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Finding joy where we can, and muddling through where we can’t.

the 10% who apparently lack object permanence

I really should read my own blog.

The rest of the comments were smacking Boebert like she was a piñata.

When you’re a Republican, they let you do it.

Dear Washington Post, you are the darkness now.

DeSantis transforming Florida into 1930s Germany with gators and theme parks.

The willow is too close to the house.

“What are Republicans afraid of?” Everything.

I don’t recall signing up for living in a dystopian sci-fi novel.

“Just close your eyes and kiss the girl and go where the tilt-a-whirl takes you.” ~OzarkHillbilly

This country desperately needs a functioning fourth estate.

Insiders who complain to politico: please report to the white house office of shut the fuck up.

With all due respect and assumptions of good faith, please fuck off into the sun.

They want us to be overwhelmed and exhausted. Focus. Resist. Oppose.

It is not hopeless, and we are not helpless.

It’s a good piece. click on over. but then come back!!

Good lord, these people are nuts.

Let’s not be the monsters we hate.

They think we are photo bombing their nice little lives.

The real work of an opposition party is to hold the people in power accountable.

Books are my comfort food!

If you thought you’d already seen people saying the stupidest things possible on the internet, prepare yourselves.

The most dangerous place for a black man in America is in a white man’s imagination.

You are here: Home / Politics / Political Action / Ben Wikler is Passing the Torch in Wisconsin

Ben Wikler is Passing the Torch in Wisconsin

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This post is in: ,

Ben Wikler is passing the torch, so Wis*Dems will have a new chair come June of this year.

He has a new website and newsletter: https://www.benwikler.com/

It will come as a surprise to absolutely no one that I have already signed up.  Thank goodness she some asshole didn’t snatch that up and try to charge an arm and a leg for it.  Or, if you’re as savvy as Ben Wikler, it’s likely that you may have snatched it up years ago and have been sitting on it, waiting for the right moment.

It’s been the honor of my life to serve as Chair of WisDems for the last six years. With a pro-democracy Supreme Court secured for years to come, Wisconsin can reach for a trifecta in 2026. Our state party is in superb shape. So today, I’m announcing that, this summer, I’ll be passing the torch.🧵

[image or embed]

— Ben Wikler (@benwikler.bsky.social) April 10, 2025 at 1:53 PM

Ben Wikler is Passing the Torch in Wisconsin

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Ben Wikler is Passing the Torch in Wisconsin 1Sad that it’s the end of an era for Wisconsin, but Wikler is a rare talent and I’m sure he’ll be back in the fight in some capacity, after some well-deserved downtime.

Open thread.

 

Reader Interactions

143Comments

  1. 1.

    Baud

    Thank goodness she asshole didn’t snatch that up and try to charge an arm and a leg for it.

    Who is she?

    ETA: Kudos on a job well done, Ben. It couldn’t have been easy dealing with Omnes.

  3. 3.

    Josie

    @WaterGirl: ​ My “M” key is not working also. Hmmmm.​
     ETA: I have to remember to slow down and check for strange spelling now.

  6. 6.

    RaflW

    Wikler is definitely smart and talented. I was bummed that he didn’t get the top Dem job. I hope he will do more great things for the movement to rescue our democracy, though taking a rest for a bit is something he’s earned.

  7. 7.

    WaterGirl

    @Josie:

    I have to remember to slow down and check for strange spelling now.

    Good advice.  I am so impatient these days.  I realized this morning that it’s been nearly a year since all the awful stuff that happened in July.  Not quite a year, but long enough to conceive a baby and give birth. (Which, just to be clear, I did not do, in that 9 months.)

    High levels of stress for an extended period of time… Not helpful!

    edited

  8. 8.

    WaterGirl

    @RaflW: I am still bummed about that.  I predict that he will start a new organization with a national focus.  Unite and Fight.

    That’s what I would do if I were him.  He has to have been thinking about all the things he would do if elected DNC Chair.  I would let the ideas percolate over the spring and into the summer, and then get going for real in late summer or early fall.

