WEBVTT 00:00.000 --> 00:02.080 So, no, we're in the courtroom. 00:02.080 --> 00:02.920 We were in the courtroom. 00:02.920 --> 00:03.920 Yeah, that's right. 00:05.720 --> 00:06.560 Did we do it with? 00:06.560 --> 00:08.240 No, we do it in the courtroom, I think, for your prime. 00:08.240 --> 00:09.720 Then, yeah, then we were in the library. 00:09.720 --> 00:10.560 And then we were in the library. 00:10.560 --> 00:11.560 Yeah, that's your right, yep. 00:13.360 --> 00:14.200 Yeah. 00:14.200 --> 00:15.520 It all starts to blur together sometimes. 00:15.520 --> 00:18.120 I'm telling you about it, yeah, it's a... 00:20.200 --> 00:21.040 We're all over the courtroom. 00:21.040 --> 00:22.400 We're good on both. 00:22.400 --> 00:25.200 All right, let me start this time over here for me. 00:26.440 --> 00:28.280 All right, Eric Tony, thanks for joining us. 00:28.280 --> 00:29.120 Great to be with you. 00:29.120 --> 00:30.920 I appreciate the opportunity to chat about the race. 00:30.920 --> 00:33.080 So, give me a sense of why you decided to run again. 00:33.080 --> 00:35.600 It's not often we see candidates repeat in a... 00:37.040 --> 00:38.240 I think I know the first question is... 00:38.240 --> 00:39.240 Yeah. 00:39.240 --> 00:41.160 I think it would be the preview. 00:41.160 --> 00:42.960 I just wanted to make sure she wasn't in the meeting. 00:42.960 --> 00:43.800 Oh. 00:43.800 --> 00:45.320 If I was looking at you but not... 00:45.320 --> 00:46.160 That's what I was not. 00:46.160 --> 00:47.520 No, you're okay, right there. 00:47.520 --> 00:48.360 No, no, no. 00:48.360 --> 00:49.520 No, you would be in the shot then. 00:49.520 --> 00:50.360 Yep. 00:51.360 --> 00:52.600 That's always the thing with these mirrors. 00:52.600 --> 00:53.440 Oh, yeah. 00:53.440 --> 00:54.360 You're gonna triple check everything. 00:54.360 --> 00:55.200 Yep, take two. 00:57.080 --> 00:58.280 Excuse me. 00:58.280 --> 00:59.100 All right. 00:59.100 --> 00:59.940 Now we're good. 00:59.940 --> 01:00.780 All right. 01:00.780 --> 01:02.460 Well, Eric Tony, thanks for joining us. 01:02.460 --> 01:04.780 It's great to be with you to talk about the Attorney General's race 01:04.780 --> 01:06.780 and the importance of it for Wisconsin. 01:06.780 --> 01:09.220 So, give me a sense of why you decided to run again. 01:09.220 --> 01:11.100 It's not often we see repeat candidates 01:11.100 --> 01:12.700 for these statewide elections. 01:12.700 --> 01:15.580 You know, within a week of that race back in 2022, 01:15.580 --> 01:18.140 I had so many people already encouraging me to do it 01:18.140 --> 01:21.060 but it wasn't sure it was something that I would wanna do 01:21.060 --> 01:22.820 because there's a lot of time and energy 01:22.820 --> 01:25.180 that goes into these statewide races. 01:25.180 --> 01:29.060 But for me, I really had a clarifying moment in 2023. 01:29.100 --> 01:32.100 I was, I ended up in probably August 01:32.100 --> 01:35.060 when I later learned to have a mini stroke in the office, 01:35.060 --> 01:37.900 lost control of my legs for about 20 seconds 01:37.900 --> 01:39.900 and then it just kind of went away 01:39.900 --> 01:42.620 and I did the dumb thing and just started going 01:42.620 --> 01:44.940 to my desk and started working for a little bit 01:44.940 --> 01:47.340 but I had one of my colleagues that passed away 01:47.340 --> 01:49.460 a few years before that from a cardiac issue 01:49.460 --> 01:52.620 which inspired me to try and figure out what was wrong 01:52.620 --> 01:54.540 because I had learned earlier in the year 01:54.540 --> 01:56.740 over the 4th of July weekend in 23 01:56.780 --> 01:59.580 that I had been born with a defective heart valve. 01:59.580 --> 02:02.940 So it was a progression throughout the summer 02:02.940 --> 02:04.500 of trying to figure out what was wrong 02:04.500 --> 02:07.860 and you know, starting to get worse and worse 02:07.860 --> 02:11.420 and finally got in to see my primary care doctor 02:11.420 --> 02:13.540 after seeing others and he heard a heart murmur 02:13.540 --> 02:17.020 on a Friday and then on that Sunday in early November, 02:17.020 --> 02:19.940 I was impatient at the hospital here in Fond du Lac 02:19.940 --> 02:22.580 the next day cardiologist did some testing, 02:22.580 --> 02:25.460 came in and said your eordic valve is destroyed 02:25.500 --> 02:26.900 and you need open heart surgery 02:26.900 --> 02:29.260 and we're gonna try and do that next week Wednesday 02:29.260 --> 02:32.540 which was November 15th of 2023. 02:32.540 --> 02:34.140 So I did what I think a lot of us would do 02:34.140 --> 02:36.220 especially I was 39 years old 02:36.220 --> 02:38.100 and I started reflecting on my life 02:38.100 --> 02:41.700 and just had this amazing sense of calm and peace. 02:41.700 --> 02:44.260 Just what I get to do was the district attorney here 02:44.260 --> 02:46.300 in Fond du Lac County where I was born and raised 02:46.300 --> 02:48.420 where my dad was a police officer, 02:48.420 --> 02:51.300 my grandfather started a small healthcare business 02:51.300 --> 02:52.980 with no college degree. 