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You're listening to Mornings with Pat Kratlow powered by Up North News.
Now, for my Lake Minnesota studio, here is the founding editor of Up North News, Pat Kratlow.
Hey there, early birds.
Hey there, Wisconsin.
Good morning.
It is 6.06 and it is Friday and it is August.
August 1st, 2025.
It's another really, really, really, really, really smoky, hazy morning.
But you know what?
It's always a beautiful morning up north and it's nice to have you here on Lake Wissota.
From wherever you're spending your mornings listening across the Civic Media Radio Network or listening or watching us in so many other ways.
We appreciate you starting your day here.
We appreciate you ending your week here.
We appreciate you spending the last three years here because today is the third anniversary
of when I started doing radio here for Civic Media.
Parker Olson was in middle school at the time, three years ago.
He's come a long way since then.
He's been graduating and everything, so how are you doing?
I'm doing pretty well.
A little bit of a headache from the wildfire smoke, I think, but you know what?
I guess that's just part of it.
It's it's just it's a mood killer.
I'm not gonna I'm not gonna lie.
Yeah, they would it should be beautiful out there and We haven't been able to really take a boat ride yesterday with the rain, you know done for a few days here I took the top off the Jeep we went for a ride But within the first couple of miles our eyes were really itchy and burning
from this because this is serious stuff here.
So folks, take it easy out there.
I know that the weather is otherwise, you know, positive, but this smoke is a big negative and it is not something to necessarily joke around with.
If a young, virile man such as Parker can get headaches from this smoke, it can do a lot more damage to the more fragile of us, shall we say.
So let's look at what's coming up on the program this morning.
We're going to be talking live two hours from right now with Lieutenant Governor Sarah Rodriguez, the first announced candidate in next year's race for Wisconsin governor.
She's going to talk about her background as an emergency nurse, a healthcare leader.
She'll talk about what prompted her to run for a seat in the legislature.
It had something to do with the pandemic going on at the time and then becoming the state's second highest elected executive.
and she'll talk about what she intends to do if elected to succeed Tony Evers in the November 2026 election.
Dr. Kristen Lierly will be part of our discussion as well.
We're going to talk about some corrupt cartography in Texas because legislators came into special session this week ostensibly to take care of the flood situation after that terrible tragedy in Texas.
No, the first thing they wanted to do is redraw the congressional maps.
which wasn't even their idea, but Donald Trump told them to, and they said, sir, yes, sir.
And so they have rigged the maps to add five more Republican members to Congress if they get away with it.
We'll talk to the senior political correspondent for Courier Texas, Matt Henney, about whether they're going to get away with it.
And we, of course, on Fridays will be joined by Courier Newsroom's national political editor, Kia Vakil, as well.
We've got our Week in Review panel along the way.
We'll talk about, you know, the newly announced tariffs from President Trump that make little sense.
They're only going to increase prices further for American consumers.
It's whack-a-mole for a trade policy.
We'll also discuss Mark Jacobs' new column about national news outlets.
Which ones are worth the subscription price and which ones have put their credibility in the journalistic dumpster?
here in the Trump Age.
We'll talk to Mike Clemens.
He's got an update on Packer Training Camp.
He's going to preview the Brewers Weekend Series against the Washington Nationals.
Greg Bach will be along during today's history lesson.
And coming up shortly, your chance to win a four pack of Brewers tickets because it is Free Ticket Friday.
All you need to do is listen for our keyword and use that Civic Media app and text us before the end of the show at 9am.
You'll be entered in a statewide contest for four tickets to see the Brewer's Mets game next Friday evening, August 8th.
You have to be able to receive and use electronic tickets on your phone And so again coming up in just a matter of minutes before we get to the next commercial break I will you know, let everybody else keep waking up some people hit their snooze alarm We'll give you the word in just a few minutes here and then don't forget to listen to Jane and Greg Tom Hartman Todd Alba and Maggie Dawn for more chances to win on free ticket Friday We'll have Brittany Merleau's forecast coming up for the weekend as well
All ahead and just a bit.
But first, happy anniversary to happy anniversary to me.