    You heard it here first!  And if I’m wrong about that, well, it certainly won’t be the first time. :-)

  9. 9.

    Josie

    @WaterGirl: ​
     So true, and it isn’t good for your health. I started singing in the church choir with my middle son, and that has helped tremendously. i get to spend some special time with him, and the music is soothing.

  12. 12.

    terraformer

    I’m of the opinion that had Wikler won instead of Martin, we’d be seeing the kind of actions we’ve (well, most of us anyway) have been yearning for for years from the D side of things:

    “shadow government” reports on what MAGA’s doing, why it’s wrong, and what Dems would do instead; better organizing and support for state parties across the country; proactive (rather than reactive) communication on how things people currently enjoy that will go away to pay for MAGA tax cuts for the rich; a focus on voters that make <$50K per year; what people will *lose* from MAGA – essentially, that Dems embrace and act as the opposition party

    All I’ve seen from Martin so far is “we’re going to show you how to fight back” a few weeks ago. Nothing since.

  13. 13.

    Old School

    My money is on chem trails.

    Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said Thursday during a meeting of President Donald Trump’sCabinet that he expects his agency will soon know the cause of the “autism epidemic.”

    “By September we will know what has caused the autism epidemic,” Kennedy said. “And we’ll be able to eliminate those exposures.” Characterizing autism as an epidemic will likely anger many, especially those in the autism community who do not view being autistic as something to be eradicated, though for others, it may be welcome.

  14. 14.

    Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)

    @terraformer:

    From what I understand, there’s been town halls organized by Dems/the DNC in red congressional districts. The “shadow government” seems to be taking shape too.

    Ken Martin wasn’t my first pick either and he’s said some tone deaf things, but it seems like he’s putting in the work

  15. 15.

    Suzanne

    @terraformer: Agree.

    I remember reading one of our pols say that the big difference in the Dems right now isn’t centrist vs. lefty, it’s really about fighting stance. I would also add style/presentation to that. I have my personal favorites amongst our electeds, but they aren’t all Elizabeth Warrens. :) Personality and inclination matter a lot to effectiveness, I think.

  16. 16.

    Jackie

    @WaterGirl: WHOA!

    it’s been nearly a year since all the awful stuff that happened in July.  Not quite a year, but long enough to conceive a baby and give birth

    I had to slow down and read that again! LOL

  17. 17.

    Betty Cracker

    Come to Florida, Ben. We need you. I’ll take you on a marsh birds and gators tour — no charge! I’ll make you a key lime pie and shrimp etouffée.

  19. 19.

    Mousebumples

    2 NE WI news orgs on bsky I want to highlight – I think they’re also on Facebook, if that’s your thing.

    bsky.app/profile/dairyland.news

    bsky.app/profile/badgervanguard.com

    I think both are run by the same WisDems associate of mine (retired journalist) with an aim of trying to counter the AltRight news.

    The bottom one seems less active recently, but I just added them to my follows.

     

    Re – Ben Wikler, I’m not super surprised. I felt like this might be coming, since he ran for DNC Chair. Curious who will succeed him. And can he think about running against RoJo in 3 years? (or at least run that campaign?)

  22. 22.

    pajaro

    @terraformer:

    So far, In addition to helping in Wisconsin, Martin’s new initiatives include a number of shadow town halls and the formation of a shadow cabinet.

  23. 23.

    Baud

    @WaterGirl:

    Not quite a year, but long enough to conceive a baby and give birth.

     
    Human gestation period is to time what football fields is to length.

  26. 26.

    Anne Laurie

    Let’s see if I can embed / link…

    [deleted code]

    *sigh*

    Any BS user can rescue this from Cean Observer’s feed?

  29. 29.

    Anne Laurie

    Doesn’t work for my patched-together systm, but look for Hammbear2024’s feed!

  32. 32.

    WaterGirl

    @Anne Laurie:  I pasted the embed code in using the TEXT tab.  If that’s what you did, and it didn’t work, then guessing maybe it is your old system?

    But if you pasted the code in Visual mode, that’s what it would look like.

