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Bernier won’t seek another state Senate term

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State Senator Kathy Bernier (R-Chippewa Falls) announced on Friday that she won’t be running for another term. Bernier served 12 years in the State Senate and 13 years before that as a county clerk in Chippewa County. She says she will be stepping back from politics to focus on her family and grandchildren.

Bernier, who chairs the Senate Elections commas most recently been an outspoken critic of the ongoing partisan probe into the 2020 presidential election overseen by former state Supreme Court Justice Mike Gableman. That’s a stance that has put her at odds with other members of her caucus. Bernier said that didn’t factor into her decision not to run.

“The choice to retire was a difficult one to make, but I have been contemplating this decision for some time now and I decided ‘now is the time,” Bernier said in a statement. “I want to make it perfectly clear that no one has forced me out and politics has not played a role in my decision.”

“Senator Bernier has been a tremendous asset to our caucus, and I thank Kathy for her 25 years of public service. Her expertise, knowledge, and good humor will be missed in the Senate,” said Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu.

Interim UW System President Tommy Thompson gives March departure date

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Interim UW System President Tommy Thompson will resign his post in March. In a letter to Board of Regents President Edmund Manydeeds, Thompson said he took the interim position with the understanding he was needed, and that it would be temporary.

Manydeeds said Thompson has worked to shepherd the UW System through the coronavirus pandemic while being “a relentless champion of the University of Wisconsin.”

“President Thompson stepped in during a critical moment for UW System and our state, and he has provided strong and decisive leadership” said UW Madison Chancellor Rebecca Blank. “He has been an extraordinary advocate for our students, faculty and staff over these past 18 months, as he has been for the state of Wisconsin over his many decades of public service.”

Wisconsin’s longest serving governor was brought aboard in July 2020, after a failed search to find a replacement for the retiring Ray Cross. In his letter, Thompson noted the regents will soon identify a candidate to become the full-time president.

Duffy praises Ron Johnson as Senator continues to push unsubstantiated claims about COVID vaccines

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Former Wisconsin congressman Sean Duffy says he’s not running for office, but he hopes fellow Republican, U.S. Senator Ron Johnson, does seek a third term. Duffy praised Johnson during a Thursday interview on conservative talk station WISN in Milwaukee.

“You need people who know where the bodies are buried,” Duffy told host Jay Weber. “They know how to use gavel, they know how to fight for people. And Ron Johnson has been a warrior for truth in regard to all the COVID falsehoods. Just bringing stories out. Letting people who have had mishaps and injury from the vaccine. Talking about early treatment.”

Johnson has consistently referenced the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System, or VAERS, when talking about adverse reactions to the COVID-19 vaccines.  Anyone can use VAERS, which which is jointly run by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Food and Drug Administration, to submit a report of a symptom that occurred following vaccination.

Duffy’s comments Thursday came hours after Johnson once again questioned vaccine policy, during comments to FOX Business.

“I think vaccinations are absolutely appropriate for the vulnerable. I have questions about mass vaccinations into the pandemic, as other medical experts have warned of,” Johnson said. “Where are these variants coming from? These are variants that are avoiding the vaccine. Could the vast vaccination into the vaccine, could that be driving these variants? I don’t know.”

Johnson has yet to announce if he’s running again, after once saying he’d limit himself to two terms. Several Democrats are running to oppose him, including Lieutenant Governor Mandela, Barnes, state Treasurer Sarah Godlewski, and Outagamie County Executive Tom Nelson.

Duffy also said Thursday that he had no plans to run for governor, but will focus on his family. “We have to raise strong, good, conservative Christian kids, if we’re going to save them from the pressures of this conservative culture,” he said.

The former 7th District Republican is now a lobbyist living in New Jersey. Duffy’s wife Rachel works for FOX News, and he has appeared frequently on the conservative cable channel.

 

Hospitalizations are critical number to watch amid ongoing Omicron surge

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As the more easily transmissible Omicron variant of COVID-19 continues to put a strain on health care resources, Wisconsin’s Chief Medical Officer Dr. Ryan Westergaard says the number of hospitalized COVID patients is actually more critical than the record setting number of new cases.

“The most important thing to think about right now is what are we seeing in our hospitals and how can we support our hospitals and protect our hospital resources, to be able to give everyone the highest level of care,”Westergaard said Thursday. “But the number of cases tell us an important story, which is that Omicron is spreading faster than anything that we’ve seen before.”

The Department of Health Services on Thursday reported a third straight record of new COVID cases, at 11,547. The Wisconsin Hospital Association reports some two-thousand people hospitalized for COVID-19, including more than 460 in ICU beds.

Senator Baldwin calls for end to attacks on elections, pushes for new voting rights bill

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Senator Tammy Baldwin says enough is enough, and that attacks on elections by Republicans need to stop.

She says that an audit from Wisconsin Republicans is just part of a nationwide effort to make it harder to vote in America. “Gableman’s audit, which was is being paid for by the taxpayers of Wisconsin is nothing more than an effort to draw into question the election, to perpetuate Trump’s big lie, and to harass and intimidate our state election officials.”

Baldwin says that in Wisconsin, the presidential election has already survived recounts and audits. 

“Every stage of this was with high transparency and accountability and all reiterated that Biden had one in Wisconsin by a little over 20,000 votes.”

Baldwin and her Democrat colleagues are hoping to pass voting rights and election protection bills, but those efforts are being blocked by Republicans in the Senate.

Republicans propose bills to support Wisconsin law enforcement

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At the Capitol, Republican legislators propose a package of bills they say will help attract and retain law enforcement officers in Wisconsin. West Allis Police Chief Pat Mitchell said it’s a complicated issue, but it’s been a tough couple of years, following the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis.