I went back and pulled up the script from the first show and wanted to see what has changed and what's what's different.
We started three years ago today and I wouldn't have even thought about it, but you might have heard Chad Holmes bring it up the other day.
appearing here with us.
And he was talking about, he was a cognizant of the three year anniversary that he started on August 1st, 2022.
And I looked and I said, Oh, wait a minute.
Yes, we did.
We did start that day, didn't we?
And so I pulled up the notes here from show number one.
And I always, I always begin something new with the old Dave Garroway line when he started the Today Show when he said, Well, here we are.
And good morning to you.
which is what I said three years ago I said uh I said as Uncle Joe would say folks it's a new week it's a new month it's Monday August 1st I said at the time and it's time for a new show one we hope will become part of your daily routine.
The state of Wisconsin I said has long been in need of a show based not out of Milwaukee or Madison
but a place where we can come together up north.
And of course, you know, up north is always up for debate.
And I certainly acknowledge that.
I said, we're going to base it here on Lake Wissota.
It's a nice place to start.
And I said, we hope this makes you, we hope it's a place that makes you feel like you can take a coffee break with us, the good kind, not where you're in a coffee shop and overhearing the latest conspiracy theory.
and wondering where people get that stuff, we're going to deal in something really old school here.
Facts, not alternative facts, actual stuff.
More about the actual makeup of, you know, day-to-day life here in Wisconsin.
And I also made note at the end of the show three years ago, I said, I will try to come up with a catchy sign-off tomorrow.
I don't have one today.
Well, here we are exactly three years and 614 shows later, and I still don't have a catchy sign off.
Luke Mathers brought it up again the other day.
We keep talking about merchandise and things like that, and he's like, you know, Todd, everybody else has a catchy sign off, but you.
I'm
like, yeah, it just, it's never been at the top of my list, you know?
Doing that, doing that marketing thing.
It's not the most important thing.
You've got to hear up north.
I don't know.
Yeah, I know.
I do have that.
That's a fine toss to commercial break.
But it's not exactly the kind of thing you'd put on a tote or a coffee mug.
Yes, I have my Roy Kent coffee mug as I always do on Fridays.
So we're still working on the catchy sign off.
Ideas are welcome.
We have an electronic suggestion box called the comment section Facebook and YouTube you can send us an email radio at upnorthnewswi.com Let's see Roger and Steven's point is on Facebook going whoo.
It's finally Friday and Tony Tony asks if this is an Irish coffee break.
It is not It is tempting sometimes, but it is not Irish coffee break
as in
as in there's a little Irish whiskey in
the mud.
Yeah, that's
what I was hoping for.
Yeah.
Yeah.
That's what you were
hoping for?
Oh, yeah.
That I'll take.
OK, all right.
The Brewers were off yesterday, traveling out to DC.
They will begin a weekend series against the Washington Nationals, and the pregame will be starting at 5.10 this evening on Civic Media Stations in Richland Center, Oshkosh, Racine, Kenosha, Park Falls, and Hayward.
And I will be watching, I'm quite sure, because after a long week of traveling last week and a couple of busy weekends, there is
nothing on the docket for Saturday and Sunday.
And that feels so good.
I mean, but to me, the more telling line about that came from you.
And I think it was last Friday when you, you said, yep, you have, you have finally reached the age at the old age of 22.
You have finally reached the age where you kind of like that there's nothing to do.
I
don't
mind.
I, okay, I will.
I will make an amendment to that statement, actually.
All right.
I like when I don't have work to do.
Oh, OK.
Because
my weekends right now are always working cameras for Mallards and Nightmares games.
Yes.
So that usually takes up a good chunk of what I'm doing on the weekends.
That's true.
I
would like non-work things to do.
I'm getting dinner with the buddy of mine
tonight.
I'm very excited.
How long have you been doing camera work for the Mallards games?
This year and last year.
And how did you stumble upon that?
How did I stumble upon that?
I believe it was during my panic last year while I was a junior in college going, oh, you know, I should probably get an internship or something.
That would probably be helpful.
And then I didn't end up getting one, but I found a application to be a camera operator and went, man, that seems fun enough.
