Capitol Notes

After a bitter fight that culminated in sexual assault accusations and an FBI investigation, Judge Brett Kavanaugh is now Justice Kavanaugh. The U.S. Senate confirmed Kavanaugh over the weekend and he was then sworn in to a seat on the U.S. Supreme Court.

Wisconsin's U.S. senators split on the matter, with Republican Ron Johnson voting yes and Democrat Tammy Baldwin voting no to confirmation. In this week's Capitol Notes conversation, WUWM's Marti Mikkelson asked JR Ross of wispolitics.com, whether those votes will come back to haunt the two senators.   

The Kavanaugh hearings took center stage last week in Washington, and both candidates is Wisconsin's U.S. Senate race weighed in on President Trump's nominee to the Supreme Court. 

Democratic incumbent Tammy Baldwin asked for an FBI investigation into claims that Brett Kavanaugh sexually assaulted a woman when the two were teenagers. Baldwin's Republican challenger Leah Vukmir, meanwhile, called for quick confirmation of Kavanaugh.  

The candidates for governor traded more barbs last week. State School Superintendent and Democratic gubernatorial candidate Tony Evers took the opportunity to criticize his opponent, Republican Gov. Scott Walker, in his "state of education" address. Evers said Walker's education priorities are "out of whack" and that his policies are failing Wisconsin.

Gov. Scott Walker is imploring state senators to return to the capitol, and vote on a bill that would provide $100 million in tax incentives to Kimberly-Clark. The company says it will close one of its plants in the Fox Valley if the Senate doesn't approve the incentives by the end of the month. 

Last week, we saw Republican Gov. Scott Walker inserting himself into the national anthem debate. He called on all NFL players to stand during the anthem, instead of taking a knee. In doing so, Walker sided with President Trump, who's been vocal on the issue. 

Some heavy hitters are beginning to appear in Wisconsin on behalf of the candidates this fall. Vice President Mike Pence held a fundraiser in Milwaukee last week for Republican U.S. Senate candidate Leah Vukmir. She's facing Democratic incumbent Tammy Baldwin in November.

Pence says both he — and President Trump — plan on coming back to Wisconsin to rally for Vukmir and Gov. Walker before the mid-term elections. Walker is locked in a tight race with Democratic challenger Tony Evers.

The underlying theme of the midterm elections this fall is how voters feel about Donald Trump.

The president has been on a bumpy road in the past week. Two of his former close associates were found guilty. Others turned against him, agreeing to share potentially damaging information.

It’s been less than a week since the fall primary elections and already campaigns are in “full-court press” mode. The candidates in the big races have been traveling the state, courting voters.

Meanwhile, groups that favor Republican Gov. Scott Walker have been attacking Democratic challenger Tony Evers. And fans of Democratic U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin have been blasting GOP opponent Leah Vukmir.

Republican Gov. Scott Walker will face state School Superintendent Tony Evers in November, as a result of Tuesday's Democratic primary. The attacks happened immediately. The Republican Party of Wisconsin announced on election night that it would run TV ads, attacking Evers for not revoking the license of a teacher who viewed pornography on a state computer. Evers responded by saying that state law at the time wouldn't allow him to revoke the license, because students did not see the pornographic materials. 

Tuesday is Wisconsin's fall primary election.  Among the races on the ballot is the Republican primary for U.S. Senate.  Voters will decide which candidate should take on Democratic incumbent Tammy Baldwin in November.  

The two front-runners in the primary are state Sen. Leah Vukmir of Brookfield, and Delafield business exec Kevin Nicholson.  The race between Vukmir and Nicholson has been marked by bitterness.  WUWM's Marti Mikkelson asked JR Ross of wispolitics.com, why that's been the case, in this week's "Capitol Notes" conversation.  

The Wisconsin governor's race is starting to draw broader attention.  Some recent national polls show Democratic candidate Tony Evers ahead of Republican Gov. Scott Walker in hypothetical head-to-head matchups. 

Wisconsin voters had a chance last week to vet the Republican candidates for U.S. Senate.  State Sen. Leah Vukmir and Delafield Business Executive Kevin Nicholson debated issues such as tariffs, abortion and immigration policy, at a forum in Milwaukee.

In this week's Capitol Notes conversation, WUWM's Marti Mikkelson asked Jeff Mayers of WisPolitics.com, what he found interesting about the exchange.

Gov. Scott Walker spent much of last week trying to downplay some photos that surfaced, of him and the woman now charged in an alleged Russian plot to interfere with U.S. elections.  The photos were snapped in 2015, as Walker was announcing his presidential bid. 

In this week's "Capitol Notes" conversation, Marti Mikkelson asked JR Ross of wispolitics.com, whether this will be problematic for Walker, as he seeks reelection this fall.

The eight Democrats vying for the chance to take on Gov. Walker this fall shared the stage at UWM last week for their only broadcast debate, with just weeks to go until the Aug. 14 primary.

In this week's Capitol Notes conversation, WUWM's Marti Mikkelson asked JR Ross of wispolitics.com what he found interesting about the discussion, and whether there was a clear winner.

Democratic U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin's campaign could get a shot in the arm, as former presidential candidate and fellow U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders stumps for her in Eauu Claire this weekend.  Republicans are targeting Baldwin's seat in November and Sanders is considering another run for President himself in 2020.  In this week's "Capitol Notes" conversation, WUWM's Marti Mikkelson asked JR Ross of wispolitics.com, what it means for Baldwin to have a heavy hitter like "Bernie" rallying for her.