Remembering the March on Washington

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

“Tolerance is an admirable mindset, but the time for tolerance has ended.”

– Raymond Village President Kari Morgan, in a letter pushing her effort to oust the gay principal of the community’s K-8 school

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On the 63rd anniversary of the March on Washington and Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I have a dream” speech, his granddaughter on Friday addressed thousands gathered to commemorate the March who vowed to push back against the U.S. Supreme Court ruling earlier this year gutting the Voting Rights Act. Ashley Murray of our D.C. bureau reports on the anniversary event.

President Donald Trump’s administration is appealing a federal judge’s temporary pause on a U.S. Postal Service regulation that places new restrictions on mail-in voting, according to a Friday court filing. 

The Wisconsin Department of Health Services announced Friday that the measles outbreak in southwest Wisconsin has continued to grow, with cases jumping to 92. Deputy Editor Erik Gunn reports on the disease.

With less than 70 days until the midterm elections, the path for Republicans to win control of the U.S. House continues to narrow, experts and analysts tell Shauneen Miranda of our D.C. Bureau.

Midterm Elections

Since first getting elected to the state Assembly in 2010, Tom Tiffany has paid special attention to conservation and environmental issues. Now that he’s running for governor, Henry Redman follows that 15 year trail of bills, votes and comments over mining regulations, wolf hunting, renewable energy and the Department of Natural Resources.

The Marquette University Law School this week released its first poll of the governor’s race since the primary elections earlier this month, which showed that Democrat David Crowley has a slight edge over Tiffany. Baylor Spears breaks down the poll and what experts say it means as the two candidates sprint to November.

Democrats are confident they’ll be able to win majority control of both chambers of the state Legislature in November. But the path to a majority is a bit easier in the Senate, where Sen. Patrick Testin (R-Stevens Point), the chair of the Republican Senate Campaign Committee, tells Spears that his party’s “backs are against the wall.” She looks at the districts that will determine who controls the Senate in January.

Technology

Residents of communities across Wisconsin and the country have been speaking out against the use of Flock license plate readers — raising concerns about privacy and opportunities for cops to misuse the system. Wisconsin Ethics Commission records show that the company behind the controversial surveillance tech spent $102,000 lobbying state lawmakers last year, Isiah Holmes reports.

This week, Meta and a coalition of 47 states reached a settlement agreement in a lawsuit against the Facebook and Instagram parent company for designing products that are harmful and addictive to children. Spears reports on what the hundreds of millions of dollars Wisconsin is set to receive could go toward and what else lawmakers and experts say is needed to truly protect kids online.

Schools, Farms and Dolly Parton

In 2022, a new right-wing majority won control of the school board in the Racine County community of Raymond. With their newfound power, the school board members, village president and allies in local conservative groups began a multi-year effort to oust the gay principal of the district’s K-8 school. Heather Asiyanbi reports on the saga, which escalated with a local official writing that “the time for tolerance has ended” and is now tied up in a state discrimination complaint and a federal lawsuit.

An administrative law judge ruled earlier this week that the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources did not do enough to ensure that local groundwater was protected when it granted a permit allowing a controversial Pierce County factory farm permission to expand from 1,500 to 6,000 cows. Redman reports on the ruling and what it means for the group that spent years organizing local residents against the expansion.

While reporting the news on Wisconsin state government is not always a typical “9 to 5” job, the Examiner does have an east Tennessee native on staff in Spears. Our colleagues at the Tennessee Lookout remembered the life of country music star Dolly Parton, who died this week at 80.

PLUS:

Wisconsin tax collections 2% higher than expected, putting budget surplus at nearly $3 billion

Crowley says he’s ‘befuddled’ by decision not to charge Musk with election bribery

Enbridge Line 5 leaks natural gas near Saxon in Iron County

Crowley says he won’t vote to limit governor’s veto pen

More from Washington:

Canadian tariffs to further raise prices, a top concern for voters

Judge reinstates pause on Trump order limiting mail ballots

Trump administration plans $100,000 visa fee for high-skill foreign workers