Battleground Wisconsin

Brian Wooldridge
  • 4.3 (46)
  • News
  • Updated Weekly

Battleground Wisconsin is Citizen Action of Wisconsin’s weekly podcast that features the latest political news from the front lines in the embattled state of Wisconsin. The show features: · Robert Kraig, Executive Director, Citizen Action of Wisconsin · Matt Brusky, Deputy Director, Citizen Action of Wisconsin . Claire Zautke, Health Care for All Director

  1. Climate Justice at Walnut Way: Special Interview with Bryan Rogers

    6h ago

    Climate Justice at Walnut Way: Special Interview with Bryan Rogers

    Following the Tick Report, Robert updates us on Trump's pattern in Iran of threatening escalation and then pulling back. Wisconsin unveiled its new procedures for dealing with BadgerCare work requirements in the Big Ugly Bill. But the Trump/Kennedy HHS’s last minute changes to the final rule makes it much worse than the language of the bill, risking coverage for people with serious conditions such as life threatening cancer. With health care at risk for hundreds of thousands of Wisconsinites, including people too frail to work, is Wisconsin prepared? We revisit the last minute budget gimmick engineered by the big hospital lobby, Evers, and Vos but disallowed by the Trump Regime. We dive into a new Brookings Report finding 45.5% of U.S. households did not earn enough to make ends meet. The report concludes that moving the needle on affordability requires action on both sides of the equation: lowering costs of living and dramatically increasing household incomes. We preview 4 newly scheduled $20 Wage Town Halls in Fond du Lac, Madison, and two in the Milwaukee area We close with an in-depth interview with Bryan Rogers, the environmental justice director at Milwaukee’s Walnut Way. Bryan, who is a regular podcast listener, tells us more about Walnut Way and discusses why they are co-hosting a governor candidate forum on Saturday, June 27th, 10am at North Division High School. Bryan explains why their members are so deeply involved in fighting climate change and higher utiilty costs that fall disproportionally on predominantly Black neighborhoods in Milwaukee.

    54 min
  2. Low wages and worker power

    Jun 4

    Low wages and worker power

    Welcome to June, it’s Pride Month! We encourage our listeners to RSVP to Citizen Action’s Annual Meeting this Saturday, at 10am. Robert gives us the latest tick report amid national concern about tick-borne illnesses. Spurred by global warming, tick activity continues to surge in Wisconsin while the national media descends on Martha Vineyard as the island is beset by ticks, and victims are forced to avoid red meat. Trump visits Western Wisconsin, the home of Wisconsin’s pivotal Congressional District 3. Is he an anchor on embattled MAGA incumbent Derrick Van Orden and other Republicans on the ballot or does Trump know how to generate a massive turnout of MAGA voters? We dive into a critically important Wisconsin Health Assessment, a periodic report mandated by the State Legislature.Rarely do such radical findings come from an official state government report. This year’s report finds that a stunning 1 in 10 Wisconsinites skipped needed health care due to cost. The report also contains shocking revelations on low wages, the growing unaffordability of housing, massive under investment in public education (especially in low income BIPOC majority schools), and a chronic under investment in public health. Will the next legislature act on this searing indictment of status quo policies or kick the can down the road? MASH union president Peter Rickman joins us to discuss the state health assessment, building worker power, and to update us on newly scheduled $20 Wage Town Halls in Fond du Lac, Madison, Milwaukee, Sheboygan, and more locations. We close with news that Boss Vos vows to try again on the failed surplus budget deal. With Governor Evers continuing to complain about the failure of the first effort, will they get another kick at the cat?

    50 min
  3. Tom Tiffany Embraces the Trump slush fund.

    May 28

    Tom Tiffany Embraces the Trump slush fund.

