Quotes of the Week
This court has no constitutional authority to override the legislature’s choice and appropriate the money to DPI instead.
– Justice Rebecca Bradley on the Wisconsin Supreme Court decision which overturned Gov. Tony Evers’ partial veto in a package of reading instruction bills and ruled it was appropriate for the Joint Finance Committee to not release $50 million toward the effort.
Twelve lawmakers should not be able to obstruct resources that were already approved by the full Legislature and the governor to help get our kids up to speed and ensure they have the skills they need to be successful. It is unconscionable that the Wisconsin Supreme Court is allowing the Legislature’s indefinite obstruction to go unchecked.
– Gov. Tony Evers on the ruling. He urged funds be transferred to DPI before FY25 ends and the $50 million lapses to the general fund.
I am concerned about the lack of funding, and frankly, the way that this has set the stage for a very bizarre budget … creates the risk of these things never getting funded, because we’ve seen a budget process that has broken down in so many ways.
– Rep. Tip McGuire, D-Kenosha, on the new GOP anti-veto tactic of not including funding in bills.
For all those people here today saying they can’t vote for the bill because it’s not funded, well, I’m looking forward to your yes vote on the bill that does fund this program.
– Rep. Amanda Nedweski, R-Pleasant Prairie, during an Assembly floor session, arguing Democrats would have the opportunity to vote for funding on bills later.
Political Stock Report
-A collection of insider opinion-
(June 14-27, 2025)
Rising
Bryan Steil: Republicans in general score a win when the state Supreme Court rejects requests to redraw the state’s congressional map. Still, insiders see the Janesville Republican as perhaps the biggest beneficiary. Under the current lines, he’s proven tough to beat, and insiders believed Dems’ best chance of ending his winning streak would be a redrawn seat. Now, all the attention in next year’s congressional races will turn to fellow Republican Derrick Van Orden in western Wisconsin’s 3rd CD, where insiders have expected a race regardless of whether the maps changed. Steil’s winning streak has been fairly consistent, topping 54% in each of his four bids, whether under the maps put in place for the 2022 elections or the old district that was a touch more Republican. Add in the $2.75 million he had in the bank to end April and the perception that he’s a level-headed, even-keeled lawmaker in a world of extremes, and even Dems acknowledge beating him under the current lines would be tough at best. That’s why some in Steil’s world were watching so closely as the court was asked to redraw the state’s congressional map, even if it was considered a legal long shot. One, the court had already unanimously rejected a request in early 2024 to redraw the lines. Two, even if the liberal majority had a change of heart, legal observers saw the conservative supermajority on the U.S. Supreme Court as a potential backstop against any retooling of the lines ahead of 2026. With the district set to remain as is, Dem Randy Bryce — who lost to Steil by a dozen points under the old map in 2018 — is back for another shot. Insiders expect other Dems to kick the tires. But their attention is largely looking westward. It’s been an often cited statistic that Van Orden, R-Prairie du Chien, was the only GOP incumbent in the delegation to run behind Donald Trump’s numbers in their district last fall. And he’s done little to moderate his image or reach across the aisle since elected to the seat in 2022. That has him on Dems’ target list for 2026, though insiders say it would’ve been an even more interesting race on their end had the lines shifted a little to drop some of the pro-Trump territory in western Wisconsin to — say — pick up a little more of the area around deep blue Dane County. Dems largely see Rebecca Cooke — who lost to Van Orden by 2.7 percentage points in 2024 — as the party’s best bet to flip the seat next fall. Not that she’s getting a free pass. Eau Claire City Council President Emily Berge and former Eau Claire Ald. Laura Benjamin are also seeking the Dem nomination, though insiders doubt either will be able to raise the resources to make much noise in the primary. State Sen. Brad Pfaff, who lost to Van Orden in 2022, had been considered a possible candidate. But the Onalaska Dem endorsed Cooke this week, another sign that Dems are coalescing around her. Some insiders believe Dems will eventually get Van Orden, whether it’s this cycle or another one. Political figures that bombastic usually don’t play well over the long run in swing-y districts. They also believe this is likely Cooke’s last shot to be the one to pull it off after losing to Van Orden in 2024 and coming in second in the Dem primary in 2022. Lose this one and try to run again, they say, and you get labeled with the perennial loser tag that makes it harder to get donors excited about your campaign.
