Here & Now for November 5, 2021

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The following program is a PBS Wisconsin original production.

Frederica Freyberg:

Relief has arrived for parents of 5 to 11-year-olds, as the Centers for Disease Control recommends the pediatric COVID-19 vaccine. The latest Marquette poll foreshadows a challenging political landscape ahead of the 2022 elections and yet the 2020 elections remain front and center as the Racine County sheriff’s office pursues felony charges against Wisconsin elections commissioners. And Kenosha is put back into the national spotlight as the trial of Kyle Rittenhouse gets underway.

I’m Frederica Freyberg. Tonight on “Here & Now,” the latest on COVID-19 with the Wisconsin Department of Health Services Secretary-designee Karen Timberlake. Then we take the political temperature with Charles Franklin and his latest Marquette Law School poll. Concerns of election integrity are responded to with alarm. We hear from Disability Rights Wisconsin. And the scene at the trial of Kyle Rittenhouse from a reporter in Kenosha. It’s “Here & Now” for November 5.

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

Frederica Freyberg:

More COVID-19 vaccine news this week. The CDC gave final approval for children ages 5 to 11 to get the two-dose Pfizer vaccine series. Health officials say nearly 500,000 children in that age group in Wisconsin are eligible and that the state’s first-week allotment is 175,000 doses. For more information on the new roll-out of the pediatric COVID-19 vaccines, we turn to Karen Timberlake, secretary-designee of the Wisconsin Department of Health Services and thanks very much for being here.

Karen Timberlake:

You are very welcome.

Frederica Freyberg:

So with the first allotment of the vaccine for younger children arriving, we’ve already seen some pictures of children getting these shots, but is it widespread? When can most children who want it get it?

Karen Timberlake:

The good news is we’re being told there will be plenty of vaccine for kids ages 5 to 11. It just is going to take a few weeks as we’ve gotten used to now with these vaccine roll-outs. A few weeks for all of the doses that Wisconsin will be eligible for to arrive in our state. So the best thing parents can do and guardians and caretakers when they’re looking for those first shots for their 5 to 11 year olds is start with your child’s regular pediatrician or primary care provider or check vaccines.gov, which is a great resource for all of the locations where vaccine is available across our state.

Frederica Freyberg:

This is the Pfizer vaccine, a series of two in smaller kind of mini doses? Is that right?

Karen Timberlake:

That’s correct. As the saying goes, children are not just little adults, and so there was careful research done, careful clinical trials were conducted to make sure that this vaccine is both safe and effective for kids ages 5 to 11. So it’s about one-third the dose that any of us who got the Pfizer vaccine as older kids or as adults got.

Frederica Freyberg:

Will there be some of these kind of community mass clinics set up across the state as there had been?

Karen Timberlake:

Yes. We have maintained a network of vaccination clinics across the state in partnership with our local and tribal health departments in partnership with one of our vendors, AMI, which is just doing a great job with the community clinics. We also know that a number of both public health but also health systems are partnering with schools just to make it that much more convenient for kids and their families to make sure they can access this important vaccine.

Frederica Freyberg:

All of that work and effort to make that available, but recent surveys show only about a third of parents definitely plan to vaccinate their younger children. What is your message to the other two-thirds who are maybe on the fence or even opposed to it?

Karen Timberlake:

So I think the place to start is certainly by having a conversation with your child’s health care provider. We understand that this is new and that parents and caretakers have questions. So please do connect with your child’s care provider and ask your questions. The other thing we would really emphasize is that the vaccines have been thoroughly tested. They really have been found to be safe and effective, following all the steps that the FDA and the CDC follow before they make any vaccine available. And it’s important for families to know that COVID has risks even for children. I know we think of it as being riskier for older people and that is certainly true, but kids can end up in the hospital, which is very scary for them and for their families, and perhaps almost as importantly, kids can also end up missing out on school and activities, all the things that I know I as a parent really want for my kids, that they be able to participate uninterrupted. And the vaccine is a great way to protect our kids, protect their families and protect our whole state.

Frederica Freyberg:

Because how will vaccinating this younger population help older people as we come into the holiday season and beyond?

Karen Timberlake:

Right. Think about the fact that as we like to say, kids live in families and families like to gather with each other, with friends, and we want to make sure that we just take every opportunity to vaccinate not just kids, but also those around them, particularly for both those younger children younger than five who still cannot be vaccinated and for the older relatives and the adults who may want to be getting together over the holiday season. There’s no reason that we can’t get everybody vaccinated and make sure that everyone can be as safe and healthy heading into the holidays as possible.

Frederica Freyberg:

How is Wisconsin doing on its overall vaccination rate even as Packer fans right now are crestfallen that Aaron Rodgers will be out at least a game after testing positive for COVID-19 after not being vaccinated?