  33. 33.

    Martin

    China has halted LNG sales from the US without warning, turning ships in the Pacific around. China buying from Australia instead. New trade alliances being formed around the US.

  34. 34.

    Eduardo

    @Betty Cracker: LOL,  I would marry him in a parallel universe in which that is what he asks for coming to FL.  What the people of Wisconsin have done — are doing — is so epic someone should do a mini docu-series.

  35. 35.

    Mousebumples

    @WaterGirl: that is State Senator Kris Alfheim! She’s not my Senator (still have a GOP, sigh), but I’ve only heard positive things about her.

  40. 40.

    catclub

    @WaterGirl: ​
     

    Just using that as a measurement of time.

    It is also used to demonstrate some processes can be parallelized and some cannot. You cannot get a baby in one month with nine women all working on the project.

  42. 42.

    lowtechcyclist

    @Martin:

    China has halted LNG sales from the US without warning, turning ships in the Pacific around. China buying from Australia instead. New trade alliances being formed around the US.

    Everybody’s backing away from the crazy man.

  45. 45.

    lowtechcyclist

    @Eduardo:

     LOL,  I would marry him in a parallel universe in which that is what he asks for coming to FL.  What the people of Wisconsin have done — are doing — is so epic someone should do a mini docu-series.

    And he’s done that in a state where the electorate isn’t appreciably more Dem-leaning than it was when he took over.  As last year demonstrated, it can still go either way in a statewide election.  This isn’t like Virginia which has gone from red to mostly blue because it’s become a lot more urban/suburban and less rural.

  48. 48.

    lowtechcyclist

    @Baud:

    Dems should just say the Catholic Church is now saying a fetus isn’t a person after all.  Let the people on the other side of this one explain that it’s just a Catholic hospital, and let them explain about the legal mumbo-jumbo.

    As the saying goes, when you’re explaining, you’re losing.

  54. 54.

    jonas

    @Old School: Of course the reason it seems like more people have autism is that we’re better at diagnosing it than we were a generation ago and it’s also not one thing; that’s why it’s called a “spectrum” disorder.  I suspect the solution will be to just discourage doctors and psychologists from diagnosing or treating it at all. Poof! Problem solved! Just like Covid disappears when you stop testing for it.

  55. 55.

    Baud

    LNG industry has billions locked up in export facilities. They’re all “he’s not hurting the people he’s supposed to be hurting” right now.

  56. 56.

    catclub

    @jonas: I suspect the solution will be to just discourage doctors and psychologists from diagnosing or treating it.

     

    I was thinking it will be blamed on woke ideology.

    That stuff is dangerous.

    Either the parents’,  the neighbors’,  or the kids’,  depending on who looks like the best scapegoat.

  57. 57.

    Enhanced Voting Techniques

    @jonas: Kennedy’s side are ones who claim autism is caused by vaccines.  If autism goes away then the anti-vax argument goes too.

  61. 61.

    Enhanced Voting Techniques

    @catclub:I was thinking it will be blamed on woke ideology.

    Mexican Work Drug Cartels sending their autism mules across Trump’s big, beautiful boarder to lick door nobs of  American homes.

  66. 66.

    catclub

    In the ‘no honor among thieves’ line of stories about business:
    There is now a case where the group that wanted to build a ‘commercial’
    LNG plant asked their future customers to front the money, and they would then get LNG at favorable long term contract rates… as soon as the plant goes into full commercial operations.

    Meanwhile, the spot market for LNG shot up after the invasion of Ukraine. The Group that built the plant is now selling LNG on the spot market in very large (‘commercial’?) quantities, while claiming the very last rivet has not yet been painted, so they are NOT in full commercial operations. And so they do not have to honor their obligations to the people who put up the money.

    I think the plant is in Louisiana …. cancer alley presumably.

  69. 69.

    Deputinize America

     

    @Martin:  Learn Mandarin if you’re under 50, and encourage your kids and grandkids to do the same.

    They’ll need it, because it will be the lingua franca of finance and trade in the decades to come.

