Ben Wikler Profile picture
Jul 10, 2020 15 tweets 6 min read Read on X
🚨The Wisconsin GOP is holding their state party convention this weekend.

Despite the pandemic, it’s going to be in-person. Let’s make sure the GOP’s COVID Convention backfires.

Donate & RT to supercharge Democratic organizing in Wisconsin: wisdems.org/supercharge
The GOP convention is happening in Brown County, which is a coronavirus hotspot—ranked #2 in confirmed cases amongst Wisconsin’s 72 counties.

There’s every reason to fear that GOP convention-goers will exacerbate this reality on the ground.

urbanmilwaukee.com/2020/07/05/op-…
While they’ll make hand sanitizer & masks available to attendees (how generous!), masks will not be required during the event at Green Bay convention center. This puts the @wisgop at odds with the @packers, who will require masks at their games this fall.

wispolitics.com/2020/wisconsin…
Masks optional at an indoor state party convention featuring hours of speeches and 300 attendees. A mini version of the coronavirus-a-palooza that Trump is planning for Florida.

Fascinating political strategy.

greenbaypressgazette.com/story/news/202…
POLL: What are the odds that Robin Vos - Republican Speaker of the Wisconsin Legislature - shows up in full PPE to his own state party convention, as he did on election day?
Remember: On election day in April, Robin Vos told the public it was “incredibly safe to go out”, but he wouldn’t even speak to the media at a polling place without full body PPE.

(We put up this billboard in his district to remind voters about it.) Image
We’re in a similar moment now. Cases in Wisconsin have spiked, with some analysis suggesting that Wisconsin has among the fastest rates of COVID-19 spread in the country.

urbanmilwaukee.com/2020/07/07/wis…
The GOP’s response? Continue to do nothing to protect Wisconsinites. Snipe at Dems. And hold an in-person convention.
The Wisconsin GOP’s response to coronavirus has been a disaster:

-Consistently downplayed risks & circulated conspiracy theories

-Forced Wisconsinites to vote in-person in April

-Forfeited $25M in federal funding by slow-walking legislation

wispolitics.com/2020/dwd-says-…
To top if off, Republicans sued to kill @GovEvers’s #SaferAtHome order—and got Republican Supreme Court justices to torpedo his ability to issue emergency health measures.

Chaos ensued. Within the hour, bars were packed. Predictably, cases have risen.

fox6now.com/2020/05/14/gov…
Trump has failed by refusing to enact a comprehensive federal response. Robin Vos and Wisconsin Republicans have gone even further, and blocked the power of our elected governor to coordinate a statewide response.

Trump. Vos. Two peas in a pod.
Wisconsin Democrats have been steadfast in our commitment to keeping Wisconsinites safe. That’s why we organized around absentee voting this spring. That’s why we supported the #SaferAtHome order.

And it’s why our state convention was all-virtual: wisdems.org/2020-dpw-conve…
At their convention this weekend, Robin Vos and the GOP are likely to bring up a bunch of themes we’ve become familiar with.

They’ll bash voting rights, talk up an economy they’ve helped ruin, and unleash a series of racist and xenophobic dogwhistles.

wpr.org/vos-takes-heat…
How do we counter their politics of fear and division and unify our state? Organizing. And you can help.

Get involved in the fight to turn Wisconsin blue here: wisdems.org/get-involved/v…
We’ll take every dollar you donate to @WisDems and invest it into fighting the GOP—and fighting for something better. Listening to science. Defeating racism. Uniting our state and country around a vision that benefits all.

Chip in to help us do it: wisdems.org/supercharge

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More from @benwikler

May 23
This week, Elon Musk (who is still working w/Trump!) announced that, “In terms of political spending, I’m going to do a lot less in the future.”

"I think I've done enough."

