We're good. All right.
Josh Schoen, thanks for joining us.
Yeah, thanks for having me.
Good to be here.
So for voters who don't know you,
give us the quick story.
Wha who are you and why are you
running for government?
Well, the sixty second version is
I'm a Christian first.
I'm the son of a minister.
My my dad's ministry was in mostly
northeastern Wisconsin.
My mother, she was a registered
nurse.
My wife and I have been married
almost twenty-five years, both
Wisconsin kids.
We're raised our family in w mostly
in Washington County.
And we now have an eighty acre farm
in between West Bend and Grafton.
Love Wisconsin through and through.
Aside from a tour of duty in
Iraq in two thousand three and I
always joke a tour of duty in the
Chicagoland suburbs while I was
getting my master's degree at
Northern Illinois.
I'm a Wisconsin kid and
been back working in public service
my whole life, dedicated it to
the service and sacrifice of the
guys and gals who didn't make it
back.
And reflecting the Lord's love
by loving my neighbor as myself in
public service, the last twelve
years in Washington County.
So is there a single issue that
would define you or maybe a lane
within the Republican Party that
helps define you?
Yeah, I think people driven,
being very people focused,
and and mostly interested
in solving problems.
That's why I got into public
service. I actually started in
public administration because I
thought politics was a little too
volatile and too theoretical.
Public administration is really
where the rubber hits the road and
you're dealing with people where
they're at.
My first job back in Wisconsin
was deputy clerk treasurer
in Princeton, Green Lake County.
And I ended up taking on
responsibilities in public works,
live literally sh shoveling out
lift stations.
So, you know, I think those are
important things, making sure when
you flush the toilet, it does what
it's supposed to do and the garbage
is collected on time.
And to this day that's who I am
as Washington County executive and
who I will be as governor.
How much money do you think you're
gonna need to raise to win this
primary and then what happens after
that in a general election?
Yeah, I mean it's it's embarrassing
the fact that this is probably a
quarter billion dollar race all in
for for both sides and all the
outside spending and just the
candidate alone, I'm told,
about basement floor twenty million,
first floor probably closer to
forty million.
So it's it's a serious
endeavor and one that we're
excited about.
To a competitive primary, where do
you personally draw the line between
negative campaigning versus just
defining the differences between
yourself and an opponent?
Well, I think when it gets personal,
that's really the the dividing
line. There's certainly differences
in on our side of the aisle, there's
only two of us in this race right
now. And there's certainly
differences between policy approach.
I think those are important to point
out and I think that's the essence
of the primary process.
But once it becomes personal
attacks, I mean I think that's where
we've seen primaries in the past go
awry and I have no intention of
going down that that lane and I hope
the door swings both ways.
For both.
Voters who aren't aware of the
candidates, should they be looking
at which candidate has the closest
issues to them or general
electability?
Well I think it's both.
I mean first and foremost, I think
this has got to be about the people
and local communities, a little bit
more about Washington County type
and a little less about Washington
DC.
But then I also think there's
there's something to be said about
the types of attributes it's gonna
take to win a general election.
Generals are of course much
different than primaries.
I think on the Republican side in
particular, we've spent a little bit
too much time focusing on who can
win a a primary, purity
tests of s of sorts.
And we need to spend more time
thinking about what can win in the
general election.
I think when you when you put my
resume next to anybody, I
think the answer is clear.
If we we wanna be in the governor's
mansion in January of twenty twenty
seven, I think not only me but my
profile and our campaign is the type
that wins.
This is an interesting contrast
because we have the northern
Wisconsin, which is kind of the the
new prime territory in Wisconsin for
Republicans, versus the old guard
and the Wow Counties, which
obviously we represent.
So how do you view that that
matchup?
Yeah, I mean I think that's one of
the main contrasts, north versus
south. I think there's certainly a
generational difference.
But I also think it's l you know
local and s and personal versus
kind of state in DC, Madison and
Washington, DC.
I think those are basically the
dividing lines, and I think it's a
good contrast for people to really
wrestle with what's best for us
to choose in August to put up in
November for the best shot to have
the the governor's mansion in
January. How do you think Donald
Trump will impact this race?
Oh huge.
I mean, you know, it's the
president's party and
that's been clear for the last ten
years. But I think one thing to keep
in mind is President Trump
came on the scene in two thousand
fifteen, after the two
thousand and ten Tea Party wave.
