
Mark Belling: Ozaukee data center backlash a bellwether for nation’s future
We need a lot more electricity and a lot more power lines.
Visit WisPolitics-State Affairs for premium content,
keyword notifications, bill tracking and more
Submit columns for consideration to wisopinion@wispolitics.com

We need a lot more electricity and a lot more power lines.

Real immigration policy reform does not underhandedly manufacture undocumented people, or target people who contribute to the economy, but involves doing the hard work of creating fair, workable policy in Congress.

It makes no sense for the U.S. to be educating the scientific and leadership class of a future adversary. on to ensure that Beijing doesn’t have the last laugh.

Recent surveys show 8% of high school students nationwide use electronic cigarettes or vape pens, which include nicotine and can harm the brain and cardiovascular system over time. It’s nearly twice as high (15.7%) in Wisconsin, said Dr. Hasmeena Kathuria, who runs the UW’s tobacco center.

I love politics. I love my friendships. Why does it feel like I have to choose between the two?

When presented with an opportunity to set reasonable guardrails against partisan cheating in elections the U.S. Supreme Court majority took a pass, saying states were free to make their own rules.

President Donald Trump is openly calling to rig the upcoming 2026 election so as not to lose control of Congress, defying our democracy once again as he unsuccessfully did Jan. 6, 2021, with his violent scheme to overthrow the national election.

The message sent by this firing is chilling in that even outside the workplace, standing up for dignity and equality can cost you your livelihood. That simply must not stand.

Summits are unpredictable, and results dependent on many factors, including the personalities of leaders involved.

I’m sick and tired of Democrats doing the right thing and respecting democratic norms only to get kicked in the teeth by Republicans.

Several other states have adopted nonpartisan redistricting models that are working. We should demand this approach be expanded, not restricted or scrapped.

As stewardship program is up for renewal, northern counties’ budgets, economies are squeezed by how much land already is taken out of equation

A look at declared and possible candidates in the 2026 race for governor.

If AI can be used to increase efficiency, it can also be used to shift accountability from bureaucrats to technology, to reinforce and extend bureaucratic biases, and to reduce transparency by hiding bureaucratic action “behind the code.” The use of AI by bureaucracies needs to be addressed now.

The threat of atomic warfare is as real today as it was back in 1945.

Wisconsin Elections Commission purges most voters in 6 years. Why that matters.

Instead of looking to gerrymandering, which is unfair, diminishes democracy and escalates hyper partisanship, opponents of the Trump administration need to keep building a big, pro-democracy movement that unites a majority of the country against Trump’s authoritarian overreach.

DPI numbers show public schools could do much better.

I urge Gov. Tony Evers and his team to stop pretending workers haven’t been part of the conversation. We’ve been here. We’re still here.

Citizen opposition to the 2,409-acre NextEra solar farm project is symbolic of the need for balanced energy sources while meeting growing needs in the power grid – not just for data centers, but for people and industry.

We need a lot more electricity and a lot more power lines.

Real immigration policy reform does not underhandedly manufacture undocumented people, or target people who contribute to the economy, but involves doing the hard work of creating fair, workable policy in Congress.

It makes no sense for the U.S. to be educating the scientific and leadership class of a future adversary. on to ensure that Beijing doesn’t have the last laugh.

Recent surveys show 8% of high school students nationwide use electronic cigarettes or vape pens, which include nicotine and can harm the brain and cardiovascular system over time. It’s nearly twice as high (15.7%) in Wisconsin, said Dr. Hasmeena Kathuria, who runs the UW’s tobacco center.

I love politics. I love my friendships. Why does it feel like I have to choose between the two?

When presented with an opportunity to set reasonable guardrails against partisan cheating in elections the U.S. Supreme Court majority took a pass, saying states were free to make their own rules.

President Donald Trump is openly calling to rig the upcoming 2026 election so as not to lose control of Congress, defying our democracy once again as he unsuccessfully did Jan. 6, 2021, with his violent scheme to overthrow the national election.

The message sent by this firing is chilling in that even outside the workplace, standing up for dignity and equality can cost you your livelihood. That simply must not stand.

Summits are unpredictable, and results dependent on many factors, including the personalities of leaders involved.

I’m sick and tired of Democrats doing the right thing and respecting democratic norms only to get kicked in the teeth by Republicans.

Several other states have adopted nonpartisan redistricting models that are working. We should demand this approach be expanded, not restricted or scrapped.

As stewardship program is up for renewal, northern counties’ budgets, economies are squeezed by how much land already is taken out of equation

A look at declared and possible candidates in the 2026 race for governor.

If AI can be used to increase efficiency, it can also be used to shift accountability from bureaucrats to technology, to reinforce and extend bureaucratic biases, and to reduce transparency by hiding bureaucratic action “behind the code.” The use of AI by bureaucracies needs to be addressed now.

The threat of atomic warfare is as real today as it was back in 1945.

Wisconsin Elections Commission purges most voters in 6 years. Why that matters.

Instead of looking to gerrymandering, which is unfair, diminishes democracy and escalates hyper partisanship, opponents of the Trump administration need to keep building a big, pro-democracy movement that unites a majority of the country against Trump’s authoritarian overreach.

DPI numbers show public schools could do much better.

I urge Gov. Tony Evers and his team to stop pretending workers haven’t been part of the conversation. We’ve been here. We’re still here.

Citizen opposition to the 2,409-acre NextEra solar farm project is symbolic of the need for balanced energy sources while meeting growing needs in the power grid – not just for data centers, but for people and industry.