Milwaukee: Among Country’s Unhappiest Cities, Few People Running For Office, This Week In Wisconsin

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People are not lining up to run for office in Wisconsin. Veronica Rueckert and Rob Ferrett speak with the head of Wisconsin’s Taxpayer’s Alliance who says that’s bad news for the state. Then, Milwaukee was ranked the fourth unhappiest city in the country this week and Rob and Veronica round up the week in state news.

Featured in this Show

  • Weekly News Roundup: Walker-Burke Race Still Close

    Here’s a rundown of some of the top news stories in Wisconsin this week:

    The latest Marquette University poll shows Gov. Scott Walker leading Democratic rival Mary Burke by 1 percentage point among registered voters but, among likely voters, Burke is ahead — also by 1 percentage point.

    Walker’s campaign has stepped up criticism of Burke for outsourcing jobs while an executive at Trek Bicycle Corp., a move that has raised eyebrows, including among conservatives.

    “We normally associate criticism of outsourcing with Democrats,” wrote Wall Street Journal assistant editor, Allysia Finley, “but Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker is a reminder that Republicans aren’t above playing the ‘Benedict Arnold CEO’ card themselves to fan populist furies. “

    Unemployment increased in the state’s 32 largest cities last month, according to figures released this week by the state Department of Workforce Development. Topping the list was Racine with an unemployment rate of 10.4 percent.

    Jobless rates went up in 61 of 72 counties. Menominee County had the highest rate at 17.8 percent while Dane County was lowest at 4.2 percent.

    Overall, Wisconsin’s unemployment rate remained unchanged at 5.7 percent when compared to May, as employment gains in some areas have offset the losses.

    In decisions with significant implications for Wisconsin, two federal courts this week issued conflicting rulings on the Affordable Care Act.

    On Tuesday, the the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Washington, D.C., circuit ruled that people who buy insurance from federally run exchanges would be ineligible for subsidies.

    Shortly after, the U.S. 4th Circuit Court of Appeals in Virginia ruled that the subsidies should be available to anyone buying health insurance through any of the exchanges, be they state or federal.

    Wisconsin is one of 36 states that opted out of creating its own exchange, relying instead the federal exchange. So far, over 130,000 Wisconsinites have signed up for for health care through the federal exchange and over 90 percent of them have received tax credits. The case is expected to be taken up in the Supreme Court.

  • Milwaukee Ranks Fourth Unhappiest City In The Country

    This week the U.S. National Bureau of Economic Research reported that Milwaukee ranked the fourth unhappiest city in the country. Milwaukee-based writer and life-long Milwaukee resident responds to that ranking.

  • Not Enough Candidates In Wisconsin?

    There aren’t a ton of people lining up to run for the state legislature, and that’s bad news for Wisconsin, according to the head of the state’s Taxpayer’s Alliance.

  • State News Round-Up for July 25th

    WPR’s assistant news director joins us for a look at what’s making headlines in Wisconsin, including the recent advertising volley between Governor Walker and his opponent Mary Burke.

Episode Credits

  • Rob Ferrett Host
  • Veronica Rueckert Host
  • Marika Suval Producer
  • Galen Druke Producer
  • Noah Ovshinsky Guest
  • Jabril Faraj Guest
  • Todd Berry Guest