Republicans basically ran on three
major points reduce the debt,
eliminate deficits, and repeal and
replace Obamacare.
Here we are 15 years later, and
we're still talking about those
three things.
Sometimes President Trump seems like
he's the only one pushing the needle
on any of those by himself.
That can't that's unacceptable.
And I think it's why we continue
to feel a churn in politics across
America. So he's he's got a
humongous impact.
I certainly am gonna work my tail
off to earn his support and
endorsement and show him that
you know he can have the confidence
in me that I've got this race once
we get past August and and
we lead it to victory in November.
What's your view on tariffs and his
tariff policy?
I'll see.
Well, I think there's a complete
economic order reorder happening
right now all across the globe.
I think President Trump sees tariffs
as a lever to be able to
guide that reorder in a
way that benefits America in the
long term and quite frankly the
Western Hemisphere.
You know, I'm willing to be patient
as I've talked to a number of
farmers and manufacturers in
Washington County and now all across
the state, to see that play
out. But it's it's waning
patience.
You know, this this economy's been
tough. It's particularly hitting
people who are making less than six
figures, and I I'm
excited to see the results, but and
I think they're coming very, very
soon.
As governor, there's a good chance
that you would have a Republican
legislature behind you.
What would you like to see as A B
one, the first bill you can sign
into law?
Well, I I think there's a laundry
list and that's part of our
challenge. But one of the things
that I wanna see first is things
that are focused on affordability.
Property taxes and income taxes in
particular.
It's embarrassing to me that our top
bracket of income tax is almost
double what Illinois is.
I'd like to see it flattened out and
then slowly eliminated.
And then property taxes, I'd like to
see us go from four or five entities
on property tax bills down to two
or three.
The goal of cutting them by fifty
percent. You make a moonshot and if
you hit the stratosphere you've won.
So there's also a chance that
Democrats could hold one of the
chambers. What's your history of
working across the aisle?
Yeah, I I definitely think there's a
chance, but that this is why it's
important to have the best player on
the field for the Republican side
to make it most likely that not
only do we have the governor's
mansion, but we also hold the Senate
and the Assembly. In the event we
don't, I think this has been
one of the things I've been most
critical of recently is
the lack of communication between
the the East Wing and the
legislative branches both.
I mean, look back to the state
budget process.
The Democrat minority leader is
critical of the Democrat governor
for not even giving her a seat at
the table in the conversation about
the budget. You know, Greta Newbar
and I probably don't agree on a
whole lot.
One thing we do agree on is
everybody should have a seat at the
table. I 90% of things
we probably disagree, but there's
probably gonna be one or two where
I'm like, yeah, that makes sense.
How do we get to yes?
And there's a laundry list of things
that we need to talk to each other
on, whether it's funding for schools
and the funding formula being
broken, funding for a prison system
which has been broken for fifty
years, the transportation fund that
was raided by Governor Doyle and
needs to get fixed, and and
doing it in a way that is effective
for people and makes things more
affordable, all of those things
are things we need to work together
on.
The Public Service Commission is
looking at a large number of utility
rate hikes.
Data centers are looking popping up
all across the state.
What's your view of data centers and
this issue going forward?
Well, I think we don't know enough,
and that's one of the scariest parts
about this process. I've got one
popping up about ten, fifteen miles
from my house in Port Washington.
The transmission lines that are
gonna come through are about two
miles from my house.
I know it firsthand from talking to
my neighbors.
You know, I'm very concerned.
It's and it's predominantly power
driven, power distribution and power
supply. You know, I grew up middle
school and high school in Kiwani,
ten minutes down the road from the
old nuclear power plant that's now
being decommissioned.
That is the the essential
energy solution.
Why we're not talking about it?
Well, right here on the Madison
campus, we have the number three
school in the country for nuclear
engineering.
We should be leading the way.
I think we need to slow down the
conversation about data centers
with a goal, create goals
for how we become the forefront
of AI and data centers in Wisconsin
and the forefront of energy the
energy revolution, which I believe
starts with nuclear.
What would you like to see happen
with public education?
Does it need more funding?
Does it need an overhaul?
Yeah, that thanks.
That's a great question.