Basically get paid to watch baseball.
Okay.
Oh, yeah, do you feel like you're watching baseball?
Or do you feel like you're working?
I kind of feel like I'm working a
camera.
Yeah, you're working.
It's not like, oh, wait, I forgot to follow the ball as it's going up in here and out.
How did you miss a home run?
I was just watching.
I didn't realize I had to move this thing.
Yeah, I'm the best they
got, though.
I'm good.
Dang
it.
There you go.
Alicia on YouTube.
Yeah, it's so nice.
I don't have anything going on tomorrow.
So that's good.
It's a wonderful thing.
From Don on Facebook, I'm pretty sure there were multiple other candidates announced for governor before her and the governor's race.
Hard to take you seriously as a news source when your first sentence is false.
Do better.
Don, you're absolutely right.
I meant to say she's the first Democratic candidate announced.
There are two Republican candidates that have announced Washington County Executive Josh Schoeman and businessman Bill Bering.
So...
Okay.
So obviously forget a bolt that I forgot to mention that they were candidates first before the lieutenant governor of the state of Wisconsin.
But
we will, we will have more without a doubt.
Um, I, I rather thought as I was talking to Joseph Pecky yesterday, I thought we might have more candidates by now, but Joe's answer, if you missed it yesterday, it was interesting.
It's like, it's, it's a big deal to be first in the race.
But if you can't be the first candidate in,
nobody's really paying attention to who's second and who's third.
So on the Democratic side, I mean, the Lieutenant Governor was ready.
We talked a bit about that as well.
And after that, he said, you know, you get in when you think it's the right time.
You can have everything ready.
And then you just wait for that opportunity, whatever that opportunity might be.
Or maybe it's what we call in the news business a hook, a certain calendar date, like, you know, one year before the election or something like that, where you get in.
So there, there are others who will get in and it's not any kind of a knock on the lieutenant governor.
It's just that you don't have an open seat for governor every day.
And so there are going to be a lot of people that want to take advantage of this situation and try to introduce themselves and try to win the race.
And by the way, it's not just for governor.
There will now, of course, be a race for lieutenant governor since Sara Rodriguez is chasing the big, the big ring.
and there will be primaries there's like one already in the third congressional district there are some that are lining up in the legislature and one of the potential candidates in one southwest wisconsin state senate district he had a post that kind of went viral on facebook with his very negative feelings about uh democratic primaries and was the democratic party trying to push out potential candidates well that that
Post was published by the CapTimes and then other people shared it on Facebook and it has stirred up a lot of discussion and a lot of pushback from folks saying, look, nobody is going to be anointed here.
If you want to get in the race, get in the race.
Don't whine.
Don't whine about the Democratic Party.
Just get out there and start knocking on doors and make your case.
All right, we'll talk more about that later first.
Really quick.
Here's the key word.
Fly.
F-L-Y.
For Brewer's Tickets, the keyword is fly on this free Ticket Friday.
You'll hear about that all throughout the show here, live from Lake Wissota on the Civic Media Radio Network.
You're listening to Civic Media.
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Lieutenant Governor Sara Rodriguez will join us just after the eight o'clock news along with Dr. Kristen Lierly.
We have our week in review panel coming up.
We'll be talking to Keva Keel and Matt Henney from Courier, Texas coming up in just a few minutes.
First reminder that you can sign up for our newsletter.
Head over to UpNorthNewsWI.com and click subscribe up in the top banner.
Our intern Henry is put together today's
edition and he talks all about the Wisconsin State Fair kicking off yesterday in West Alice and it'll run through August 11th.
He also talks about a story you can find on our website 10 Wisconsin Breweries that make a difference because they are not only just there for the sake of business, they're also giving back to the community.
They have grant programs, they have fundraising events, they put an emphasis on sustainability,
So learn more about how you can drink for a cause by subscribing to our newsletter.
That and so much more.
Head to UpNorthNewsWI.com.
Always scroll a little further here.
And it's Selena Heller's article about the Wisconsin hospital's most at risk for closing because of the Trump big bloated boondoggle of a budget bill and the reduced Medicaid payments that currently are keeping many hospitals afloat.