Devin Remiker: Ben Wikler’s former right-hand man was the favorite heading into the race for a new state Dem chair — in part because of Wikler’s enthusiastic endorsement. Now that he’s secured the job, insiders are watching to see if Remiker can continue the party’s record fundraising run and wondering how he’ll grow into the job as its messenger. Facing operative Joe Zepecki and 3rd CD Chair William Garcia, Remiker wins the chair’s race on the second ballot as the party uses a version of ranked choice voting. On the first ballot, Remiker pulled 437 votes, while Zepecki was at 330 and Garcia 139. With Garcia dropped, Remiker picked up another 48 second-choice votes from the 3rd CD chair’s supporters, while Zepecki nabbed 85. That put the final result at 485-415. In his victory speech, Remiker says he’s looking forward to working with activists “to make sure that we are building the strongest party possible and supporting our candidates, volunteers and party leaders across the state.” That, insiders say, starts with money. Wikler is unmatched in state history as a party chair when it comes to dialing for dollars, raising $206 million between WisDems’ state and federal accounts during his six years at the helm. Whoever was going to succeed him faced the challenge of continuing that money train rolling. Remiker’s backers have pitched him as the strongest person positioned to do that because he has been in the room selling donors on the party’s operations and helping explain just where their money would go. He doesn’t have Wikler’s connections — nobody in party politics in Wisconsin does — but Remiker will still have his predecessor’s Rolodex. What’s more, he will still have the easy pitch to make that Wisconsin is among a handful of states that will matter every cycle. Insiders are also watching to see if Wikler lands a contract with the party to continue raising money. After his run of success, some say, he is sure to be in high demand among groups nationally. Would you rather have him raising money for them or for the party? Beyond money, it will be time for Remiker to step out from behind the scenes when it comes to messaging. Wikler grew as a messenger during his time as chair, and he rarely passed up an opportunity to be the face of the effort, particularly with national media. Remiker lacks that experience, and some believe Zepecki’s appeal came partly from his experience behind a microphone, along with his calls for a change in the party’s approach. Remiker included a change component in his platform as well, though he still used the party’s recent success as the foundation for his bid. Dems say they’ll be watching to see what changes Remiker actually delivers, and his approach to communications. Don’t be surprised if he’s more likely than Wikler was to look for ways to put Wisconsin candidates in a spot to carry the Dem message to national audiences rather than taking up a lot of those opportunities himself. Republicans, meanwhile, continue to keep their fingers crossed that Wikler’s departure will mean a drop-off in Dem fundraising after having no answers for what the outgoing chair was able to pull in. And insiders note it won’t take long before people see if Remiker’s argument that he could carry the torch without a hitch was just a talking point. Liberals will be looking to flip a state Supreme Court seat next spring amid questions of whether conservative Justice Rebecca Bradley will seek another 10-year term. It’s unlikely to be the more than $100 million contest that Wisconsin saw this spring, considering control of the court won’t be in play. But the party will be a key piece of the money machine. Looking to next fall, there’s no U.S. Senate race in Wisconsin and maybe one congressional contest that gets national attention. But that isn’t going to drop the price tag of the guv’s race or Dems’ bid to flip control of the Legislature. There will be competition for those national donors, and the better Remiker does, some say, the better Dem chances of complete control of the Capitol come next fall.
Mixed
Wisconsin Supreme Court: Don’t expect some conservatives to stop calling the liberal majority a bunch of partisan hacks. But a string of decisions over the last two weeks detours from the narrative that the high court is focused more on political outcomes than the law. The most high-profile of those rulings was the pair of 7-0 decisions rejecting suits asking the justices to redraw Wisconsin’s congressional map. The possibility of the court taking on such a case took on an outsized role in the spring Supreme Court election as conservatives pointed to a fundraising call liberal candidate Susan Crawford participated in. In hyping the event, organizers billed the race as a chance to flip two GOP-held House seats in Wisconsin, where Republicans have a 6-2 majority in the delegation. That helped generate a flood of national GOP money even as Crawford insisted she had made no promises to anyone about a potential redistricting case. And when two suits landed on the court’s doorstep seeking a redraw, some conservatives assumed it was a better than 50-50 chance the liberal majority would take the opportunity to draw new lines. That speculation, others said, was fanciful thinking from the start. The court’s unanimous rejection of the suits bore that out. The current map emerged from a 2021 lawsuit after Dem Gov. Tony Evers and the GOP-controlled Legislature couldn’t agree on a map. The conservative majority in