“This agenda and what we are seeing from the Trump administration is every bit as much Trump’s as Tom Tiffany’s, and we need to do what we can here in Wisconsin to deliver a resounding rejection of it this year.” — WisDems Chair Devin Remiker
MADISON, Wis. — Last week, WisDems Chair Devin Remiker spoke with WORT’s Faye Parks about what has been unfolding with ICE in Minnesota and how it could shape the 2026 midterms in Wisconsin. Republicans, like presumptive gubernatorial nominee Tom Tiffany, who just received Trump’s endorsements have welcomed Trump’s chaos campaign with open arms. Remiker also stressed the importance of not letting this moment pass and urging continued voter engagement during this time of uncertainty.
WORT: Trump’s “chaos agenda” a distraction, WisDems’ Devin Remiker says
FAYE PARKS: When we last spoke in October, President Trump’s mass deportation agenda was just beginning to take shape, but a lot can change in just a couple of months. The Department of Homeland Security’s forceful takeover in the Twin Cities has inspired national outcry, reaching a fever pitch when federal agents shot and killed two US citizens in Minneapolis. What’s your take on today’s political climate. How would you summarize this moment?
DEVIN REMIKER: What is unfolding in Minnesota, and how both individuals in Minnesota and here in Wisconsin are responding to it is indicative of everything that is at stake. Trump’s chaos campaign has led to the kidnapping and death of American citizens, and is degrading our very constitution. It’s all in an attempt to distract Americans from the GOP manufactured affordability crisis and to potentially subvert democracy for the remainder of this year. Tiffany owns Trump’s agenda. You know, Donald Trump endorsed Tom Tiffany just this last week, and in it, he said that he has always been at the President’s side. So this agenda and what we are seeing from the Trump administration is every bit as much Trump’s as Tom Tiffany’s, and we need to do what we can here in Wisconsin to deliver a resounding rejection of it this year.
FP: And what does the federal intrusion just across the border in Minnesota mean for our state?
DR: I think people are very worried right now. I think that they are seeing in the faces of Renee Good and Alex Pretti, friends, family, neighbors, you know, fellow Americans who now we have seen just visceral gutting footage of their murders by our federal government. On top of that, I think there are people that are now also seeing something different out of this administration, something very different than they expected. We are seeing Donald Trump and Republicans beginning to roll over on the Second Amendment, something of the Republican Party used to stand very strongly by all as an excuse to justify the murder of Alex Pretti. I think no matter where you look, in every direction, folks are waking up to what is happening right now, and it is our responsibility here in Wisconsin to channel that outrage, that frustration, into making the biggest change possible this year, first on April 7, by electing Chris Taylor, and then later in November, by rejecting Tom Tiffany and electing Democrats up and down the ballot to put a stop to this chaos.
FP: This fall, congressional Democrats seriously eroded voter trust when they agreed to major concessions to end the government shutdown. According to UW Madison political scientist Howard Schwaber, he argues that renewed budget negotiations over the past couple of weeks represent a make or break moment for the party, and when it comes to resisting funding DHS, they’re in the midst of trying to find party unity. What further steps can Democrats take to back up their messaging with action?
DR: Right now in this moment, ensuring that we are showing up visibly, that we are not allowing those moments to pass us by is a very effective tactic. You know, we are seeing that one of the reasons why the administration changed its stance after getting out there with their first instinct being to lie to the American people’s face about what we all saw plainly in video footage, to call protesters domestic terrorists, it inspired outrage. Not just in Minnesota, but across the country, and even here in Wisconsin, we saw folks rise up, and those those moments are incredibly impactful to an administration and to other Republicans that enable the administration to take these actions. So I don’t think that we can put this in the rear view mirror, just put our heads down and only focus on the next election. We have to respond in the moment when these things happen, but we can’t lose the greater context. Obviously, the negotiations in DC last fall were disappointing to some, but I’m incredibly proud of our federal representatives and our US senator who made it really clear where they stand, and have done so again, refusing to continue to fund a federal agency that is cracking down and destroying constitutional rights in this country. So I’m very grateful for Senator Tammy Baldwin’s leadership, Congressman Mark Pocan and Congresswoman Gwen Moore’s leadership. On that front, we have to make sure that Republicans see the consequences of continuing to enable this administration and feel the pressure to also reject continuing to accelerate this crackdown from the Trump administration.
FP: Wisconsinites are slated to elect our next governor in November. Congressman Tom Tiffany, the clear Republican front runner, has consistently defended ICE and as you mentioned, he won the President’s endorsement late last month. So what’s at stake here if voters elect a Trump loyalist to Wisconsin’s executive branch?
