Our comprehensive list and schedule of all upcoming political fundraisers. | |
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In this update:
Democratic National Convention
- Biden delivers remarks
- Harris accepts nomination
- Walz gives speech
- Wisconsin lawmakers speak
Election Updates
- State Assembly and Senate
- MBS Presentation
- U.S. President
- Candidates in WI
- U.S. Senate
- New ads from Hovde and Baldwin
Administration Updates
- Thompson heads from WisDOT to UW
- Healthcare task force approves final report
Upcoming Events
- Coffee with the Candidates
- DSPS Sec. Hereth
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Democratic National Convention | |
The Democratic National Convention was held in Chicago from Monday to Thursday of this week. The convention was expected to host around 50,000 attendees. The convention featured Wisconsin speakers like Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez, Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson, and U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin. Below are some highlights from the convention. | |
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President Joe Biden delivered remarks on the first night of the DNC. He highlighted his administration’s accomplishments and their work’s lasting impact. He touted creating 16 million jobs, investing in computer chip manufacturing, the bipartisan infrastructure law, and access to health care. He also acknowledged the pro-Palestinian protesters, noting they “have a point.”
Watch his hour speech here.
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Harris accepts nomination | |
Vice President Kamala Harris formally accepted her nomination on the final night of the DNC. She spoke about rejecting political division and instead charting “a new way forward.” She outlined her upbringing as the daughter of Jamaican and Indian immigrants as well as her background as a prosecutor. “America, the path that led me here in recent weeks was no doubt unexpected,” Vice President Harris said. “But I’m no stranger to unlikely journeys.”
Watch Harris accept her nomination.
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Democratic vice president nominee and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz spoke on the third day of the convention and formally accepted the Democratic Vice-Presidential nomination. Gov. Walz introduced himself as a hunter, teacher, football coach, and former national guardsman. He noted how he uses “Midwestern common sense” to guide his policies and positions.
Watch the speech here.
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U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin spoke on the last day of the convention. She spoke of her family: her teenage mother and her grandparents who raised her. As her grandparents grew older, it was her “privilege to be there for them. So, when I work to protect Medicare and Social Security, I do it with a personal knowledge of what those big programs meant in small but deeply meaningful ways to my grandparents.” She continued that these programs are at risk if former President Donald Trump is elected.
Watch her speech here.
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Sara Rodriguez gives speech | |
Lieutenant Governor Sara Rodriguez (D) gave a two-minute speech at the Democratic National Convention on Monday where she said, “once a nurse, always a nurse." She touted Vice President Harris as a fighter for healthcare freedom while saying former President Trump failed to protect Americans during the pandemic. Lt. Gov. Rodriguez said Harris will "defend women’s reproductive freedom and protect Medicare and Medicaid. Thanks to the Biden-Harris administration, insulin is capped at $35 a month for seniors. And they negotiated down the prices of 10 more life-saving drugs. …Kamala will continue to take on Big Pharma and lower the cost of prescriptions for everyone.”
Watch her speech.
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Cavalier Johnson gives remarks | |
Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson delivered remarks on the third day of the DNC where he highlighted the Biden-Harris administration’s $36 million investment from the Reconnecting Communities Program to rebuild 6th Street through Downtown Milwaukee. The project will help revitalize neighborhoods negatively impacted by the construction of interstates 94 and 43 in the 1960s. “Sixth Street was widened, and people of color were displaced, homes destroyed, businesses shuddered, all for a quicker commute,” Mayor Johnson said. “Under Kamala Harris and Joe Biden, we’re bringing Bronzeville back—with more green space, bike paths and walkable streets to serve people who actually live there. The music is coming back, the culture is coming back, and thanks to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the opportunities are coming back.”
Watch his remarks here.
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State Assembly and Senate | |
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Last Friday, the Michael Best Strategies Wisconsin team hosted a webinar on the August 13th primary results and a preview of the races to watch for the November election. The presentation kicked off the return of ‘Coffee with the Candidates’ at 8:30AM on Fridays. Below is a collection of resources from our team after the primary election.
View our slidedeck.
Read our August Election Update.
Read the bios of nonincumbent unopposed candidates.
Read the summary memo that followed our Friday discussion.
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Harris and Walz visit WI during DNC | |
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Democratic presidential nominee and Vice President Kamala Harris along with her vice president nominee Governor Tim Walz held a rally at the Fiserv Forum where she stated that former President Donald Trump will “face a consequence” in November for his part in overturning Roe v. Wade. “Bad behavior should result in a consequence,” Vice President Harris said. “We will make sure he does face a consequence, and that will be at the ballot in November.” Vice President Harris then promised to restore Roe v. Wade if she were elected.
Vice President Harris thanked the delegates while in Milwaukee when the roll call for her nomination in Chicago ended. She used Wisconsin’s motto “Forward” to frame her priorities in office, “We are not going back. We will move forward. Just like Wisconsin’s state motto tells us: Forward!”
Attendees in Milwaukee watched the primetime DNC Convention speeches on the Fiserv Forum jumbotron, and DNC Convention attendees in Chicago watched Harris in Milwaukee when she took the stage there.
Watch the rally here.
