Tim Carpenter stands and gestures with both hands as other state senators sit at wood desks arranged in a semi-circle while other staff sit and stand at a wooden legislative dais, in a room with marble masonry and pillars, large paintings, and a second-story observation gallery.

Politics

Wisconsin Senate Republicans vote to override nine Evers vetoes on PFAS funds, other bills

The Republican-controlled Wisconsin Senate voted to override nine vetoes of Democratic Gov. Tony Evers in a mostly symbolic action that Republican candidates may use on the 2024 campaign trail.

May 14, 2024

An aerial photo shows trees with mostly green and some yellow leaves, along with many with no leaves, on land located along the shores of and among different islands in the channels of a river, with tree covered bluffs on the opposite shore under a clear sky.
An aerial photo shows trees with mostly green and some yellow leaves, along with many with no leaves, on land located along the shores of and among different islands in the channels of a river, with tree covered bluffs on the opposite shore under a clear sky.

Economy

Utilities start work on transmission line crossing in Mississippi River wildlife refuge

ITC Midwest and Dairyland Power Cooperative have started construction on the final mile of the contentious Cardinal-Hickory Creek transmission line where it crosses the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge near Cassville.

May 14, 2024 • Southwest Region

A metal container standing on four legs with a text graphics that starts with the line On July 8 2022, the Wisconsin Supreme Court banned most absentee ballot drop boxes in the state at its top stands on a concrete slab next to a garden plot, with a brick building with a metal sign reading Fire Station No. 3 and multiple garage doors in the background.
A metal container standing on four legs with a text graphics that starts with the line On July 8 2022, the Wisconsin Supreme Court banned most absentee ballot drop boxes in the state at its top stands on a concrete slab next to a garden plot, with a brick building with a metal sign reading Fire Station No. 3 and multiple garage doors in the background.

Elections

Rural Wisconsin voters face hurdles aside from the ballot drop box ban

As the Wisconsin Supreme Court considers whether to again allow absentee voters to cast their ballots in drop boxes, local clerks explain how the 2022 ban has made election administration more complicated.

May 14, 2024

A metal box with a closed door, locking mechanism, and decal with star graphics and the words Insert Ballot Here stands in front of an out-of-focus wall.
A metal box with a closed door, locking mechanism, and decal with star graphics and the words Insert Ballot Here stands in front of an out-of-focus wall.

Courts

Wisconsin Supreme Court hears challenge to state’s 2022 ballot drop box ban

Liberal justices who control the Wisconsin Supreme Court show signs in oral arguments of being willing to overturn the high court's July 2022 ruling that said state law doesn't allow for absentee ballot drop boxes to be placed anywhere other than in election clerk offices, halting their use in the state.

May 13, 2024

Two kayakers paddle in the calm waters of a lake, with the skyline of a city in the background with the Wisconsin State Capitol dome at center, with a haze from smoke obscuring the clarity of the buildings.
Two kayakers paddle in the calm waters of a lake, with the skyline of a city in the background with the Wisconsin State Capitol dome at center, with a haze from smoke obscuring the clarity of the buildings.

Environment

Wildfire smoke from Canada blankets upper Midwest for a second straight year

Smoke from fires burning in British Columbia and Alberta had settled over parts of Montana, the Dakotas, Minnesota and Wisconsin, with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources issuing health advisories for multiple counties across the northern two-thirds of the state.

May 13, 2024

Frederica Freyberg sits at a desk on the Here & Now set and faces a video monitor showing an image of Dr. Julie Owen.
Frederica Freyberg sits at a desk on the Here & Now set and faces a video monitor showing an image of Dr. Julie Owen.

Politics

‘Here & Now’ Highlights: Douglas McLeod, William Gardner, Jane Graham Jennings, Dr. Julie Owen

Here's what guests on the May 10, 2024 episode said about campus protests over Gaza, decriminalizing cannabis on Ho-Chunk Nation lands, falling federal funding for crime victim services, and the disputed diagnosis of "excited delirium."

May 13, 2024

A large exterior panel sign shows the words Emergency and Hospital with arrows pointing left.
A large exterior panel sign shows the words Emergency and Hospital with arrows pointing left.

Health

Cyberattack forces Ascension health system to divert ambulances and take records offline

A cyberattack on the Ascension health system, which operates in 19 states across the U.S. including Wisconsin, forced some of its 140 hospitals to divert ambulances, caused patients to postpone tests and blocked online access to medical records.

May 13, 2024

A still image shows Douglas McLeod seated at the 'Here & Now' set featuring wood paneling, with a graphic at bottom reading 'Douglas McLeod' and 'UW-Madison School of Journalism.'
A still image shows Douglas McLeod seated at the 'Here & Now' set featuring wood paneling, with a graphic at bottom reading 'Douglas McLeod' and 'UW-Madison School of Journalism.'

Education

Douglas McLeod on impacts of pro-Palestinian campus protests

UW-Madison journalism professor Douglas McLeod considers media coverage about and political implications of demonstrations that demand the university divest from companies and institutions in Israel.

May 10, 2024 • South Central Region

A still image from a video shows Jane Graham Jennings seated in front of a drawn white curtains and a lamp to her left with a graphic at bottom reading 'Jane Graham Jennings' and 'The Women's Community of Wausau.'
A still image from a video shows Jane Graham Jennings seated in front of a drawn white curtains and a lamp to her left with a graphic at bottom reading 'Jane Graham Jennings' and 'The Women's Community of Wausau.'

Social Issues

Jane Graham Jennings on funding for crime victim services

The Women's Community Executive Director Jane Graham Jennings describes how a drop in federal funding for grants to help victims of crimes impacts the Wausau-based agency's capacity to provide aid.

May 10, 2024 • West Central Region

A still image from a video shows William Gardner seated in front of a black bookcase with a low hanging plant on top to his left and a window to his right with a graphic at bottom reading 'Black River Falls,' 'William Gardner' and 'Ho-Chunk Nation.'
A still image from a video shows William Gardner seated in front of a black bookcase with a low hanging plant on top to his left and a window to his right with a graphic at bottom reading 'Black River Falls,' 'William Gardner' and 'Ho-Chunk Nation.'

Policy

William Gardner on the Ho-Chunk Nation and cannabis laws

Ho-Chunk Nation Attorney General William Gardner discusses the tribal legislature voting to decriminalize cannabis on its lands and how this action intersects with state and federal marijuana laws.

May 10, 2024