  70. 70.

    catclub

    @arrieve: This is not as new as you might think.

    Believing that communism was superior to the US brand of capitalism was another belief that could get you expelled 70 years ago. And probably still on the books today.

  72. 72.

    schrodingers_cat

    The Republican party is rewarding white married women who vote for them by making it harder for them to vote.

    53% white women voted for the Orange Man in 2024. Again.

    SAVE (Rs) ACT just passed the Congress with 4 D votes. What are its chances in the Senate?

  73. 73.

    Steve LaBonne

    @arrieve: All existing law says that a legal permanent resident has the same First Amendment rights as a citizen. If that goes out the window, NOBODY has the right of free speech. I guess we’ll find out just how Nazi John Roberts wants to go.

  75. 75.

    catclub

    CNN:

    Peter Navarro brushes off concerns over market whiplash as ‘pure spin’

    Well I gotta give credit to Musk for identifying an idiot. Although he was by no means the first vis a vis Navarro.

  77. 77.

    Josie

    @jonas: ​
     My seven year old granddaughter is on the spectrum. Our research revealed that, for a long time, girls have not been diagnosed since they were better at masking and fitting in socially. Now that people are learning to recognize the characteristics, more are being diagnosed. We began to suspect something when she was three and were able to get therapy for her early. If you didn’t know her, you probably would not be able to tell unless you spent a lot of time with her.

  80. 80.

    Gretchen

    @Old School: Kennedy transferred Fauci’s wife, a bioethicist, to an Indian Health Service position out west. Trump’s taking revenge on spouses.

  81. 81.

    Kayla Rudbek

    Open thread: lump appears to be a cyst according to the nurse practitioner, mammogram tomorrow morning. Eyes also fine, very little change in prescription so no need for new glasses either and no complications from the diabetes with respect to my vision

  82. 82.

    sab

    @schrodingers_cat: That could save us next election. I have gathered all my documents. They might not know to do it.

    But that is only for registration, so if they already vote they are still a problem until they move.

  89. 89.

    prostratedragon

    Charles Gaba has all the pie charts 🧵:

    🚨 There are 32 House Republicans who won by 15 points or less last November.

    31 of them just voted to gut #Medicaid/CHIP & #SNAP along w/other critical programs.

    In #ALASKA, Nick Begich won by just 2.0%.

    250,000 Alaskans, or over 33% of the total population, depend on Medicaid/CHIP.

  93. 93.

    prostratedragon

    @Baud:  Indeed. A case where the pie chart might actually be the best tool. Gaba seems to be a good follow for health care data coverage.

  95. 95.

    Gretchen

    @Baud:Their mission statement says they value every human life from conception, but that a 34 week fetus isn’t a person. Good luck with that.

  99. 99.

    Gretchen

    @jonas: RFK is also cutting services for disability. I have a friend whose autistic kid is now 37. Back then she had to fight for skimpy services, often driving long distances and paying out of pocket. My 2yo grandson has therapists coming to the house 7 days a week. I can’t believe the early intervention services now, and of course that makes a big difference in outcome. And of course it costs a lot in the short run, even though it saves in the long run.

  103. 103.

    dnfree

    @Old School: “By September we will know what has caused the autism epidemic,” Kennedy said. “And we’ll be able to eliminate those exposures.” Characterizing autism as an epidemic will likely anger many, especially those in the autism community who do not view being autistic as something to be eradicated, though for others, it may be welcome.

    So they’re going to figure out how to eliminate genes or chromosomes, or whatever the correct biological term is?

  105. 105.

    Martin

    @Spanky: Why does this happen to some probably lovely family and not a bunch of hedge fund assholes flying from their NJ office to Goldman.

  106. 106.

    Harrison Wesley

    @dnfree: I don’t appreciate the wait. Why doesn’t he just announce right now that vaccines cause autism? That’s obviously the conclusion his “investigator” is going to arrive at.

  109. 109.

    Martin

    @Baud: I do appreciate that the transition to going to see your aunt becoming a life and death decision is being centered at Reagan National where the greatest impact will be felt by lawmakers, rather than fucking up some far flung community they’ll never have to think about.

