Frederica Freyberg:
Zac’s next interview is with the most recent entrant to the race, former Wisconsin Department of Administration Secretary Joel Brennan.

Zac Schultz:
Joel Brennan, thanks for coming in today.

Joel Brennan:
Thanks for having me.

Zac Schultz:
So for the voters who don’t know you, introduce yourself and say why you’re running for governor.

Joel Brennan:
Yeah, well, I’m somebody who’s had a 30-year career here in Wisconsin. Mine’s a Wisconsin story, and I’m somebody who’s of and from here. And I can tell you the conversations I have with people here, that there is a palpable sense of frustration, anger. I think people are truly concerned about just making ends meet. And then, you know, you add on to that that you’ve got Donald Trump in the White House who is chaotic. He’s dysfunctional, who’s cruel, and it’s enough to make everybody angry. And I’m angry too, but I’m also somebody who, over the course of a career, I’ve demonstrated — for some people, when you get angry, you want to get even. When I get angry, I want to roll up my sleeves and get something done. And so that’s what I’ve tried to demonstrate. And so we have in Wisconsin, a situation where there are 200,000 people who are about to lose their health care benefits. Tens of thousands more who are going to see their premiums double or triple. And so that’s a reason for people to be angry. And in some ways, we need to ensure that Wisconsin values are protected. But thankfully, we have fair maps now. And with fair maps and a Democratic governor, we have an opportunity to make real, lasting change for Wisconsin, protect those values, and do things that can put us right by Wisconsin families. That’s why I’m running.

Zac Schultz:
Is there a single issue that drives you, or maybe a lane within the Democratic Party that helps define who you are?

Joel Brennan:
Well, I think if anybody’s looking around right now, the main issue that anybody is dealing with here in Wisconsin is affordability. You know, we’re in a situation where just in the last week, it was revealed that the first-time homebuyers now are 40 years old. Five years ago, they were an average of 33 years old. And we’ve got — we spent $10,000 a year on health care per person in Wisconsin. Yet there are people who go without, people who can’t afford their prescription drugs. All of those are challenges. And then at the same time, you have Donald Trump running around the country saying affordability is a Democratic hoax. It’s not a hoax. It’s an issue that’s real for every Wisconsin resident.

Zac Schultz:
How much money do you need to raise in order to be competitive and win this primary and then survive into the general election?

Joel Brennan:
Yeah, well, I think elections are expensive, and what I’m going to do in this race is I’m going to lean into the relationships that I’ve developed and cultivated over the course of the last 30 years. You know, I grew up as the second youngest of 11 kids. I had to work my way through college, have 4 or 5 jobs to do that. Everything I’ve ever had, I have earned. And so what I’m going to do is go out and communicate with people about the work that I’ve done over the last 30 years: the executive experience, the breadth that I have. And I’m confident that I can generate resources as I listen to and talk to people around the state.

Zac Schultz:
This is a very large Democratic primary, very competitive one. How do you define the difference between negative campaigning versus showing up differences between candidates?

Joel Brennan:
Yeah, well, like I said, I’m the second youngest of 11 kids. I know what it’s like to have to go to a crowded table and elbow your way in, whether it’s for attention or even to get a meal. And so, you know, I’m comfortable with that. But what I am going to do in this campaign is really talk to people about me and about my background. Thirty years of progressive executive experience – things like, you know, running the largest science museum in the state of Wisconsin at Discovery World, three years as the top appointed official in Governor Evers’ cabinet and the work that we did there. So the way that I’m going to try to distinguish myself from others is to just communicate with them about the depth of relationships and what we have done.

Zac Schultz:
So as voters start to get to know these candidates, should they be looking for who’s closest to them on the issues, or should they be thinking about electability?

Joel Brennan:
You know, I don’t think those two things are mutually exclusive. I think the issues are hugely important to everybody here in the state. And I think that when voters look, they have options and primaries are good for establishing options. And so they’ll have opportunities to look at all the candidates and what we stand for.

Zac Schultz:
Most of the Democratic candidates have connections to Milwaukee or Madison. How do you introduce yourself to rural Wisconsin, the rest of the state?

Joel Brennan:
Yeah, well, mine’s a Wisconsin story. My dad was born in 1927 to a single mom in Manitowoc, Wisconsin. My mom was born in 1928, in Milwaukee, grew up in Milwaukee and East Troy. And so, you know, ours is a Wisconsin story, just like lots of other peoples here.

Zac Schultz:
You’ve referenced the president a number of times. So what impact do you think Donald Trump will have on this election?

Joel Brennan:
I think his impact looms large over everything that we do right now. You know, and at this point, the most likely candidate on the Republican side is Tom Tiffany. And the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree when it comes to Tom Tiffany and Donald Trump. And so I think we need people, we need candidates who are able to stand up to that, but not only stand up, but be able to demonstrate that they’ve been effective about doing things and getting things done. And, you know, in my view of this, you know, yes, Donald Trump is going to play a role in the campaign. But ultimately, the campaign can’t be just about Donald Trump. It has to be about Wisconsin families, Wisconsin values. That’s what I come from. That’s who I am. And that’s what I’m looking forward to discussing and talking about as I’m out on the campaign trail.

Zac Schultz:
Joel Brennan, thanks for coming in.

Joel Brennan:
Thank you.