    Following the tick report, we dive into a wild week for MAGA lackey Tom Tiffany who said he was open to Trump slush fund payouts to January 6th insurrectionists and those who attempted to illegally overturn an election. In addition, Tiffany admitted he was against the budget deal because he wants to give away more state revenue (to rich people of course). Robert takes on the Marquette Law Poll which found 80% of Wisconsinites polled support the failed surplus deal. This is another example of polling failing to improve democratic deliberation, as the ever shrinking state media fails to adequately inform voters. The Congressional Progressive Caucus is backing Taxing A.I. We love it and discuss the need for progressive revenue in Washington and Madison to fund pressing public priorities like public schools, healthcare, and childcare. Sleazy Independent Expenditure campaigns have begun in Democratic Gubernatorial primary. We try to look at who’s behind the money. You may be suprised what we were able to dig up. We close with a look at how corporate America buys our lawmakers with hard and soft power, including a Big Pharma backed event state legislator event in Madison this summer pitched as a way to improve legislative skills. We discuss and encourage our listeners to RSVP to Citizen Action’s virtual Annual Member Meeting, next Saturday, June 6th, 10am.

    45 min
  4. Special Interview w/ State Rep. Christian Phelps: Funding public schools in the next state budget

    May 21

    Special Interview w/ State Rep. Christian Phelps: Funding public schools in the next state budget

    This Memorial Weekend we open with Robert’s tick report, which finds the nation experiencing a surge in tick bites and news that half of deer ticks tested in Sconie carry Lyme disease. After touching on the spectacular crash and burn of the Evers/Vos budget surplus debacle, we dig in with State Representative Christian Phelps, one of the most knowledgeable lawmakers on public education funding. We discuss what he sees as the necessary funding for public schools in the 2027-28 state budget to start fixing the damage done by nearly two decades of under-investment. We debrief the GOP State convention where the party got 100% behind election denier Tom Tiffany and decided it was smart to attack the successful and prosperous state of Minnesota. And more data center backlash, as Milwaukee Common Council votes to ban large data centers and regulate smaller ones, and Wrightsville residents fight potential data centers in their village.

    52 min
  5. Don’t you let that deal go down

    May 14

    Don’t you let that deal go down

    We discuss the failed State Budget surplus deal that left few happy, under cut the next Governor, and left most wondering who asked for it? What does the deal say about Evers’ relationship with fellow Democrats? Is the divide really just a crystallization of what is at stake in this November’s election? New education research underscores the importance of resources for our public schools to succeed. Wisconsin slid to 33rd in math and 30th in reading (out of 38 states evaluated) in sobering new research. Most importantly, the Education Scorecard found post-pandemic recovery achievement in the highest-poverty districts was largely driven by the federal pandemic relief funding. Without that relief, according to the study, the average high-poverty district would have remained at its 2022 level of achievement. In other news, ultra-MAGA Congressman Derrick Van Ordin again loudly denies cutting Medicaid, making him a Liar’s liar. We close with speculations on what kind of gerrymandering Wisconsin will undertake in 2027, if there is a trifecta, to counter the outright theft of Congressional seats by Trump, SCOTUS, and red state governors. We encourage our listeners to attend a $20 Living Wage Town Hall May 21, 6pm, in Racine at the Racine Education Association. (We recorded the podcast before the 18-15 failed vote in the Senate.)

    50 min
  6. Organizing Worker Power & Political Expectations

    May 7

    Organizing Worker Power & Political Expectations

    We welcome Peter Rickman, president of the Milwaukee Service and Hospitality Union (MASH) to discuss the union’s big organizing victory this week at Landmark Theater in Milwaukee, the rapid growth of the union, and the union's commitment to the Living Wage Coalition pushing for a $20 minimum wage bill. We take a dive into new national polling by the Kaiser Family Foundation showing health care cost is a dominant election issue in 2026, even for Republicans and treasured independent and swing voters. Seventy-two percent of Democrats, 63% of independents and 47% of Republicans said the cost of healthcare will have a major impact on which party’s candidate they will support. Robert updates us on the continued fight for a BadgerCare Public Option and the grassroots leaders and legislative champions making it happen. We also highlight the dysfunction of our health care system, as evidenced by news this week that Ascension Wisconsin now has tele-ICUs at some hospitals… that’s right, no ICU doctors on-site! We close with the scandalous news that more massive “hyperscale” data centers are coming to Wisconsin, according to the head of WEC (the parent company of WE Energies and WPS), who arrogantly bragged at a recent shareholders meeting about the boon it will be to their windfall profits. This is only happening because Wisconsin state political leaders green lighted data center development with huge tax giveaways ($2 billion and counting) while failing to pass any guardrails to protect the climate, rate payers, and public health.

