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Jamie Stiehm: America at its best and its worst — all in a day
While the nation waited with bated breath to see if Donald Trump would keep his threat to destroy the ancient Iranian “civilization” by 8 p.m. ET, we also glimpsed the dark side of the moon for the first time in human history.

Shannon Ross: Why must someone’s worst decision be the headline of their identity?
April is officially Second Chance Month, a nationwide effort to raise awareness about stigmas surrounding people with criminal records and the barriers they face after incarceration.

Bruce Murphy: Republicans hit bottom in Supreme Court race
Quiet campaign didn’t work. Party is in deep trouble.

Ruth Conniff: What Chris Taylor’s big Supreme Court win means for Wisconsin
Taylor’s lopsided victory does not mean that Wisconsin has turned, overnight, from a 50-50 purple state that narrowly elected both Presidents Joe Biden and Donald Trump into a liberal stronghold where Democrats can expect to run the table in November.

Dan Shafer: Alicia Halvensleben wins stunning victory in race for mayor in Waukesha
What makes this result especially interesting is that Halvensleben is a Democrat.

Dave Maxey: Wisconsin’s election problems just keep getting worse
We need election officials who actually care about getting this right, and we need candidates who understand and respect the law enough to follow it.

Scott Manley: Property taxes are high, but how are school districts actually spending your money?
Taxpayers are right to be angry that our property taxes are so high, and they should be especially angry about the misallocation of their school tax dollars. High property taxes and low return-on-investment are a choice, and school districts have chosen poorly.

James Finkelstein and Judith Wilde: UW president’s exit was a governance failure from start
The immediate controversy over UW president’s firing centers on secrecy. However, the more significant governance issue started long before. It began with a presidential employment agreement.

Kenneth Zagacki and Richard Cherwitz: When it comes to wartime rhetoric, Trump is no Churchill
Whatever the case and for whatever reasons, Churchill’s sense of moral and strategic clarity is harder to find today in our leaders’ wartime rhetoric. Instead there is fragmented and often contradictory messaging.

Dan Shafer: In Chris Taylor’s resounding landslide victory, Wisconsin voters again choose a judicial check on Trump
In the 2026 race for Wisconsin Supreme Court, Chris Taylor was always seen as the clear favorite to win, but even the most optimistic prognostication from liberal supporters didn’t quite see this — a 20-point landslide blowout victory.

Jessica McBride: Why Maria Lazar lost
On paper, Lazar was a good enough candidate to win. Lazar lost because she was wildly outspent.

Dave Cieslewicz: A bad day for good government
Chris Taylor’s election would have been bad enough for one day, but then yesterday evening the UW Board of Regents went ahead and fired System President Jay Rothman. They did it in closed session and provided no explanation.

Brian Fraley: The firing squad: Why the UW Board of Regents ousted Jay Rothman
The firing squad met and executed their plan with cold precision. They refused to hear a single word from the condemned. They did not even bother to read his charges to the public before striking the blow that ended his tenure. This was a bureaucratic ambush, pure and simple.

Mark Belling: Evers’ vetoes show the consequences of Wisconsin having a leftist governor
Evers’ vetoes are an indication of where Wisconsin Democrats now are: to the left of even Gavin Newsom of California.

Richard Moore: Conversion diversion
When the state dictates what a therapist can say, counseling becomes compliance. When it strips the legislature of oversight, it does the same to democracy itself.

Bill Barth: Degree of caution seems reasonable
Artificial intelligence is coming fast, and with it comes both promise and controversy.

Bruce Murphy: Progress stalls for women corporate leaders
Trump’s backlash against diversity hurting Wisconsin companies.

Mostafa Zamanian, Hamidreza Majidi, Hamze Dokoohaki and Mohammad Jafarinejad: Iran war doesn’t serve Wisconsin nor American interests
This war is being fought without a clear or credible justification, and messaging from the Trump administration has offered continually revised and contradictory goals and timelines.

April Peterson: Here’s how to protest the use of your tax dollars for war
Here in Madison this tax season, some members of Madison for a World BEYOND War are practicing war tax resistance.

Dave Zweifel: The illogical rationale for organized bigotry
Statistics continue to show that immigrants are, in actuality, two to four times more law-abiding as a group than native-born U.S. citizens.

WisOpinion: ‘The Insiders’ analyze the blue wave that flipped Wisconsin’s Legislature
The WisOpinion Insiders, Chvala and Jensen, discuss the political blue wave that swept Wisconsin Democrats into control of the state Legislature. Sponsored by the Wisconsin Counties Association and the Tommy G. Thompson Center on Public Leadership.

Rewind: Your Week in Review for Nov. 6
On this week’s episode of “Rewind,” WisPolitics.com’s JR Ross and Wisconsin Public Radio Capitol Reporter Anya van Wagtendonk discuss the factors behind the blue wave in Wisconsin as Democrats win a trifecta and flip the 1st and 3rd CDs, the priorities of Gov.-elect David Crowley and the incoming Dem legislative majority, the wrangling for legislative leadership posts and more.