“People who consume the news got it loud and clear,” Mitchell said. “If you’re a responsible parent, you’ve got a 22-year-old child, and you see that law enforcement is no longer honorable because of the actions of one – do you encourage your 22-year-old child to be a police officer? Probably not.”

Representative Mark Born (R-Beaver Dam) said the $25 million package of incentives and grants would be paid for from federal pandemic relief

“We’re confident that this is not only a proper use but a smart use of these funds,” Born said, noting that some of the challenges facing law enforcement are related to the COVID-19. Democratic Governor Tony Evers determines how those federal funds are allocated. A spokesperson in Evers’ office said he did not yet have a reaction to the bills.

Assembly Minority Leader Gordon Hintz (D-Oshkosh) said Republicans had an opportunity to support an additional an additional $50.2 million in funding for law enforcement which Evers has proposed since taking office.

“Now, Legislative Republicans are proposing using one-time COVID funds to fund local law enforcement at roughly half the amount Governor Evers proposed since he was elected in 2018, and that Republicans voted against,” Hintz said in a statement.

 

DHS reports Wisconsin has exceeded 10,000 COVID-19 deaths

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Wisconsin has exceeded 10,000 coronavirus deaths over the course of in global pandemic. The Department of Health Services reported Wednesday that that the state has recorded 10,014 confirmed COVID-19 deaths, with an additional 1,105 are considered to be probable COVID-19 deaths.

The most recent 1,000 confirmed deaths occurred in less than two months, according to DHS.

The Wisconsin Hospital Association reported Wednesday that more than 1,700 patients remain hospitalized with COVID-19. All regions of the state, with the exception of the Madison and Milwaukee metro areas, have five or fewer intensive care beds available, according to the Hospital Association dashboard.

The majority of hospitalizations and deaths due to coronavirus continue to be among the unvaccinated, even as health care systems and public health agencies urge people to get vaccinated. The DHS COVID-19 site showed only a little over 58 percent of the state’s population has completed the vaccine series. COVID-19 vaccines are free and have been widely available for months.

The new milestone in COVID deaths comes amid the latest surge in new cases, as the more easily transmissible Omicron variant has become the dominant strain in Wisconsin.

‘It’s horrible’ – Evers calls for end to Gableman elections probe

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Michael Gableman

Saying it’s only fueling distrust in Wisconsin elections, Governor Tony Evers wants Assembly Speaker Robin Vos and former state Supreme Court Justice Mike Gableman to wrap up their review of the 2020 presidential results in the state.

“It’s a self-fulfilling prophecy,” Evers said during a year-end interview with WRN. “They keep saying ‘well we have to make sure that people have confidence in the election.’ Well we’re not going to have confidence in the election if this circus continues on.”

President Joe Biden won Wisconsin by some 20,000 votes in 2020, a result that has been confirmed by numerous court cases, audits, recounts and reviews. The Gableman review was ordered by state Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, and $675,000 was initially allocated for it.

But Gableman is vowing to continue the taxpayer funded effort into the new year. And he’s calling for the resignation of state Senator Kathy Bernier, the Lake Hallie Republican who’s been a vocal critic of the partisan probe.

“They are accomplishing nothing except fulfilling their prophecy that people don’t trust the election,” Evers said. What a legacy for those two. It’s horrible, they should end it.”

 

‘We’re in a very dangerous place’ – DHS issues statewide COVID-19 advisory          

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Wisconsinites are again being urged to take action to slow the spread of COVID-19. Health Services Secretary designee Karen Timberlake on Monday issued a statewide advisory in the face of rising new cases, hospitalizations and deaths.

“We each have a role to play, and we are at a point where, whatever you thought you were doing to make COVID-19 better, we need everyone to do a little bit more,” Timberlake said.

That means getting vaccinated, getting a booster shot, wearing a mask in public spaces, and getting a COVID test before gathering for the holidays.

“We’re in a very dangerous place, and we need people to contribute in any way that they can to save the lives that we are in grave danger of not being able to save,” said Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Ryan Westergaard.

The state is averaging over 3200 new daily cases, still mostly the Delta variant, although Omicron has been confirmed here.

Marshfield Clinic Health System Chief Medical Officer, Dr. William Melms joined Westergaard and Timberlake on Monday’s DHS media briefing.

“Greater than 90 percent of the COVID deaths in our facilities have been among the unvaccinated. We just went through a four week period at our main hospital in Marshfield, where we had 35 patients die of COVID,” said Melms.

“Something’s got to give. The message that I have is to strongly urge people to get vaccinated. If you’ve had your two shot series, please get the booster. We know that that helps provide additional protection against not only Delta but also against Omicron.”

Melms and Westergaard also stressed the importance of wearing a facemask in public spaces, something that’s widely practiced in Madison and Milwaukee, but which is far less common in the rest of the state.

“I have to say that I’ve grown weary of being in our local home improvement store, and I’m the only one wearing a mask,” Melms said.

“If you’re someone who’s decided or declined to wear a mask in public, please hear this message,” Westergaard said.

 

 

 

Racine Democrat Greta Neubauer elected new Assembly Minority Leader

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State Assembly Democrats have picked a new leader. Racine Representative Greta Neubauer will now lead the caucus.

Neubauer says Democrats will need to continue to hold to their ideals heading into the next elections.

“We are here because we believe the government should grow with the people, that our democracy should fight for all of us who live here. We believe that Wisconsin should be a state where everyone can thrive.”

“In the face of Republican efforts to divide and conquer, the next year will be critical to building a stronger more Equitable Wisconsin.”

Neubauer will replace outgoing Minority Leader Gordon Hintz, who’s stepping down at the start of next year.