Tuesday, May 12: What’s next for the bipartisan spending and tax cut deal? Wisconsin providers, advocates pan federal childcare plans, states respond to Trump’s ‘punitive federalism’, FBI investigates Wisconsin 2020 election
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“Three men who will not be in elected office next year have come up with this proposal which Senate Dems will be reviewing. Any proposal must pass both houses of the legislature and no one knows if Republicans have the votes to pass it.”
– Senate Minority Leader Dianne Hesselbein (D-Middleton), reacting to the announcement Monday that Evers and Republican leaders had reached a deal on school funding and tax cuts
Gov. Tony Evers spoke to reporters during a visit to Barneveld middle and high schools Monday, where he spoke to students and staff about their mental health initiatives and announced a deal with Republican legislative leaders on school funding and tax cuts. (Photo by Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner)
Gov. Tony Evers, Assembly Speaker Robin Vos (R-Rochester) and Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu (R-Oostburg) — Wisconsin’s three leaders all of whom are set to retire this year — announced a $1.8 billion deal Monday to provide additional funding to Wisconsin schools along with significant tax cuts. The deal goes to the Legislature this week, where some members are already balking. Baylor Spears has the story.
The Trump administration announced a series of changes in federal childcare funding Monday that Wisconsin advocates say will amount to less regulation and undermine attempts to support childcare providers and workers, rolling back Biden administration policies that supported higher wages for childcare workers and put a ceiling on childcare costs for low-income families. Erik Gunn reports.
President Donald Trump is wielding power in unprecedented ways to bring states to heel, marking a dark new chapter in the relationship between the federal government and the states. Officials are grappling with how to respond as Trump punishes Democratic-led states by withholding federal funding, slow-walking assistance and launching punitive investigations. Kevin Hardy and Jonathan Shorman report in the second installment of their occasional series “The 50 vs. The One”.
A growing number of states, including Wisconsin, are reexamining how the criminal legal system treats pregnant and postpartum women behind bars. The measures vary, but some seek to expand eligibility for alternatives to incarceration during pregnancy, restrict or prohibit restraints during labor and delivery, and strengthen data and reporting requirements. Amanda Watford of Stateline has the story.
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ICYMI
A Stop the Steal sign is posted inside of the Capitol Building after a pro-Trump mob broke into the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. A pro-Trump mob stormed the Capitol, breaking windows in the deadly insurrection attempt aimed at stopping Congress from certifying Joe Biden’s win in the November election. (Photo by Jon Cherry/Getty Images)
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