Here & Now

Here & Now for December 11, 2020

Announcer:

The following program is a PBS Wisconsin original production.

Frederica Freyberg:

This morning a Racine County judge rejected the Trump campaign’s attempt to overturn the Wisconsin election results, affirming the Biden-Harris victory. Even as the judge spoke, a state Republican legislative panel heard testimony questioning the integrity of the election. Testimony that called attention to irregularities that no court has yet upheld.

I’m Frederica Freyberg. Tonight on “Here & Now,” Zac Schultz has the latest on this week’s court challenges to Wisconsin election results. A look ahead to the arrival of vaccinations in Wisconsin. An expert explains the impact of newly-restored protections for young immigrants. And Lieutenant Governor Mandela Barnes shares the results of the state climate change task force report. It’s “Here & Now” for December 11.

Announcer:

Funding for “Here & Now” is provided by the Focus Fund for Journalism and Friends of PBS Wisconsin.

Judge:

Because the court is satisfied, the rules and guidelines applied in each of the disputed areas are reasonable and a correct interpretation of the underlying early absentee voting laws, the certification of the results of the 2020 Wisconsin presidential election, after the Dane County and Milwaukee County recounts, is affirmed. There is no credible evidence of any misconduct or wide-scale fraud.

Frederica Freyberg:

With that, a Racine County reserve judge Friday threw out a Donald Trump campaign lawsuit filed in Wisconsin, shooting down every challenge brought by the campaign. Trump lawyers immediately appealed the decision, as time is running out before the Electoral College meets Monday to officially deliver Joe Biden the presidency. This evening, the Wisconsin Supreme Court allowed bypassing the appeals court in this case and will hear oral arguments tomorrow. A federal judge in Milwaukee is ruling on another Trump lawsuit. And earlier tonight the U.S. Supreme Court rejected the Texas lawsuit that sought to overturn the victories in Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Georgia. It’s been a Trump campaign, full court, last-minute push with Wisconsin at the epicenter in the final moments. Senior Political Reporter Zac Schultz is here. Thanks for joining us again tonight.

Zac Schultz:

My pleasure.

Frederica Freyberg:

The big news obviously tonight, the U.S. Supreme Court rejected Trump’s suit to overturn the election, again the Texas case suing over four other states’ results, including Wisconsin. That sends a clear message. Our Attorney General Josh Kaul said tonight it’s over for the Trump campaign notwithstanding cases remaining in Wisconsin. But in your mind, where does it leave Trump supporters who hung on this challenge?

Zac Schultz:

Well, it really was the last gasp nationally for the Trump campaign. Even if they win Wisconsin, those ten electoral votes won’t swing the difference. A lot of legal experts early on said it was a real stretch to begin with, but then it became a little bit of a litmus test for Trump supporters and Republicans whether they would sign on and pretty soon there were attorneys general from other states signing on, 106 members of Congress, including Tom Tiffany who represents Wisconsin’s Northwoods signed on and there were some never-Trumper conservatives in Wisconsin criticizing him for putting his reputation in line with this lawsuit that the Supreme Court ultimately denied.

Frederica Freyberg:

To our knowledge, he was the only one who did so, right? Who signed on.

Zac Schultz:

The only one in Wisconsin, correct.

Frederica Freyberg:

Now, the state Supreme Court goes into Saturday session and they are relying on the Racine County record in that case. What do we know about the Wisconsin high court’s response and reaction to this and other cases from the Trump campaign as they’ve come through?

Zac Schultz:

Well, the real question is what will they actually rule on. In the initial decision to send it back to circuit court, Chief Justice Pat Roggensack said she wanted this ultimate result. She wanted a lower court to do the fact-finding, then let the Supreme Court decide. That’s going to happen. But even in that dissent originally she said she didn’t think that the Trump campaign would get the remedy they were seeking, which is ultimately to take away a couple hundred thousand votes and give Wisconsin’s victory to Donald Trump. And ultimately Brian Hagedorn may have be the swing vote as he was in the decision to send it down in the first place. Where he falls on these issues could be a deciding factor.

Frederica Freyberg:

I feel like Roggensack said they may not get the remedy, it may be out of reach for them, but we will have to see, of course. But to date, five Trump cases have been thrown out in Wisconsin. One that remains, the federal case out of Milwaukee, what do we know about remarks from that federal judge?

