you
Again a reminder to sign up for our newsletter head over to upnorthnewswi.com click subscribe in the top banner and be part of our weekday newsletter our new Sunday morning politics edition and we have a new monthly sports edition as well talking about some of the good positive stories in the world of Wisconsin sports so a lot to follow from up north news let's talk about
the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign now getting set to celebrate 30 years of exposing money and politics and other ways the system is sometimes rigged against regular folks and Nick Ramos joins us to talk more about that.
Nick, good morning.
How are you?
Good morning.
You know, I'm not much of a morning person, but you know, Pat, I'm happy to be here.
I'm ready to rock and roll, get a week started with you, man.
I'm so grateful to be here.
Well, we are appreciative of you being here and of what all the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign does with that anniversary that's coming up in the middle of this month.
Tell us a bit more about, well, we'll get to the anniversary events in a minute, but for folks who aren't familiar with the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, tell us more about that first.
Absolutely.
So as you've correctly said, I mean, the organization is turning 30 this
this month, May 15th.
And, you know, the organization originally back in 1995 was created to think about this issue of money and politics.
What a novel concept, especially coming up the heels of the Supreme Court race that we just had here.
You know, over the years, we've
you know, the name Wisconsin democracy campaign, democracy is such a big word.
It's a word that can encapsulate means so many things depending on who you're asking.
And so, you know, over the years, we've spent a lot of time expanding the type of work beyond just money and politics, as money and politics applies to everything.
I mean, but we're thinking about things like fair maps and the work that we've done through the Wisconsin Fair Maps Coalition, what comes to ballot measures and educating
the public about what and
The heck does a constitutional amendment mean on your ballot?
Or, you know, trying to hold people accountable when they're trying to mess around and do funny stuff with our democracy.
I mean, we are a nonpartisan, non-profit organization dedicated to making sure that our electorate is an informed one that can be able to make real choices about their lives because there's lawmakers and there's state actors that are doing things.
And people don't get an opportunity to hear exactly what is going on.
And we want to make sure that they are equipped and ready to be a part of the change to have the best Wisconsin possible.
Well, and we have the conditions that we have for a host of reasons.
A lot of folks point to Citizens United, but you actually have to go back even further to the Buckley-Vallejo decision of 1976 that equates money as speech, which is ridiculous and continues to be proven more so as the years go on when you have billionaires that can participate in elections to the degree that they do now.
And we ended up with this again, shattering the record for a judicial
in this latest Wisconsin Supreme Court race and Nick the the whole point of this being money now at this ridiculous level is about so much more than speech and looks like we've lost our connection to Nick so we'll see if we get him back on the line in just a bit here but it enables me while we wait for that.
to note that, again, it's not a matter of, you know, my billionaire is better than your billionaire, Nick, is what we were saying.
The fact that billionaires can spend this kind of money tells you that money is really not free speech, and they should not be equated as such.
You can't be prepared, man, because everyone wants to talk about Citizens United, but you're absolutely right.
I mean, we're in this situation where we have this...
twisted and corrupted idea of free speeches.
But really, we need to have a hard reset on the system if we want to get out of this death loop that we've become in when it comes to money and politics.
And I think that we can.
It just requires.
some people power and some politicians actually finding some backbone and being willing to change the issue and I think that we have a real opportunity especially coming up the heels of the selection but also we did some statewide polling and 88 percent of the people across the state think that money in politics is a problem and so I think that like it's an issue that we've all known as a problem but I think as we continue to get better examples of why it's a problem it's going to be in people's faces in a way that it hasn't before and we're going to be pushing
aggressively to get some real reform here in the state.
Oh, yeah.
And when when I go deep and bring up the Buckley Vallejo decision, which has been, you know, I've been I've been flying the flag on that one for, you know, 20 some years, that that that is a case where it was a liberal Supreme Court.
And like anything in politics, if you get something wrong, you got to have the ability to say so.
And it's worth saying so that that liberal court back in 1976, they just flat out got it wrong.
And if you're
going to take money out of speech if you're going to stop calling corporations people and giving them the same rights you have to look back at that decision and say no uh money is not speech because it gets to your poll which not only showed 88% concern but just 8% of voters
believed that they as voters have the strongest influence
on
elected officials.
In other words, the other 92% recognize there's a lot of people in line ahead of them to get to get the ear of their favorite elected official.