Karen Timberlake:

The overall progress across our state is still really strong. I think if you look at our older adults, we have vaccinated more than 85% now of people 65 and older which is just remarkable. When you look at people 18 and up, so that working age population, we’re at about 69% have gotten at least one shot, almost 70%, so that’s really positive. Obviously we have a ways to go yet with kids 12-17 and now just starting with the 5 to 11 year olds. There’s still a ways to go, but we’re making really good progress.

Frederica Freyberg:

I notice you didn’t comment on Aaron Rodgers, but Karen Timberlake, thanks very much for your work.

Karen Timberlake:

You are very welcome.

Frederica Freyberg:

Results in the latest Marquette Law School poll suggest a grumpy electorate, according to its director. Charles Franklin points out that all seven of the politicians the survey asked about ranked more negative than positive. We check in now on the polling. Charles Franklin joins us from Madison. Nice to see you again.

Charles Franklin:

Thanks. Good to be here.

Frederica Freyberg:

You say this overriding negative mood is a first for your polling?

Charles Franklin:

Well, the extent of it. You know, this is our 67th Wisconsin statewide survey, and it’s the first time that all of the politicians we’ve asked about of both parties have had net negative favorability ratings. Now some of those are just barely net negative and some are pretty negative. So I don’t want to overstate it but it’s kind of interesting that we did 66 of these things and never had everybody in negative territory. And we do this time. That negativity is also seen in the right direction, wrong track number where 41% say we’re headed in the right direction, but 51% say off on the wrong track. It’s a shade better than two months ago, but it’s still pretty negative.

Frederica Freyberg:

So what is making the electorate so grumpy, in your words?

Charles Franklin:

I think it’s a variety of things. There’s certainly issues like inflation where 69% say they’re very concerned about inflation. That’s up from the 40s two months ago. So this is an issue to be taken seriously. Really the only positive numbers we’ve seen are some declining concern over COVID. I think that’s connected to the decline in cases that we’ve seen in the state and nationally over the last month or so. And then finally, when you ask people open-ended questions, feelings about government being broken and not working is not the top concern, but it usually makes the top five or six. So I think this combination of things coupled with, you know, not especially great economic news, not great virus news, all of that is part of the grumpiness.

Frederica Freyberg:

All right. Well, let’s spin through some of the telling results then. The poll from late October finds that when you asked whether they would vote to reelect Tony Evers or Ron Johnson, 53% of respondents said no to Evers and 52% said no to Johnson. As we were saying, it’s kind of equal partisan opportunity for these negative feelings but are these numbers a surprise to you at all?

Charles Franklin:

They are a little bit, and especially in this way. If I told you that a Democratic politician was at 40%, what would you think the Republican politician on the same survey would be? I think you would think they’d be at 60% because we’re so polarized. So to find both of them suffering equal opportunity grumpiness is I think a kind of telling thing. People within each of their parties are still strongly supportive of both Evers and of Johnson, and the opposite party is just bitterly negative, but it’s independents who are not happy with either of them and say they would vote for someone else. Let me hurry to say that we asked this question to get the baseline support of these folks. Someone else is always left to your imagination of how wonderful they can be.

Frederica Freyberg:

Right.

Charles Franklin:

By no means do I think either of these would get 40% of the vote in an election if we actually had one. But that 40% does set the baseline of the people that are pretty happy with both of these and the 52% or 53% says there’s an opportunity for a challenger to break through. We have 12 months for that challenger to emerge and actually accomplish that.

Frederica Freyberg:

Speaking of which, let’s take a look at our next slide that has to do with Joe Biden, his job approval. Biden’s job approval rating sits at 43%, 53% disapproval. What do you think the biggest factor is here and did it factor say in the Virginia governor’s race?

Charles Franklin:

Oh, I think it does factor in the Virginia race and in other political situations. The president does always influence midterm and off-year elections. Biden’s approval has fallen. It was at about 49% in August, a little bit positive in August. But, remember, August was the month of the Afghan withdrawal, which saw his numbers fall pretty sharply nationally. Also September with the surge in the virus, was an important time. And finally, we have the Congress which has as of this moment, has not passed either of the infrastructure or the reconciliation bills. So there’s also a sense that Washington’s not working even if it actually is working. It’s just really slow.

Frederica Freyberg:

Right. Well, let’s take a look at this next one. It seems like it’s a prize given all the oxygen being given to investigations and allegations in Wisconsin around the 2020 election. A full 65% of respondents say they have confidence in the 2020 election, with 32% saying that they don’t. What stands out in that kind of response for you?