02:52.980 --> 02:55.780 I love what I get to do keeping this community safe, 02:55.780 --> 02:57.660 working with our law enforcement together 02:57.660 --> 03:00.020 to make our community safer and help people 03:00.020 --> 03:01.980 live their lives and chase their dreams 03:01.980 --> 03:03.780 and I didn't have any regret. 03:03.780 --> 03:05.460 Wasn't wishing I had done something else 03:05.460 --> 03:06.860 or a different career and I knew 03:06.860 --> 03:08.540 that I had lived a life that mattered 03:08.540 --> 03:11.380 but it also drove home how precious time is 03:11.380 --> 03:14.380 and so I was starting to think about 03:14.380 --> 03:17.540 what do I want to continue to do if this surgery goes well 03:17.540 --> 03:19.700 but I was at that point just trusting God 03:19.700 --> 03:21.020 through the hands of my medical team 03:21.020 --> 03:23.380 that hoping and praying things would go well 03:23.380 --> 03:26.460 and I as I got closer knew that I would want to run again 03:26.460 --> 03:29.060 to make sure that I could take some of the great things 03:29.060 --> 03:31.620 we've done as a team here with our local law enforcement 03:31.620 --> 03:34.620 as well as helping lead our district attorneys association 03:34.620 --> 03:37.020 that's delivered bipartisan public safety results 03:37.020 --> 03:39.540 across Wisconsin and recent state budgets 03:39.540 --> 03:41.340 to our Department of Justice and Madison 03:41.340 --> 03:43.380 because we have seen so many challenges 03:43.380 --> 03:45.940 on the public safety front that has law enforcement 03:45.940 --> 03:48.220 struggling, justice being delayed for victims 03:48.220 --> 03:50.420 that I knew I wanted to make sure my life 03:50.420 --> 03:51.940 was going to continue to matter 03:51.940 --> 03:53.700 that I would continue to push forward 03:53.700 --> 03:55.460 and try and make Wisconsin better 03:55.460 --> 03:57.380 and so that's when I knew I would want to run 03:57.380 --> 03:59.300 but when we look at how precious time is 03:59.300 --> 04:02.100 I had to see that we had a path to be able to win 04:02.100 --> 04:03.940 and that was looking at the amazing team 04:03.940 --> 04:05.580 we've been able to put together 04:05.580 --> 04:08.820 and then the unfortunate situation we're seeing 04:08.820 --> 04:11.100 with the forensic testing and other public safety areas 04:11.100 --> 04:12.260 at our Department of Justice 04:12.260 --> 04:14.660 that I knew we couldn't wait another four years 04:14.660 --> 04:15.940 to make those changes. 04:15.940 --> 04:17.140 Clean bill of health today? 04:17.140 --> 04:18.980 I'm doing great, you know, after the surgery 04:18.980 --> 04:21.620 so I was back to work part-time in about two weeks 04:21.620 --> 04:24.220 I ran a 5K six weeks later, pretty slow 04:24.220 --> 04:26.660 and then I did a homicide trial about eight weeks later 04:26.660 --> 04:30.140 but even in 2024 when I got off one of the medications 04:30.140 --> 04:32.100 I had a reaction to one of those 04:32.100 --> 04:34.380 that made that a tough year 04:34.380 --> 04:37.380 but by the end of the year I was doing great in 2025, 04:37.380 --> 04:39.660 2026, I'm doing fantastic 04:39.660 --> 04:42.380 ran my alumni cross country meet over Labor Day weekend 04:42.380 --> 04:44.700 at St. Norbert so I'm feeling great. 04:44.700 --> 04:46.580 So the other side of a rematch 04:46.580 --> 04:48.220 is that the Attorney General Josh Call 04:48.220 --> 04:49.060 decided to run again. 04:49.060 --> 04:51.260 There was a lot of speculation he might run for governor 04:51.260 --> 04:53.060 as a lot of two-time AGs do. 04:53.060 --> 04:55.260 Do you have any sense of why he decided not to take 04:55.260 --> 04:56.860 that step up to the next office? 04:56.860 --> 04:59.540 You'd have to ask him why he chose not to do that. 04:59.540 --> 05:02.580 I mean, certainly for someone looking at running for governor 05:02.580 --> 05:04.180 the fundraising that we saw at the end of the year 05:04.180 --> 05:05.700 probably didn't match that 05:05.700 --> 05:07.860 but at the end of the day I can't speak for him. 05:07.860 --> 05:11.740 So when we're looking at a rematch in this environment 05:11.740 --> 05:14.100 what should voters be thinking of in terms of, 05:14.100 --> 05:15.580 oh, how did I vote last time 05:15.580 --> 05:17.820 or what's different about this matchup this time? 05:18.020 --> 05:19.860 One of the things people can look at with me 05:19.860 --> 05:21.300 is what I've done since then 05:21.300 --> 05:23.900 as the president of the District Attorneys Association 05:23.900 --> 05:26.820 I've always talked about putting public safety over politics. 05:26.820 --> 05:28.940 I stood with our Attorney General 05:28.940 --> 05:32.700 after that 2022 race helping him get more crime lab positions 05:32.700 --> 05:35.580 in that state budget working with Republican legislators 05:35.580 --> 05:36.620 behind the scenes. 