So again, head over to our website, subscribe to our newsletter, and learn more.
So Derek Van Orden, a congressman from the Third Congressional District, was crowing yesterday about a bill of his that was signed into law by President Donald Trump.
And I probably would have just let it go.
But something about the press release seemed, made it seem like maybe we should all learn a little bit more about what's going on here.
The bill deals with veterans
and falling behind on mortgages.
And the Derrick Van Orden press release starts like this.
President Trump signed Congressman Derrick Van Orden's VA Home Loan Program Reform Act into law.
This legislation establishes a permanent partial claims program within the VA Home Loan Program, bringing the VA in line with other federal agencies that lend money for homes and replacing the fiscally irresponsible Biden-era VASP program.
President Trump is the strongest supporter of veterans and service members of any president in our nation's history, said Representative Van Orden.
That's the press release.
Okay, let's set aside the obligatory kissing up to dear leader who's been busy cutting the services that veterans need.
It was the shot at Biden that made me think there might be something more to know about this, and there is.
You see, when you finally get a bill,
signed into law by the president, and for Derek Van Orden, that doesn't happen almost ever.
Take the win.
Take the victory lap.
Thank those who voted for the bill.
Have a little humility, as Bud Grant used to say, look like you've been in the end zone before.
So why was Derek Van Orden spiking the ball?
Well, it got me looking at that Biden administration, VASP, the VA Servicing Purchase Program.
and the difference between his approach and the Republican approach.
Now, before I take any further shots at Derek Van Orden, I have to be clear here, the VA during the Biden administration made a huge blunder and it hurt a lot of veterans.
You see, there was this pandemic relief program that was abruptly ended in late 2022 and left a lot of veterans in a lurch.
Now, I wouldn't be surprised
if that program had to be ended abruptly because Republicans were insisting on ending everything related to pandemic relief around that time.
But I don't have specific details on that, only that the VA ended the program.
The program had allowed veterans to skip mortgage payments during that time of great economic turmoil and move those payments to the back end of their loan so that in missing payments they won't lose their house.
An investigation by NPR National Public Radio said about 40,000 veterans were left having to pay all of their missed payments at once when the relief program ended.
Well, once that was discovered, the VA halted foreclosure on VA-backed loans until the situation could be fixed, and that's what the Biden administration rolled out, the VA Servicing Purchase Program.
That program, according to NPR, rolled the missed payments into a new lower interest rate loan that the VA then owned outright instead of, say, a private lender.
Republicans said that puts too much risk on taxpayers in case a bunch of veterans defaulted.
And of course, it was Derek Van Orden, himself a veteran, who managed to phrase it in a way that ticked off a whole lot of veterans.
In March, during a committee hearing, he said of the VASP, quote, I understand the whole developmental process of this and it was moronic.
It gets rid of a bum loan and pass it off to the American taxpayer.
Bum loan?
So veterans are dead beats, Congressman.
Passing it on to the taxpayers.
You know, veterans are taxpayers too, right?
Like Kevin Conlon.
NPR did a story about him.
He did two combat tours in Iraq.
He joined the Army right after 9-11.
He has traumatic brain injuries from multiple roadside bomb detonations.
He watched his best friend die, sacrificing his life in a split second decision to hug a suicide bomber.
Kevin took advantage of the ability to delay mortgage payments in order to get into an inpatient program to treat his PTSD.
So he hears Van Orden's remark and says to NPR, that's a hell of a thing to say about his brothers and sisters.
And his wife added, it was so hurtful because these are not bum loans and they're making the veterans and their families out to be irresponsible people.
Well, on May 1st, the Trump administration's VA ended the VASP program.
Only one problem.
Remember how I said the president just signed the Van Orden bill?
Yeah, ever since May 1st until now, without the VASP, tens of thousands of veterans have again been put in limbo.
I mean, who cancels one program?
without a substitute ready to roll.
I mean, these are the guys who invented the term repeal and replace, right?
But they couldn't do it with the Affordable Care Act and they didn't do it here either.
These vets got the rug pulled out from under them in late 22 by the Biden VA and again this year from Trump's VA.