I mean, you know, it's just it baffles the mind that you could get so many people in this day and age to agree on something and I just feel like right now
like people are upset that they feel and it doesn't matter if you're a republican democrat independent everyone thinks the system does not work for them so like we need to have some really great conversations about why people feel that way and then
talk about what is the solution to these problems.
And I can tell you right now, letting the billionaires and the millionaires make these choices and get to put their thumb on the scale when they want to, that most definitely is not going to be the thing that the people want.
And so we're in this kind of, I get to hear our president right now talk about the Golden Age of America.
And while, you know, I don't necessarily agree with the Golden Age of America with everything that's happening right now, I can tell you that
you know, we're entering this stage where I think people are upset and mad in a way that they want to really like shake things up and see things be different.
I think we're going to do it.
Well, there's a lot of people that agree and you're all going to gather for this 30th anniversary
coming
up on Thursday, May 15th is going to be something called the People's Gala.
Tell folks how you're going to be celebrating 30 years of your work.
Oh behave well check it out I mean we've all been to those really stuffy gallows and I'm not putting any shade on anybody that's got any gallows up here that are coming here in the near future but you know for 30 years and thinking about what we've been doing alongside
fellow Wisconsinites and people around the country, you know, our opportunity to celebrate our organization, we're going to be coming together Thursday, May 15th, as Pat said, in Madison at the Eastside Club.
You can go visit our website, WISDC.org, but it's not going to be anything like the gallows that you've seen before.
It's going to be really the people's gala.
I'm not expecting anybody to dress up in any suits or anything.
I hope people come casually.
And, you know, it's not going to be some stuffy dinner that's just going to be your typical chicken or, you know, your pasta dish that's just going to be basic.
It's going to be a rewind of 30 years, and we're going to get a chance to really look at the highlights.
and stuff and talk about our future and the plans that we have.
We got Dan Schaefer from Reconbobulation Area and Civic Media.
We got Kristen Brie, who is going to be co-hosting as well.
And it's going to be a fun night.
It's open to the public.
You got to pay for your seat because this is going to be different than other annual gatherings that we've had, but I promise you it's not going to break your back.
and you're going to get an opportunity to have a great meal, great time, great show, and get to see us celebrate 30 years and be a part of this movement that we have.
bringing in another 30 years for this organization.
We're just going to take it a year at a time.
But I would love to see people there and definitely check out our website, if you have any questions or if you want to sign up.
And let's, you know, let's be frank, as you look back at 30 years, it's going to include things where we thought progress was being made.
And then then it wasn't.
And most folks would point to the McCain Feingold legislation at the national level.
But folks also know that at the state level, that I had passed the
impartial justice bill that was designed to clean up state supreme court races and it was in effect for all of one race and then you know when republicans took over in 2011 the first thing they did was they scrapped the impartial justice law so i mean there there have been definitely fits and starts to try to get big money out of politics
hey i mean from your lips to god's ears brother and you're absolutely right and that like
We have to talk about the whole story.
It can't just be, you know, moments, but talking about the peaks and the valleys.
And, you know, God bless you for having the foresight to think about, you know, these issues and try and fix them.
And I think that when the time we're in right now.
it's going to take a lot of folks and a lot of work to just make sure that we can reach a solution that is amenable and agreeable to everyone.
But like, you know, we're in this weird hyper-toxic space where, you know, folks want to try and railroad people instead of having good faith negotiations or conversations.
And I think that must stop.
And we need to, and Wisconsinites aren't going to put up with it.
I mean, they're one of the smartest electorates.
If not the smartest,
in this country, I mean, they spend a lot of time trying to break through all the fluff.
And so we've got some good work ahead of us, but I think that we could be dreaming bigger, thinking about.
public campaign finance reform for this state, thinking about real disclosures and transparency when it comes to just the shell game that we have with our money and politics.
I mean, we can do a lot.
And there's a whole coalition of folks that we've organized recently that believe that we have an opportunity to do something special here.
And so we're going to keep pushing in these years ahead.
And I hope that, you know, the people will be engaged and want to see some real change.
And we got to do our part to make, to pitch it to them and make it interesting enough that they, they bring it into their regular every day.
lives and I think we can really do it.
Along with calling out the influence of big money, Wisconsin Democracy Campaign is also the quintessential place to look up campaign contributions.
They have a searchable digital database of contributors going way, way back.
And that certainly doesn't happen by itself.
And so the along with the gala that you've got coming up, you're all the time looking for folks who would like to make donations and show support for the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign.