05:36.620 --> 05:38.720 I helped get a transformational investment 05:38.720 --> 05:40.420 into prosecutors, public defenders 05:40.420 --> 05:42.500 and our judicial system in that budget 05:42.500 --> 05:44.660 that the Wisconsin Law Journal awarded me 05:44.660 --> 05:47.020 as an unsung hero for what they described as helping 05:47.020 --> 05:48.540 and a constitutional crisis. 05:48.540 --> 05:50.180 Those are all things we do together 05:50.180 --> 05:51.540 working with the Democrat governor 05:51.540 --> 05:54.660 and the Republican legislature to deliver those results. 05:54.660 --> 05:56.740 I've also more recently helped our Attorney General 05:56.740 --> 05:59.220 get some internet crimes against children positions 05:59.220 --> 06:01.460 and continue to work with our DA's Association 06:01.460 --> 06:04.300 helping get a massive increase in prosecutors 06:04.300 --> 06:06.420 across Wisconsin that again we had to do 06:06.420 --> 06:08.980 in a bipartisan fashion that's helping not just make 06:08.980 --> 06:11.340 Fondelack County safer because we were one of the bottom 06:11.340 --> 06:14.780 five state staff DA's offices in the entire state 06:14.780 --> 06:17.260 and that's why we received four new positions 06:17.260 --> 06:19.660 out of that budget but we saw over 50 of them 06:19.660 --> 06:22.140 across the entire state to help some of the areas 06:22.140 --> 06:24.180 that needed those positions most. 06:24.180 --> 06:27.940 And then in contrast you see during the tenure 06:27.940 --> 06:29.900 of our Attorney General we've seen periods 06:29.900 --> 06:32.980 of record homicides in places like Milwaukee, 06:32.980 --> 06:35.780 record drug deaths and other increases in crime 06:35.780 --> 06:37.140 and I've never been one to say 06:37.140 --> 06:39.220 it's one individual person's responsibility 06:39.220 --> 06:41.860 when that happens because there's so many different factors 06:41.860 --> 06:44.580 that go into why crime happens in different areas 06:44.580 --> 06:47.100 but what we have to look at is what are people doing 06:47.100 --> 06:49.740 with the resources they have and so what we saw 06:49.740 --> 06:51.900 our Attorney General do during this period 06:51.900 --> 06:53.740 is put a hiring freeze in place 06:53.740 --> 06:56.340 and so I mentioned those crime lab positions 06:56.340 --> 06:58.940 I helped him get well over a year later 06:58.940 --> 07:02.140 we saw a nonpartisan audit released of our crime labs 07:02.140 --> 07:04.580 and they said he hadn't even filled those positions. 07:04.580 --> 07:06.900 We saw that he had less DNA positions filled 07:06.900 --> 07:09.980 compared to 2020 and we see that they're taking for DNA 07:09.980 --> 07:12.860 for example taking on average over twice as long 07:12.860 --> 07:16.460 to test less from when he started to where we are now 07:16.460 --> 07:18.500 and we're seeing him delaying the release 07:18.500 --> 07:21.180 of these crime lab reports where they've actually removed 07:21.180 --> 07:23.300 a huge chunk of them off their website 07:23.300 --> 07:25.300 that used to be there where it's someone trying 07:25.300 --> 07:28.580 to hide their failure and it has devastating consequences 07:28.580 --> 07:30.620 for victims who are having justice delayed 07:30.620 --> 07:33.340 our court calendars and are getting more congested 07:33.340 --> 07:35.420 making it more difficult to move these cases 07:35.420 --> 07:37.900 through our court systems and we know when justice 07:37.900 --> 07:39.580 is delayed it's denied for victims 07:39.580 --> 07:41.780 even our Attorney General has said that before 07:41.820 --> 07:44.820 but that's the direct result of his actions 07:44.820 --> 07:46.260 and it's making it more difficult 07:46.260 --> 07:47.980 with some of these defendants that continue 07:47.980 --> 07:50.300 to be on our streets committing new crimes 07:50.300 --> 07:52.460 and new victims while that original victim 07:52.460 --> 07:54.940 waits for justice and so that's what this race 07:54.940 --> 07:57.340 is going to be about and when we look at the results 07:57.340 --> 07:59.140 that I've been able to do with our team 07:59.140 --> 08:01.620 the attorneys and support staff in my office 08:01.620 --> 08:04.260 and our amazing law enforcement here in Findallat County 08:04.260 --> 08:06.860 I was named our 2024 District Attorney of the Year 08:06.860 --> 08:08.820 for Wisconsin and it's a great honor 08:08.820 --> 08:12.140 but it is a reflection of the great public safety 08:12.140 --> 08:14.220 we see here in Findallat County with our team 08:14.220 --> 08:17.140 with law enforcement and all the staff in my office. 