So what does the new program do once it's eventually rolled out?
It moves the missed payments to the back end of their loan, just like the original pandemic relief plan.
But again, leaving a lot of veterans in a lurch.
Should Van Orden get some credit for getting a bill passed, perhaps?
But with all the other cuts that he has supported that are going to hurt veterans, it might be time for him to show a little humility.
And again, look like you've been in the end zone before.
We'll talk to Keva Keel and Matt Henney from Courier, Texas after the Midwest Farm Report.
You're up north.
Welcome back 635 on this Friday morning, first day of August.
And as usual, Kia Vakil is here, National Political Editor for Courier Newsroom.
But this time, we're bringing friends.
And we've got Matt Henney, Chief Political Correspondent for Courier Texas.
Kia, good morning.
How are you?
Good morning, Pat.
I am well.
OK.
Things going well in Los Angeles.
We actually have California questions to talk about in just a minute.
But we have to get there by way of Texas.
So Matt, how are you doing?
I'm doing well.
Thanks
for having
me.
All right.
We're talking about a special session of the Texas legislature, which as everybody up here knows, there was terrible flooding down there.
This was a tremendous tragedy.
There's a special session of the legislature.
Matt, how much work has been done on flood relief as part of this special session so
far?
Special session opened two weeks ago, and you would be not incorrect if you didn't know that flood and the natural disaster and response and relief efforts were not part of the special session.
Lawmakers here have been focused on redistricting.
They've had seven hearings on a Republican plan to gerrymander the state.
They've had, I think, Thursday was their second hearing on flood relief and recovery.
So.
I want to make sure I got this straight.
Special session, terrible tragedy.
You said, you told me earlier, there are like 18 items on this agenda for the special session.
And all they've been focused on is a new map that gerrymanders the state even further.
Was this done?
strictly at the behest of President Trump.
We know he mentioned it about getting five additional seats.
Was this going to happen anyway?
Were Texas Republicans and Governor Abbott down there?
Were they moving in that direction or did Trump's comments accelerate all of this?
I think this is driven by Trump.
Republicans here have 25 of the 38 congressional seats.
I don't think there was any appetite for doing redistricting until the president leaned on Abbott to do so.
Can you describe the new map as it has come down so far?
What the result would be if this goes through?
And how does the representation Republican to Democrat compare to, you know, the average of the total electorate in Texas?
even the current map, but the proposed map from Republicans don't match the reality that much of Texas's population growth has been driven by folks who are not white, black and brown people moving to the state.
And that's where we're getting this tremendous growth.
And these maps, current one and this new proposed one, just don't reflect that in terms of how they're building districts.
But your question about what the map means is it really targets five
Democratic districts and tries to whittle those numbers down to give Republicans a better shot at winning those districts in 2026.
For example, in Austin, there's two Democratic districts and it would combine that into one and have two.
long-time progressive Democrats possibly run against each other.
Similar efforts in Dallas-Fort Worth of combining two districts and possibly having two Democratic incumbents run against each other and they also targeted some incumbents in Democratic districts in Houston and in South Texas.
Is it the story that I'm seeing the New York Times relatively on base that if Republicans were to get 30 of the 38 House seats, that'd be nearly 80% of the delegation in a state that Trump carried 56% of it last year, so a 56% Republican state would get 80% of the delegation being Republicans?
Is that how the layperson understands it down there?
One interesting number about this is that 10 million people under this Republican plan, 10 million Texans will be moved to different districts, which is just an incredible, incredible number for
I would just note that like the Texas maps are already fairly gerrymandered because, you know, they.
Lost a lot of seats in 2018 at the state and congressional level in that blue wave and they got scared that they might lose control and so when they didn't they really they did gerrymander these maps and you know now they're gonna go a step further and You know there is I think Matt was hinting at this like you know when you gerrymander things you You're moving people around either to like pack a ton of Democrats in one district or to split them amongst so many that they can't be a majority
But the way they're going about this, it's like assuming that only the patterns that have helped Republicans will continue and the patterns that hurt them will not.