Charles Franklin:

Here’s where the partisan split is just overwhelming. 64% of Republicans say they don’t have confidence, but 99% of Democrats say they do. Both of those line up with whether your party won or didn’t win the election pretty clearly. But among independents, which can be an important group in a closely-divided state like this, two-thirds, 67%, say they’re confident in the election outcome. Just 30% are not. And that I think is really an important political issue because it says this issue is burning within the Republican Party, but it’s really not burning with the general electorate. Interestingly, we found that two-thirds had not heard enough about the Gableman investigation to have an opinion looking into the election, but that “don’t know” rate was actually higher. 72% of Republicans had not heard of that investigation. So you have the people that are most concerned actually paying the least attention to the investigation that’s ongoing.

Frederica Freyberg:

That is actually a really stunning number, but maybe it is journalists and others that pay more attention to that than the people that are interested and spearheading it themselves. Charles, we need to leave it there. Thanks very much. We’ll see you for your next poll.

Charles Franklin:

Thank you. Take care.

Frederica Freyberg:

As to election investigations and allegations, the Racine County sheriff this week is recommending felony charges against five members of the Wisconsin Elections Commission. Last week Sheriff Chris Schmaling called on Attorney General Josh Kaul to investigate pandemic election guidance in 2020 that allowed nursing home staff to help residents vote rather than special voting deputies. Kaul said the sheriff is engaging in a disgraceful publicity stunt that shows an appalling lack of judgement. The investigation has been referred to the Racine DA.

Also this week, the elections commission administrator responded to Republican calls for her resignation in the wake of the sheriff’s allegations of election fraud.

Meagan Wolfe:

In terms of the calls for my resignation, you know, ultimately I think that it’s not productive. I think it’s baseless. And I think it’s just partisan politics. You know, I also think that it misrepresents my role and the role of the commission. I think that the claims about the commission, I think it really highlights a lack of understanding about how special voting deputies work in normal circumstances, yet alone how that process works during a pandemic. I think it overlooks the fact that special voting deputies were not being allowed into facilities last year. They were not being allowed into facilities as recently as this spring. And I also think it overlooks the fact that only a court can decide that somebody is incompetent to vote. I mean, the commission cannot force facilities, private facilities, to allow special voting deputies or anyone into a private care facility. The commission’s decision allowed voters in those care facilities to be able to participate. If we all think back to the April election, the pandemic started in the middle of an active election. The election had already started. Ballots had already gone out. If clerks had continued to try to accomplish their visits to facilities that they knew were not going to allow them in, what that would have meant is those voters in those care facilities would not have been able to vote. That’s not fair.

Frederica Freyberg:

Speculation about voter fraud occurring in long-term care facilities has concerned disability rights advocates. They fear overarching claims of fraud could lead to greater voting barriers for people with disabilities, people who already face additional challenges casting a ballot. “Here & Now” reporter Marisa Wojcik spoke with Barbara Beckert of Disability Rights Wisconsin in this week’s “Noon Wednesday.”

Marisa Wojcik:

I just want to first ask what was your reaction to this press conference from the Racine County sheriff’s office last week?

Barbara Beckert:

My reaction was really twofold. First of all, if any type of coercion, inappropriate coercion or pressure on individuals in care facilities or in the community on how to vote has occurred, that’s certainly a concern and that should be investigated and if it occurred, those individuals should be prosecuted. However, we also were very concerned that based on the information that was communicated, that there seems to be a lot of confusion about the rights of individuals in care facilities to vote, as well as the rights of people with cognitive disabilities. So people who live in a nursing home or a group home and people with cognitive disabilities have the right to vote unless they have lost that right because of a decision by a judge. And that didn’t appear to be the case except for one individual who had been found incompetent. And, you know, I think that that may have been an error on the part of the clerk that that individual was sent an absentee ballot.

Marisa Wojcik:

Who are the special voting deputies? What are they required to do by law? And was it harmful to voters that are in long-term care facilities to not allow these SVDs to assist in the voting process in 2020?

Barbara Beckert:

In terms of whether harm was done, I think policymakers had an extremely difficult choice to make here. They were balancing the right to vote and honestly the right to life, because individuals in care facilities were the most vulnerable population at high risk of contracting COVID and of dying from it or suffering serious consequences. So that’s why facilities were locked down. So even if special voting deputies had been dispatched, it’s unlikely in most cases that they would have been allowed to enter the facility. So the concern was if we went through this process as a state, SVDs were sent out twice and were not allowed to enter, we would have lost time, time that was needed to get the ballots out to the care facility residents for them to complete them and return them. And, as you know, the slow performance of the U.S. mail was another factor during the 2020 elections. So after many hours of public meetings, a lot of agonizing input from health officials and input from advocacy groups such as Disability Rights Wisconsin, there was almost complete consensus that the safe thing to do and that the right thing to do from a perspective of upholding the voting rights of residents was to not send in the special voting deputies, but instead to follow the statutory process for having individuals vote using their absentee ballot applications.