Zac Schultz:

Well, he’s called it bizarre. He’s called it odd. Even when he was commenting during the hearing, he said if he ruled in favor of the Trump campaign, it would be one of the most remarkable decisions in the history of the court and the judiciary. With everything else that’s happened, it’s hard to find a way in which this judge rules in favor of Trump. Obviously then that would be appealed up to the 7th Circuit and onto the Supreme Court if it happened. But it could likely be mute because the Electoral College will have voted. But anyway we’re still awaiting that decision. He said in the next couple of days so that could be tonight or that could be tomorrow or over the weekend.

Frederica Freyberg:

Meanwhile, does it dampen at all the work that the courts in the state of Wisconsin have to do because the U.S. Supreme Court rejected that very large case tonight?

Zac Schultz:

I don’t know if it affects the Wisconsin Supreme Court in any way because they’re really ruling on state law and how it was followed. And whether they change the results or not, they may feel they want to weigh in on whether it was followed properly and whether they want to advise the Legislature to look at some of those issues. So beyond who won or not or changing the results, there may be some technical questions that the court feels they want to advise the Legislature upon.

Frederica Freyberg:

So at this same time that Trump was losing in court in Racine County, Wisconsin legislative Republicans were staging an all-day committee hearing where all manner of fraud claims were being made by invited witnesses. To what end was this hearing?

Zac Schultz:

Well, this also had the feel of kind of a litmus test for some of those Trump supporters who felt they wanted to hear about potential fraud. At the exact same time a Racine judge was saying all the law was followed evenly and there was no evidence of fraud, we had some of the wildest claims that have been thrown out of courts all across the country being aired in Wisconsin and before the Assembly. The Democrats walked out saying it was a sham and a racist sham at that targeting black and brown voters in Milwaukee and Madison. We don’t really know more than the show what will come out of this.

Frederica Freyberg:

One of the Republican members of the Wisconsin Elections Commission appearing at that committee hearing testified that there was not widespread fraud in November’s election, but that some changes could or should come out of all of that. Is that something that could be the next progression?

Zac Schultz:

Yeah. There actually are very important issues that need to be resolved coming up, and primarily it has to do with the processing of absentee ballots. One of the reasons Wisconsin’s results came in so late is because the cities weren’t allowed to process them until Election Day whereas some states like Florida and Ohio who are used to having more mail-in ballots process them throughout the week so they’re ready to count them on the day of election. We don’t have these delays. You don’t have poll workers working overnight. And I know that’s something that Democrats want to see that changed. Some Republicans have talked about it. It just depends on whether the politics surrounding all of this continues to go forward or if both parties can look for resolution because obviously Governor Evers has the veto. So if he doesn’t like whatever gets passed, then it’s not going to go anywhere.

Frederica Freyberg:

We leave it there. Thank you for your work on this, Senior Political Reporter Zac Schultz.

Zac Schultz:

Thank you.

Frederica Freyberg:

The COVID-19 vaccine is soon to be en route to Wisconsin and within coming days will be injected into the arms of frontline health care workers and nursing home residents. UW Health is one of the hubs that will receive the Pfizer vaccine with its requirement that it be kept at temperatures below minus 90 degrees Fahrenheit. Dr. Matt Anderson is with UW Health and he’s in charge of the distribution. He joins us now from Madison. Thanks for being here.

Matt Anderson:

Thanks for having me.

Frederica Freyberg:

So when exactly are shipments of the Pfizer vaccine expected to arrive?

Matt Anderson:

We’re expecting them to come sometime in the early portions of next week, depending upon shipment dates and everything. We’re expecting early in the week.

Frederica Freyberg:

So what is it like for this day to be upon us that people in hospitals like yours will soon be able to give this vaccine for COVID-19?

Matt Anderson:

I think there’s a lot of excitement and hope that it brings. I think there’s also the realization that this isn’t going to be an on/off switch for the pandemic. But I think it’s another tool in our tool belt so to speak for how we can approach and make progress in reducing the community spread and reducing the infectivity rates and the suffering that’s being going on as a result of COVID. There’s a lot of excitement and hope about that while being tempered with the realization that we still have months and a lot of important days ahead of us.

