Wisconsin Politics
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Minority Leaders Don’t Get To Be Purists, Dianne Hesselbein Is A Leader in Wisconsin
State Senator Dianne Hesselbein represents a district covering West Madison, Middleton, Verona, Waunakee, and villages across northwest Dane County. She’s also the Democratic minority leader and did not face a primary challenger in August. Nathan Kalmoe is running a write-in campaign against her this November. If she prevails at the polls, she will become the… Continue reading
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Silencing A Statewide Gubernatorial Debate Isn’t Strategy — It’s Cowardice
The ticker crawled during the noon news television broadcast about the Wisconsin Broadcasters Association canceling this fall’s debate between the two gubernatorial candidates. I was taken aback and asked James, who was at the computer, to find out the details. A planned gubernatorial debate hosted by the Wisconsin Broadcasters’ Association is officially canceled. The debate… Continue reading
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A Prime Minister With a Spine, And A Tariff War Wisconsin Didn’t Ask For
I noticed a few Canadian flags flying in Madison this weekend. Clearly, I wasn’t the only one relishing watching Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney take on Donald Trump by saying, essentially, “No.” to his demands in trade talks. Many Americans are tired of heads of state who tiptoe around the bombast and bluster from this… Continue reading
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Independent Voters Make Wisconsin’s Governor Primary Into A Late-Night Caffeinated Nail‑Biter
(I posted this column as the flash drives in Milwaukee were being transported back to the central count location before being returned to the county courthouse to have results announced.) Close election nights are democracy at its most caffeinated. (Pardon me for that cheap line.) But after the nailbiter of an uber-close precinct-by-precinct count of… Continue reading
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Pollsters Blew Michigan By Misreading Independents, Wisconsin Might Be Next
The way independent voters align in Wisconsin’s August 11th primary and in the fall’s midterm election will make or break many a candidate. All we had to do this week was look at Michigan’s U.S. Senate primary to witness the heavy influence of the middle-of-the-road voters who refuse to wear a party jersey in a… Continue reading
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Isaia Ben-Ami Is Truly Prepared To Start Work On Day One In State Assembly
There’s a particular kind of state legislative candidate who strikes my fancy. Someone who is serious about policymaking. Someone who knows the inside ropes and pulleys that make the machinery of the statehouse work. It takes more than a desire to be elected as a state representative. To be effective, one needs a certain background… Continue reading
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Francesca Hong Fails To Understand History Still Matters, And Some Lines Cannot Be Crossed
I am quite sure that Francesca Hong has cracked a history book. But I must wonder what parts of world history failed to resonate with her. I write that line as it is concerning to me that the leading candidate in the Marquette Law School poll for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination stands next to a… Continue reading
Caffeinated Politics 