It looks like your work in this spring’s Supreme Court race fueled a sea change in American politics. 🧵 Image
It’s never a great idea to take Elon Musk at his word. But even the act of publicly backing away from his previous position—where he was regularly promising to fund primary and general election campaigns against anyone who got in Trump’s way—is a huge shift.
In light of Elon Musk promising to back off funding elections, let’s review the path to this moment. There’s value in celebrating wins.
Read 31 tweets
May 16
GOOD NEWS: The GOP’s raid on health care to fund a multi-trillion $ tax cut for billionaires has hit rocky shoals—and, so far, doesn’t have votes to pass.

BAD NEWS: Among GOP in the House & Senate, objectors think it doesn’t go far enough.

Ron Johnson is the worst of them. 🧵
Ron Johnson is on a media tour describing the so-called “big, beautiful bill” as “the Titanic” because its cuts don’t go far enough.
politico.com/live-updates/2…
So what is it that Ron Johnson thinks should be cut?

As he wrote in an op-ed, he wants to target “ObamaCare, which seems to have found new life under the name ‘Medicaid expansion.’”
wsj.com/opinion/the-ug…
Read 22 tweets
May 2
A week ago today, FBI agents arrested Judge Hannah Dugan on courthouse grounds on outrageous charges. Immediately, Trump officials like Kash Patel and Pam Bondi began to celebrate. But this is not going well for them, and it’s going to age like milk on a Miami sidewalk. 🧵
Let’s review what happened.

The arrest of Judge Dugan stemmed from a Keystone Kops type episode that took place a week earlier, when immigration enforcement attempted to arrest an individual in Dugan’s courtroom.
Judge Dugan sent the enforcers out, telling them to talk to the chief judge. Then she sent the individual out via the “jury door.” The FBI now wants to prosecute her for supposedly obstructing a U.S. agency and concealing an individual to prevent an arrest. But there’s a problem.
Read 25 tweets
Apr 23
Last summer, I had the chance to recommend three books on The Ezra Klein Show. Today, on #WorldBookDay, I stand by those recommendations. 🧵
1. The Reasoning Voter, by Samuel Popkin. Terrific book exploring how voters (especially those who generally tune out politics) use available info to make decisions about who’s on their side. BOOK COVER The Reasoning Voter Communication and Persuasion in Presidential Campaigns Samuel L. Popkin "If you're preparing to run a presidential campaign and only have time to read one book, make sure you read Sam Popkin's The Reasoning Voter. If you have time to read two books, read The Reasoning Voter twice." - James Carville
2. Finding Freedom: The Untold Story of Joshua Glover, Freedom Seeker, by Ruby West Jackson and Walter T. McDonald. One of Wisconsin’s proudest stories about a traveler on the Underground Railroad, and the Wisconsinites who rallied to his side. BOOK COVER Finding Freedom The Untold Story of Joshua Glover Freedom Seeker Ruby West Jackson Walter T. McDonald Foreword by Christy Clark Pujara
Read 5 tweets
Apr 10
It's been the honor of my life to serve as Chair of @WisDems for the last 6 years. With a pro-democracy Supreme Court secured for years, WI can reach for a trifecta in 2026. Our state party is in superb shape. So today, I’m announcing that, this summer, I’m passing the torch.🧵
Here's my full statement, or you can read the rest of this thread.
benwikler.com/p/news-im-pass…
Now is the right time for me to take a breath, and find new ways to advance the fight for a country that works for working people—one that honors every person's dignity and freedom. I'm going to take some time to figure out what's next, & spend time with a family I fiercely love.
Read 35 tweets
Apr 4
Justice-elect Susan Crawford’s victory over Brad Schimel, Elon Musk, and Donald Trump marks a sea change in American politics.

The fight back has begun.

This is a thread about what just happened—and a huge thank you to those who drove it. 🧵
Susan Crawford’s victory astonished the country and the world—not just because she won after being outspent by a campaign fueled by the world’s richest man, but because she did so by a double-digit margin in the deepest-purple state in America.
The margin of victory in both the Presidential and Senate races in 2024 was under one percentage point. Susan Crawford won by 10%. Relative to 2024’s presidential race, every single county in Wisconsin moved left. Image
Read 102 tweets

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