La Crosse Talk PM WIZM

William Garcia in the WIZM studio Thursday for La Crosse Talk PM discussing the upcoming US House candidate Democratic forum on Wednesday at UW-La Crosse, the peculiar timing of new policies passed by the Biden Administration and politicians useless campaign posts.

Garcia is the Democratic Party chair for both La Crosse County and the 3rd US House District here in Wisconsin.

Began the show discussing the first of four US House fo...

Council members, Mackenzie Mindel and Mac Kiel, in the WIZM studio for La Crosse Talk PM discussing city being 1 of 100 awarded youth climate grant funding, selling the south side library building and a homeless plan update.

Kiel and Mindel are on the Judiciary and Administration Committee, which meets at 6 p.m. Tuesday. We began the show reviewing one decision by the council last month on a state law dealing with supermajorities....

Rachel King and Dillon Constant in studio to talk about two different fields within La Crosse County government that are helping make the community more sustainable and healthy.

King is an epidemiologist with the county Health Department, while Constant is the county planner. On the show, we discuss the county’s two phases of its Climate Action Plan, parts of which include transitioning the fleet to EVs and zero emissions by 2050,...

UW-La Crosse political science professor, Dr. Anthony Chergosky, in studio discussing some of the latest results from the Marquette U. Law School poll, showing Joe Biden and Donald Trump even. Plus, why are we complaining when the vice president is visiting La Crosse — and is the electoral college working in creating that opportunity?

We began the show with VP Kamala Harris’ upcoming La Crosse visit, before getting into some of th...

Entomologist, Dr. Ted Wilson, joins to talk about these two cicada species emerging for the first time in 221 years, how we can stick it back to mosquitoes, plus the good and bad with “No Mow May” in La Crosse.

Wilson, the Biology chair at Viterbo University, talks about this once-in-multiple-lifetimes event where these two species of cicadas that emerge from the ground every 13 and every 17 years collide this spring — soon. Where...

Laura Godden joins to talk about the upcoming release of La Crosse’s Top 10 most endangered buildings, plus she discusses the city’s most untouchable structures, as well.

Godden is an archivist at UW-La Crosse and on the city’s Heritage Preservation Commission. Among the buildings we discuss are two that are very much threatened to get demolished soon — Glory Days Sports Pub, downtown, and the La Crosse School District’s Hogan Adm...

La Crosse Education Association president, Jesse Martinez joined to talk about the school board elections, with their write-in candidate winning, plus how the teachers’ union feels about the $54 million new elementary school plan potentially going on the ballot.

Martinez, a seventh-grade math and science teacher at Logan, started the show talking about how he handles giving students standardized tests in the midst of one of the ni...

La Crosse Mayor Mitch Reynolds in studio discussing the Wagon Wheel Trail expansion to the city, rethinking sidewalks and bike paths and the riverbank cleanup from homeless encampments.

Began the show with Reynolds talking about the FIRST Robotic Competition that was held at the La Crosse Center last weekend. 

After that, we talked a bit about the NCAA women’s basketball tournament and the phenomenon of Caitlin Clark, and...

UW-La Crosse political science professor, Dr. Anthony Chergosky, recapping the local elections and how negative campaigns played a part in the judicial race, how school referendums did across Wisconsin and the tight rope Eric Hovde is walking in his US Senate race in the state. We also hit on Wisconsin US House Rep. Mike Gallagher's "timely" retiring to perhaps sabotage his own GOP party. Ended the show talking about Kansas City vo...

La Crosse County Administrator, Jane Klekamp, in studio discussing what happens now with a new county board, plus updates on homeless plan, healthcare center renovations and strategic plan. Spent the first half of the show talking about the La Crosse County Board elections, that included six brand new members and how they will get initiated. After that, we got updates on the Pathways Home plan to end homelessness, the timeline for ...

Rep. Steve Doyle joins to announce he’s running for reelection in the state Assembly and how attack ads backfired in the La Crosse County elections. 

Doyle, just reelected to the La Crosse County Board, talks about the fliers that went out attacking him and others and how the results show those tactics just don’t work in local elections. Doyle also discusses what both the Republican and Democratic county parties might do, as almos...

The man known as Brucie Bumchuckles on the radio, joins to talk about the April Fools' hoax in La Crosse that went viral before viral was a thing. Marty Severson relives the 1986 bit, where he fooled everyone with a radio ad from the "phone company" to bag your phone, because they were going to blow the dust out of the phone lines. A hoarding of bags from Quillins ensued. Phone companies wanted to sue. People left work to go home a...

Jane Powell kicks off the show, talking about how the League Of Women Voters of the La Crosse Area is involved in the spring elections, including its views on the two Constitutional Amendments that are on the ballot. After that, Tim Alberts joins to discuss his run for La Crosse School Board. That conversation included his not wanting to be named on the 1776 Pac flier that went out to voters. He also talks about the potential $54 m...

William Garcia, the Democratic Party chair for both La Crosse County and the 3rd US House District, in studio to discuss accusations that the Democratic Party is recruiting candidates to run for La Crosse County Board. Before that, however, I rant a bit about partisanship in nonpartisan races and WIZM's Brad Williams joins to talk about the Biden campaign's reelection co-chair, Mitch Landrieu, stopping in La Crosse. 

Began the sho...

La Crosse County Board candidate Kristie Tweed kicks off the show Tuesday and Jake Williams, a write-in candidate for La Crosse School Board wraps up, as we’re a week from the spring election voting cycle ending.

Tweed, running in District 24 against Kevin Hoyer, dropped in studio to talk about why she’s running for county board, how she wants to get the word out on all the things the county can offer that people might not know ab...

Wisconsin state Sen. Brad Pfaff in studio discussing work that Legislature — that's out of session the rest of 2024 — could be doing, work he is doing, like Lansing bridge repair updates, and what needs to happen with EV charging stations.

Got into it first with Pfaff (7:40) on the Senate being out of sessions for a few weeks now and just what kind of work there is to do. The Legislature is adjourned for the year. Lawmakers won't ...

UW-La Crosse political science professor, Dr. Anthony Chergosky, in studio discussing the US House passing $1.2 trillion to keep government open, right before vacation, and how politicians and candidates use social media fairly unproductively — like making NCAA picks.

Began the show right there, to a degree, and how Instagram is not showing political posts anymore, unless you go through five sub-menus to turn that option back on.

A two guest Thursday, as we discuss some big events surrounding the Hunger Task Force of La Crosse, before one of the many write-in candidates for La Crosse School Board joins to talk about his priorities.

First off, Shelly Fortner, the executive director for the Hunger Task Force talks about two big March events — 95.7 the Rock’s .01K down Pearl Street that raised $4,381 and the upcoming Food Drive Friday by Interact students fro...