How would they go about that?
Absolutely, Pat.
I mean, you're over here being the rainmaker for this organization that I need to be.
But yes, the database, if you've ever been there, like on Open Secrets, and you've tried to look up campaign donations, guess what?
You have something like that in your state right now, Wisconsin.
And it's a unicorn because there's not a lot of people that do this.
I mean, how Open Secrets, I think, wanted to buy us at one point in time.
And we're here still standing, trying to give you the best and latest information when it comes to your politics.
And so that you can be informed about what kind of
industries and what kind of people are trying to prop up these campaigns that we have to see every year.
And so if you are in a position to support, I mean, coming to the Gala is definitely something that helps supports us.
But if you know that is something that you're not interested in, or you're unavailable, as I mentioned, you can go to our website, wisdc.org.
At the top right corner, you'll see a button that says donate or subscribe.
Click on that.
Sign up for it and make sure you sign up for our e-alert because you get to hear from us every week about the latest when it comes to the state of play in Wisconsin events all the goodies, but like
All the love, all the support, and the times where nonprofits are being attacked and things are happening, you know, small dollar donations and fundraising means everything to orgs like mine and other orgs that are out there in this space.
And so, you know, if you're interested in being a part of the group that's working alongside other orgs to make history and make big things happen, we would love to have you on the team.
And you can join this team anytime, whenever it's feasible.
So at wisdc.org, come join
us.
is a big orange button in the upper corner there.
Like you said,
so
smash it and help him out.
Nick Ramos.
Thank you so much.
Great to talk to you.
Happy anniversary to you guys.
Pat, thank you so much.
Have a great day, brother.
Thank you.
I'm Pat Krightler reminding you it's about every one of these words from our national promise, liberty and justice for all.
This is the Civic Media Radio Network.
We're still getting used to some of this new production music that we're using for the show, and this one just sounds like, you know, it's really gritty and dirty, and we're at a rodeo, and getting off her horse is Jane McNair right now.
So me.
Spurs that jingle jangle.
She spits some of her chew and says, good, good morning, Wisconsin.
Ching,
Ching, Ching, Ching, Ching.
Those are my spurs.
Ms.
McNair, how are you?
I am well this morning pack right low.
How about yourself?
I'm good because I got to spend a big part of my Sunday just resting reclining in a newly installed hammock.
If if I'm saying that word correctly, Jane, I don't know.
This isn't a morning thing
hammock.
Oh, boy.
It's there's that divide again.
Here's the question I have for everyone.
Is it though?
Like, I'm going to put it out there.
And
by the way,
where's
this matter?
We're just doing pronunciations.
We haven't even gotten into, you know, bubbler versus fountain, soda versus pop.
Right.
All those good things.
It might be
a regional
thing, Pat.
It
could be a regional.
Oh, there's definitely regional things.
I mean, you, you will, you will not hear use guys much in the western part of the state.
You will from a couple of folks, but not nearly to the degree that you do in the, the eastern part of the state.
And that's fine.
You know, we're
We're, we're a diverse bunch.
Oh no.
Don't
tell Trump.
He might, he might deport all of us.
My goodness.
How dare we be diverse that way?
Yeah.
Can't have diversity.
Don't want that.
Don't want that.
Nope.
No diversity and no due process.
That Trump interview.
Is it your job to have a due process?
I don't know if that's my job.
I don't know.
Constitution?
Sounds optional to me.
I
know.
Yeah.
But you know, he gets a pass for everything.
Yeah.
Sure seems to, even in his his lounge wear, dressing up as the Pope, you know, over the weekend with that AI image of him as a pontiff, which
it really kind of gets to me because that's exactly what I was planning to wear when I officiate this friend's wedding next week, you know, during my trip away.
Oh, is that what you're doing?
Yes, I teased them that I was going to look for a mitre.
I found out that that's the name of the hat.
The pulpit is a mitre and the robe and everything.
And I probably won't go to that extreme, especially now that Trump wore it now because it's going to be who wore it better.
I don't want that kind of a comparison.
Well, that's a lot of pressure.
Sure.
That's a lot
of pressure.
We are going to talk about that later on this morning.
I am very curious.
Wisconsin is a large Catholic population.
And some of the things I was seeing on social media over the weekend, not everyone is happy.
And then, of course, on the other side is, oh, it's just a joke.
You people need to lighten up.
He's hilarious.
He's hilarious.
That's exactly what I want in a commander in chief.
