
Transcript
Spotlight on Wisconsin- A Message from Susan Crawford and Pat Dennis (Hour 1)
The Earl Ingram Show · Mon Mar 31, 2025
Man, Earl's still fighting this code, man.
I don't know what's going on with me in this weather, man.
But I just want to say we have a great treat.
for you this morning, a jam-packed Motown Monday on the Earl Ingram Show.
And we will begin with a very special guest.
Judge Susan Crawford, a candidate for the Supreme Court, is on the line.
Good morning to you, Judge Crawford.
How are you?
Hey, good
I'm feeling pretty relaxed today.
We do have a busy schedule here in the last day of the campaign and a pretty packed schedule tomorrow as well and have been on the road pretty constantly here for the last few weeks.
But
You know, I'm just staying really focused on doing my job here as a candidate, helping to get the word out to voters, and we're just feeling
Well, we're thankful that you have chosen Civic Media and the different shows on this platform.
We hope to turn out.
as many people as it takes.
This is as critical an election clearly as there is anywhere else in this country.
I am one of those throwbacks who votes the day of the election.
So, you know, everybody, everybody does an early vote, but there are some of us who are traditionalists, early voting and, and.
what we're hearing about the turnouts in the early voting.
Do you sometimes think that maybe when we get excited about the early voting, we really don't know if that's people who vote all the time and they've just decided not to do what I do and that's vote on the day of.
So are those numbers indicative of a broader turnout in your estimation?
Well, you know, Earl, I don't know these things because I just have never followed it closely enough.
But, you know, my campaign team thinks that the early numbers are, are strong and, you know, are encouraging, but I'm, I'm, you know, I'm a cautious person.
So I'm not putting too much weight on them.
I want to see great turnout on actual election day.
And like you, I'm voting on election day.
three days older than dirt, who has watched the state, who who watched the the conservatives control the state Supreme Court for well over a decade and watch what once was a state as I was a younger man that was looked at as one of the benchmarks of what a, you know, a state should be.
at Wisconsin had that reputation.
And I remember that well as a young man and people were proud that Wisconsin was one of those states that the rest of the country looked at as a beacon, as a harbinger of what great government should be.
Somewhere along the way, Judge Crawford, we lost our way.
Yeah, well, I clearly know just watching, you know a year ago justice proto say which and and after you know seeing Republicans totally control the state Supreme Court even though there's not supposed to be You know a bent either either Republican or Democrat Clearly that wasn't the case and to just see some light at the end of the tunnel
It is more than refreshing and critically important that you be elected so we can bring things back into into focus.
Well, I think that we have seen with, you know, after just say with this election that the court is in my mind, they're making decisions based on the law and.
and doing what courts should do, which is to make fair decisions, impartial decisions, interpret our constitution without implying some kind of a partisan lens to it.
So I think that's great to see and I want to see it continue.
I think people should take into consideration what took place yesterday and a decision that was made by the state supreme court that, you know, for the lack of a better term.
has more left-leaning, and I hate to use that term, justices, or more democratic justices than those who are more conservative.
And Josh Call, the state district attorney, attorney general, talked about possibly blocking Elon Musk coming to the state
in and in giving away those, those million dollar, uh, you know, what, what would I call
them?
and that's, and
Well, you know Earl I don't know what went into the decision not to take that up and it might have just been practical considerations because I think that probably landed on their desks You know electronically at least maybe in the afternoon sometime and there was just a few hours to go before the rally took place and You know the state Supreme Court just doesn't move at lightning speed
It's just not how they're set up.
They're in appellate court and they're there to deliberate and, you know, consider briefs and do research and all this kind of stuff.
So it might've just been practical considerations that on the middle of a Sunday afternoon that they just didn't have, you know, the time and opportunity to take a considered look at it.
I don't know though.
I don't know exactly what went down.
Crawford candidate for the state supreme court is on the line and we're excited about having there a day before the election.
I can tell you that I'm cynical and and as long as I've been around, I know if the shoe is on the other foot, uh, you know, they were to find a way to make it happen.
Anyway, so, so what do you want to say to those in this listening audience about the importance?
You know, Elon Musk was here yesterday.
you know, the wealthiest man in the world.
And there's been constant conversation about buying the election.
What are your thoughts?
Yeah.
Well, I think that's what he's trying to do.
