My column from Monday. Alabama plans to execute a wheelchair-bound, 75-year-old man who did not kill anyone. There is no reason to do so except a cruel and pig-headed insistence on process, one that a daughter of the victim opposes. It’s another example of the injustice of the death penalty.
Assembly fights over 400-year veto, school funding and protecting children online via @bspears.bsky.social wisconsinexaminer.com/2026/02/20/a...
Wisconsin Assembly passes bill to ban soda and candy from SNAP and fund positions to keep error rate low via @bspears.bsky.social wisconsinexaminer.com/2026/02/20/a...
Another ICYMI: Assembly Speaker Robin Vos is retiring.
wisconsinexaminer.com/2026/02/19/a...
ICYMI: The Assembly voted yesterday to send Gov. Tony Evers a bill to extend postpartum Medicaid coverage to a year and a bill to expand health care coverage for screenings for women with dense breast tissue, which puts women at a higher risk of breast cancer.
wisconsinexaminer.com/2026/02/19/w...
Vos said a heart attack in November pushed him towards retirement.
“My service in this chamber will end when the new class of freshmen are sworn in,” he said. “I’ve been so honored to serve with all of you in this chamber."
Story here: wisconsinexaminer.com/2026/02/19/a...
Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, who has held the position for the longest amount of time in Wisconsin's history, announcing that he will not be seeking reelection this year.
Assembly Minority Leader Greta Neubauer, who announced she is pregnant while pushing for the bill early in the day, said Democrats' efforts seemed effective. They introduced amendments to slow down floor work.
"We were going to stop at nothing to get a vote on these bills," she said.
Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, who has long held up these bills, declined to comment on why he changed his mind.
GOP authors happy the bills are getting done, saying personal stories helped change minds, but angry at Democrats who pushed for a vote.
Story here:
wisconsinexaminer.com/2026/02/19/v...
Rep. Todd Novak and a handful of other Republican lawmakers announcing that a bill to extend postpartum coverage to a year and a bill to cover cancer screenings for women with dense breast tissue will receive a vote in the state Assembly on Thursday.
No action would likely leave decisions about the budget surplus until after the November elections when the makeup of the next Legislature could look quite different with control up for grabs and the next governor could be either a Republican or a Democrat and will be new to the office.
Evers and legislators negotiate property tax relief; Assembly passes WisconsinEye bill. Via @bspears.bsky.social
The ongoing immigration surge has created a climate of fear — not just for the criminals and undocumented immigrants they claim to be targeting — but for ordinary families trying to maintain the routines and normalcy of childhood. minnesotareformer.com/2026/02/10/t...
Scoop from @henry-redman.bsky.social, who has been in Western Wisconsin & Minneapolis all week: Twin Cities ICE presence extends into Wisconsin
wisconsinexaminer.com/2026/02/06/t...
1/ ProPublica collected handwritten letters in mid-January from children held at the Dilley Immigration Processing Center, the same facility where 5-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos was taken.
Hundreds of kids are still detained.
We’ll let the children’s words speak for themselves. 🧵
The Whipple Federal Building is still drawing protesters, read more about it in my report from the Twin Cities, where I've been all week helping out with the @minnesotareformer.com minnesotareformer.com/2026/02/04/e...
Rep. William Penterman told the Examiner the UW MIA bill wasn't ready for "primetime" bc of GOP lawmakers' concerns about a partial veto. According to Evers' spokesperson, Evers had already committed ahead of today's meeting to not use his partial veto power on it as long as it didn't change.
Liam, 5, has been freed, but four other students from his school district remain detained in Texas. Two boys from his elementary school were taken Thurs
“This isn’t something we are prepared or trained for. We’ve dedicated our lives to protecting + educating children,” school superintendent told me
BREAKING: The two federal immigration agents who fired on Minneapolis protester Alex Pretti are identified in government records as Border Patrol agent Jesus Ochoa and Customs and Border Protection officer Raymundo Gutierrez.
Hundreds march in Madison, Milwaukee to protest Trump immigration enforcement. Coverage from @bspears.bsky.social & @isiahholmes.bsky.social wisconsinexaminer.com/2026/01/30/h...
Hundreds march in Madison and Milwaukee to protest Trump administration's immigration crackdown via @bspears.bsky.social and @isiahholmes.bsky.social wisconsinexaminer.com/2026/01/30/h...
The Minnesota Star Tribune, Minnesota Public Radio, the Minnesota Reformer, Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder, Sahan Journal, Center for Broadcast Journalism and Minnesota Newspaper Association today released the following statement: “We strongly condemn the arrest of journalists Georgia Fort and Don Lemon, as well as any attempt to intimidate members of the press. The First Amendment recognizes the press as holding a distinct and protected role in our democracy. In America, we do not arrest journalists for doing their jobs. The Minnesota journalism community stands united in defense of press freedom and the essential role reporting plays in holding power to account.”
The Minnesota Star Tribune, @mprnews.org @minnesotareformer.com , @spokesmanrecorder.bsky.social, @sahanjournal.bsky.social, Center for Broadcast Journalism and Minnesota Newspaper Association today released the following statement:
Bill would require more in-depth Black history instruction in Wisconsin schools. Via our Capitol reporter, @bspears.bsky.social
Feds arrest journalists Don Lemon and Georgia Fort for filming protest at St. Paul church minnesotareformer.com/briefs/feds-...
Georgia Fort, an independent journalist and vice president of the Minnesota NABJ chapter, was also arrested by federal agents this morning
I was sent this video of agents at her door:
Madison small businesses, residents and lawmakers show solidarity with Minnesota. @bspears.bsky.social follws up.
Don Lemon was arrested after the DOJ twice sought charges against him and was twice denied in federal courts. www.nytimes.com/2026/01/30/u...
Border Czar Tom Homan: ‘I’m staying ‘til the problem is gone’ minnesotareformer.com/2026/01/29/h...
