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WisOpinion: ‘The Insiders’ reflect on 2024 and its political winners and losers
The WisOpinion Insiders, Chvala and Jensen, look back on the news events of 2024 and select the year’s political winners and losers. Sponsored by the Wisconsin Counties Association and the Tommy G. Thompson Center on Public Leadership.

Tom Still: Tom Still: Holiday perks include naughty and nice in Wisconsin politics, business
A source close to the toy industry has leaked a copy of Santa’s perks list for Wisconsin politicians, business leaders and other newsmakers. Here’s what the good boys and girls in Madison and Washington will reportedly find in their stocking this Christmas.

LaKeshia Myers: What do the lonely do at Christmas?
The holiday season can be a trigger for those who suffer from depression and suicidal ideation.

Michelle Bryant: What in the Whoville is going on?
In a time when many families are facing economic struggles, the decision to put holiday classics behind a paywall feels particularly disheartening.

Kristin Brey: ‘Cannibal sandwich’ is a terrible name for a Wisconsin tradition. How did it get here?
I can only imagine that the name came from someone’s kooky uncle who thought he was being funny one Christmas and called it that in the attempt to play into his nervous nephew’s apprehension over ingesting raw meat paste on a cracker.

James Edming: The honor of a lifetime
Looking back, I’m incredibly proud of what I was able to deliver for the 87th District. I supported several efforts to reduce the tax burden on Wisconsinites while also increasing our investments in our priorities like K-12 education and veterans services.

Bill Kaplan: Biden consequential and Cooke is the future
Rebecca Cooke is the future. She ran an impressive, spirited campaign as the Democratic challenger to 3rd CD GOP U.S. Rep. Derrick Van Orden and is seriously considering running in 2026.

Joan Ballweg: Reviewing legislative accomplishments and saying farewell
I am proud of what we have accomplished together for the families and businesses in south central Wisconsin over the past 20 years of my state service.

Mark Lisheron & Ken Wysocky: Wisconsinites’ changing demographics challenge government’s racial silos
Number of those identifying as two or more races more than doubles; ‘At the grassroots level, people care less and less about race.’

Dave Cieslewicz: The best way to use $4 billion
Use the state’s $4 billion surplus to supplant debt on public building projects. Instead of borrowing $4 billion to pay for roads and buildings, pay in cash.

Ruth Conniff: Children march on the Capitol to ask: When will adults act to protect them from gun violence?
Hanging over balconies and leaning against marble pillars, teens held up handmade signs that said; “Enough!” “You write your policies on a carpet of our dead bodies,” and “Graduations not funerals.”

Jessica McBride & Jim Piwowarczyk: An open letter to Mark Belling: Wisconsin owes you a big debt
Although he’s going to be doing a podcast now, and WISN 1130 has a strong farm team, Mark Belling leaving live radio feels like the end of an era. He is irreplaceable. Wisconsin would look much different if he had never picked up a mic.

WisOpinion.com: ‘The Insiders’ discuss a judge’s ruling striking down portions of Act 10
The WisOpinion Insiders, Chvala and Jensen, look at a lawsuit challenging Act 10 after a Dane County judge overturned portions of the law that ended collective bargaining for most public employees. Sponsored by the Wisconsin Counties Association and the Tommy G. Thompson Center on Public Leadership.

Paul Fanlund: Why Ben Wikler runs ‘into the biggest fire I can find’
Wikler is now one of five major candidates campaigning to lead the Democratic National Committee. He’s been the subject of positive interviews with everyone from comedian Jon Stewart to a who’s-who of national print pundits. I spoke with Wikler recently about that campaign and about Wisconsin.

Dave Zweifel: An exemplary response that never should have been necessary
It’s reassuring to know we’ve got such competent leaders, unlike leaders in other communities who exhibited indecisiveness when the chips were down. The pity is, of course, that they had to answer such a call in the first place.

Richard Moore: ‘F’ is for ‘you’re fired’
Donald Trump’s Schedule F proposal to make federal employees in policy-making positions at-will employee, should be undertaken in Wisconsin, though more boldly on the state level: Civil Service protections should be eliminated to restrain the sate bureaucracy and ensure its loyalty to the will of the people.

Mike Nichols: What Wisconsinites really want in 2025
Badger Institute’s vision for the upcoming year

LaKeshia Myers: Defending human dignity: National Human Rights Month
National Human Rights Month provides an essential platform to reflect on the fundamental principles of human dignity, equality, and justice that form the cornerstone of a just and compassionate society.

Sarah Halpern-Meekin: We interviewed men who left the workforce. Their reasons don’t fit narrative.
What men were looking for from work was dignified treatment, recognition of their expertise, and work that felt meaningful.

Scott Walker: Resting in the lap of Jesus
As we near Christmas, I am reminded of a story of a gift given to a dying man told to us by a visiting pastor in his sermon.

‘The Insiders’ preview Tuesday’s local elections and presidential primary
The WisOpinion Insiders, Chvala and Jensen, preview Wisconsin’s April 2 spring election and what it may indicate for state and national politics. Statewide, the ballot includes the presidential primary and two constitutional amendments regarding elections. Voters will also cast ballots in general elections for local offices and weigh in on school funding referendums. Sponsored by the Wisconsin Counties Association and the Tommy G. Thompson Center on Public Leadership.

Rewind: Your Week in Review for April 12
On this week’s episode of WisconsinEye’s “Rewind,” WisPolitics’s JR Ross and CBS 58’s Emilee Fannon discuss Justice Ann Walsh Bradley’s decision not to seek reelection, the Wisconsin Elections Commission rejecting the initial recall attempt against Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, who’s in and who’s out in legislative races, Gov. Tony Evers’ recent actions on a series of bills and President Joe Biden’s visit to Madison.