That's why he showed up and gave away a couple of million dollar checks.
And, you know, that's not the way democracy should work.
And it is really disturbing to see somebody like him, you know, see him in particular, the richest man in the world come in and think that he can buy a justice on the Wisconsin Supreme Court.
So I hope that voters are thinking about it from that perspective, that that's not how elections should work in Wisconsin.
And we don't want to set a precedent that Elon Musk can just stroll in and
by a state justice, because if he could do it in Wisconsin, he'd be able to do it anywhere.
And not just judges or justices, but pretty much any local official that he wants.
And I think that's a really dangerous precedent.
They are not a partisan body.
They're not a political body.
They're there to interpret the law and protect the rights of the Wisconsinites under our Constitution.
So to hear him say that aloud that he wants to be part of a support network for Donald Trump on the Supreme Court is it's just really shocking.
And I think it is.
You know just the arrow that we're in that people on the right feel like they can say that kind of stuff and and and not just get away with it, but That there will be a lot of you know, I think his hope is that a lot of voters who supported Trump will Be in pretty enthusiastic by a judge who says that and that's that's just sad to me because it it shows that people are
You know, if people can buy that, then they just really understand, do not understand what our courts are for.
So if you are just joining us and just waking up, I'm joined by candidates, Susan Crawford, Judge Susan Crawford, who's a candidate for the state Supreme Court seat.
You know, uh, a judge Crawford, I will, I will say that all of this time that, that I have been cognizant of the state Supreme Court.
of Wisconsin.
Never could I have imagined that it would take the spotlight of the entire nation.
What is it about this race and about this seat that it has taken and captured the entire nation?
Yeah, well you and
me both Earl when I got into this last I announced my campaign last June and things were pretty different at that time from you know where they are today and I could not have imagined this blowing up the way it has and you know, I think it is just You know just a sign of where we are as a nation somewhat we have a lot of a lot of people across Wisconsin a lot of people across the country are
really deeply concerned about what they're seeing happen in Washington, DC.
And they're seeing Elon Musk kind of going wild in the federal government.
And then once he started taking an interest in this race and spending millions and millions of dollars, you know, he's, he's up to over $25 million of spending on this race.
And that's, that's more than my, and that's just the last.
two months or so and that's more than my campaign is raised across the course of the entire 10 months
campaign.
So
sorry that it had to end this way no reason to pretend we knew it had to end some day this way
All
As always, you can join us at 855-752-4842.
That's 855-752-4842.
Text us at that same number.
My guest is Judge Susan Crawford, candidate for the State Supreme Court.
You know, Judge Crawford, I was listening to your opponent the other day and he said,
If we don't win this election, we, meaning conservatives, meaning Republicans, we won't have a chance for another three to four years, we, and I can't help but constantly hear you say, this is not supposed to be partisan.
There are sometimes people on the other side of this Democrats who say, why don't we play
the same game they play.
It's they're out in the open.
But, you know, but yet you you and Democrats are above board in your response.
You say what?
I think that Brad Schimmel has always been a partisan politician.
So he just can't get out of that mode of thinking, even though he's been a judge now for several years.
He's just that hard of partisan politician.
He views this as about the sort of red team versus the blue team.
You know, that's just how he views the world.
And it's just not how I view the world.
I've never really been involved in partisan politics.
And I view the role of a...
Wisconsin Supreme Court judge as an independent impartial judge who's there to make.
decisions based on their interpretation of the law and not what will advance the partisan agenda.
So, you know, it's disappointing to hear him saying things like that.
And I suppose that there are some people out there who might be disappointed to hear me say that, you know, I'm not running to be sort of part of a team.
I'm running to be independent and impartial as a judge.
But that's, you know, that's the way I view the job.
Yeah, I'm happy to do that.
Thanks Earl.
So this is, you know, this is a very important race and I think that is why the nation's eyes are on it.
It is going to determine the personal rights and freedoms of everybody listening and
That is because the Wisconsin Supreme Court takes up cases every year that are really important cases.
You know, they might affect things like the safety of your drinking water, the safety of your streets and communities, or your right to make your own personal decisions about your life.
So people should be paying attention.
And I have always believed that our laws and our Constitution exist to protect people's rights.
I interpret the laws for that purpose to make sure I'm protecting the rights of every Wisconsinite.