    53 min
  7. May Day 2026

    Apr 30

    May Day 2026

    A packed U.S. Supreme Court guts what is left of the Voting Rights Act while cynically claiming not to overturn it. We delve into the the implications for civil rights and for the 2026 and 2028 elections We welcome Christine Neuman Ortiz, the Executive Director of Voces de la Frontera to discuss their huge May Day marches and rallies in Milwaukee and Madison. Christine educates our listeners on the federal and state agenda for immigrant rights and urges everyone to attend one of the May Day events. Attend a May Day Strong event near you Robert reviews a wild week in A.I. data center news, including: (1) the Public Service Commission makes major changes to the We Energies proposed rates for data centers; (2) Wisconsin data center tax break to cost the state more than $2 billion in lost revenue; and (3) a new Marquette national poll shows the same public opposition to data centers it has found in state polling. Meanwhile on the health care cost crisis, Citizen Action and allies continue with well attended Health Care Town Halls, this week in Wisconsin's Northern Tier in Superior and Ashland. Robert explains why politicians saying it is no longer possible for Wisconsin to expand Medicaid or enact a BadgerCare Public Option miss the mark. Global warming sparks surge in tick bites, lymes disease, in Wisconsin. Robert provides us with the latest tick report for hikers and campers for the outdoor season. We close with more on the “electability” debate in the Democratic Gubernatorial Primary, as a new “leaked” memo from Tiffany consultants touts the electoral strengths of Francesca Hong. Is their claim that Hong’s populist appeal could supercharge Democratic turnout and cut into the GOP rural base mere subterfuge to aid a less electable opponent, or a compelling indictment of the conventional wisdom of the Democratic consultant class?

    54 min
  8. Electability Trap

    Apr 23

    Electability Trap

    We discuss the death of long-time Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel political reporter Daniel Bice and reflect on his unique combination of skilled writing, muckraking journalism, and even-handedness, and the respect he engendered from the politicians and political actors he exposed. Dan's passing also forces us to take stock on the dying newspaper industry that was once so central to Wisconsin politics. The inevitable debate over “electability” emerged this week in the Democratic governor primary election when candidate Sara Rodriguez questioned the electability of the other Democratic candidates who are polling well ahead of her. We dive into the debate and its perils. We lament the dissolution of the Hustisford school district after another failed referendum to make up for inadequate state funding and expose new research revealing among the highest racial disparities in the U.S. in Wisconsin's incarceration rates. We blast news that UnitedHealth boosted their 2026 earnings after increasing prices, proving monopolized health insurance is doing well denying care and overcharing for coverage, all made possible and encouraged by bi-partisan policy choices. Wisconsin toothless regulators, the Public Service Commission, to decide on We Energies' data center electric rates and workers at two Rogers mental health clinics elect union by large majorities, despite a sleazy union busting campaign from the employer.

    47 min
See All (507)

4.3
out of 5
46 Ratings

About

Battleground Wisconsin is Citizen Action of Wisconsin’s weekly podcast that features the latest political news from the front lines in the embattled state of Wisconsin. The show features: · Robert Kraig, Executive Director, Citizen Action of Wisconsin · Matt Brusky, Deputy Director, Citizen Action of Wisconsin . Claire Zautke, Health Care for All Director

Information

  • Creator
    Brian Wooldridge
  • Years Active
    2011 - 2026
  • Episodes
    507
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © All rights reserved
  • Show Website
    Battleground Wisconsin

You Might Also Like