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Jamie Stiehm: The dark day democracy almost died
Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026, was a solemn anniversary for Congress, five years to the day since a mob of President Donald Trump’s followers broke into the Capitol and savagely battled the police officers defending us, those trapped inside.

Gregory Humphrey: Democrats don’t need new message for 2026 — use one already screaming at us
The threat to American democracy should be more than enough to mobilize every Democratic voter in the country. Every independent voter. Every Republican voter who grasps the necessity and urgency of our time.

Scott Walker: Michael Reagan was more than the Gipper’s son
A leader and an inspiration to the next generation

Josh Schoemann: Let’s move state agencies out of Madison
My plan targets the outdated assumption that all of state government must be physically concentrated in one of the most expensive regions in the Midwest.

Dan Shafer: Elections in 2026 offer a generational opportunity for Wisconsin Democrats
Sorting through the big picture of the year ahead, and analyzing why 2026 could be the year where Democrats win a trifecta for the first time in a long time.

Jeffrey Mandell: Wisconsin could be democracy’s best hope
Five years after Jan. 6 insurrection, the nation continues sliding into autocracy, while Wisconsin moves forward.

Rebecca Haefner: Data centers: Why Wisconsin needs guardrails now
The tech boom doesn’t have to come at the expense of our environment, our electrical grid, or our pocketbooks — but only if we establish smart policies now.

Christina Lieffring: Could an exhibition like “Guiding Ethos” find a home in Madison?
A group show at Appleton’s Trout Museum stands up for “political” art in an era of cowardice and compliance.

Mark Belling: Insane: The plan to get rid of 25% of AmFam Field parking
An idea only a Tony Evers-appointed board could come up with.

Bill Barth: Remember: ‘If you break it, you own it’
A legitimate question: Is the armed incursion into Venezuela legal?

Gregory Humphrey: Trump fails to understand ‘it’s the economy, stupid’
For a president who staked his reputation on being the ultimate champion of the American worker, the savvy businessman, the powerful master, the current trajectory is a fundamental failure of his economic architecture.

Dan Rossmiller: What is going on with property taxes?
Ultimately, the school portion of your property tax bill is determined by a balance of several factors that are largely outside the control of your local school board.

Dave Zweifel: Sticker shock from your property taxes? Here’s who to blame
Legislative leadership is willing to allow the most regressive tax of all — the property tax — to continue out of control, in turn causing harm to elderly homeowners on fixed incomes and making rents and homeownership even more unaffordable for younger people.

George Mitchell: Vos tackles demographic reality
As Assembly Speaker Robin Vos explained in a recent interview, “we can’t have an ever-growing government” when the state’s population is stagnant and forecast to decline.

Tom Hefty: Missing issues in AG race: opioid deaths; merger health costs, crime lab
The issues of accountability for handling the multi-million opioid settlements, oversight of provider consolidations, the management of the state crime lab should be central in the AG race.

Jon Henkes: WisconsinEye provides key insight into our state government
For the past 18 years, Wisconsin’s equivalent to C-SPAN has provided an inside look into the workings of state government. We are calling on state lawmakers to help save the Capitol network.

Richard Moore: ’Tis the season to bring WisconsinEye back
A democracy that cannot see itself clearly will eventually lose itself. WisconsinEye has spent nearly two decades making government visible at a price that is laughably small compared to what the state spends on far less defensible priorities.

Gregg Hoffmann: Coops look at community solar
Community solar emerged as an environmental issue in Wisconsin in 2025. Proposed legislation in the state Legislature could shift costs of community solar.

Bill Berry: Jerry Apps was Wisconsin’s story teller
Apps was truly the godfather of Wisconsin writers and storytellers, an elder sage and historian with more than 50 books on a remarkable range of topics.

Gregory Humphrey: Rule of law broken in Trump’s military strike on Venezuela, process matters
Any nation wishing to be viewed favorably must adhere to laws. When those laws and processes are discarded or tossed aside, the very structure of government starts to lose credibility, and the citizens are the losers.

WisOpinion: ‘The Insiders’ look ahead to 2026 in Wisconsin politics
The WisOpinion Insiders, Chvala and Jensen, discuss the big issues they see impacting Wisconsin politics in 2026. Sponsored by the Wisconsin Counties Association and the Tommy G. Thompson Center on Public Leadership.

Rewind: Your Week in Review for Nov. 22 – Dec. 5
On this week’s episode of “Rewind,” WisPolitics.com’s JR Ross and Wisconsin Public Radio Capitol Reporter Anya Van Wagtendonk discuss the latest in the SNAP benefits debate, a redistricting panel being appointed, the Supreme Court accepting a case from an immigrants rights group challenging ICE detainers in five Wisconsin counties, and more.