Free Republic

MILWAUKEE — A new Marquette Law School Poll of Wisconsin voters finds a tight race for governor following last week’s statewide primary elections. Among likely voters (that is, those who say they are certain to vote), incumbent Republican Scott Walker receives 46 percent, Democrat Tony Evers receives 46 percent and Libertarian Phil Anderson 6 percent. Only 2 percent say they lack a preference or do not lean to a candidate. Among likely voters in the race for the Wisconsin U.S. Senate seat on the ballot in November, 49 percent support the incumbent, Democrat Tammy Baldwin, and 47 percent support Republican...

Dane County officials declared a state of emergency Tuesday morning after rain overnight Monday broke a state record for heaviest amount to fall in a 24-hour period, according to Dane County Emergency Management. The National Weather Service estimates that as much as 13 inches of rain has fallen in parts of western Dane County on Monday and Tuesday. The official state record for rainfall in a 24-hour period is 11.72 inches of rain, which occurred northeast of Mellen in northern Wisconsin on June 24, 1946. The National Weather Service has received numerous reports of rainfall from western Dane County that...

... “In 2016, a lot of us assumed we knew what would happen in Michigan and Wisconsin,” Salvanto told The Post. “It was a great lesson for us pollsters: Even if you think you know what will happen, poll it if you can.” Blame it on the Blue Wall. Since 1992, in six consecutive presidential elections, a solid block of 18 states had voted for the Democrat every single time. They would have given Clinton 239 electoral votes — 89 percent of the way to victory — if she had held on to them all.Few bothered to ask those states’...

Congratulations to Leah Vukmir of Wisconsin on your great win last night. You beat a very tough and good competitor and will make a fantastic Senator after winning in November against someone who has done very little. You have my complete and total Endorsement! 8:54 AM - 15 Aug 2018

Primaries in four states Tuesday — Minnesota, Connecticut, Wisconsin and Vermont — set up competitive governor’s, Senate and House races across the country this November. But even before then, these primaries identified some clear winners and losers that reinforced trends we’ve been seeing all year. Here they are: Winners Trump: At least in Republican primary politics, Tuesday once again proved he’s the king. Republican politicians on the ballot Tuesday who dissed him in 2016 raced to undo that, and those who didn’t do it convincingly enough lost their primaries. In Minnesota’s competitive governor’s race, Republican voters nominated a relative outsider,...

The fire that nobody seems to know about.

Prosecutors charged West last month. According to the complaint, several people whose names appear on West's nomination petition told a detective they never signed. Two even said the printed name next to their bogus signatures were not spelled correctly.

SUPERIOR, Wis. ― It was a little early for a drink, but that wasn’t going to stop Mahlon Mitchell. It was a Saturday at 11:30 a.m. in Superior, a port city of 30,000 in Wisconsin’s far northwest corner. Mitchell, the leader of the Professional Firefighters of Wisconsin and a Democratic candidate for governor, had just finished touring the city with fellow firefighters and was about to kick off an economic roundtable with other union members. But first, he was perusing the beer list at Thirsty Pagan Brewing. Why? “I can run faster and jump higher than the other candidates,” he...

To say that the landscape for public sector health insurance has changed since Act 10 would be an understatement. Since the landmark bill’s passage, Wisconsin school districts have saved more than $3.2 billion in benefits costs. Seven years after the passage of Act 10, school districts have saved $3.2 billion on benefits costs. If the previous trend had continued, districts would be paying almost 60 percent more today. Districts found savings by opening up bidding to new insurers for the first time in years, while others increased required employee contributions towards insurance plans. Overall, since 2011, districts have largely moved...

Joe Biden is leading the Democratic field in some early polls asking voters about the party’s prospective presidential candidates in 2020. But in his old stomping grounds in the U.S. Senate, there are plenty of skeptics who point to the former vice president’s age, his support for the Iraq War and his two failed presidential bids as reasons to doubt he would be successful. “It’s hard to see someone [winning] who voted for the Iraq war. People are looking to turn the page,” one senior Democratic aide said. A second senior Democratic aide said “polls show that voters want someone...

A Wisconsin man lost his limbs after an infection he thought was a bad case of the flu. Greg Manteufel, 48, went to the emergency room with what he thought was the flu, but tests revealed he was suffering from an infection caused by bacteria in the saliva of dogs. While in the hospital, Manteufel's blood pressure dropped and the circulation to his limbs rapidly decreased, causing his legs to just "die," doctors said. It's situation Manteufel's wife, Dawn Manteufel, still does not understand.