08:17.140 --> 08:20.220 So the Attorney General points to crime statistics 08:20.220 --> 08:23.260 being down in Wisconsin as they are across the country 08:23.260 --> 08:25.220 he also singles out that crime statistics 08:25.220 --> 08:27.060 in Findallat County are up. 08:27.060 --> 08:29.700 Why should either one of you get credit or blame 08:29.700 --> 08:32.540 for crime statistics when as the, you know 08:32.540 --> 08:34.460 either the prosecutor or the Attorney General 08:34.460 --> 08:37.020 you don't control whether crimes are committed 08:37.020 --> 08:38.700 or even how they're investigated. 08:38.700 --> 08:40.980 That's a great question to ask the Attorney General 08:40.980 --> 08:43.540 because he's been the one trying to take victory laps 08:43.540 --> 08:45.540 when he see crime numbers go with what he thinks 08:45.540 --> 08:48.620 is in his favor despite cherry picking what those stats are 08:48.620 --> 08:50.340 I don't think anybody heard from him 08:50.340 --> 08:53.140 when we were seeing record homicides in Milwaukee 08:53.140 --> 08:55.820 but now because we're seeing crime down in many areas 08:55.820 --> 08:58.380 including Findallat County crime is down overall 08:58.380 --> 09:00.980 and I've never taken credit for the crime numbers 09:00.980 --> 09:03.740 we've seen during my almost 14 years as a district attorney 09:03.740 --> 09:06.380 because I know it's a team effort when we do these things 09:06.380 --> 09:08.540 and crime doesn't stop at county lines 09:08.540 --> 09:10.060 our police chief here in Findallat 09:10.060 --> 09:12.060 has certainly talked about the challenges 09:12.060 --> 09:13.860 that they've seen with domestic violence 09:13.860 --> 09:16.020 and like I said before it's what do you do 09:16.020 --> 09:18.940 with your resources when you see challenges with crime? 09:18.940 --> 09:20.980 Well from when I took over as district attorney 09:20.980 --> 09:23.860 we're filing nearly twice as many felonies 09:23.860 --> 09:26.820 and we're filing over twice as many domestic violence cases 09:26.820 --> 09:29.500 so we're responding to what we're seeing in our community 09:29.500 --> 09:32.100 working with our law enforcement to communicate that 09:32.100 --> 09:34.480 and our Attorney General certainly hasn't reached out 09:34.480 --> 09:35.820 to us here in Findallat County 09:35.820 --> 09:38.100 I mean I just saw recently Senator Baldwin did a ride along 09:38.100 --> 09:40.380 with our police department I'd encourage Josh Call 09:40.380 --> 09:42.100 to pick up the phone or come to Fond du Lac 09:42.100 --> 09:43.740 and meet with our police chief and our sheriff 09:43.740 --> 09:45.900 to learn what's happening in our community 09:45.900 --> 09:47.860 there's a reason being that Josh Call and I 09:47.860 --> 09:49.500 are both from Fond du Lac 09:49.500 --> 09:51.020 the people that know us best 09:51.020 --> 09:53.660 all of our police chiefs and sheriff here in Fond du Lac County 09:53.660 --> 09:56.900 have endorsed me because of the results they've seen us do 09:56.900 --> 09:58.420 as a team here in Fond du Lac County 09:58.420 --> 10:01.380 and the public safety failures we've seen from Josh Call 10:01.380 --> 10:04.140 and it's that record that we have as a team 10:04.140 --> 10:06.060 and what we've been able to do as a team 10:06.060 --> 10:08.860 for more public safety results across Wisconsin 10:08.860 --> 10:11.340 that even has a bipartisan group of sheriffs 10:11.340 --> 10:13.820 and district attorneys as Republicans, Democrats 10:13.820 --> 10:15.900 and independent sheriffs from across Wisconsin 10:15.900 --> 10:18.260 75% of them that have endorsed me 10:18.260 --> 10:20.740 that want to see a change at our Department of Justice 10:20.740 --> 10:23.380 that don't believe we can afford another four years 10:23.380 --> 10:26.020 of these delays that we've seen at our crime labs 10:26.020 --> 10:27.740 with an Attorney General that just continues 10:27.740 --> 10:29.620 to pass the buck and blame others 10:29.620 --> 10:31.380 despite having received more resources 10:31.380 --> 10:33.740 to our crime labs than his predecessor 10:33.780 --> 10:35.460 and while the Attorney General is out trying 10:35.460 --> 10:38.020 to take a victory lap and own crime stats 10:38.020 --> 10:40.980 that would mean he would own the over 30% increase 10:40.980 --> 10:43.060 in homicides that have happened on his watch 10:43.060 --> 10:46.220 but unlike him I don't assign blame to one individual 10:46.220 --> 10:47.380 when we see those type of things 10:47.380 --> 10:50.020 it all comes back to what do you do with your resources 10:50.020 --> 10:52.100 to help fight crime and we've seen him 10:52.100 --> 10:53.700 not use those resources. 10:53.700 --> 10:56.180 When we look at Attorney General's races in the past 10:56.180 --> 10:57.940 historically they followed right below 10:57.940 --> 10:59.180 the gubernatorial election. 10:59.180 --> 11:01.460 The last time there were members of different parties 11:01.540 --> 11:04.100 in 2006 to win these races. 