The MacIver Report: Wisconsin This Week

MacIver News Minute: Election Reforms & Diligence

Breaking news occurred just minutes before Cong. Bryan Steil joined MacIver last weekend to discuss election reforms he has diligently been working on: Act Blue’s CEO will testify in a public hearing before his Committee on June 10, over whether she misled Congress regarding foreign donations on its payment processing portal.   Grassroots activists have long advocated for legislators to pay attention to elections. Brian Steil has been paying attention.  He has been diligent.  Through his leadership on the Committee on House Administration, he has gone to work on comprehensive election reforms.  And he has been successful. Abraham Lincoln once said, “The leading rule for the lawyer, as for the man of every calling, is diligence."    Freedom prevails when we are diligent in our work to protect those freedoms.     Every legal citizen deserves the respect to know their vote matters, and that no one else is canceling it out from the shadows. Thank you, Congressman Steil.

MacIver News Minute: Rule by Lame Duck

By now, most of you have heard about the negotiated so-called "deal" announced Monday.  A lame duck speaker of the assembly and the lame duck senate majority leader teamed up with the lame duck governor to negotiate away $2.5 billion dollars of taxpayer money.  About $900 million of that will supposedly go to education spending. It’s a ruse! Guess where a big chunk of that money will actually end up? In the pockets of the teachers' unions, who will turn around and spend like crazy to defeat Act 10 and soak the taxpayers even more.  The special interests win, and the taxpayers lose. Again. At the MacIver Institute, we are a policy think tank. We don't worry about the politics of things. We are simply looking for the not so lame ducks to stand up today, so taxpayers don’t end up paying in the future.  On any measure, this is a bad deal for taxpayers, agreed to by people who will never stand for election again. Voters will not be able to hold them accountable. And that should outrage everyone.

MacIver News Minute: Forward!

The May Day protesters pushed values and mottos of No Work, No School, and No Shopping.  This is a far cry from our history to achieve the American Dream.     Their mottos easily convert to realities of No Business, No Economy, No Learning, No Future, No Path Forward. No Hope!   America’s founding was built on values that moved us forward. It’s our state’s motto!   As we celebrate America’s 250th birthday, we need to look at where we are today from where we started.   Our founding fathers dreamed big of private property ownership one thing that sets America apart from other countries.   Wisconsin’s founding in 1848 was driven by rich land resources. Lumber, mining, and agriculture led Wisconsin to be rich by growing and building things.   As we consider how to vote for a better future, remember this - a republican form of government is a system where sovereignty rests with the people.

MacIver News Minute: Better Solutions

Butler, Pennsylvania. Charlie Kirk. Now this: Another attempted assassination happened this past weekend, this time at the White House Correspondents' dinner. Thankfully, the Secret Service intervened before the gunman could make it into the room where President Trump was about to give a speech. Since then, we have seen and heard countless examples of hate-filled speech. There is a segment of people in our society who want to take our system of government in a wildly different direction.  Instead of freedom and opportunity, they believe in victimhood and forced collectivism. And when those ideas don't get adopted, their rhetoric sometimes turns violent. This trend cannot continue. It's not working, Wisconsin, and at MacIver, we demonstrate the failures of the administrative state and propose solutions to help you secure a brighter future.  At the MacIver Institute, we'll always fight bad ideas with better and brighter ones.

MacIver News Minute: The Redcoats are Coming

Two hundred fifty-one years ago, Paul Revere rode through the Massachusetts night on horseback, yelling: "The Redcoats are coming."   The Declaration of Independence was signed a year later. This year, as we celebrate the 250th anniversary of our country, we need to remember its core principles of liberty, freedom, equality - and socialism??!?   Oh, definitely not socialism, but you if you look around the country, you might be fooled.   In 2026, it's not the Redcoats that are coming. The socialists are.   New York City elected the openly socialist Mamdani Mayor last year, and already his big tax and spend plans are facing a $5 billion budget shortfall.  And the free buses and city-run grocery store are not a reality.  It’s Not Working!   In Los Angeles, a Democratic Socialist is running for mayor.   Even here in Wisconsin, there are candidates running for offices pledging their allegiance to the socialist cause.   Remember, America is the beacon of hope for Liberty, Freedom, and the American Dream.  That’s how it works