature would also get oversight over any request for federal waivers for welfare programs. In addition, the governor will be prohibited from withdrawing from a multi-state lawsuit that challenges Obamacare.

The Legislature would also have new powers to intervene in lawsuits involving the state, an area usually handled by the Attorney General. Financial settlements that the AG negotiates would be subject to legislative oversight.

The legislature would get to make additional appointments to the board that controls the Wisconsin Economic Development agency.

The legislature also voted to limit early voting to two weeks before an election. A similar bill had been struck down by a federal judge. The current version will also face an almost certain court challenge.

 

State Senate opens lame duck session on Republican bills

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One half of the lame duck session is underway at the state Capitol, as the Senate takes to the floor.

Senate Minority Leader Jennifer Schilling excoriated the majority at the start of the hearing.

“What we are seeing is a blatant overreach of Republicans who are more interested in securing and increasing your legislative power.”

She calls the bills an attempt to strip power from the executive and judicial branches and hand it over to the legislature.

“Sweeping proposals to eliminate checks and balances, and consolidate power from the executive and judicial branches into the legislative branch.”

The Senate Gallery was cleared after multiple outbursts from protesters.

GOP bills restricting Evers and Kaul to be voted on

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Legislation that would curtail the powers of the offices of governor and attorney general in Wisconsin are up for Senate and Assembly votes in a lame duck extraordinary session today, after an hours long and often raucous public hearing at the Capitol.

As Republicans move to push through a sweeping set of restrictions on the administration of incoming Governor Tony Evers, and Attorney General-elect Josh Kaul, Democrats like Representative Chris Taylor of Madison are calling out what they see as hypocrisy.

“We would not be here if Scott Walker was reelected. We would not be here if Brad Schimel was reelected. This is about not just consolidating power for the Republicans, they want to expand their power, even when they lose elections,” Taylor said.

Governor Scott Walker insists changes to the attorney general’s duties, which would allow the legislature to hire outside attorneys to represent the state in lawsuits, are not out of line. “There are many other states that have a whole variety of things where the legislature either has to approve or disapprove lawsuits,” Walker said. “Some states don’t even have elected attorney generals.”

Governor Scott Walker insists legislation dealing with the office of governor is does not taking power away from incoming Democrat Tony Evers. “There was some discussion early on about things related to vetoes or even vetoes to the administrative process, and I said I would never sign that,” Walker said. “To me, that would be taking powers away.”

A bill that would move the date of the state’s 2020 presidential primary did not pass out of the Joint Finance Committee following Monday’s hearing. County and municipal clerks had condemned the proposal to create a March primary, which would result statewide elections in February, March and April.

The Wisconsin Elections Commission voted 6-0 on Monday for a motion telling the Legislature that the proposed election law changes would be “extraordinarily difficult to accomplish.” It also said that “mandatory election tasks may not be feasible,” if the primary were moved.