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Republican vice president nominee JD Vance visited Wisconsin twice within a week. Last Friday, Vance spoke at the Milwaukee Police Association to discuss the southern border. He said the policies under the Biden-Harris administration “make our communities less safe even as far north as Wisconsin.” He acknowledged his wife is the daughter of South Asian immigrants and said he supports immigration policy that prioritized assimilation. Vance backed former President Donald Trump’s law enforcement policy of supporting “the people who are actually keeping us safe.” The Milwaukee Police Association endorsed former President Trump at the event.
On Tuesday, JD Vance returned to Wisconsin to hold a rally in Kenosha. He focused on public safety again, highlighting Vice President Harris wanting to defund the police. He said he and former President Trump would support the death penalty for drug dealers “because they kill far more people than some of the most violent and vicious criminals.”
Watch the Friday event here.
Watch the Tuesday rally here.
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Baldwin releases new TV ad | |
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U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D) released a new TV ad criticizing GOP candidate Eric Hovde for his comment that women spend too much time focusing on Hollywood. The ad features women talking about their professional and family responsibilities, but Hovde believes “all women care about is Hollywood.” It then rolls a clip of him saying, “It's just deplorable. Sadly, with, you know, females, they spend too much time focused on what's going on in Hollywood.”
Watch the ad here.
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Hovde launches new TV ads | |
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GOP U.S. Senate candidate Eric Hovde released two new ads this week. The first new TV ad targets U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin (D) for directing money to push “an aggressive LGBTQ agenda on kids without parental involvement.” The ad is running in the Milwaukee and Wausau markets. The narrator says she wants people to think she’s a moderate despite the fact that “Tammy Baldwin chose a radical agenda over the safety of our kids.” Hovde ended the ad, saying, “As your senator, I'll ensure that parents, not politicians, determine what's best for your kids.”
Watch the ad here.
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The second ad focuses on the southern border and accuses Sen. Baldwin of doing nothing “while our nation falls apart.” The narrator says millions have entered the country illegally, including criminals. All the while, there are Americans hostages are held in the Middle East, “record crime,” and violent protests. “Chaos, created by absentee leadership in Washington. For too long Biden, Harris and Baldwin have sat by and done nothing while our nation falls apart. It's time for change,” the narrator says.
Watch the ad here.
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One Nation targets Baldwin with a new ad | |
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One Nation is running another ad targeting U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin. The TV ad focuses on immigration, saying rather than “getting tough on the border, Sen. Tammy Baldwin supported amnesty for 11 million illegal immigrants, including convicted criminals.” The ad also features a case of a man in the country illegally with multiple DUI charges who “went on to kill a Wisconsin father of three while driving drunk again.”
Watch the ad here.
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Thompson leaves WisDOT for UW,
Kristina Boardman appointed as replacement
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Gov. Tony Evers announced Wisconsin Department of Transportation Secretary Craig Thompson will resign from his post effective September 11 to take a new position as vice chancellor for university relations at UW-Madison. The governor said he is appointing Kristina Boardman to serve as WisDOT secretary. She is currently the deputy secretary, having previously been the administrator of WisDOT's Division of Motor Vehicles.
In a press release announcing the move, Gov. Evers praised Sec. Thompson for his leadership and work in modernizing the state’s transportation system. “Craig has done a tremendous job at the helm of the Department of Transportation, and I could not be prouder of all the work we’ve been able to do together,” said Gov. Evers. “From fixing thousands of miles of roads and bridges—enough drive from Wisconsin to Key West, Florida, and back, twice—to celebrating the launch of the first new passenger rail train in Wisconsin in over 20 years to making critical headway on building the 21st-century infrastructure we need to compete in the 21st-century economy, Craig has been part of this work every mile of the way.” Regarding the appointment of Dep. Sec. Boardman to WisDOT secretary, Gov. Evers praised her “proven leadership and experience at the department” and said he looks forward to the “vision and insight she will bring as a member of my cabinet and trust that her transition into the role will be seamless.”
Read Dep. Sec. Kristina Boardman’s bio: click here
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Gov.'s task force on healthcare workforce approves final report | |
The Governor’s Task Force on Healthcare Workforce held a meeting to approve their final report. The document included 10 recommendations as well as 26 action items, addressing education, training, recruitment, and retention. The action plan will be reviewed by Governor Tony Evers (D) for consideration. “This action plan will help bring more folks into the healthcare profession and ensure that Wisconsinites get the care they need and the quality of life they deserve. So, I want to thank the Task Force for their dedication and commitment to finding meaningful and achievable solutions that will carry us into the future,” said Gov. Evers.
Below are the approved recommendations the final report included.
Education and Training
- Support health professions faculty
- Strengthen clinical training and experience
- Reduce barriers to training
- Expand apprenticeships and other learning opportunities
Recruitment and Retention
- Increase payer support for recruitment and retention
- Foster recruitment and retention in areas of need
- Support regional innovation
Regulatory Policy
- Support expanded pathways to licensures
- Strengthen state capacity to support licensure
- Strengthen workforce monitoring and support
Read the final report here.
Review the meeting materials here.
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- Coffee with the Candidates: Next installment is Friday, September 6th at 8:30AM
- September 25th at 11:30am - Meet the Cabinet: Department of Safety and Professional Services Secretary Dan Hereth (virtual and in-person options available)
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If you would like any additional information about the above topic, or if you would like to find time to discuss the above matter in more detail, please do not hesitate to contact your Michael Best Strategies contact.
Have a great day,
Wisconsin GR Team
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One South Pickney Street, Suite 700
Madison, WI 53703
Phone: 608-257-3501
Fax: 608-283-2275
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