And I am humbly asking your listeners to give me their vote if they haven't already cast it tomorrow on election day.
You know, I want to say to you that from the first time I had an opportunity to interview you several weeks back, you've been steadfast, you've been steady.
You've basically been unchanged.
You've been the same.
You're a person who doesn't seem to be too big a moment for you.
Is that the way we can expect to see you on the
It is a big moment for me, Earl.
I don't want to suggest that it's not.
This election is very important, and I feel the weight of that as we go into this final day of campaigning and into election day tomorrow.
And I do feel a great sense of duty and responsibility, I guess, to carry out the role with integrity.
If I am elected, you know, I want to make sure that I'm doing the job that I'm that the people have entrusted
with me.
So it's something I take very seriously, but you know, I am sort of my personality.
I'm a pretty calm person, pretty like, I guess, judicial person.
It's just who I am.
So I think, you know, what you see is what you get with me.
And if I'm elected, I'm going to work really, really hard and take the job, you know, with just incredible seriousness.
you
you
As always, you can join us at 855-752-4842.
I know I sound like a throwback DJ to a guy like my next guest, a young man.
Welcome back to a Motown Monday on The Earl Ingram Show.
As always, you can join us at 855-752-4842.
You can text us at that same number.
I am joined once again by Mr. Pat Dennis.
He is a...
uh, the president of American bridges, 21st century, a super pack, one of the, you know, most powerful super packs, uh, for the democratic party.
Good morning, chief.
My friend, how are you doing?
And welcome back.
Yeah.
So, so listen, uh, this race, I asked, um, the candidate, if she was surprised that this, this became the most important race in this nation.
Can you explain, you're in Washington, DC.
Can you explain why this became the most important race?
in the nation.
This is Wisconsin, man.
Not New York, not California, not Florida, not Texas, Wisconsin.
There's a few reasons.
Number one, different folks have different reasons.
This is important, right?
Wisconsin is important because you got to have fair maps.
It's a swing state.
You got a lot of really important things going on here.
The other thing is this is the first election just to happen right after Trump's election.
And you got a billionaire who wants to test the idea that, hey, can we come in?
And like, I know our poll numbers are dropping, but if the Republicans poll numbers drop, can we just drop a billionaire on a state and buy an election?
And it's the test case, right?
Because they know if they can do that now, they can keep cutting health care, they can keep going after social security, and then they can just drop money into states and maybe not lose too badly in the next election.
So unfortunately, you know, for folks like Elon Musk, it's become a bit of a science experiment, a sad one.
So let me tell you what I'm hearing from you.
I'm hearing from you that, that this is clearly sending a message that you are not going to run rough shot over, over this nation Republicans and conservatives and Elon Musk and, and maggots.
You're not going to run rampant over this nation.
We are going to put forth.
You know a bulwark To to send a message that this is not how it's going to be is that part is
I should say the first reason to be voting here though is still that no matter what Elon says or what Trump says It's still to make sure you know, we can protect abortion rights in this state, right?
That we're not going back to this 1800s law to make sure we can just have fair maps and not just have Republicans choosing their own voters for their You know for who?
It's gonna elect them into Congress.
So like there's a lot of really important Wisconsin specific issues here Unfortunately, there is a second layer on top of it, which is like can these guys push us around?
Can they get away with what they're doing?
You know, they've got a bill up there in in the Senate in the house to basically cut
uh, $880 billion from Medicaid.
So that's badger care, right?
Yeah.
That is extremely important and extremely unpopular, but they want to say like, can, you know, can the money let us do these unpopular cuts?
We'll give the tax cuts to the billionaires.
The billionaires will give the money to these races.
And, you know, maybe we can win the election anyway.
I'm a lifelong resident of the state of Wisconsin.
They haven't been fair maps almost since the time I was your age.
Okay, and and so, you know Just watching this and in many instances, I'll tell you I'd given up That they that they had captured this state and that it belonged to them So, you know, it's it's great to hear that, you know that there's people like you and your organization and others and clearly on a national scale
that realize it.
They're not fair maps in many states across this nation.
It's why the Republicans have control over 32 or 30 state houses over the last 10 years.
It's why they have you know more members of the house, you know, they Republicans have this thing where they'll They'll get a majority in the house and win fewer votes than the other side, right?
