Cullen says he won’t run for guv in 2018

Former Dem state Sen. Tim Cullen announced Wednesday he will not run for guv in 2018, saying the chase for contributions to fuel a bid would be “demeaning.” Cullen, of Janesville, opened a bank account earlier this month to begin accepting

Read More »

Finance Committee backs bills to combat opioid abuse

The Joint Finance Committee unanimously backed a series of bills Monday designed to combat opioid addiction after shooting down several Dem amendments. That included one from Rep. Gordon Hintz, D-Oshkosh, that would have directed the state to accept the Medicaid

Read More »

Assembly bills would toughen OWI penalties

Legislation aimed to toughen penalties for drunken drivers received strong support in an Assembly hearing Thursday. Rep. Jim Ott, co-author of the three bills, said the legislation would help make drunken driving laws “more consistent with the seriousness of the

Read More »

Elections commissioners blame social media posts, Sanders campaign for 17-year-olds illegally voting

Elections Commission Chairman Mark Thomsen Tuesday blamed Bernie Sanders’ presidential campaign for the spike in 17-year-olds voting illegally in the April 2016 primaries. But he later softened his criticism during Tuesday’s commission meeting after agency staff said it didn’t fully investigate whether it was social media posts from Sanders or others that contributed to the issue.

Read More »

Ryan says House in ‘concepts stage’ of new health care bill

House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Janesville, acknowledged Wednesday that Republicans’ efforts to undo the Affordable Care Act are stalled for now. “We’re all at the concepts stage right now — but productive conversations,” are occurring, Ryan told a WisPolitics.com audience in DC. “It’s all about how do we get there?” Ryan

Read More »

Evers optimistic about state after easy win over Holtz

State Superintendent Tony Evers chalked up his easy win over challenger Lowell Holtz to his role as “the chief advocate” of public school kids. Evers also struck an optimistic tone last night about the future of the state, telling reporters and a crowd of some 50 supporters in downtown Madison,

Read More »
UpFront

‘UpFront’: Craig touts ‘right-to-carry’ legislation

State Sen. Dave Craig, R-Town of Vernon, said his right-to-carry bill would remove barriers for law-abiding citizens who want to carry a concealed weapon in Wisconsin. Craig is the lead Senate sponsor of the bill, which would remove the requirements for a permit, training and fee for concealed carry. “This

Read More »

Evers battles with Holtz over state’s achievement gap

In his last face-off with Tony Evers before Tuesday’s election, Lowell Holtz slammed the state superintendent for the Wisconsin’s achievement gaps, saying it’s “not acceptable to be the worst” in the country. Holtz said one of the main reasons why it exists is because schools aren’t safe. “We’re turning our

Read More »

Cullen says he won’t run for guv in 2018

Former Dem state Sen. Tim Cullen announced Wednesday he will not run for guv in 2018, saying the chase for contributions to fuel a bid would be “demeaning.” Cullen, of Janesville, opened a bank account earlier this month to begin accepting donations and registered with the state to run. He then

Read More »

GOP bill would allow concealed weapons without permit

The Legislature’s top two Republicans say they’ll talk over with their caucuses a bill that would allow people to carry concealed weapons without a permit. The bill, circulated Tuesday by GOP Sen. Dave Craig and Rep. Mary Felzkowski, also would eliminate the state’s school gun free zone law, though schools

Read More »

Finance Committee backs bills to combat opioid abuse

The Joint Finance Committee unanimously backed a series of bills Monday designed to combat opioid addiction after shooting down several Dem amendments. That included one from Rep. Gordon Hintz, D-Oshkosh, that would have directed the state to accept the Medicaid expansion offered under the Affordable Care Act. Gov. Scott Walker

Read More »

‘UpFront’: Ott hopes tougher penalties will deter drunken driving

State Rep. Jim Ott, R-Mequon, said he is proposing a mandatory minimum sentence for homicide OWI because he hears of too many drunken drivers who serve little time after killing someone. Ott discussed his legislation to toughen drunken driving penalties on “UpFront with Mike Gousha,” produced in partnership with WisPolitics.com.

Read More »

Assembly bills would toughen OWI penalties

Legislation aimed to toughen penalties for drunken drivers received strong support in an Assembly hearing Thursday. Rep. Jim Ott, co-author of the three bills, said the legislation would help make drunken driving laws “more consistent with the seriousness of the offense.” Two of the three bills would create tougher consequences

Read More »

Senate committee approves Walker’s appointments to head DOT, DVA

A Senate committee Thursday sent Gov. Scott Walker’s appointments to head the Department of Transportation and the Department of Veterans Affairs to the full Senate for confirmation. DOT Secretary Dave Ross pushed back during the hearing against an effort to bring in additional transportation dollars, saying the state has “a

Read More »

Elections commissioners blame social media posts, Sanders campaign for 17-year-olds illegally voting

Elections Commission Chairman Mark Thomsen Tuesday blamed Bernie Sanders’ presidential campaign for the spike in 17-year-olds voting illegally in the April 2016 primaries. But he later softened his criticism during Tuesday’s commission meeting after agency staff said it didn’t fully investigate whether it was social media posts from Sanders or others that contributed to the issue.

Read More »