And so there is a world, it might not happen in 2026, but there is a world where, you know, in a couple cycles, and it might not matter because they might just read like at this point they could just redraw these maps every other year, apparently, but there is a world where this backfires and costs them seeds, but that does not take away how cynical this is.
You know, it's just an exercise to maximize their power and cushion
essentially try to cushion Trump and the party from backlash from voters who might be disappointed in the agenda they've been passing.
And so you can rig the maps in such a way where it doesn't matter if people are mad, if 80% of them are in Republican districts because of how it's drawn, even though it's only a 54% Republican state, that really minimizes their ability to push back.
And it might work out where these maps backfire, but
you know, and you know, on a purely democratic level, I hope they do because this isn't great for the country.
No, it's not.
And it's what's led to discussion in other states, predominantly, you know, heavily democratic states, to say, well, two can play at that game, you know, fight fire with fire, don't bring a knife to a gunfight, however you want to put it, you know, instead of two, instead of two wrongs, don't make a right.
And of course, where you are in California is at the center of those discussions, along with Illinois and New York.
But what has the reaction been like amongst California Democrats as to whether they feel like they should
something in response to Texas taking this latest lurch toward autocracy?
Yeah, so, you know, Governor Newsom has been proposing the possibility of redrawing our maps in response to Texas' maps.
And the reaction has been split.
You've seen some Democrats be like fully on board, you know, basically saying what you said.
You can't like give up.
You can't bring a knife to a gunfight.
Because essentially what Texas is doing doesn't just impact Texas, it impacts people all across the country.
If those five seats keep Republicans in the house and they wouldn't have otherwise, that affects all of us everywhere.
And so, you know, there are some Democrats who've been reluctant because they think it's a race to the bottom, but
you know, I tend to think most Democrats in the state in the legislator would be on board with this.
You know, we have a little bit of a different system here where we do have an independent redistricting commission in the state constitution.
A lot of democratic states move towards this model in the past, you know, seven, eight years.
But there are, for lack of better term, loopholes that, you know, Democrats are talking about maneuvering around to try to pass new maps that could
you know right now we have nine republicans elected in this in congress from california they could minimize a number to as as few as four with the maps they're talking about here so essentially neutralizing texas texas is new maps and you know i think in an ideal world no maps would be gerrymandered i think the right model would be to have fair proportional districts in every state but
That's not the world we live in.
We see a race to the bottom.
Republicans have been way out in front of, in Texas, in Ohio, in North Carolina, in Wisconsin until very recently.
And so, like, from my stance, I think the correct approach would be respond to it for TAT, supporting national bill that bans gerrymandering.
But at the same time, like, you can't just give up because you were then saying we will just never win another race.
we will never win control of Congress because Republicans could gerrymander Texas and Florida.
And if Democrats don't do it in New York and California and Pennsylvania, wherever they're able to, there's just no way they'll ever win power again.
That's the unfortunate reality we live in.
So there had been talk that Texas Democratic legislators, Matt, would stage a walkout as they did in 2003 and 2021 to
Well, I guess at the very least delay the implementation between a walkout and or a legal challenge, either one of those likely and on the horizon.
But interesting, there
were a group of lawmakers that went to California recently to meet with Governor Newsom.
They also went to Illinois and then earlier this week and
on a
group went to New Mexico.
So they were.
sort of a trial run for leaving the state, but they were calling attention to the gerrymandered map and particularly with California, Illinois, what those states might be able to do in response.
There has been a lot of talk lately in the last week or so about Democrats doing a, Democrats doing a quorum break and leaving the state.
In 2023, the legislature, Republicans in the legislature made it harder for them to do that in response to the walkout in 2021.
So they face daily fines of 500 bucks that they can't pay with campaign funds.
They face a possibility of arrest and state troopers traveling out of state to bring them back.
So there is a lot of talk about that.
Unfortunately, Democrats don't have the numbers to stop.
a vote in the House or the Senate so they can leave and install the process but like 2021 when they come back it is likely to to get done.
We're talking to Matt Henney, Chief Political Correspondent for Courier Newsroom in Texas.
Kia Vakil is Courier's National Political Editor.
While we're talking about California's potential role in these maps, Kia, there's also a governor's race in California next year.