Frederica Freyberg:

How many vaccines will your hub get and how will they be stored there?

Matt Anderson:

We’re expecting around 4,000 here with this first shipment, but that number is still a little bit up in the air. They’ll be stored in our ultra-cold freezers which are going to be here and some of those doses distributed out to other parts of the south central region.

Frederica Freyberg:

So you will get 4,000, which just doesn’t seem like that many, but they will then go to your frontline workers and likewise at other kind of distribution sites?

Matt Anderson:

Correct. The 4,000, we’re not clear at this point how many of those will be for UW Health employees versus other sites. The distribution is really determined by the DHS and the state Disaster Medical Advisory Committee has an allocation framework. So as the supply for the different vaccines becomes available, that’s how it will be determined who’s getting what in what portions.

Frederica Freyberg:

Which workers then, say at your hospital, get priority?

Matt Anderson:

The priority is really determined by workplace risk exposure. So for those who have the greatest duration, frequency or intensity of exposure. Some examples of those would include our anesthesia teams that are doing airway management, our emergency departments, ICUs, in-patient units taking care of COVID patients, respiratory therapists. Those folks are really in that highest-risk group and that’s how we’re approaching it.

Frederica Freyberg:

So complicated all of this. How are they transported from your hub? And what’s their shelf life?

Matt Anderson:

So the shelf life if you have the vaccine in the ultra-cold storage and you take it out, it can take several hours to thaw. If you maintain refrigeration, then you have five days with which to administer the vaccine. The vaccines are in multidose vials so once you go ahead and open that vial and dilute it, as you have to, to prepare, you have six hours to give it at that point.

Frederica Freyberg:

How long until immunity takes effect after a vaccine? I know it’s got two doses, so how long until you are kind of vaccinated from COVID-19?

Matt Anderson:

So one thing just to reiterate is that we know that it’s not necessarily 100%, you know, immunity at this point. We know that the number is actually really encouraging, but not there. From a standpoint of which doses and how much immunity, it really is a week plus beyond that second dose when you’re really getting the maximum immunity benefit. That’s why it’s important that everybody gets that second dose after they receive the first, because it’s only partial at that point and there’s still stuff — information that we don’t know about the duration. But that second dose is really important.

Frederica Freyberg:

And then all of this we need to suggest that it will be some time until the general public can get this vaccine, correct?

Matt Anderson:

Absolutely. We’re going to be expecting that to be more in the summer time frame and hopefully it would be sooner if we had a greater number of vaccines, greater supply chain capabilities. We’ll have to watch and see. But yes, we are expecting it to be a number of months before it’s broadly available to the general public.

Frederica Freyberg:

So between now and then, what is your guidance?

Matt Anderson:

For the public, the same things that we’ve been talking about continue to be really important. It’s important we avoid large gatherings. Keep our social, physical distance from each other as we’ve been saying. That people wear masks, that they have hand hygiene practices because we know while it’s exciting that we don’t want to declare victory too early and there are a lot of things that we can be doing still to make sure we reduce any suffering or unnecessary complications from COVID-19.

Frederica Freyberg:

All right. Dr. Matt Anderson, thanks very much and thank you for your work.

Matt Anderson:

Thank you. I appreciate it.

Frederica Freyberg:

Even as Wisconsin prepared to distribute vaccine, the Senate Homeland Security Committee in Washington took testimony from clinicians who continue to push for disproven therapies for the virus. At the outset of the hearing, the chair, Republican U.S. Senator Ron Johnson, also endorsed the use of such drugs.

Ron Johnson:

At the beginning of this epidemic, when I first heard about the potential of hydroxychloroquine, it intrigued me because to me a drug like that that’s been around for 65 years, shown to be safe, it’s cheap, billions of tablets are produced every year, we could have ramped up production. If that could be proven to be effective, wouldn’t that be the dream solution? Why didn’t we pursue that?

Frederica Freyberg:

By Thursday, Johnson, together with Republican Committee Member Senator Rand Paul, sent a letter to the National Institutes of Health. The letter asked the federal government to expedite its review of early COVID-19 treatment options.