place at the time ordered the sides to take a “least change” approach to the maps that had been in place since 2011, when Republicans had full control of the Capitol and approved the new lines. Ultimately, the court selected a legislative map drawn by Republicans and Evers’ congressional lines. The new liberal majority in 2023 threw out the legislative maps, finding they had a constitutional flaw and the “least change” approach that was their foundation was flawed. Not long after, a group of Dems asked the court to toss the congressional lines as well, arguing that they shouldn’t remain in place now that “least change” wasn’t good policy. To some, that was a significant indicator that the court wouldn’t take the new suits. The justices had already rejected such a challenge once, they said, and it was hard to see them do a 180 on the issue. Plus, the legislative maps were tossed over a constitutional issue, as the liberal majority found the noncontiguous territory in some districts was improper. They didn’t see a similar constitutional issue with the congressional maps. Along with raising the “least change” argument again, the new suits argued the map had too great of a population deviation, split too many counties and was based on a partisan gerrymander Republicans drew in 2011. The deviation when the map was drawn was a difference of two people between some districts rather than one, which seemed to some like a flimsy excuse to throw it out. And history suggested the partisan gerrymander one of the suits claimed was actually an incumbent protection act. Testimony in an earlier challenge to that 2011 map showed an aide to then-U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan took the lead in drawing a map that was then given to GOP state lawmakers for passage. That includes his contention that while then-GOP U.S. Rep. Sean Duffy wanted a more politically friendly 7th CD, others wanted changes that included ensuring their seats didn’t get so expansive that it would be hard to see constituents in a day. Not exactly the stuff that screams partisan gerrymander. The decision to toss those suits came hours after the court issued another 7-0 ruling that found Evers had exceeded his powers by using the partial veto on legislation without an appropriation, a requirement to exercise that authority. The court also ruled 7-0 that UW Health didn’t have to collectively bargain with nurses, 7-0 that some settlements reached by the Department of Justice didn’t need to go through the Joint Finance Committee, and 5-2 affirming the Department of Natural Resources’ authority to require cleanup of PFAS and other hazardous substances. Some conservatives, while surprised, aren’t quite ready to offer heaping praise on the court. After all, it wasn’t that long ago that the U.S. Supreme Court overturned in a 9-0 decision a ruling by the Wisconsin justices that a Catholic social ministry group was subject to the state’s unemployment compensation system. Liberals, meanwhile, point to the string of rulings as evidence that the justices aren’t the “radicals” that some conservatives want to make them out to be. They also insist that for all the dust-ups people see in the decisions between the liberal and conservative wings of the court, the justices actually are — for the most part — fairly friendly. There are still some big cases coming down the pipe that will prove interesting for the court, including a challenge to the 2011 law then-Gov. Scott Walker signed that eliminated collective bargaining powers for most public employees. Now before the conservative 2nd District Court of Appeals, that will eventually be a defining case for the justices. Some Dems also say the redistricting issue may not be dead and wonder if other attempts will be made at getting a new map. And some legal observers take note of liberal Justice Janet Protasiewicz rejecting a recusal petition in the maps cases. Protasiewicz called the legislative maps “rigged” during her 2023 campaign and talked openly about her “values” when it comes to abortion. She also rejected a call to step off the legislative redistricting case and was part of the 4-3 ruling that tossed out the old maps. With the influx of cash in Supreme Court races — $56 million as Protasiewicz helped flip control of the court for liberals and $109 million as Crawford defended that majority — some wouldn’t be surprised to eventually see a justice’s refusal to step aside be put to the test in the federal courts. It would just require the right case — and a party with the right amount of resources, they say.
Devin LeMahieu: You’d be hard-pressed to find anyone in the Capitol who sees how Republicans put together a budget conservative enough to get 17 GOP votes in the Senate AND win Dem Gov. Tony Evers’ signature. That has left two options: Go for a conservative budget that goes nowhere, or get a deal that includes the guv delivering enough Dem votes to pull the bill over the Senate line. Some insiders just don’t see real clear messaging coming out of the majority leader’s office on the path to the latter, which is considered the only realistic option. Not that it’s entirely LeMahieu’s making. Senate Republicans weren’t an easy bunch when Scott Fitzgerald was still leading the caucus. But he had a tendency to let members find their balance on an issue and only gave the caucus a nudge at the end to get members where he needed them. The caucus then got to 22 members under the maps in place for the 2022 