Former Vice President Kamala Harris says she will not be a candidate for it.
As that field comes together, because current Governor Gavin Newsom is term limited, are there any names that folks in Wisconsin might recognize as either declared candidate
or potential candidates to be the next governor of the big state?
Yeah, I mean, I think the name that people would probably recognize is Katie Porter, who was in Congress for three terms, so six years.
She just left in January.
She had unsuccessfully run for the Senate seat in California that Adam Schiff won.
She's running for governor.
There's a whole laundry list of other names that even engaged California voters probably don't know.
So certainly, Wisconsinites have no reason to know.
But it's kind of a wide open field if without Kamala.
And it'll be very interesting because, you know, I mean, we don't have to go too far down the rabbit hole of California politics, but Gavin Newsom was sort of the heir apparent in 2018.
So this will be the first wide open field in roughly two decades.
And it'll be interesting to see what happens.
And we are the biggest state in the country.
It does matter who our governor is.
But it's notable that Kamala chose not to run.
A lot of people think she has essentially three options, which is run for governor of California in 2026, run for president in 2028.
not run for elected office again.
So now she's down to two options.
And then, you know, there are names like that in Texas that get a lot of attention up here.
Beto O'Rourke comes to mind.
Do you and for some reason, I know I saw his name in the news again recently.
I don't know if it was reacting to this mat or to something else.
But I mean, there's we're coming up on another election year.
So there has to be another Beto O'Rourke discussion, right?
Yes, and he has helped feed that discussion.
He's been out doing a lot of town halls that have gotten a lot of attention and been a conduit for people to express their frustration with.
with the Republican leadership in this redistricting.
He was at the Capitol last week for a rally with Greg Kassar, who's an Austin-based congressman, James Talarico, who's a state lawmaker who's name is being sort of bandied about for a higher office.
So he has definitely been traveling the state and making appearances and having his name out there.
When he was asked by reporters last week when he was here in Austin,
If he's going to run for something, his pad answer basically has just been, if the people want me to run for something, then I will run.
But it's been non-committal on whether that would be for the US Senate seat, for governor, or...
Many of the other offices that are open next year.
EverKG.
And of course, O'Rourke was recently making appearances at a rally in Philadelphia, another in Baltimore.
He's got a Nebraska trip coming up.
So we've got some oldies bug goodies coming back into the news for 2026, not just here in Wisconsin, but in California, Texas, and other states as well.
Matt Henney is the Chief Political Correspondent for Courier Texas, Key of Akeel, Courier's National Political Editor.
Gentlemen, thank you so much.
again.
Have a great weekend.
Thanks, Matt.
We'll be back right after this.
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Hey, really?
Nobody else?
OK, fine.
Welcome to today's history lesson for this August 1st with
as Tony puts it, the most humble, the most punctual, the most thoughtful guy, the funniest man in Wisconsin radio.
Robin Tigerton puts, the guy who reminds me to drink my water.
It's Greg Bach, ladies and gentlemen, joining our Friday history lesson.
Mr. Bach, good morning.
How are you?
Hello.
How was everyone doing?
We're good.
We're good.
Better than you're here now.
Yes.
And you have a dog.
Maybell.
Maybell has a great
appearance.
That's great.
So, how's your week been?
It's been good.
It's been
busy.
How about you
guys?
You know, trying to stay alive, you know, it's a little smoky out here.
It's gonna
say we're trying not to choke.
But it's always a good plan, trying to stay alive.
That should be like number one, if not number two on the
list.
It's right up there, yes.
I think we're going to go see Naked Gun this weekend, mostly again to get into an air conditioned theater and get away from the smoke.
But speaking of movies, that's how we kicked off today's history lesson.
It was on this day in 2014, 11 years ago today, Guardians of the Galaxy opened with a lot of 70s favorites like that one and more.
That soundtrack album is still one of my favorites.
It's a great one.
It really is.
This is, I should have had Dan Schumacher stop by.
Today is the anniversary of the birth of Jerry Garcia.
Born
in 1942, passed away in 1995.
Joe Elliott, the lead vocalist for Def Leppard, is 66 years old today.