Now back to Wisconsin political news and a rare bipartisan agreement. This week, disparate groups making up 32 members of the governor’s task force on climate change signed off on its 55 climate solutions and released its report. Those solutions include to encourage utilities to eliminate carbon emissions, support public transit and electric vehicles, create clean energy and conservation jobs and create an Office of Environmental Justice. Lieutenant Governor Mandela Barnes is chair of the task force. He says the work ahead is not just about climate, but economic growth and recovery with a keen eye on climate justice and equity. He joins us now and thanks very much for being here.

Mandela Barnes:

Thank you so much for having me. Really excited to talk about this.

Frederica Freyberg:

Good. So what is climate justice and equity?

Mandela Barnes:

Climate justice and equity means that everybody should have a fair shot when it comes to their living circumstances as it relates to the environment. We see too many communities that face environmental hazards, whether it’s water pollution and contamination or air quality hazards. And we need to make sure that the people that contribute to those adverse set of circumstances or sets of circumstances are, one, held accountable, but also making sure that quality of life is something that people should come to expect no matter where you live in Wisconsin. So this is a monumental step forward for our state.

Frederica Freyberg:

How do task force solutions bring justice and equity to the work of climate change?

Mandela Barnes:

Oh, easily. In many ways. You look at where we are right now you can look at the climate but also where we are with COVID-19 and the adverse impact it’s having on people’s health and also Wisconsin’s economic condition. Not much different than many other states in the country. And we need a real plan for recovery to push us forward. And that means advancing our opportunities when it comes to green energy jobs. Jobs in the renewable energy sector have been outpacing the rest of the economy for years now. It’s time for Wisconsin to be a part of that growth. But it’s also important to make sure that communities that have been the most impacted, whether it’s by climate change or whether it is devastating economic circumstances, have a shot at those types of jobs and that type of employment. And also our agriculture community, our rural communities, who often get blamed for contributions to climate change, but the reality is they experience the impacts of climate change more than many other communities given historic levels of rainfall, given historic levels of flooding. That impacts crop production and also impacts economies across our state. What we have is a plan to involve them in the process of combating climate change but also providing economic opportunity. I think that’s the definition of climate justice.

Frederica Freyberg:

So describe the breadth of the members on this task force.

Mandela Barnes:

That’s got to be the most exciting part about it. We have people from all across the state, different regions, different walks of life, different professions, different disciplines. We have large businesses, small businesses, youth participation. It was bipartisan participation with four different legislators who are members of the task force. We also had utilities and we had farmers to come together to come up solutions. And also climate activists and advocacy organizations. We’re talking about people who find themselves often talking about each other, talking around each other or talking over each other. But this task force gave space, providing an opportunity for them to talk to each other and discuss ways that we could all move forward.

Frederica Freyberg:

There have been many task force reports over the years. What is your expectation that this one will be acted on?

Mandela Barnes:

I think people understand the urgency here and I think that we live with, again, environmental justice at the forefront. When people think about social justice, they have a certain idea. But environmental justice is a social justice issue, but it means that if you are in a community and you are — you have your wells that have PFAS contamination or nitrate contamination or you’re dealing with lead laterals in your community or you’re in an area that has been dealt with having to experience the toxins of coal-burning power plants. These are all issues of environmental justice that we live with. We live with quality of life, making sure we talk about the economic opportunity that comes with us acting on this issue. I’m not sure if that has always been the case before, but the case could not be made more clear this time, when people all across the state, people all across this country are in need of something new, something better and an opportunity to help them live happier, healthier, safer and more productive lives.

Frederica Freyberg:

Very briefly, what is the next step?

Mandela Barnes:

The next step, a number of recommendations. We look to put forth in the budget a number of recommendations. We’ll also have a chance to be explored whether through some sort of executive action and the legislature will be presented with a number of these solutions as well. So we hope that people will act on it and we just want the public to have a chance to sit and digest this document as well so they can see what a cleaner future looks like for the state of Wisconsin.

Frederica Freyberg:

All right. Well, thank you so much for joining us, Lieutenant Governor Mandela Barnes.

Mandela Barnes:

Thank you so much for having me.