elections, which gave LeMahieu some margin for error, though no fewer headaches as some of the more conservative members expected to have veto power over anything that lacked their support. Now, the caucus operates like 18 independent contractors, some say. And some have boldly made their demands known in this budget process. Sen. Chris Kapenga, on the outs with LeMahieu and others since he lost the president’s office after the 2024 elections, insisted in a social media post that the best option was to leave the 2023-25 budget in place. That, he argued, would avoid both a significant spending increase and Evers’ veto pen. Just one problem, some note. The spending levels that would carry over from that biennium into 2025-27 wouldn’t be enough to cover the costs to continue programs like Medicaid. If lawmakers really did nothing, then the Department of Health Services at some point would run out of spending authority to approve payments to hospitals to cover the expected increase of $1.6 billion in state money for the costs to continue the program as is. It’s unrealistic, some say. GOP Sen. Steve Nass, meanwhile, lays out four benchmarks to win his support: across-the-board cuts to base budgets of $700 million to $1 billion, a $3.5 billion tax rebate, no more than $1.5 billion in new borrowing for building projects and no structural deficit for the 2027-29 biennium. Evers would never sign such a cut to base spending, insiders note, and eight of the past 10 state budgets have left a structural deficit, the difference between future spending commitments and current revenues. So the majority leader isn’t exactly working with some members who are going out of their way to make his life easier. Assembly Republicans, meanwhile, are trying to send the message that they’ve got 50 votes for whatever their Joint Finance Committee team operates, and it’ll fly through their chamber on GOP support alone. Some aren’t convinced. They see that as posturing to make Senate Republicans look like the problem child. And they can’t help but believe politics are part of that. Holding onto the majority in both houses next fall will be a challenge with the current maps and Donald Trump in the White House. There will be a competition for resources, and Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, would love to see GOP groups pour all of their money into his caucus as he portrays it as the best chance for a bulwark against full Dem control after 2026. It’s also no secret in the Capitol that Vos doesn’t think much of how Senate Republicans operate. There are others who don’t believe LeMahieu is a particularly strong leader of his caucus. Others counter that the caucus is simply unmanageable. For all the focus on LeMahieu, there’s a perception that Vos has been a little less engaged this session than he’s been over his more than 12 years as speaker. Some believed he had planned to hang it up before the 2024 elections. But that went out the window once some tried to recall him, with the speaker wanting to make sure his opponents couldn’t claim they drove him out of town. Some also believe the sudden rush to get a budget done is due to a desire by Vos — and others — to get on with summer plans. Because there’s otherwise no real pressure on the Capitol to finish the budget in the coming week other than just wanting to be done. Schools know what they’re going to get for a spending increase with Evers’ 400-year veto that means an extra $325 per kid each year. Locals know what they’re going to get through shared revenue, thanks to a deal struck two years ago that automatically ties those payments to sales tax collections. There had been some worried about a provision in the federal reconciliation bill that would crack down on a tax states levy on hospitals’ income that’s then used to generate more federal dollars that largely go back to providers. But the U.S. Senate parliamentarian tossed that aside, finding it violated chamber rules on what can be included in a reconciliation package. Still, Republicans are racing to finish the budget ahead of July 4. If the Joint Finance Committee finished the document by this weekend, it would create just enough time for the budget bill to be drafted for a floor session on Wednesday. A popular perception is that Assembly Republicans will insist the Senate go first to make sure there aren’t any changes to what emerges from Finance. Others see an opportunity for the Assembly to vote it out first in an effort to box in the Senate. Either way, insiders expect back-to-back days of votes before it goes to the guv’s desk. The question is what those vote mixes look like. In the Senate, Nass, Kapenga and Sen. Rob Hutton, R-Brookfield, are considered the most likely to vote against whatever emerges from the committee. Hutton sends a signal where he’s at with an op-ed calling for lawmakers to pull back from the push to finish the budget for a deeper look at spending and an effort to find “ways to better prioritize existing appropriations.” While Hutton is a top target for Dems next year with his suburban Milwaukee seat, he joined Nass two years ago in voting against the JFC budget. The question in the Senate is just how many defections there may be — and what Dems Evers and Minority Leader Dianne Hesselbein could deliver to hit the 17 votes needed for passage. Some believe the more Republicans put into the budget to appease Evers, the more GOP votes could be lost in the Senate, leading to an untenable situation.