11:04.100 --> 11:06.300 So are you trying to separate yourself 11:06.300 --> 11:08.500 from Tom Tiffany and his race for governor 11:08.500 --> 11:11.140 or do you think you're gonna follow right along with him? 11:11.140 --> 11:13.460 I'm running my own race from when I got into this back 11:13.460 --> 11:16.540 in October of 2025 I talked about the forensic testing 11:16.540 --> 11:18.980 failures, the fentanyl epidemic 11:18.980 --> 11:22.340 and how partisan our Attorney General has become. 11:22.340 --> 11:25.820 I mean we have driven home issues that affect people 11:25.820 --> 11:28.980 in all 72 counties and that's what I've been focused on 11:28.980 --> 11:31.180 is what our Department of Justice can do 11:31.220 --> 11:33.140 to help protect everybody in Wisconsin 11:33.140 --> 11:35.340 by putting public safety over politics. 11:35.340 --> 11:37.300 When we look at the fentanyl epidemic 11:37.300 --> 11:41.700 we have seen across our state in so many different counties. 11:41.700 --> 11:44.940 Surges in these fentanyl overdose deaths 11:44.940 --> 11:47.140 and I've sat across from too many moms and dads 11:47.140 --> 11:48.940 that have buried their child in Fond du Lac County 11:48.940 --> 11:51.860 has been a leader in filing those homicide cases 11:51.860 --> 11:55.220 in recent years and we heard earlier this year 11:55.220 --> 11:57.620 at the state of the tribes address from the Cole Boyd. 11:57.620 --> 11:59.700 She said our Attorney General had eliminated 11:59.700 --> 12:02.180 drug investigator positions for part of the state 12:02.180 --> 12:04.740 and that that was unnecessarily costing lives. 12:04.740 --> 12:06.460 Again, it all comes back to what do you do 12:06.460 --> 12:08.100 with the resources you have? 12:08.100 --> 12:10.220 And so what we're seeing is broken promise 12:10.220 --> 12:12.460 after broken promise from our Attorney General. 12:12.460 --> 12:15.140 He campaigned on the fentanyl in opioid epidemic 12:15.140 --> 12:18.260 and there is accountability for pharmaceutical manufacturers 12:18.260 --> 12:21.340 but talk to anybody in law enforcement or public safety 12:21.340 --> 12:24.500 and they will tell you the overdoses that we're seeing 12:24.500 --> 12:26.420 by and large are coming from fentanyl 12:26.420 --> 12:28.100 which is coming across the border 12:28.100 --> 12:29.460 and then here into Wisconsin 12:29.460 --> 12:31.620 and parents are burying their child 12:31.620 --> 12:33.460 and our Attorney General's broken that promise. 12:33.460 --> 12:35.820 He won't even talk about that issue 12:35.820 --> 12:39.900 because it doesn't maybe be popular with his liberal base. 12:39.900 --> 12:41.220 We look at the forensic testing. 12:41.220 --> 12:43.180 He actually promised back in 2020 12:43.180 --> 12:45.420 that we were gonna see a dramatic improvement 12:45.420 --> 12:48.340 in DNA testing because he had more analysts 12:48.340 --> 12:50.780 than his predecessor and he had improved technology 12:50.780 --> 12:52.380 and his own policies were the reason 12:52.380 --> 12:53.380 that they were testing less, 12:53.380 --> 12:55.460 limiting what law enforcement can send in 12:55.460 --> 12:57.940 and now on average he's taking over twice as long 12:57.940 --> 13:00.940 and he campaigned against all of the political lawsuits 13:00.940 --> 13:03.260 when he first ran and now that's effectively 13:03.260 --> 13:05.340 what he's running his entire campaign on 13:05.340 --> 13:07.380 is those lawsuits where he's putting politics 13:07.380 --> 13:08.540 over public safety. 13:08.540 --> 13:10.060 Well let's talk about those lawsuits. 13:10.060 --> 13:12.020 Obviously the Department of Justice has filed 13:12.020 --> 13:13.660 and joined a lot of these federal lawsuits 13:13.660 --> 13:15.420 against the Trump administration. 13:15.420 --> 13:18.100 If you were the AG, would you have joined any of these? 13:18.100 --> 13:19.940 So one of the things I've always talked about 13:19.940 --> 13:21.940 is putting public safety over politics 13:21.940 --> 13:24.020 and when we see the Attorney General, 13:24.020 --> 13:25.480 he's not filing lawsuits. 13:25.480 --> 13:26.860 What he's doing is called joining them. 13:26.860 --> 13:28.900 So the vast majority of those lawsuits, 13:28.900 --> 13:31.100 whether he signs on to that or not, 13:31.100 --> 13:32.460 are gonna continue to move forward 13:32.460 --> 13:34.740 because other attorneys general across the country 13:34.740 --> 13:36.860 have actually done the legal work on those. 