Public Enemy's Chuck D is 65.
Coolio was born this day in 1963.
Jason Momoa is 46.
I got to ask you a question about that, but I
should probably
start the next
song.
Yes you are.
I'm coming back to that in a moment but first to get the next song underway this is the anniversary of the birth of the late Jim Capaldi from traffic.
There
he is.
So anyway, he co-founded traffic.
He was the drummer along with Steve Winwood, and he is in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for that.
He wrote the lyrics for the Eagle Song, Love Will Keep Us Alive, and he was a one-hit wonder with that little soft rock hit from the 70s that's Love.
He passed away in 2005.
Getting back to Jason Momoa.
I was watching TMZ because that's where I get all my news from.
And Jason Momoa, as part of a publicity stunt for some new water drink he's pitching, shaved off his entire
beard and mustache, completely clean shaven, completely unrecognizable.
And the question becomes, Greg Bach, because I've seen your wedding photo and what a clean
shaven individual you are.
What, what is it that would spark you to go, you know, I think I'm going to do this whole shave it all off for some kind of a purpose.
Seventy less pounds of.
Wait.
That's it.
I'm that vein.
Oh, come
on.
This is all this is all the high.
This is all the high chins two through four.
So I understand.
Let's see.
The the next two songs are going to come from 1981.
The first is the number one song this day in 1981.
It was by soap opera star turned singer Rick Springfield.
Jesse is a friend.
Yeah, I know he's been a good friend of mine.
Now, this was, yeah, go ahead, Greg.
I love that declaration.
You know, Jesse's a friend.
He's been a real good friend then.
I'm gonna steal his girl.
Yeah.
That whole coveting thing.
It's really fun.
That was the number one song this week in 1981 when
a new cable channel began.
It was called Music Television or MTV.
And here's the song from the first video that they played.
So once again, as we often do in this segment, we're looking for there's a generational divide someplace.
And I am very squarely in that.
part of the generation when MTV first started, we would literally sit there for hours
and
watch music videos because it was such a new thing at the time.
Greg, had it expired by then or were you an MTV watcher when they actually had the M and MTV?
So I was three when MTV started.
So when I came to age at a certain point, I did watch it as a kid, but I also was
at a very at a young age forbidden from watching MTV.
So it wasn't allowed in the house.
Oh,
OK.
But what I find interesting about MTV is that we would we would sit there and watch it for hours and hours and hours.
And then when you listen to people my age and older saying kids just staring at their phones, I'm like, well, we were staring at TV.
Oh, yeah.
So I don't really know what the difference is.
We just couldn't put the TVs in our pockets.
Yeah.
I was staring at Gilligan's Island.
and the Flintstones, you know, Hogan's Heroes, and then
eventually
we get all these brand new shiny music videos to look at, whereas Parker music videos have just never, have they ever been a thing for you?
Not really.
Only as like the productions that people like artists will have made and post on YouTube.
That's about MTV.
That's the thing.
That's what I really like is that
Music videos have made a comeback to YouTube with big productions and they're uncensored and they're still around.
It's just you have to look for them now.
Well, and the thing is, back then, you had to make a video for every single song that was being released as a single, which led to some really bad videos.
I mean, you can tell they
were just slapped together, you know?
Whereas now it's like you make one if the song inspires it, if you want to do it, you put more effort behind it, and it does make them better.
But we definitely were there for the days of the assembly line of music videos.
Yeah,
it
was fun.
Oh, yeah, you know, it was it was a good escape because like you said the TV it doesn't fit in the pocket This is national raspberry cream pie day if can we expand that the raspberry cream cheese pie because that is one of the greatest pies I love that so much This is national water balloon day and this is national sandwich month kicks off today.
Here's Greg's hot take for national sandwich month above BLT's
Oh, they're a waste of time.
They're not a sandwich.
They're not a sandwich.
They're an insult.
We fooled our South America.
Thank
you, Greg.
Appreciate it.
Have a great weekend.
See you guys.
All right, our weekend review panel and Lieutenant Governor Sarah Rodriguez all still ahead here on the Civic Media Radio Network.
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