Tony Evers: With lawmakers trying to finish off the budget by next week, the Capitol may finally get an answer to one of the biggest questions insiders have been asking all year: Will the guv run again? A look at the latest Marquette University Law School Poll has good and bad for Evers on that front, though insiders generally believe he’s still in a strong position to seek a third term if he wants to. Just ahead of the poll’s release, Evers suffers a rare setback with the liberal majority on the state Supreme Court, which rules he exceeded his authority by using his partial veto on a bill in a literacy package even though it didn’t appropriate any money. That, though, is unlikely to have any lasting impact with voters, insiders note. Nor are they fazed by the Marquette poll finding 55% of voters would prefer Evers not run again. Voters have been frustrated with incumbents for a long time and are constantly seeking change, insiders note. Plus, they can be stingy electing someone to a third term. Asking them if they would prefer someone else isn’t all that meaningful. The Marquette poll found in August 2022 that 65% of Wisconsin voters opposed Donald Trump seeking the White House after his loss in 2020. That didn’t seem to hurt him too much last fall. Rather, insiders look at Evers’ job approval numbers — 48% approved while 46% didn’t — as more indicative of where he is. A little down from his long-term average of 50.4% for his job approval, but still in net positive territory. Looking solely at his favorable-unfavorable rating, Evers was minus-2 at 45-47. If you’re a Republican looking to challenge Evers, you have to feel good about numbers like that. Still, he had the best mark of any politician Marquette tested. U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Madison, was minus 3; U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Oshkosh, was minus 4; and Trump minus 8. While voters may be interested in someone else running than Evers, the choice isn’t between the incumbent and “someone new,” insiders note. There’s an actual candidate on the other side of the ballot, and so far few are seeing someone who screams “I’m the one to take down Evers.” Whether it’s U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany, R-Minocqua, Washington County Exec Josh Schoemann, businessman Bill Berrien or any other potential contender, each Republican has their issue. Add in 2026 is likely to be a good year for Dems with a Republican in the White House — and the state GOP a mess right now — and you have to give the edge to Evers if he seeks reelection. But will he run? That question has been on the minds of insiders all year, with every move pored over for signs of his intentions. The guv’s budget calling for no tax on cash tips and other populist measures — for example — suggested a guy who was gearing up for another bid. And the line from Evers backers has been largely the same over the last year: he likes the job, if he and his wife are in good health, and if his team is ready for another four-year term, he’s likely to do it. This week’s primary results in the New York mayoral race suggest to some that Dems are ready for generational change, and at 73, Evers is no newcomer. Still, national Dems see him as a proven candidate and fundraiser. Even if it’s a good year for Dems next year, some say, Evers is the strongest candidate to put forward for another term because of voters’ familiarity with him and his winning record. Others see a deep Dem bench, with possible candidates ranging from Milwaukee County Exec David Crowley to AG Josh Kaul and Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez. But that bench doesn’t have Evers’ name ID or his fundraising chops, and Dems would prefer to avoid a messy primary that could complicate their quest to hold onto the East Wing. Numerous Dems say they’re unsure what Evers will do even as they look for signs he’s made up his mind. They also must acknowledge the age thing after their experience with Joe Biden last year. The guv hasn’t shown any signs that he’s suffering a Biden-like decline. Still, you don’t want to wake up in three years and realize you aren’t as up to the job as you once were. Evers, meanwhile, has given no hints in interviews about his intentions, saying over and over again he’ll make up his mind once the budget is done. Dems breathe a sigh of relief that it looks like that document could be out of the way in the coming weeks. If Evers isn’t going to run, they say, it’s getting late for potential contenders to start getting their operations off the ground. And if he is going to run again, it’s time to turn the key on his operation to fire up the fundraising machine and leave no doubt about his zest for a third term.
Falling
Brian Schimming: The coup — if there ever was one — appears to at least be on pause. The damage, insiders say, is not. Schimming has faced plenty of criticism since becoming the party’s first paid chair more than two years ago. Other than Donald Trump’s victory in 2024, the party hasn’t had much to hang its hat on, and the expectation that having a full-time chair would turn around the state GOP’s money woes has largely failed to materialize. The state convention was marked by the tension of whether there’d be some effort from the floor to force a no-confidence vote on Schimming’s tenure, even though there really wasn’t a mechanism for such a move. The going thought at the time was so long as Schimming kept the confidence of the party’s 31-member Executive Committee, he’d be fine for the remainder of this two-year term that runs through 2026. Then a Journal Sentinel story hits that Schimming had received a call from an Executive Committee member seeking his resignation and that he had 24 hours to step down. The story catches multiple Executive Committee members off guard; several told WisPolitics they had no knowledge of the demand before the story was posted. Then the effort to push out Schimming hits a roadblock. Emails obtained by WisPolitics include one written by a member of the state GOP’s Executive Committee who said he had been assured by the party’s first vice chair that there would be no further attempts to remove Schimming. The tension between the party and some factions of the grassroots — along with Turning Point USA — is no secret. And the influx of new members on the Executive Committee from congressional district parties leads some to believe the anti-Schimming faction includes some of those fresh faces. The shock of the story followed by radio silence also prompts speculation that those who made the demand didn’t have as much support as they thought and possibly got word from national forces to knock it off. After all, it’s a bad look that will undermine confidence among donors to give to the party if the chair is seen as embattled. The latest round of federal fundraising reports is nothing new: In May, the state Dem Party outraised the WisGOP more than 2-to-1, and it had $3.6 million in that account, compared to the $380,983 Republicans had in the bank. New state reports will be out next month. The state GOP actually had a slight edge on the Dems in fundraising for the year through the April election at nearly $12.5 million to just more than $12.1 million. But many saw that as a temporary bump thanks to Elon Musk and the $3 million the world’s richest man gave the party during his obsession with Wisconsin’s Supreme Court race. This isn’t going to get donors to open their checkbooks. While the push to oust Schimming may have subsided, the issue may not go away. The emails WisPolitics obtained include one from a former county chair who’s urging an investigation of three Executive Committee members to see if they’re part of an effort to undermine Schimming. Richard Kucksdorf, past chair of the Shawano County GOP, told WisPolitics in a phone interview he has no proof that First Vice Chair Bill Feehan, Treasurer Kelly Ruh or National Committeeman Terry Dittrich are behind the effort to push out Schimming. But he believes an investigation is warranted to either clear their names or confirm their involvement amid the upheaval over Schimming’s leadership. Feehan, Dittrich and Ruh didn’t return calls from WisPolitics seeking comment. “We don’t need this kind of BS happening in 2026,” said Kucksdorf, who previously served as vice chair of the 8th CD GOP. “This needs to be cleared up in 2025.”