13:36.860 --> 13:38.780 And so what I will be doing as attorney general 13:38.780 --> 13:41.580 is making sure we are prioritizing our resources 13:41.580 --> 13:43.940 for public safety, ending the hiring freeze 13:43.940 --> 13:45.980 that's been put in place by him 13:45.980 --> 13:48.780 to make sure we have those crime lab positions filled 13:48.780 --> 13:50.940 that we're always filling our DCI 13:50.940 --> 13:52.900 and other public safety positions 13:52.900 --> 13:55.220 and we'll evaluate any case that's been filed 13:55.220 --> 13:56.380 on a case by case basis 13:56.380 --> 13:58.660 to make sure that we're following the facts in the law 13:58.660 --> 13:59.860 because one of the things we hear, 13:59.860 --> 14:01.780 whether you talk to law enforcement, 14:01.780 --> 14:03.500 the business community or others, 14:03.500 --> 14:05.700 having that consistency in the law 14:05.700 --> 14:08.420 and that predictability helps people plan for the future, 14:08.420 --> 14:11.140 not just having those type of decisions driven 14:11.140 --> 14:13.040 by someone's own partisan politics. 14:13.040 --> 14:15.620 That makes it very difficult for our business community 14:15.620 --> 14:17.300 to move forward and thrive. 14:17.300 --> 14:19.060 And we've seen our Attorney General continue 14:19.060 --> 14:21.940 to put his partisan politics over public safety. 14:21.940 --> 14:24.180 I mean, we see the struggle that people have 14:25.060 --> 14:28.820 in some parts of our state in every corner of it 14:28.820 --> 14:30.900 with the rising cost that we've seen 14:30.900 --> 14:33.140 that were kicked off under the Biden administration 14:33.140 --> 14:35.020 with that rampant inflation. 14:35.020 --> 14:37.580 And some families, parents are working two jobs, 14:37.580 --> 14:39.260 trying to put food on the table 14:39.260 --> 14:41.340 and our Attorney General has not helped. 14:41.340 --> 14:43.020 He actually was the one that defended 14:43.020 --> 14:45.180 that 400 year property tax increase 14:45.180 --> 14:47.420 all the way to the Wisconsin Supreme Court 14:47.420 --> 14:49.420 where he could have been the voice of reason 14:49.420 --> 14:52.500 giving our court that legal framework to say this is wrong, 14:52.540 --> 14:53.980 this is unconstitutional. 14:53.980 --> 14:57.220 One person cannot raise our taxes for 400 years, 14:57.220 --> 15:00.220 but he fought all the way to the court defending that 15:00.220 --> 15:02.540 that contributed to people's property taxes 15:02.540 --> 15:03.780 going up for 400 years. 15:03.780 --> 15:06.860 So I just want to, one more question on the federal lawsuits. 15:06.860 --> 15:09.220 In some of those cases, if you weren't a member of those, 15:09.220 --> 15:10.540 you didn't get the benefits. 15:10.540 --> 15:12.860 And Wisconsin has seen some of those benefits 15:12.860 --> 15:15.260 from being a part of those winning cases. 15:15.260 --> 15:18.020 As AG, would you have joined any of those cases? 15:18.020 --> 15:19.460 So one of the things that we have to do 15:19.460 --> 15:20.580 at our Department of Justice, 15:20.660 --> 15:22.820 can't be who's in the White House 15:22.820 --> 15:24.460 or who's in the governor's office. 15:24.460 --> 15:26.740 We have to look at these on a case-by-case basis. 15:26.740 --> 15:28.740 And unfortunately, we haven't seen our Attorney General 15:28.740 --> 15:29.580 do that. 15:29.580 --> 15:32.860 He's talked about joining over 60 of these lawsuits 15:32.860 --> 15:34.660 in the last 18 months or so, 15:34.660 --> 15:36.380 compared to probably five or less 15:36.380 --> 15:38.860 during the four years of the Biden administration 15:38.860 --> 15:41.260 and has effectively given a free pass to Tony Yever. 15:41.260 --> 15:44.060 So to me, it's not gonna matter who's in the White House 15:44.060 --> 15:45.460 or who's in the governor's office. 15:45.460 --> 15:47.500 We're gonna make these decisions based on the facts 15:47.500 --> 15:48.340 and the law. 15:48.340 --> 15:49.900 So I would expect, whether it's a Republican 15:49.900 --> 15:51.620 or Democrat governor president, 15:51.620 --> 15:53.580 that we would be joining lawsuits 15:53.580 --> 15:55.420 when it's needed to protect Wisconsin. 15:55.420 --> 15:58.220 But this just, you know, to really show how partisan 15:58.220 --> 15:59.740 our Attorney General has gotten. 15:59.740 --> 16:02.620 When he first ran, he talked about two criteria 16:02.620 --> 16:04.700 for filing or joining a federal lawsuit. 16:04.700 --> 16:06.460 Number one, it had to harm Wisconsin. 16:06.460 --> 16:09.420 And then number two, he said it had to be unconstitutional. 16:09.420 --> 16:11.980 Well, last year, he changed that second criteria 16:11.980 --> 16:14.100 and just said he needed a legal basis for it. 16:14.100 --> 16:16.220 And that just shows how partisan he's become 16:16.220 --> 16:17.980 putting his personal politics 16:18.020 --> 16:20.060 over our public safety here in Wisconsin. 16:20.060 --> 16:21.900 And so for me as Attorney General, 16:21.900 --> 16:24.260 it's gonna be putting public safety over politics, 16:24.260 --> 16:27.220 making sure those resources are first and foremost, 16:27.220 --> 16:29.460 going to keep families and community members safe 16:29.460 --> 16:31.140 across our entire state. 16:31.140 --> 16:33.140 And that's why I've got that bipartisan support 16:33.140 --> 16:36.140 from 75% of our sheriffs and know it's time for a change. 