Frederica Freyberg:
At the state Capitol, with all the talk of political gridlock, it’s hard to remember a time when Wisconsin politics were less partisan. But one Assembly Republican is trying to recapture that feeling. Representative Dean Kaufert originally served from 1991 to 2014 but was recruited to run again when the last round of redistricting made his old seat much more competitive. Kaufert won last fall by just 365 votes. “Here & Now” senior political reporter Zac Schultz sat down with Kaufert this week to talk about what’s changed and what he hopes to accomplish.

Zac Schultz:
Well, representative, thanks for meeting with us. What’s it like to be back in the state Capitol?

Dean Kaufert:
Well, it’s exciting. On one hand, you know, I still tell people when they ask me that question, I still get those good, fuzzy feelings driving down East Washington Street. You’re coming to the Capitol, and the Capitol comes into view as you’re driving, and there’s still an electric feeling. And then I know at that point I kind of went, you know, I did the right thing by coming back because it’s still exciting to walk into this building.

Zac Schultz:
Is it fair, though, to say that you wouldn’t be here today if the maps hadn’t been redrawn to make it a district where Republicans needed you to run in order to win it?

Dean Kaufert:
Yeah. I mean, this wasn’t in my wife and my plan to do this. I was happy being semi-retired, owning, running a business.

Zac Schultz:
Well, how did you — did you get recruited? How did that process happen?

Dean Kaufert:
Some people talked to me. Some of the leaders talked to me and asked if I would have any interest. Numerous people said to me, “There’s only one guy who can win this seat.” And it just got me thinking. And it is important who’s in charge here. You know, the majority party has a lot more power, and I — you know, the second-best job I had being mayor was being chair of finance committee, because that taught me all about government. And I love government. I hate politics. My entire years in the legislature, we were responsible for our own fundraising. It was all local. The most we spent was 39,000 bucks, I think was the highest that I ever spent in my campaign. And, you know, now it’s millions of dollars. The Democrats and their friends spent $3.8 million against me. Our side, I think, spent $1.3 million. Job pays $57,000 a year. It is crazy. But $3.8 million against you every day, getting your head pounded in every day. Both parties and, you know, Republicans and Democrats, because I watched ads from both parties all over the state. Lies, fabrications. It’s just not good. And there’s nothing you can do about it. I mean, at night, I mean, I’m not afraid to say my wife and I would go, “what the hell did we do this for?” Because you’d come home at night after watching the TV. You know, having, you know, ten ads during a TV show that were just blatant lies. And there’s nothing you can do about it. It’s no fun. It’s no fun for you. It’s no fun for your family. And then the hardest part is when you come — you get here and then people say, “Are you going to be bipartisan? Can we work together?” Well, you just spent three months, four months telling people in my district what a bad person I was.

Zac Schultz:
Compare and contrast how the budget was done back in the 2000s. Governor Doyle, Democrat versus today, Governor Evers, a Democrat with Republican legislative majorities.

Dean Kaufert:
Yeah, that’s a great question, especially in this environment that we’re in. And, you know, we were able to do things together. Even back then when Jim Doyle was governor, the Republicans had the legislature and I was the chair of joint finance. There was a lot more communication between the governor’s office and between the finance committee and the legislative leaders. You know, I respect Governor Evers, and I met with him after I came back here because Governor Evers knows that I was one of the more moderate members of the Republican caucus. And you got to be when the district that I represent is 45% Republican, 55% Democrat. And so I represent the district. And that communication just doesn’t seem to be there. And I told the governor, I said, “Governor, you got to reach out. You got to extend that olive branch. You’re the governor.”

Zac Schultz:
So you are the chair of corrections. Is that something you requested? Is there — do you have a mission in your second wind here?

Dean Kaufert:
I said, you know what, corrections is going to have some pretty heavy stuff this time, so I requested it. And now, as it turns out, the governor’s — in his budget, you know, it’s a very complex problem. And he has a solution that’s going to cost a lot of money. But, you know, at the end of the day, closing Green Bay, I’m touring it on Thursday morning. I toured Waupun last week, and Green Bay needs to come down. So we need to figure out here’s another issue that Republicans and Democrats, this shouldn’t be political, but we should be able to figure out a way how to make sure our inmates are safe and our correctional officers are safe. So I’m dedicated to doing that.

Zac Schultz:
Is it fun to have a purpose where you can see something that may be a little easier to get consensus on?

Dean Kaufert:
Yeah. And that’s what I’m best at. You know, I mean, it’s getting people together. I know that I’m going to only be here 2 or 4 years, probably four. I’m going to try for four, but I won’t — I don’t have an agenda. I don’t have to appease anybody. I can do what Dean Kaufert thinks is right, whether it’s Republican or Democrat. And I’ve been known to leave my party. But I will be with them 95% of the time. But I also will chastise them when I think they’re doing something wrong. I will try to convince them to massage it. I’ve already had some successes where I’ve said in caucus, I’ve said, “You know, your bill is okay, but this needs to change.” And you know, they respect me enough to make that change and say, “Hey, we’re okay with that. It makes it better.” And so I do have a purpose for a couple of years or four years. And that’s to try to make this place better, try to make this place run better. And see if we can’t change the political climate. I don’t know if we’re going to be able to, because there’s too darn much money involved in politics. But I’m going to sure try.