UW nurses: The effect of Scott Walker’s Act 10 on nurses at UW Health is “no mystery,” according to conservative Justice Brian Hagedorn. And the hospital — an authority under state law — isn’t required to collectively bargain with the nurses it employs. Today’s 7-0 ruling — authored by Walker’s former legal counsel — brings to a close the nurses’ push to be recognized as a union for collective bargaining purposes. The union was phased out in 2014 following the passage of Act 10, which eliminated the power of most public employees to collectively bargain. But the nurses revived the union in 2019, demanding to be recognized, and the Service International Employees Union reached an agreement in 2022 with the University of Wisconsin Hospitals and Clinics Authority to recognize the union in order to avoid a strike. UW Health says after today’s ruling that agreement was reached to jointly pursue an answer on whether nurses can collectively bargain with the hospital. Today’s ruling follows both the Wisconsin Employment Relations Commission and a Dane County judge ruling they can’t. The nurses, meanwhile, insist they aren’t deterred in their fight for representation. “We will continue to explore all possible pathways to restoring our full collective bargaining rights, including seeking voluntary recognition and passing legislation, to ensure that all of us, no matter who we are or where we work, have a seat at the table and a voice in our workplace,” they said.
See more here.
Joint Finance Committee delays start time for final budget push
The Joint Finance Committee had yet to begin meeting for planned votes on the state budget today after originally noticing an executive session to start at 10 a.m.
The committee has already delayed the start four times, with the latest announcement that it would convene at 5 p.m.
A spokesperson for Dem Gov. Tony Evers said late this afternoon that a deal hadn’t been reached with GOP lawmakers on key budget areas but conversations were ongoing.
WisPolitics platinum subscribers will receive an advisory once the committee convenes. They will also receive an advisory once the committee finishes its work.
Otherwise, budget coverage is available exclusively to WisPolitics subscribers on the State Affairs/Wisconsin platform.
Click here to find desktop instructions or get the app to follow the Joint Finance Committee’s progress on the budget. Hit “Budget” in the horizontal navigation bar.
Vos recall committees finally file reports — then amend others after WisPolitics inquiry
Two of the committees that sought unsuccessfully to recall Assembly Speaker Robin Vos filed campaign finance reports in June, months after they were due.
And both then amended multiple reports to add nearly $28,000 in legal expenses after a WisPolitics reporter inquired why the committee had yet to detail any costs related to an ongoing appeal of an Elections Commission decision rejecting signatures collected in the effort.
Matt Snorek, a Burlington man who was involved in the effort, told WisPolitics this week he hadn’t been involved in the filings and referred a reporter to Conrad Reynolds, an organizer of the effort. He didn’t respond to messages seeking comment.
It is the latest sign of disorganization among recall organizers, who Vos called “stupid,” “whack jobs” and “morons” during a March 2024 WisPolitics luncheon.
Recall Vos — which launched the first effort — and the Racine Recall Committee — which led the second — initially filed reports in late August that had been due July 15. But neither filed anything else until this month.
Recall Vos then filed its January 2025 report on June 13 — five months overdue — and its September 2024 report on Sunday — nearly nine months late.
The Racine Recall Committee also filed its January 2025 on June 13. It then filed its September 2024 report Sunday, and it amended both reports Wednesday after WisPolitics began inquiring about the group’s activities. It also filed a July 2025 report on Wednesday, even though it isn’t due until July 15.