Frederica Freyberg:

The federal immigration policy rollercoaster is on a positive glide path at this moment for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arriving, or DACA program, following a federal court ruling this week. There are some 6600 DACA recipients in Wisconsin. These are undocumented immigrants brought to the U.S. as children and allowed to receive a renewable two-year period of deferred action from deportation and become eligible for a work permit in the U.S. More childhood arrivals are waiting to apply. Erin Barbato is the director of the Immigrant Justice Clinic at the University of Wisconsin Law School and she joins us now on this issue. Thanks very much for being here.

Erin Barbato:

Thanks so much for having me.

Frederica Freyberg:

So the court ruled that new applications to the DACA program can resume after the Trump administration had blocked them. How many people does that affect in Wisconsin?

Erin Barbato:

So the estimates are quite high. As you just mentioned, there are around 6600 people currently with DACA in Wisconsin and estimates now show that there may be another 11,000 people in Wisconsin who are eligible to now apply as initial applicants.

Frederica Freyberg:

So what has been the reaction to this ruling from people here wanting to apply?

Erin Barbato:

So from my experience working with my clients and other nonprofits who directly work with people who are eligible for DACA or dreamers is finally there’s some good news. I think we were all anticipating that when President-Elect Biden actually becomes president that we would have initial applications for DACA eligible available again. But this came a little bit earlier. And way too late. People have been suffering in limbo and through attacks from this administration for years now and finally the right decision came out. So there’s excitement, but it’s also just the beginning of a fight for a permanent solution for people with DACA to have a road to citizenship in the United States.

Frederica Freyberg:

More on that in a moment, but how meaningful is it for these young people to be able to get work permits and driver’s licenses and protection most of all from deportation?

Erin Barbato:

Sure, I mean I can’t speak for them myself, but from what I know from my clients and also other dreamers I know in Wisconsin, it’s incredibly important for people who have been here almost their whole lives and only know the United States as this country. They’ve been living in fear under this administration for not only losing their driver’s licenses or their ability to work but also for fear of deportation, permanent separation from the only country they’ve ever known, permanent separation possibly from their family. So it’s really been horrific. So there’s a little bit of breathing room and reprieve, but the work is just starting.

Frederica Freyberg:

So there is more because in addition to two years of protection from deportation, people would like the path to citizenship for themselves and their parents. So what about that?

Erin Barbato:

So this is something that everyone has been working towards for many, many years in terms of the Dream Act, which was really started being discussed in 2000. So it’s been almost 20 years with nothing has come to fruition. So this is really the time where Congress is going to need to act to create a pathway to citizenship for our dreamers and our DACA recipients. President-elect Biden can’t do it on his own. He can continue to allow DACA to exist, but he’s not going to be able to generally with his powers to create this permanent pathway to citizenship. So it’s going to have to be an act through our legislature.

Frederica Freyberg:

So what are your expectations that comprehensive immigration policy will be taken up in Congress?

Erin Barbato:

I am optimistic. I think our country, the people have seen how these individuals have suffered under this current administration in a way that’s really unimaginable and inhumane. So public support of DACA is clear. So I’m really hoping that our government can come together to do the right thing after so many years of suffering.

Frederica Freyberg:

And just briefly, the nuts and bolts of it, if you are a person that has been awaiting being able to apply, how do they do that?

Erin Barbato:

So what’s really important is that people who may be initially eligible to apply for DACA is that we consult with a reputable attorney or accredited representative to ensure that they are truly eligible and don’t put themselves in further risk of deportation or giving the government information that would put them in danger. So it’s important to reach out to trusted nonprofits or immigration attorneys that can really give someone the information that they need in order to ensure their safety and their future.

Frederica Freyberg:

Okay. Good advice. Erin Barbato, thank you very much for joining us.

Erin Barbato:

Thank you so much for having me.

Frederica Freyberg:

Before we close, a quick reminder, you can stay up-to-date on the legal challenges to the Wisconsin election result by going to PBSwisconsin.org and then clicking on the news tab.

And for ongoing, in-depth coverage on coronavirus, visit our partner news site at WisContext.org.

AARP of Wisconsin announced record-high resident and staff COVID-19 cases and deaths in nursing homes. Also short supplies of personal protective equipment. I’ll talk with the state AARP director next Friday night.

That’s our program for tonight. I’m Frederica Freyberg. Have a good weekend.

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Funding for “Here & Now” is provided by the Focus Fund for Journalism and Friends of PBS Wisconsin.