Well, how long is the how long is
Pope Francis been gone now a week, week and a half.
Yeah, just a week.
Standard time before you can make fun of him in the position and the whole thing.
You know, it's like 72 to 96 hours.
So he's within the lines of reason of of total and absolute humor everyone.
So just just take it down a notch.
Yeah.
Yeah.
By the way, when you talk about hilarious thing, one of my one of my favorite comedians, Kathleen Madigan
has a
whole riff on how so good all the different Pope names.
There actually was a Pope hilarious.
And that we there was, we need to get back to that.
We need another Pope Polarius.
There's so many possibilities.
Yeah, but he was Pope from 461 AD to 468.
Good days.
We are overdue to bring back Pope
hilarious.
And when you look at the drawing of him, man, he looked like a guy who loved a good rib tickling.
I bet.
Oh, they were so funny in the 400s.
They knew how to have a chuckle.
That's for sure.
Fifth century has been Pope comedy really piqued.
Really
piqued.
Speaking of Kathleen Madigan, she is going to be, I think she's coming to Milwaukee.
She
already did.
She just did.
And we,
yes.
Again, my wife and I are just huge, huge fans of
her
shows, of her
weekly
podcast, and she's way overdue for another special.
Yeah, we've seen her a couple of times
live.
She taped it in Milwaukee, and I know that because we had a show the same weekend at the Laughing Tap, and we had two of our regulars come in, and they said, we had to leave the Kathleen Madigan show.
I'm like, why?
because she was filming a special, you couldn't leave the room.
And one of them has issues with having to go to the bathroom.
And she was like, there's no way I can last two hours.
So they left and came to see us.
And like, just dump the tickets.
Like that was it.
I was like, wow, that's
And and those were not inexpensive
tickets.
I
looked.
No, no, they were start.
I think they started like 50 bucks and just went up.
Yeah, they went
up.
Yeah.
And I always have to remind Sherry because she thinks she's the bigger fan.
Like, wait, I saw her first because she her
big break was in
the very first season of Last Comic Standing.
And she, she was just so good in that a very long time ago,
but.
Well, okay.
Kelly Madigan, who'd been doing comedy probably for about 20 years before she.
Oh, probably.
Well, that's how
you become an overnight sensation, right?
Yes.
I mean, like a Jane McNair.
She's like this
overnight sensation now.
Yes.
I just
hopped on this scene from nowhere.
Yeah.
After what?
Five years in Milwaukee area broadcasting at least.
Uh, yeah.
Something like that.
Just a couple.
Just a couple.
Did you, did you join the crew at the WBA Awards?
We were at the WBA.
the show with a little recap of what happened.
But I do want to say have you have you ever been Pat?
You've been to those haven't you?
uh, once or twice
in,
in my old
TV days.
Yes.
Broadcasters are the worst audience you could ever ask for on the planet.
Amen.
We
do
not shut up for anything.
No, it was, it, it, I haven't been to a WBA awards in a long time, but the poor speakers are up there to kick off the event.
Nobody shuts up.
All the tables are talking.
I'm looking around.
Like I feel like I'm the librarian of the room.
I know.
No,
it just,
it, it amazes me that these, we just, we just can't shut up.
Again, congratulations to, we had, we had a lot of winners.
We did.
We really did.
It was great.
Really glad to see that from, uh, and we already talked about Britney's awards and others.
So wonderful.
And Melissa K
and Don and yeah, it was awesome.
Great, great, great, great local news recognized.
Did I did I ramble on so much that I didn't ask who was on the show today or did I just forget?
You did not.
But
we have a Mitchell Hoyt from skinny sticks is our beyond the cheese for this month.
They make maple syrup.
And why would you call someone skinny sticks when they make maple syrup?
Mitchell is going to explain that and are beyond the cheese segment in our number two right after the 10 o'clock news.
Oh my goodness.
So much information here.
Don't miss it.
I mean, we did what we could for three hours.
There's more information to come.
Absolutely.
With Jane and Greg coming up right after the news.
Thank you, Jane.
Have a good start to the week.
Have a
great vacation, Pat.
Thank you.
And Greg, we'll see you back here tomorrow morning, 6 a.m.
As we get set to do our mornings, as we do here live from Lake Wissota on the Civic Media Radio Network.
Thanks to our guests and thanks for you for being here.
We are part of Courier Newsroom.
Up North News is a pro-democracy newsroom.
Have a great day.
See you tomorrow morning here up north.