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Year: 2023

Wisconsin Gov. Evers vetoes ‘completely unserious’ $2B tax cut

Wisconsin Gov. Evers vetoes ‘completely unserious’ B tax cut

Gov. Tony Evers on Monday vetoed a $2 billion Republican tax cut bill, calling it “completely unserious.” Evers’ veto was expected, as he opposed the GOP plan from the moment it was introduced as a substitute to the Democratic governor’s own workforce development package. Evers has previously vetoed a similar income tax cut passed by the Legislature. Republicans don’t have enough votes, without help from Democrats, to override the veto. Lawmakers are not scheduled to return in session until mid-January. GOV. EVERS, SPEAKER VOS FIND RARE COMMON GROUND IN OPPOSITION TO WISCONSIN SCHOOL VOUCHER SUIT Republicans gutted a $1 billion Evers proposal to invest in child care he called on the Legislature to pass in a special session in September. Instead, the Legislature passed a measure that would have cut income taxes, created a child care tax credit, and increased income tax deductions for private school tuition. The vetoed bill also had provisions to recognize some out-of-state professional credentials in Wisconsin, and to prohibit state examining boards from requiring counselors, therapists and pharmacists to pass tests on state law and regulations. Evers, in his veto message, said the Republican bill failed to “meaningfully and sensibly address the workforce challenges that have plagued Wisconsin for a decade.” “It is clear today Republicans remain disinterested in passing real solutions to the most pressing challenges facing our state,” Evers wrote. Republican Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu said the bill that Evers vetoed “would have provided meaningful relief for Wisconsin families to address inflation and rising child care costs.” The Evers proposal rejected by the Legislature would have spent $365 million on child care, $65 million on University of Wisconsin funding, $200 million on a new engineering building at UW-Madison and $243 million toward a 12-week family medical leave program for Wisconsin workers. Republicans who control the Legislature remain in talks with university leaders about funding the engineering building. WISCONSIN ASSEMBLY DELAYS VOTE ON LIKELY VETO-BOUND $2B INCOME TAX CUT Earlier this month, more than 40 business leaders from across Wisconsin sent lawmakers a letter urging them to support the project, saying a new engineering building would allow the university to serve more students and employers. The Wisconsin Alumni Association is also funding an advertising campaign about the need for more engineers in the state. Republican Assembly Speaker Robin Vos last week that “We would love to be able to find a way to get to yes” to approve the engineering building funding. But he said UW must control the number of positions it has added in recent years and address his concerns about diversity, equity and inclusion programming. Vos has argued that DEI programs are a waste of public funding and that the university should be focused on other priorities. Vos has blocked pay raises for UW employees over his objection to the university’s DEI efforts. Evers has filed a lawsuit arguing that the Legislature is unconstitutionally stopping the pay raises.

Sununu teams up with Haley, DeSantis, Christie as he decides on 2024 presidential endorsement

Sununu teams up with Haley, DeSantis, Christie as he decides on 2024 presidential endorsement

HOOKSETT, N.H. – Republican Gov. Chris Sununu’s the busiest politician on the presidential campaign trail in the crucial primary state of New Hampshire this week, and he’s not even running for the White House. Sununu teamed up on Monday afternoon with former ambassador to the United Nations and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley at a town hall in Hooksett. On Monday evening, he’ll join former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who’s making his second bid for the GOP presidential nomination, at a town hall in Nashua. And on Tuesday, he’ll team up with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis for a campaign event in Manchester, New Hampshire’s largest city. GAME ON IN IOWA AS DESANTIS AND HALEY BATTLE FOR SECOND PLACE BEHIND TRUMP  Sununu said he’ll endorse one of those three candidates when he decides on whom he’ll back in the 2024 Republican presidential race sometime after Thanksgiving. “I’m not endorsing anyone yet,” the governor told reporters after the conclusion of the Haley event. “Nikki’s done a great job. She’s been really pounding the pavement… Her message seems to resonate.” WITH CLOCK TICKING TOWARDS FIRST VOTES IN THE GOP PRESIDENTIAL NOMINATION RACE, THIS CANDIDATE REMAINS IN THE DRIVER’S SEAT Two weeks ago Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds of Iowa – whose caucuses lead off the GOP presidential nominating calendar, endorsed DeSantis. And this past weekend, Reynolds joined DeSantis at multiple stops on the Hawkeye State campaign trail.  Sununu told Fox News Digital that his endorsement would also be much more than just a one-day announcement. “If I get behind a candidate, I’m going to get behind a candidate,” he emphasized. And he later added that he’d put muscle behind his endorsement, “110%.” “That’s the fun part. Are you kidding? I’m not going to do an endorsement and sit on my hands. When I do an endorsement, it’s going to be a six-, seven-, eight-, nine-week push, whatever it is, to really make sure folks know where we are. I tend to not leave anything on the table,” he emphasized. And Sununu, who’s won election and re-election to four two-year terms as New Hampshire governor, said he’d help whichever candidate he backed “put together a ground game. I think we know how to do it pretty well here.” HALEY, DESANTIS, RAMASWAMY, SHARE PERSONAL, EMOTIONAL STORIES But he’s also tempered expectations that his endorsement might move the needle in the Granite State, telling Fox News last month that “I’m never a big believer that endorsements matter as much as the press think they do.” Asked if he could see himself serving in a potential Haley, DeSantis or Christie Cabinet, Sununu told Fox News on Monday that “I don’t need anything out of Washington. I just want a great candidate and great president and I think there’s a huge opportunity for that. No, nothing for me. I’m ready to go get a real job.” The governor, who flirted with a White House run of his own before announcing in early June that he wouldn’t launch a 2024 campaign, has been a vocal GOP critic of former President Donald Trump, who remains the commanding frontrunner for the Republican nomination as he seeks to win back his old job. “He’s got a floor, but he’s also got a ceiling,” Sununu said as he pointed to Trump’s large lead in the latest New Hampshire polls. “And when you look at the fact that well over 50% of the Republican core-based voter wants somebody else, the fact that in New Hampshire you can have independents that come out – I believe in record numbers – most of which won’t vote for yesterday’s news in terms of Donald Trump.” And the governor emphasized that “these candidates have a lot of opportunity to make up a lot of ground quickly.” New Hampshire’s Secretary of State announced last week that the date of the primary will be Jan. 23, eight days after the Iowa caucuses. Granite State voters are known for traditionally being late deciders when it comes to their state’s treasured first-in-the-nation presidential primary. As for when New Hampshire voters will decide whom they’ll back for president, the governor said, “They always make them after Thanksgiving, and I think this year even later than normal.” “I think a lot of folks are just going to wait and see where this thing goes in late December and early January and make up their minds,” Sununu added. Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.

Los Angeles freeway damaged by arson reopens ahead of schedule

Los Angeles freeway damaged by arson reopens ahead of schedule

A section of a freeway running through downtown Los Angeles that had been heavily damaged by fire earlier this month reopened on Monday, weeks ahead of initial forecasts, city officials said, offering a pleasant surprise for Southern California commuters.