  111. 111.

    Martin

    John Roberts gives a cookie and takes a cookie.

    Feds must facilitate the return of the Maryland man thrown in an El Salvador gulag.

  113. 113.

    sentient ai from the future

    @dnfree: parents of autistic kids vs shithead influencers? I know who I’m placing my bets on being the most vocal and effective.

  116. 116.

    Jackie

    @Kayla Rudbek: That’s great news! I know you won’t be able to fully exhale until your mammogram, so fingers crossed you can breathe fully tomorrow!

  117. 117.

    Martin

    @Baud: So, here’s the operative question – will they have Garcia killed in that prison so they can reconcile this case in a way that leaves Trump on top? Because you know that’s a thing El Salvador is willing to do.

  118. 118.

    Jackie

    @sentient ai from the future:

    SCOTUS tries to split the baby with Abrego Garcia, but in this case also tells the admin to bring that poor man back

    I sure hope he’s still alive! His wife hasn’t had any communication with him since the day he was disappeared.

    I see Martin thinks similarly.

  120. 120.

    Martin

    @Baud: Bad messaging. Trump is on the ropes. Democrats need to rip into him on tariffs.

    I agree tariffs have their place, but that’s bad politics right now, and too complicated messaging.

  121. 121.

    CarolPW

    @Kayla Rudbek: You might ask (or even insist!) on an ultrasound. They told me that the lump I found was probably a cyst when it did not show up on the mammogram, but I insisted it felt exactly like the previous cancer I had found that also did not show up on the mammogram. They did an ultrasound (probably to get me to shut up) and it was oops, solid not cyst. Biopsy a week later, cancer.

    Even though I had already had breast cancer, the second one was entirely unrelated. Your lump, even if it is cancer, is not necessarily a recurrence, could just be a new episode of mother-fuckery in your life.

    So much better than it used to be.

  123. 123.

    TS

    @Harrison Wesley:

    Australia signed a free trade agreement with China in 2015. There was some concern about too many EVs coming to Australia & a suggestion of a tariff but nothing eventuated.

    There have been concerns about too much of our gas production being exported leaving not enough for our own use, sending more LNG could have repercussions on the domestic availability of gas.

  126. 126.

    sab

    @sab: I probably should e-mail our imported from the South new superintendant that guaranteed passage of school levies is not actually a thing here. Mostly yes but sometimes we vote no.

    As a DEI grandparent those cuts will be toxic to me.

  128. 128.

    sab

    Grand-daughter had a bad teacher. Too many of “those kids” in her classroom. She might actually have had too many of those kids in her classroom, but whining at the parents was not a useful approach to fix the  problem. Her parents now know she resents “those kids. ”

    Ome of those kids is my granddaughter. And theh realky expwct me tovote for the next school levy? Really?

  129. 129.

    YY_Sima Qian

    @Martin: US gas is more expensive than Qatari or Australian gas, certainly much more expensive than the depressed Russian gas. Countries buy US gas to get the US off their backs about trade deficit (since the US is a fossil fuel power house). If there is no political pressure to buy US gas, no one (at least in Asia or Europe) would be buying them.

    One of the requests from MAGA for any negotiation w/ the likes of Japan & Taiwan is them financing the construction of a gas pipeline in Alaska.

  130. 130.

    Quiltingfool

    @Josie: Early therapy is so important for children on the spectrum.

    My great nephew is on the spectrum.  My nephew and his wife did not want to acknowledge their child might be autistic, so they delayed testing, and then did nothing to educate themselves on how to help their child, or get him appropriate therapy.

    He is 10 now, and is having lots of problems.  He hits, bites, throws chairs (gave his teacher a mild concussion) when he is frustrated or denied something he wants.

    It is a sad situation for the child, and his parents aren’t helping.

    I had children on the spectrum when I taught science.  Their parents had gotten therapy for them, and it made a big difference for the kids.   Thing is, I had a strong suspicion my nephew’s son was on the spectrum when he was barely a toddler.  His interactions with everyone, including his parents, was wildly different than the other toddlers in the family.