Frederica Freyberg:

The trial of a teenager who shot three people, killing two and injuring a third during a riot in downtown Kenosha in 2020 got underway this week. Kyle Rittenhouse is charged with six counts, including first-degree intentional homicide and first-degree reckless homicide. Rittenhouse was 17 at the time of the shooting. He pleaded not guilty and is claiming self-defense. We turn to Wisconsin Public Radio reporter Corri Hess, who has been following the trial this week. She joins us now after covering the trial from the Kenosha County courthouse. Thanks very much for being here.

Corri Hess:

Thank you.

Frederica Freyberg:

Why does this trial have the eyes of the nation on it?

Corri Hess:

I think that there’s so much interest in this trial nationally because so much of it played out on video. There’s so much video and really all of that has been the star witness this whole week. Jurors have watched just hours of this video that was taken by protestors and journalists. I mean, it’s grainy and sometimes it’s really graphic video of Kyle Rittenhouse throughout the night on August 25, 2020, shooting and killing Joseph Rosenbaum and then also Anthony Huber and then shooting Gaige Grosskreutz. They’ve seen all these different angles but over the last 14 months the nation has seen these videos on social media. So I think that’s why there’s so much interest in this case.

Frederica Freyberg:

As you say, the testimony and presentation of this video footage from the night of the shootings are happening inside the courthouse for the jury. What’s happening outside the courthouse?

Corri Hess:

You know, I think there was an expectation that there could have been armed militia coming to Kenosha or trouble outside of the courthouse, but that really hasn’t been the case. On Monday morning there were some people, but there isn’t too much going on outside of the courthouse. Justin Blake, who is Jacob Blake’s uncle. Jacob Blake, of course is the man who Kenosha police shot seven times and is now paralyzed, he’s been out there, but otherwise it’s been pretty quiet outside the courthouse.

Frederica Freyberg:

Describe what Kyle Rittenhouse’s defense is.

Corri Hess:

The defense is that Kyle was there to protect the city after looting had happened in the days before and that he came and wanted to just be this protector and that he was defending himself when he killed two people and wounded another.

Frederica Freyberg:

And alternatively what is the prosecution trying to prove happened here?

Corri Hess:

The prosecution is trying to prove that he was this massively-armed teen who was, you know, in over his head. He came and just like this trigger-happy kid who started killing.

Frederica Freyberg:

Now, there was something that happened this week during the trial and that was that a juror was removed. What was that about?

Corri Hess:

Yes. That happened yesterday morning. Well, he was removed yesterday morning. I believe it happened the evening before. So this juror, he was an older white gentleman, was telling a law enforcement officer a tasteless joke which was basically — he was saying, you know, why hadn’t Jacob Blake been shot more and the answer to his joke was the police ran out of bullets. So he was removed.

Frederica Freyberg:

Very difficult, I imagine, to try to keep bias out of this trial so that it is a fair trial. What is the racial makeup of the jury?

Corri Hess:

So the racial makeup, they started with a jury pool of 20, and 12 jurors will vote. And so only one person on the jury is a person of color. Of course, Kenosha is very white. It’s about 75% to 80% white. So it’s not that unusual that there’s only one person of color, but, you know, it is worth noting because of what this whole case is. And when the gentleman was removed yesterday, you know, he was leaving the courtroom and saying that his joke had nothing to do with the case. But, you know, of course it did.

Frederica Freyberg:

Yeah. And you’ll be covering this trial for its duration?

Corri Hess:

Yes. The prosecutor says that he plans to wrap up his side on Tuesday, and they’re anticipating another week and a few more days. So possibly like maybe the 16th or so this could wrap up by.

Frederica Freyberg:

All right.

Corri Hess:

That’s just a guess.

Frederica Freyberg:

Of course. Corri Hess, thanks very much for covering it and for joining us.

Corri Hess:

Thank you for having me.

Frederica Freyberg:

Following up tonight on a story we brought you last week. Voters in Mequon and Thiensville headed to the polls this week in a hotly-contested school board recall that drew national attention. All four incumbents on the board beat Republican-backed challengers by large, double-digit wins. We spoke to incumbent Chris Schultz shortly before the election.

Chris Schultz:

I don’t enjoy all the interviews and the publicity. That is not who I am. I will be happy to go back to work quietly.

Frederica Freyberg:

For more news coverage including the school board recall race and our latest COVID condition, visit our website at PBSwisconsin.org. That is all for tonight’s program. 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.