I was a school board president in
Hartford and it's near and dear to
me. My oldest son graduated from
Hartford Union High School.
My youngest son is on a special
needs scholarship voucher at
Kettlemarine Lutheran High School.
So I'm a huge believer in universal
school choice for every parent, but
that funding formula for public
schools needs to be reformed.
We've it it's it's from the 1970s.
It's almost fifty years old.
At that time, and then in n in the
90s when Governor Thompson tried to
reformulate it, unfortunately
unsuccessfully.
Our our student population
was growing, imminently growing.
Now we're looking at the next
twenty-five years, it it's gonna
be declining precipitously.
Not to mention the outcomes, which
aren't great either.
So I think we need to get all the
players at the table, school boards,
superintendents, parents,
homeschoolers, voucher schools,
all around the discussion and say,
how do we leverage these dollars
best and make it
best for outcomes for our kids?
Well, as soon as it becomes about
our kids and not about bureaucracy
or institutions or winners
and losers, no more zero sum games.
It's gotta be about our kids and the
future of the state of Wisconsin.
It's gonna be one of the things I'm
laser-like focused on, but it's not
gonna happen quickly.
We've gotten fifty years to be to
this point, we're not gonna solve it
in fifty days or fifty weeks.
What would you like to see happen
with vouchers in the voucher
program?
I certainly think it needs to be
expanded, but I don't like the
talk about money following the kid.
My concern with that is kids become
a commodity.
And when a what do we do with
commodities? We buy we buy, sell,
and trade them.
I don't think that's the solution.
I think there needs to be some kind
of baseline funding where
all of our schools have some relia
reliability in their funding and
sustainability fiscally.
And then everything I think there
needs to be an outcome based.
How are kids doing better?
When kids do better, schools do
better, whether it's public,
private, homeschooling, charter
schooling, all of those things,
virtual schooling.
That's why it's it's a complicated
issue that I think we need to be
thoughtful and pragmatic about.
What is the number one tax reform
you'd like to see happen?
The very first thing I'd like to see
is property tax reform.
It and it's hard for me to d to
take property taxes and income taxes
and separate them.
But th so I would say they go hand
in hand, frankly.
I I don't think you can separate one
for the other.
Our grandparents leaving to go down
to Florida, Texas, Tennessee,
Arizona, we gotta stop
that bleeding.
And our young people leaving because
they can't afford to live here or
the opportunity at a new job or a
new business, that too.
So I I guess in the end I would
say property taxes and income taxes
together. That they both have to be
solved.
Over the course of the last year
we've seen the Supreme Court
eliminate a lot of legislative
oversight over the rule making
process. Would you like to see
reforms? Do you think there's a
bipartisan solution?
I I do think there's a bipartisan
solution. I actually think there
needs to be a constitutional
amendment with regard to the the
governor's veto.
With with what happened with that
four hundred and two year veto, I
think that's problematic.
I think th the the legislative
branch definitely has a important
role and responsibility.
I've experienced that firsthand as
an executive myself at the county
level. I respect it,
and I would respect it at the state
level. There's a there's a lot of
work for us to do in that regard and
in the last six and a half years I
think a lot of eroded trust on both
sides that needs to be repaired.
You obviously have experience at the
county level. What would you like to
see happen with funding for local
government?
Well, it we made a step with
shared revenue.
I was proud to be a part of leading
that as president of the Executives
and Administrators Association
with the counties.
But it was a step, right?
It was it was a big step, the
first in about forty years, almost
my whole life, but it was just a
step. We need now one giant leap
for mankind.
I think that's how you actually
solve the property tax issue.
I mean, look at all the people
coming from Chicago on the east
side of our state, Minneapolis
on the west and northwest part of
our state that aren't really
contributing a heck of a lot when
you when you think about it.
Our sales tax is relatively
low and we're not capturing nearly
enough from those folks.
I think it's a huge part of the
solution.
There's gotta be some reliability
in that in that fiscal model for
municipalities, but huge
reform opportunity and and I'm proud
of the step we took and now we gotta
take a much bigger leap.
Right now in northern Wisconsin
there are exploratory drilling
projects for potential mines in the
future. Do you think that
Wisconsin's current mining laws
are tough enough or the do you need
to have any changes?
I think there definitely need to be
changes. I mean look at our flag.
Mining is our heritage.