16:36.140 --> 16:38.400 How do you view the role of the Wisconsin DOJ 16:38.400 --> 16:41.380 when it comes to election, integrity and security? 16:41.380 --> 16:43.260 And specifically, one of the most recent lawsuits 16:43.260 --> 16:45.620 having to do with the United States Postal Service 16:45.620 --> 16:47.460 changes over absentee ballots. 16:47.460 --> 16:50.900 That is a lawsuit that Josh Call has had Wisconsin join. 16:50.900 --> 16:52.820 Would you have Wisconsin join that lawsuit 16:52.820 --> 16:55.140 or would you be okay if those postal service rules 16:55.140 --> 16:55.980 were in effect? 16:55.980 --> 16:57.860 So our Department of Justice is crucial 16:57.860 --> 16:59.620 in defending the integrity of our elections. 16:59.620 --> 17:02.180 And we have to get to a point where people 17:02.180 --> 17:04.180 trust the results of our elections, 17:04.180 --> 17:06.460 not just when the person they voted for wins. 17:06.460 --> 17:09.700 And we've seen time after time where that hasn't happened. 17:09.700 --> 17:13.780 And I voted absentee in a number of times in recent years. 17:13.780 --> 17:15.460 There are times where for a spring election, 17:15.460 --> 17:17.660 I've been on vacation or even for the, 17:17.660 --> 17:20.100 I live in a township and the early voting opportunities 17:20.100 --> 17:21.740 are far lower there. 17:21.740 --> 17:24.740 So I think I get a couple days for about an hour or so 17:24.740 --> 17:26.660 during that two week window compared to somebody 17:26.660 --> 17:29.660 that may live in a city that has much more 17:29.660 --> 17:31.220 expansive early voting windows. 17:31.220 --> 17:33.940 So early voting, absentee voting is a crucial part 17:33.940 --> 17:35.940 of Wisconsin and we have to protect the right to do that 17:35.940 --> 17:37.500 for people in Wisconsin. 17:37.500 --> 17:41.020 So yes or no, would you have Wisconsin be a part of this case 17:41.020 --> 17:42.740 against the postal service rules? 17:42.740 --> 17:46.020 So what I can say is I would be defending the ability 17:46.020 --> 17:47.740 for people to vote early. 17:47.740 --> 17:49.540 And one of the things I've been very careful on, 17:49.540 --> 17:51.580 I rarely comment on the different lawsuits 17:51.580 --> 17:53.700 that are out there because I wanna make sure 17:53.700 --> 17:56.220 we're working with the great attorneys that we have 17:56.220 --> 17:57.300 at our Department of Justice, 17:57.300 --> 17:59.700 making these decisions based on the facts and the law. 17:59.700 --> 18:01.380 And if in that conversation, 18:01.380 --> 18:03.540 we believe that that's unconstitutional. 18:03.540 --> 18:05.740 I would absolutely join a lawsuit like that 18:05.740 --> 18:07.500 to make sure that we're protecting people's rights 18:07.500 --> 18:09.340 to vote early here in Wisconsin. 18:09.340 --> 18:11.860 But I think one of the things that's so important 18:11.860 --> 18:14.300 when we have an attorney general that's gonna make decisions 18:14.300 --> 18:16.500 on criminal cases, on civil cases, 18:16.500 --> 18:19.860 that we're not campaigning on a specific issue to say, 18:19.860 --> 18:23.380 this is exactly what we're gonna do in that type of lawsuit. 18:23.380 --> 18:24.860 But make sure we're making those decisions 18:24.860 --> 18:26.260 based on the facts and the law. 18:26.260 --> 18:28.980 Because one thing I talk to people about 18:28.980 --> 18:32.420 all across Wisconsin is as an attorney general, 18:32.420 --> 18:34.060 I will make decisions they will not like, 18:34.060 --> 18:35.860 but it's gonna be based on the facts and the law. 18:35.860 --> 18:37.380 And if I don't like that decision, 18:37.380 --> 18:38.780 I'm gonna work with the legislature 18:38.780 --> 18:40.380 and the governor to change the law. 18:40.380 --> 18:42.140 So if elected, you'd be part of the 18:42.140 --> 18:44.860 Republican Attorney General's Association. 18:44.860 --> 18:47.180 Why haven't we seen Republican Attorney Generals 18:47.180 --> 18:49.580 from around the country join in any of these lawsuits? 18:49.580 --> 18:52.100 Why have it been almost universally democratic 18:52.100 --> 18:52.940 attorney generals? 18:52.940 --> 18:53.900 You'd have to talk to them. 18:53.900 --> 18:56.700 I can't speak for other attorneys general in the country. 18:56.700 --> 18:59.300 So you talked about the crime lab, 18:59.300 --> 19:00.900 and talked about the turnaround time. 19:00.900 --> 19:02.940 Josh Colle says that he has secured this money 19:02.940 --> 19:05.180 and he's used that for fentanyl harm reduction 19:05.180 --> 19:06.460 that that money has gotten out. 19:06.460 --> 19:09.300 He claims that's his response to the fentanyl situation. 19:09.340 --> 19:11.060 As attorney general, he can't go to the border 19:11.060 --> 19:12.820 and stop fentanyl from coming over. 19:12.820 --> 19:15.820 So what would be different with you as attorney general? 