The amended and new filings show New Berlin attorney Kevin Scott, who’s representing the recall committee in its appeal, made a $3,034 in-kind donation to the Racine Recall Committee on Sept. 23 — the final day of the September 2024 reporting — for legal services. He also made a similar $540 in-kind donation to the committee on Dec. 31 — also the final day of that reporting period. And he made a third in-kind contribution of $1,320 on May 16.
The Recall Vos committee also amended its July 2024 report to add a $3,990 in-kind donation from Scott for legal services.
The Racine Recall Committee sued in Dane County Circuit Court in July after the Elections Commission ruled 4-2 it had collected signatures outside the allowed window. After a Dane County judge ruled against the committee, the committee filed an appeal and asked the state Supreme Court to hear the case directly. After the justices rebuffed that request, the case was briefed with the 4th District Court of Appeals, which has yet to rule.
The committee also amended its July 2024 report to add an in-kind donation of $18,985 from AVII in Arkansas. The address listed for the group on the report is the same as the Arkansas Voter Integrity Initiative, which is headed by Reynolds, one of the Vos recall organizers.
The committee reports don’t list any payments to former conservative Justice Michael Gableman, who appeared at an Elections Commission hearing in April 2024 to represent the first committee that sought unsuccessfully to recall Vos.
Altogether, the committees have reported $1.4 million in expenses.
The Ethics Commission said it typically sends notices to committees that have failed to file reports to remind them they may be subject to penalties for continued failure to comply.
Agency administrative rules call for a written warning after 30 days. The rules then call for settlement offers that ramp up until a report is more than 120 days late. The agency can then offer a settlement of $500, the maximum penalty.
The commission didn’t respond to questions specifically about the recall committees.
All the new filings have “termination” stamped across the top, and the committees reported nothing in the bank as of their most recent reports.
Former GOP Sen. Schultz talks ‘normalization of hateful rhetoric and violence’ in politics
Former GOP state Sen. Dale Schultz tells WisPolitics’ “Capitol Chats” podcast he’s seen a “turn towards the normalization of hateful rhetoric and violence” in recent years.
Schultz, of Richland Center, served 32 years in the Legislature, including a stint as Senate majority leader. He represented the 17th SD in western Wisconsin, later working with a Dem senator, Tim Cullen of Janesville, to push for redistricting.
“ I put the responsibility squarely on the shoulders of the leaders of the political process,” Schultz said. “And you know, one of the reasons that people don’t want to have anything to do with politics, like so many young people, is this sort of attitude that they see going on. And they’re saying, ‘If that’s democracy, count me out. I just have no interest in this.’ And that’s too bad because we need everybody’s thoughtful contemplation of our problems if we’re going to make progress in the future.”
Schultz spoke with WisPolitics to discuss political violence and rhetoric following the shootings of two Minnesota lawmakers and their spouses this month.
He knocked Sen. Chris Kapenga, R-Delafield, for his proposal following the shootings to ban members of the public from carrying arms in the Capitol while still allowing lawmakers to conceal carry.
“There is no security system that’s perfect, but adding layer upon layer of security for the privileged lawmakers while doing nothing for their constituents, you know, I just think makes no sense, is wrongheaded and leads us in the wrong direction,” Schultz said.
Schultz said he wasn’t directly threatened while in office, “but there have been certainly a lot of tense situations.”
He pointed to protests outside his house during Act 10, before he said how he would vote on the legislation. Schultz was the only Senate Republican to vote against the bill, which upended collective bargaining for most public employees in the state.
“When I had the protestors out in front of my house that March, early March, my reaction was to go out, tell them, I get it. It’s a First Amendment right, they have every right to be there,” Schultz said. “My main concern was their safety. And so I sprinkled salt on the sidewalk to make sure that no one slipped or fell or got hurt, and told them they had my permission to go on my porch and get more salt if they needed it and that my door was always open to listen to them.”
He said doing things like that helps “build bridges.”
“And it just seems we need a little more of that. And … when you’re able to get by that initial flashpoint, it allows for a thoughtful discourse that can lead to real solutions,” Schultz added.
Listen to the full “Capitol Chats” interview here.
Political TV
(Check local listings for times in your area)
“UpFront” is a statewide commercial TV news magazine show airing Sundays around the state. This week’s show, hosted by GERRON JORDAN and MATT SMITH, features Sen. LaTONYA JOHNSON, D-Milwaukee, Senate Majority Leader DEVIN LeMAHIEU, R-Oostburg, Assembly Speaker ROBIN VOS, R-Rochester, Gov. TONY EVERS, Marquette Law School Poll Director CHARLES FRANKLIN and WisPolitics Editor JR ROSS.
*See more about the program here.
*Also see a recap of the show online each Monday at WisPolitics.