That's happened a number of times over the years and it's anti-democratic and it
It starts, you know, going way back in the years, but it's ultimately, we just, there's no one day you win this thing, but it's voting in off your elections like this one, it's staying in Bob locally and eventually we push back, we win, we take back fair maps and it's extremely important, both for Wisconsin and the country.
So all of these things clearly, and they're just building blocks, you know, you're talking about again,
uh, here and across states, democratic group to track state impacts of Trump's agenda.
You already talked about one that's really clearly, uh, critically important, you know, and, and medic, medicate and, and, but there are people who still believe, uh, Pat, that, that they're not going after these things.
They, they're not going after, uh, uh, social security.
They're not going, but clearly they're going after all those things.
Yeah, and Elon, I don't know if you watched Elon's little show last night, but he couldn't help himself.
He spent half the time talking about social security.
Saying basically that social security is a Ponzi scheme, which is something he's said for years, but also saying that it's full of fraud, right?
And you know that's not true because he's in there in Doge.
And what are they doing?
They're firing the people who...
investigate fraud.
They're firing the people who run the phone lines.
They're firing the people who your grandma calls to make sure if there's a problem with her check they can get it fixed, right?
It's not about
It's about taking these really important programs that people rely on and making sure that if they make the coverage a little worse, they make the customer service a little worse.
Everything, they undermine it just a little bit at a time.
And then they say, oh, we're going to privatize this.
We're going to give this to Goldman Sachs.
We're going to give this to Morgan Stanley.
And now they're really trying to go after these really important programs.
My guest is Mr. Pat Dennis.
He's a part of America.
He's the president of American Bridge 21st century.
That's a one of the top Democratic super PACs.
Let me say to you, when you look at me, you're looking at one of those people who's on social security and Medicare.
I know exactly the impact of it.
And and it's a part of.
It's a part of my life and it's something earned.
It's your money.
It's absolutely that.
And so the more I hear people who are ill informed and people who are manga and others who bought into this, that they're not going to touch it.
Um, the more concerned I am because the more I hear.
the fact that even in the face of these things, those very same people who voted for them still don't think it's a bad thing.
Is it going to take them missing the check?
Is it going to take that?
It's going to take that, right?
But the fact of the matter is they're going after the foundation of this program.
Eventually, you can only do that for so long for it starts to break.
And people rely on this.
I mean, as you said, this isn't some government benefit.
It's money that came out of your paycheck 30 years ago and is now coming back to you for retirement.
So the fact that they would cut the folks who are in charge of answering the phones, who are in charge of running the computer systems, they're closing the offices, right?
To make it harder for you to get that money back, right?
And then they had, they say it's fraud.
They say it's fraud.
That's your money.
It's not, it's not fraud.
And look, we should need to be taking care of fraud.
It's extremely important, but you don't do that by firing everybody.
Yeah.
Just can't understand it.
You know, you know, uh, Saturday, man, I was at a rally, uh, in Racine and it was a sign by grandmother and it said, Trump must you.
You've now peeved off.
Didn't use peeved off and use another word.
Uh, grandmas and, and yeah, you know, you, you, you, you, because you're coming after them.
You're coming after veterans.
You know, when you, when you talk, these are, these were third rails that my entire life, nobody would go after Democrats or Republicans.
because they knew what the outcome of those things would be.
This is just a, this is really a sign of where we're headed, right?
You touch it and then it's up to the people listening to this It's up to the people whose families who themselves rely on these programs They got to do they got to be the ones who wipe bite back and say no don't do this No, don't touch this stuff and the first place they have an opportunity to do that is this election coming up tomorrow,
I was watching Elon's thing last night and somebody came in the audience and said, you know, what can we do to make sure, uh, Wisconsin schools 50 years from now are good, right?
And Elon's answer was.
I'm going to be on Mars in 50
He doesn't care about Wisconsin schools, but the people who are on the streets right now, people who are meeting each other, people who are organizing, people who are figuring out ways to make their voices heard, those are the people who are not going to be on Mars.
They're going to be in Wisconsin in 50 years and those organizations are going to stick together and they're going to be helping people.
So this stuff matters in the long term.
just great conversations that we're going to be having in the ongoing, you know, time, um, because if, if people, if people really knew, right?
I mean, they're starting to find out now.