I think we've gone too far away from
it. I think there's plenty of
opportunity and probably agreement,
frankly, on both sides
that there's there's smart ways to
do this.
But I do think there's giant
opportunity area, particularly
in the northern part of the state,
where and they're desperate for
jobs. So I think there
is opportunity and it's something
that I'm i excited to to work
together with the other side.
Have you had any concerns about your
own safety in this modern political
environment?
When Charlie was assassinated, that
was the first time.
You know, I talked to my wife
long and hard about this decision to
jump into the race.
And she she's a talker,
normally hard to get a word in
edgewise.
But she's she took a pause and said,
Well, it can't be worse than Iraq.
And that was that was the moment we
decided to get in.
When Charlie was assassinated, that
was the first time that I had second
thoughts, like, wow, this
is this is very real.
And of course, you know, that goes
across the spectrum, whether it was
Governor Shapiro in Pennsylvania or
this the former speaker up in
Minnesota.
It was a scary time.
I mean, we've got to bring the
temperature down.
I I think part of the problem with
politics in America and politics in
Wisconsin is we just don't talk to
each other. We talk past each other,
we throw social media bombs,
there's no conversation.
I think we gotta get back to talking
to one another again.
It's why I've gone to all
seventy-two counties, and I'm now
I'm on my second tour about halfway
through.
We're Wisconsinites, we should be
talking to each other, Americans
first.
What is your plan for increasing
affordable housing?
Do you think it's regulations, it
density? What's the solution?
Well, it's build baby build.
We have choked off the ability
for s small homes on small lots,
building just in general.
I think it started back
about fifty years ago when we
started to tighten up how financing
works for local developers and we
completely choked it off after Dodd
Frank.
At the same time we went from
post-World War II about sixty
pages of zoning regulation
to today six and a half inches
of subdivision codes and
comprehensive plans and zoning codes
and the list goes on.
Regulation is massively a problem.
And then not in my backyard
attitude.
I think we've got to loosen all of
that up. I think you look to models
like Montana and the Montana
Miracle, where they're they're now
building like crazy.
This housing issue is a supply
side problem.
It's an old Ronald Reagan
type supply side economics issue.
We have to create the environment
where we're making it possible
for the opportunity at the American
Dream. To me, this is
constitutional.
This is declarational, life,
liberty, and the pursuit of
happiness. We have solutions in
Washington County that are moving
the needle. We've got professors,
we've got i institutes
from across the globe who are
calling us and saying, What are you
guys doing? It's something
different's happening in Washington
County. We can scale that up.
It'll be a little different
statewide, but we could scale that
up statewide and make it a solution
for everybody, give everybody a shot
at the American Dream in an
affordable manner.
In the Department of Corrections,
Governor Evers has a pretty massive
overhaul plan.
Would you carry that plan forward?
There's components of it that I
like. What I don't like is
opening the doors and letting people
out. I think we need to get a much
tougher on crime approach.
I think it starts by electing Eric
Tony.
But I also believe we have to give
law enforcement the resources they
need, DA's offices and
police departments alike.
We've done way too much of that.
I'd I'd call it a slow role in the
city of Milwaukee in particular on
defunding the police.
Yeah, they they haven't actually
cut funding per se, but they've
held funding flat, they've hold held
positions open.
We need to deploy as many resources
as possible to local law enforcement
and give them everything they need
from local, state to federal law
enforcement. Know that they have we
have their back 110%.
On the topic of abortion, is there
any changes you would like to see to
state law?
I think our our
life culture is what has to
change. I think we need to create a
culture of life in Wisconsin.
You know, now that the state Supreme
Court has ruled the bill that
Governor Walker signed 20 weeks,
I think it's a settled issue both
here in the state and at the federal
level in that regard.
I think we need to focus on
different things like making
adoption cheaper than abortion.
I think we need to make
make it such that
child support starts at conception
rather than waiting until birth.
I think we need to give mothers
resources all the way through the
first year postpartum
when need be.
I think those types of reforms are
what we as conservative need to
focus on so that we prove
we're pro-life.
This isn't just about anti-abortion.
All right, Josh Sherman, thanks for
your time. Thanks for having me.
All right.
All right. That was good.
Very much. Yeah, nice to meet you.
You too. Congrats on the couple of
deer or a few deer.