-One format of radio show that is common around the nation is classifieds, the garage sale, yard sale, trash and treasure, or other nomenclature used to describe similar shows. The shows have callers offer items for sale, along with a telephone number for contact. In deep blue, Madison, Wisconsin, I was listening to the local conservative talk radio station. I was pleased to see the show accepted individual callers who had guns for sale.A local radio station in Yuma has a similar show. But firearms are specifically excluded from the items that are allowed to be advertised for sale...

Republican pollster Ashlee Rich Stephenson on Tuesday said it was "fools gold" to write off Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) in his reelection bid, despite multiple polls showing him trailing his Democratic opponent. "I would certainly never count Governor Scott Walker out by any stretch of the imagination. What he went through in 2010 was a real — survive with the recall. I think it just fools gold to say otherwise," Stephenson told Hill.TV's Joe Concha on "What America's Thinking." Walker won first a statewide recall vote and then his run for a second term, but two polls in the...

MILWAUKEE, WI — The Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office issued multiple criminal charges against Jonathan Copeland Jr. in connection with the death of Officer Michael Michalski. Copeland faces the following charges: First degree intentional homicide, use of a dangerous weapon Attempt first degree intentional homicide, use of a dangerous weapon Possession of a firearm by a felon A criminal complaint filed against Copeland says officers were in the area near 28th and Wright on July 25 because Copeland had an “open arrest warrant” for felony drug crimes, as well as a warrant for absconding from Department of Corrections supervision. Copeland...

The Trump administration has approved a plan in Wisconsin allowing the state to shore up its Obamacare market. The plan is expected to lower premiums in 2019 by an average of 3.5 percent. Without it, premiums would rise by 11 percent in 2019, even after seeing hikes of 44 percent for 2018. “People in the individual market saw their premiums go up by 44 percent on average last year, and some saw much larger increases – that’s unsustainable and unacceptable,” said Republican Gov. Scott Walker, an Obamacare opponent. “Thankfully, the federal government is giving us the flexibility to implement a...

Billionaire conservative businessman Charles Koch’s political network is freezing out Republicans that it believes have violated its fiscally conservative principles, and is, at least for now, only supporting four Senate GOP candidates in the fall. The Koch network is backing GOP Senate candidates in Wisconsin, Missouri, Tennessee and Florida, signaling it will be selective in where it engages as Republicans seek to retain or grow their narrow 51-49 majority. At a Monday presentation to about 500 of the network’s top donors at a five-star resort in the Rocky Mountains, Americans for Prosperity president Tim Phillips made an example out of...

When the Trump administration announced a plan last week to overhaul the Endangered Species Act, the frantic reactions were illustrated with pictures of humpback whales and baby bald eagles. But a much better way to understand what Republicans have in mind is to consider Wisconsin’s wolf problem. Paul and Judy Canik raise bighorn and hair sheep near the small town of Butternut. Their herd has grown to about 400, each sheep worth around $1,500. Guarding the prized flock are nine Spanish mastiffs, worth $2,500 apiece. While checking on their animals two years ago, the Caniks found that 17 pregnant ewes...

A federal judge on Wednesday ordered Wisconsin to cover the costs for gender reassignment surgeries for two transgender Medicaid recipients. Wisconsin residents Cody Flack and Sara Ann Makenzie filed a lawsuit in April over a state rule adopted in 1996 that denied coverage for undefined "transsexual" surgeries, according to The Associated Press. In the suit, Flack and Makenzie argued that the state rule denying them coverage for surgeries to treat their gender dysphoria is a violation of the Affordable Care Act and their rights to equal protection. They argued that the treatment they are seeking is medically necessary, according to...

Gov. Scott Walker (R-Wis.) is trailing Democratic challenger Tony Evers by 13 points in the upcoming Wisconsin gubernatorial race, according to a new poll released Thursday. Of the registered voters surveyed in the NBC News/Marist poll, 41 percent backed Walker in the race, compared to the 54 percent who supported Evers. When asked if Walker deserves to be reelected, 34 percent of the voters agreed with the statement. Sixty-one percent said a new person should be given a chance, and 5 percent were unsure.

Officers were looking for man near North 28th and West Wright streets who was wanted on gun and drug violations. When they approached the suspect at a residence, the suspect shot at the officers, Police Chief Alfonso Morales said. The fallen officer, a 17-year veteran of the force, was a member of the Special Investigations Division. Police said they have the suspect in custody, and the weapon was recovered. The suspect was not shot, police said. "Words cannot describe the sorrow and anger I feel at this moment," Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett said. Barrett said the officer has been on...