DR: Everything that we’ve been talking about is at stake. If Tom Tiffany becomes the governor of Wisconsin, Donald Trump will have a partner in ensuring that the constitutional, unconstitutional crackdowns on American citizens continue in this state, he will have a partner in the agenda to make life less affordable for everyday working people. He will have a partner potentially, in overturning our very democracy now with Republicans calling to nationalize our election system. I don’t know many people that are eager to hand over our fantastically run state election with over eighteen hundred fifty different municipalities, have done a fantastic job for decades ensuring the integrity of our elections. To hand that over to Tom Tiffany, who will just do Trump bidding, like he has in Congress. We have seen that he has voted in lock step with Donald Trump and the MAGA agenda, even when it is not in the interest of his own constituents and his own state. We must make sure that he is not elected governor, both for the people of Wisconsin and for the future of our country, where Wisconsin is probably poised to be the tipping point state again in 2028.
FP: I’d like to dig in more to Trump’s recent threat to nationalize elections. What’s your take on exactly what that could look like in Wisconsin with Republican leadership? What does that mean?
DR: First of all, I’m incredibly grateful that our governor right now, Governor Tony Evers, is a steadfast supporter of democracy and the rule of law and ensuring that it is carried out dutifully and faithfully. I mean, you know, the presidential result in 2024 wasn’t what we were hoping for here at the Democratic Party, but what you didn’t see us do was exactly what Republicans did in 2020 when they lost. They cynically attempted to throw out and disenfranchise hundreds of thousands of voters based on the sole criteria that they happen to live in Dane and Milwaukee counties, and we were only one vote away on the Wisconsin State Supreme Court from that being a reality. It was, it was a conservative defector that actually prevented that challenge from being successful. Nationalizing elections is largely an excuse for Donald Trump to determine the outcome of our elections moving forward. This is exactly why it is both critically important to elect Chris Taylor, a justice who believes in fundamental fairness and democracy, to the Supreme Court on April 7, and to ensure that we don’t have a governor like Tom Tiffany who would very easily go along with these ploys or an outright takeover of our electoral system.
FP: Meanwhile, Democrats are also battling this year to regain the majority in both chambers of the State Legislature, but they appear to be focusing on the Senate, raising twice as much as Republican candidates. Now that’s in comparison to the Assembly, where Republicans have raised more than four times as much money to retain control. Would it be fair to say that your party is prioritizing the Senate over the Assembly?
DR: I don’t believe that’s the case. You know, what we are seeing right now is an unprecedented surge of enthusiasm and support for both the Assembly, the Senate, and our project to make sure that we have a Democratic governor elected to create a Democratic trifecta later this fall. I think folks are really hungry for change, and we want to be able to actually deliver that for working people across Wisconsin. To do that we’ve seen that, you know, a Republican legislature will obstruct. They will stand me any sort of progress that we attempt to make. And when you look at what happened in these fundraising reports, what I saw was, was that enthusiasm for both the Assembly and the Senate, you know, the State Assembly, and credit to Leader Neubauer and her fantastic team, they actually have the highest amount ever raised in an off year for the ACC here in Wisconsin. That is incredible, and I think that the number of contributions paint a very clear picture. Ultimately, this sort of fundraising contest is illustrating what is at stake for our state and for our country. Within the Republican filings, we saw that four and a half million dollars of their funds came from billionaires. Billionaires who have a long history of attempting to buy their way into power and favor through cutting incredibly large checks in Wisconsin’s elections. I think that when you when you look at that on the Assembly, and you see that they are basically backed by billionaires, and that is, that is the sole reason that they are still able to keep up. That’s not a sustainable strategy in the long run for Republicans. I think the mandate for change is very clear. I certainly see it in the reports, and I think that later this fall, we are going to be playing to make sure that we win the governorship, the Senate and the Assembly.
FP: Another way to frame this, perhaps, is that Republicans are investing heavily in the State Assembly. Why do you think that is?
DR: Well, I think a lot of it goes back to Robin Vos. You know, he’s an individual who has dedicated most of his career in the legislature to doing the bidding of the wealthiest individuals in our state and across our country, to scratch their backs in return for them scratching his and that usually comes in the form of large campaign contributions. So, I mean, I think a lot of it goes back to that. You know, I don’t think anyone looks at Senator Devin LeMahieu as a fantastic leader of the Republican caucus in the State Senate. So a lot of it comes back to that leadership, but I think it really also matters what they’ve used that leadership for. And Robin Vos has done next to nothing to make life more affordable for working people, and what we are seeing is largely him calling in some favors from the billionaires that he’s done the bidding of throughout his entire time in the legislature.
FP: I’ve been speaking with Devin Remiker, Chair of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin.
