If you want to understand how we never get what we want, look no further than Wisconsin’s Republican-controlled legislature. They’ve swept aside the actual will of the people—regardless of party—by gutting over 600 budget proposals from Governor Tony Evers. Legalizing marijuana, which has overwhelming support. Expanding Medicaid, which could cover tens of thousands. Funding child care so working families don’t get crushed by costs. Creating a new tax bracket for millionaires. All of it—wiped out in a single act of legislative vandalism. These aren’t fringe ideas. They’re backed by Democrats, Republicans, and independents across the state (AP News; Wisconsin Watch; Heartland Signal).
Yet the Wisconsin GOP torched them anyway, all to keep the money pipeline open for the state’s richest residents and corporate interests. They axed the “Child Care Counts” program, rejected Medicaid expansion, and shielded millionaires from even the slightest tax hike (Wisconsin Examiner). Even basic bipartisan reforms, like letting clerks process absentee ballots early to avoid election chaos, were killed for the crime of making government actually work for regular people (JSONline).
This isn’t governance—it’s a smash-and-grab heist for the wealthy, disguised as fiscal responsibility.
They even killed a bill that would have made tips for service workers tax free. Didn’t trump and maga republicans run on this? Trump and maga are liars. They were given what they ran on and they still killed it. They care more about opposing Democrats, even when democrats give them what they asked for, than they do about representing what the voters want.
So what’s the way out? Show up in the primaries, when you can actually choose who makes it onto the ballot in November. Don’t let them hand-pick your options. Vote for leaders who flat-out reject all corporate and billionaire money—because if we keep electing people who are bought and sold by the donor class, we’ll keep getting the same rigged, self-serving results. Democracy only works if we fight for it at every single step, starting with who we nominate. If you want a government that listens to people instead of lobbyists, it starts with your vote in the primary season. If you wait like most people do, til the general election, it’s too late.