Political Heat

Are Consumers Being Trumped by Policy? The following is a guest post authored by Lindsey Pasieka, a Consumer Rights Investigator with ConsumerSafety.org. If you are interested in doing a guest post with Political Heat, please click the Contact link above.   The metaphor is gruesome, I know. But today, so is the outlook for consumers in America. With the AHCA vote put on hold once again (because not everyone thinks it is okay to strip 22 million Americans of their healthcare) our nation sits on the fence between defending and decimating consumer protections. Donald Trump, however, has already made his stance clear. He stands to the side with Big Business, Big Pharma and Big Losses for the public. Already, President Trump has shown his disregard for the average American in his FY18 budget , which presents cuts to some of our most important health and safety agencies. For example, the FDA’s budget stands to be cut by $854 million, a deficit that would be covered by in...

Underemployment remains a problem in Wisconsin — and that’s why jobs numbers matter Scott Walker is making much ado about the unemployment rate in Wisconsin. And at first glance, it does look pretty great. Here’s his latest radio address spot, courtesy of the Capital Times’s Jessie Opoien: Here's what @GovWalker is talking about in this week's radio address. pic.twitter.com/X1VotGqhCX — Jessie Opoien (@jessieopie) June 22, 2017 A 3.1 percent unemployment rate, again, sounds great. But there’s important things to remember here...first, that the unemployment numbers count people as employed even if they’re working part time. There isn’t a reliable measure of part time workers that we can look at. So, it’s important to look at the underemployment rate also when we look at how much things have improved. That rate, also known as the U-6 rate, is actually hovering around 7.7 to 8.0 percent, meaning that nearly 4 to 5 percent of the workforce that Walker is to...

Ironworker and activist hopes to win Paul Ryan’s seat Ironworker and activist Randy Bryce has announced his intention to run for Congress . He faces a daunting task: running against the current Speaker of the House Paul Ryan. But if any candidate is going to be able to put up a fight worth writing home about, it’s Bryce. His no-nonsense style of wit, along with his lifelong connection to southeastern Wisconsin, will make him a formidable opponent for Ryan, who has held the district since 1999. And Bryce, in announcing his bid for the seat, has come out swinging. He released his first campaign ad to great fanfare yesterday (just search “Bryce” on Twitter to see the people who have lauded this ad). One noteworthy message of praise simply states that Bryce was “genetically engineered from Bruce Springsteen songs.” But you should really see the ad for yourself. And then you should share it with whoever you can, especially if they live in the First Congressional District of Wisc...

The building, which sits on MLK Blvd, would be incredibly symbolic of the 44th president’s importance The City-County Building in downtown Madison should absolutely, without any reservation whatsoever, be named after the 44th president of the United States, Barack Obama. Local leaders from both the city of Madison and Dane County are hoping to do just that, Madison.com reports . Important names of presidents frequently adorn schools, buildings, and other monuments, and it makes perfect sense that the first African-American president should have his name on an official building in Madison — especially given its location. The City-County Building sits on Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. in Madison. It was King who spoke of “his dream” in 1963 in front of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C. that justice would one day become “a reality for all of God's children.” “I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: ‘We hold t...

In weekend tweet, Walker neglects (purposely?) how much worse GOP plan for healthcare would be Scott Walker issued several tweets this weekend from his official governor’s account, one of which caught my eye for being extremely disingenuous. Walker argued that keeping the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) in place would leave tens of millions uninsured over the next decade. Obamacare is collapsing. If nothing changes, 28 million Americans will lack insurance by 2026 under Obamacare (according to CBO) — Governor Walker (@GovWalker) June 10, 2017 Walker’s words echo President Donald Trump’s statements that claim Obamacare is in a “death spiral.” That assessment, however, has been found false on many occasions. Obamacare isn’t failing — sure, it can use a tune-up, but it’s negative aspects don’t justify dismantling all the positives it has accomplished. But Walker’s tweet goes even lower, trying to instill fear that the law is failing using numbers that are highly misleadin...

Younger workers see no motivation to stay in a state with bad economic conditions, conservative politics A new study suggests that Millennials in Milwaukee are starting to leave the big city, and probably the state in general. From WISN : According to a new article on Time magazine's website, most urban centers saw an increase in millennials from 2010 to 2015 and 11 cities saw a decline. The Urban Land Institute said Milwaukee's urban millennial population saw a negative change of 1.8 percent. Much of the blame for the loss of young talent rests with the fact that there aren’t enough jobs available to millennials, the article goes on to say. In January of 2016, I wrote a post in response to a letter to the editor I had read in the Stevens Point Journal. The letter writer suggested that, “Millennials and younger voters are likely not in sync with Walker’s and Republicans’ policies,” and I further asserted that economic opportunities (or rather, the lack thereof) hin...

UW should protect all speech, but proposed bill in the legislature isn’t necessary Just a quick rant this afternoon... The question of the so-called “free speech” bill making its way through the state legislature has me thinking a lot about the idea of what speech is tolerable or not. I’m a firm believer in the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. I even own a flag that was flown over the U.S. Capitol Building in 2010 to honor that amendment, which includes speech rights. I’m a huge proponent that any political thought or opinion should be defended — even if it’s deemed an intolerable idea by most. So bigots do have a right to speak their mind, and they do have a right to demonstrate their ideas. But that doesn’t mean that others can’t argue against them. Speech that some deem intolerable can be protested against, and this type of speech shouldn’t be regulated either, except to prevent violence and harm to others. If protests limit the ability of people to speak in a p...