  131. 131.

    YY_Sima Qian

    @TS: Among Western nations, Australia has probably the widest choice for passenger vehicles. No trade barriers for imports, & just large enough market that every Chinese maker (whether they are winning or losing in the PRC) w/ international ambitions wants a stab at it. Right hand drive versions can also be sold in the UK, NZ, HK, Thailand & Singapore, all which have low trade barriers against Chinese vehicles.

  132. 132.

    Another Scott

    @Old School: He said 20+ years ago that it was mercury.

    Of course, Thimerosal was removed from childhood vaccines around 25 years ago, and there’s no evidence that it has anything to do with autism.

    Mercury in the environment and in the air is bad. Maybe RFK Jr will demand a crash program to clean up smelters, coal burning power plants, refineries, etc., etc.

    I mean, it’s what the science says needs to be done, so he’s gotta be for it, right??!

    Grr…

    Best wishes,
    Scott.

  134. 134.

    schrodingers_cat

    @Baud: His populism is not that different from the Orange one’s. His cult has unrealistic expectations and is always badmouthing whatever the Ds do. Like passing the ACA for example. Have you ever heard BS say one good thing about it?

  135. 135.

    YY_Sima Qian

    Arm twisting the ROW to isolate the PRC is a MAGA fever dream. Both the EU & the PRC will be in greater mood to find a compromise on EVs, so both are better positioned to fight MAGA coercion.

    EU, China will look into setting minimum prices on electric vehicles, EU says
    By Reuters

    April 11, 20253:50 AM GMT+8 Updated 4 hours ago

    • EU, China explore setting minimum prices on Chinese EVs
    • Negotiations set to start immediately
    • German auto industry supports negotiations

    BERLIN, April 10 (Reuters) – The European Union and China have agreed to look into setting minimum prices of Chinese-made electric vehicles instead of tariffs imposed by the EU last year, a European Commission spokesperson said on Thursday.

    German newspaper Handelsblatt reported earlier on Thursday that negotiations had begun.
    …

    Price floors, volume caps on imports, investment in production w/in the EU (already happening) w/ tech transfer, in return for dropping of EU tariffs on Chinese EVs. Managed trade that will help protect the EU’s automobile industry (if it collapses in face of unfettered Chinese competition it will be a debilitating blow to the EU economy & likely cause political instability), but will also undermine consumer interests & slow EV adoption, but would still be better than the status quo.

  138. 138.

    Gretchen

    @Quiltingfool: My grandson is on the spectrum, got thrown ouf of two preschools for behavior. Got him into a therapeutic preschool, then an IEP as soon as he got to kindergarten. They threw a fair number of resources at him, including « friendship class » to teach social skills. He’s 11 now, a happy, well adjusted, well behaved kid. Another kid in his class with behavior issues was pulled out of school for behavior. His parents didn’t want him «  labeled », so now they’re «  homeschooling » ( really non-schooling), with no plan for how he’ll be an out of control teen that’s bigger than them. So sad and such a waste, knowing the resources he’d get at that very school if they weren’t too proud to take them.

  143. 143.

    Kayla Rudbek

    @dnfree: 1) I do not suffer from autism, I enjoy every minute of it (never formally diagnosed but when your own mother watches Bones because Tempe Brennan reminds her of you, I am pretty sure that I am high-functioning and on the spectrum, also I have autistic relatives on the same side of the family as the engineers/mechanics/electricians) 2) typical does not mean good or correct, it means usual and this applies to neurotypical versus neurodivergent 3) most increase in the diagnosis of autism is probably due to better understanding and practice than in the 1970s 4) most of the rest of the increase is probably due to assortative mating and environmental factors (I’ve said over on Bluesky that 100 years ago, oddball smart kids would have been encouraged to join religious orders and take vows of celibacy if they were Catholic/Orthodox Christian/Buddhist, nowadays there’s more expectation to have children/get married, and much more plastic floating around in the environment)

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