“Rewind,” a weekly show from WisconsinEye and WisPolitics, airs at 8 p.m. on Fridays and 10 a.m. on Sundays in addition to being available online. On this week’s episode, WisPolitics’ JR ROSS and Wisconsin Public Radio Capitol Reporter ANYA VAN WAGTENDONK discuss the last-minute budget push, the state Supreme Court’s decisions regarding the governor’s veto powers and congressional redistricting, results of the latest Marquette University Law School Poll and more.
*Watch the show here.
This week’s episode of WisPolitics’ “Capitol Chats” features former Republican state Sen. DALE SCHULTZ on political violence and rhetoric and possible solutions following the shootings of Minnesota lawmakers.
*Listen to the podcast here.
“The Insiders” is a weekly WisOpinion.com web show featuring former Democratic Senate Majority Leader CHUCK CHVALA and former Republican Assembly Speaker SCOTT JENSEN. This week, Chvala and Jensen discuss when–and if–the state budget will cross the finish line and whether Republicans can win any Dem votes.
*Watch the video or listen to the show here.
“In Focus: Wisconsin” airs Sundays at 9:30 a.m. on Spectrum News 1 on channel 1. This week’s program with host RYAN BURK focuses on child care funding with Sen. KELDA ROYS, D-Madison, child care provider CORRINE HENDRICKSON and UW-Madison Associate Prof. ALEJANDRA ROS PILARZ.
PBS Wisconsin’s “Here and Now” airs at 7:30 p.m. Fridays. This week’s program with anchor FREDERICA FREYBERG features Wisconsin Public Radio Capitol reporter ANYA VAN WAGTENDONK on the state budget process and University of Minnesota Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy Director Dr. MICHAEL OSTERHOLM on changes to federal recommendations for vaccines.
“For the Record” airs Sundays at 10:30 a.m. on Madison’s WISC-TV. This week’s program with host WILL KENNEALLY features constitutional expert HOWARD SCHWEBER on recent state and national Supreme Court rulings, Marquette Law School Poll Director CHARLES FRANKLIN on the latest poll numbers, and political analyst BRANDON SCHOLZ recaps the latest in state budget discussions.
Week Ahead
Tuesday: The Senate Committee on Natural Resources, Veteran and Military Affairs holds a public hearing on bills related PFAS contamination.
– 11 a.m.: 411 South, state Capitol
Names in the News
Milwaukee Public Schools Superintendent BRENDA CASSELLIUS will headline a Sept. 24 Milwaukee Press Club-WisPolitics Newsmaker Luncheon. Cassellius will take questions from a panel of journalists and audience members. Register here.
Attend a Milwaukee Press Club-WisPolitics Newsmaker Luncheon with Milwaukee Archbishop JEFFREY SCOTT GROB on Oct. 2. Grob will take questions from a media panel and the audience. Register here.
CATHERINE GILJOHANN has been appointed as the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection’s general counsel. Giljohann’s previous roles include working at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, as staff detailee to the House Energy and Commerce Committee and as deputy associate director for regulatory policy at the White House Council of Environmental Quality.
The Wisconsin District Attorneys Association has named Fond du Lac County DA ERIC TONEY as District Attorney of the Year. Toney, a former candidate for attorney general, was nominated by Fond du Lac Chief of Police AARON GOLDSTEIN.
School Choice Wisconsin President NICHOLAS KELLY will leave his position to serve as president/principal of Catholic Central High School in Burlington starting July 14. Kelly has led School Choice Wisconsin since 2021.
Outgoing Wisconsin Hospital Association President and CEO ERIC BORGERDING celebrated his retirement last week at the Madison Club. Attendees included former Govs. TOMMY THOMPSON and JIM DOYLE, U.S. Rep. MARK POCAN, D-Town of Vermont, and Joint Finance Committee co-chairs Sen. HOWARD MARKLEIN, R-Spring Green, and Rep. MARK BORN, R-Beaver Dam.
Endorsements: The following is a list of recent endorsements, based on emails received by WisPolitics.com:
3rd CD
REBECCA COOKE: U.S. Sen. BERNIE SANDERS, D-Vt., state Sen. BRAD PFAFF, D-Onalaska.
2nd District Court of Appeals
ANTHONY LoCOCO: Former Supreme Court Justice DANIEL KELLY, Judge MARIA LAZAR, various judges, sheriffs and lawmakers. See the full list here.
Supreme CourtCHRIS TAYLOR: 100 current and retired judges. See the names here.
Lobbyist Watch
Twenty-four changes were made to the lobbying registry in the past 10 days.
Follow this link for the complete list.