Elon Musk is an aberration.
He'll be gone.
He's on the scene and he's gone.
And Elon Musk, we wouldn't even be talking about Elon Musk.
If Donald Trump didn't give him.
Yeah.
He created this Frankenstein monster.
It's safe to say that, right?
And yeah, it's just handing over the power of the government billionaire who wasn't elected.
And people get this.
You see this in the polls, right?
People will argue back and forth about Donald Trump.
His numbers are dropping.
I am obviously not a Donald Trump supporter, but Elon, his numbers are way below Donald Trump.
They're in Milwaukee just firing people left and right from the Veterans Administration Hospital, right?
Like people there are waiting longer for appointments because Elon Musk knows nothing about serving this country came in and said, oh, you don't need so many doctors.
Oh, you don't need so many support staff.
This hospital can run can run cheaper and it's it's everyday people who pay the price for this
All right.
We'll do that on the other side.
You're tuned into the Earl Ingram show, a Motown Monday on the Earl Ingram show.
Motown Monday on the Earl Ingram show.
As always, you can join us at 855-752-4842, Texas at that same number.
I am really happy and thrilled to have back on the air American Bridge 21st Century's president, Mr. Pat Dennis.
They are a one of the top packs, super packs for the Democratic Party and get used to hearing from him.
because we're going to have them on again and again and again.
They're doing great things.
Let's go right to the phone lines.
Be brief, guys.
Brandon.
Brandon, good morning to you, man.
You have a question or comment?
Yeah, I just have a comment.
I just want to remind the voters of Wisconsin that it's the wealthy that are pitching this war.
It's not right against left.
It's not MAGA against Democrat.
It's the wealthy against the have nots.
It's the wealthy against us, the hardworking Americans, because if we were invaded by an aggressive force, I would jump into a foxhole with any American.
And you need to remember that.
So when you make this vote for this judge, remember you're voting for a guard rail.
They're trying to remove the guard rails that we have in our government.
Yeah, I mean, look, I don't think enough people are talking about what Donald Trump is doing in terms of like war and conflict around the world, right?
Everybody sees the stuff he's doing with Greenland, right?
He wants to go invade Greenland.
Nobody wants that.
Everybody sees him making an end of me of Canada, which is just pointless and doesn't help anybody.
But the other stuff, he's threatened an Obama rant.
Yeah.
Right.
It's not some bully going on the street corner to fight another guy.
He's threatening to take the American people to war.
Right.
Yeah, if they don't do what I tell them to do, you know yesterday Well, Putin's pissed me off.
I'm angry who gives a rip about an individual being angry.
He's in them You know, he's a child man.
Come on.
He has a job to do and he's not doing it.
Yes, Ali quickly Ali you're up
I Was just wondering if Pat could help
people understand or find a way to hear what Elon Musk is actually saying.
Yesterday after the thing he said that $2 million buyout was a win to decide the representatives, the future of America state to state, and the future of the world.
So they're, they're thinking that they can just buy the whole world and have things the way they want it.
And we see the future that they, that they're bringing us right now.
can do.
and the
number one thing you can do of course is vote against him show him it didn't work show me wasted his money But the other part is communicating this to people right taught showing the other states.
This is what they're trying here They're gonna try it on you next Pennsylvania saw this in the last election.
I think this is a tactic They're gonna keep trying to use and we're on there, you know, we're
on the phones, we're calling reporters about this in Wisconsin, but around the country, keep an eye out for these kinds of tactics because it's dangerous.
It's absolutely dangerous.
Listen, I don't want to hear, well, you know, that's not what he really means.
Every time he says something, somebody else has to come back and say,
That's not what he really means.
He knows what he's mean.
What he means is coming out of his mouth.
It's coming from his brain to his mouth.
And he knows what he's talking about, Pat.
This is this is the the wicked road that we're headed on.
Yes,
if you don't want to come on for any other reason other than the groove with me on Motown Monday All right, that's Pat Dennis it is it is great to have him on board Americans Bridge 21st century president look that up Super PAC American
Bridge, 21st century and Pat Dennis and get used to having him.
He having them around cause he's going to be around with us a lot.
I'll see you.
All right.
Up next, Mr. Reggie Jackson will be joining us on the Erlingham show.
In Springfield, they're eating the dogs, the people that came in.