19:15.820 --> 19:17.780 Number one, when we wanna address a problem, 19:17.780 --> 19:19.980 we have to be honest about what the problem is. 19:19.980 --> 19:22.220 If you were to look at our Department of Justice website, 19:22.220 --> 19:24.340 there's nothing on there about the border crisis 19:24.340 --> 19:26.420 and fentanyl coming across the border. 19:26.420 --> 19:28.300 And we heard Nicole Boyd talk about 19:28.300 --> 19:30.940 how he's eliminated drug investigator positions 19:30.940 --> 19:31.780 here in Wisconsin. 19:31.780 --> 19:33.460 One of the important things that we can do 19:33.460 --> 19:36.340 from the public safety side is go after those dangerous 19:36.340 --> 19:38.740 drug dealers that are peddling poison 19:38.780 --> 19:39.620 in our communities. 19:39.620 --> 19:41.380 And as we see, and it's wonderful 19:41.380 --> 19:43.020 that we're seeing across the country, 19:43.020 --> 19:45.740 these overdose deaths going down, 19:45.740 --> 19:47.100 go and talk to a mom or dad 19:47.100 --> 19:49.420 that had to bury their child in recent years. 19:49.420 --> 19:51.740 And for the attorney general to sit there 19:51.740 --> 19:53.360 and try and take a victory lap over that, 19:53.360 --> 19:55.380 while these cases are still moving 19:55.380 --> 19:57.780 through a congested courts across our state 19:57.780 --> 20:00.540 as he's eliminated resources to help fight that 20:00.540 --> 20:04.420 and failed to deliver the forensic test results 20:04.420 --> 20:06.020 in so many of these different categories 20:06.020 --> 20:08.900 that are making it longer to take criminals off the streets 20:08.900 --> 20:11.540 longer for these cases to go through our court system 20:11.540 --> 20:13.620 that victims are the one that's suffering. 20:13.620 --> 20:15.540 And as I've said, time after time, 20:15.540 --> 20:18.260 it goes back to what do you do with the resources you have 20:18.260 --> 20:20.540 and what Josh Call continues to do. 20:20.540 --> 20:23.420 And it's been for nearly eight years has passed the buck. 20:23.420 --> 20:25.300 He continues to blame the legislature 20:25.300 --> 20:28.500 and say they need to give him more crime lab resources. 20:28.500 --> 20:31.740 They have, he got more DNA positions, more ballistics 20:31.740 --> 20:34.220 and some other positions in the 2019 budget. 20:34.220 --> 20:37.980 I helped him get more positions in 2023 in that budget. 20:37.980 --> 20:40.140 And then when we see that nonpartisan audit come out 20:40.140 --> 20:42.020 and he hasn't even filled those positions, 20:42.020 --> 20:44.980 some of them over a year later, they hadn't been filled. 20:44.980 --> 20:47.180 We saw seven less DNA positions. 20:47.180 --> 20:50.220 So what we need to be doing at our crime labs is number one 20:50.220 --> 20:52.380 and the hiring freeze that he's put in place. 20:52.380 --> 20:55.020 Number two, adopt some of the performance metrics 20:55.020 --> 20:57.900 that that audit recommended our Department of Justice 20:57.900 --> 21:01.460 do to ensure timely testing of DNA results 21:01.460 --> 21:03.300 and make sure that we eliminate any work 21:03.340 --> 21:06.260 from home policies that don't allow those great analysts 21:06.260 --> 21:08.380 to be in the labs doing that important work. 21:08.380 --> 21:11.180 I've worked with so many of the analysts at our crime labs 21:11.180 --> 21:14.260 and they do tremendous work in helping protect our communities 21:14.260 --> 21:16.300 but we need to make sure they have the support 21:16.300 --> 21:17.700 from the Attorney General. 21:17.700 --> 21:20.380 One of the issues that Josh Call says is interesting 21:20.380 --> 21:22.220 about this rematch is looking at some 21:22.220 --> 21:24.260 of your position statements from the last race 21:24.260 --> 21:26.220 and he brings up abortion specifically. 21:26.220 --> 21:28.340 At that time he had filed a lawsuit 21:28.340 --> 21:30.940 that eventually was passed by the Wisconsin Supreme Court 21:30.940 --> 21:33.020 which guaranteed the right to abortion in Wisconsin. 21:33.540 --> 21:36.420 At that time you criticized his part of that lawsuit. 21:36.420 --> 21:38.420 Do you still think that was the wrong choice for him 21:38.420 --> 21:40.260 for the state to file that lawsuit 21:40.260 --> 21:41.940 against the 1848 abortion law? 21:41.940 --> 21:45.020 Well, the original Dane County judge actually didn't support 21:45.020 --> 21:47.620 the ultimate legal finding that was made by the Supreme Court 21:47.620 --> 21:49.780 but we have to look at where the law is now 21:49.780 --> 21:52.620 and there are five month protections in place for women. 21:52.620 --> 21:54.980 I have not and I'm not advocating for any changes 21:54.980 --> 21:57.980 to the law in Wisconsin and if there is going to be any change 21:57.980 --> 21:59.580 that's something that needs to be voted on 21:59.580 --> 22:02.020 by the people of Wisconsin and not decided 22:02.020 --> 22:04.060 on by politicians in Madison. 22:04.060 --> 22:05.540 We need to create an environment 22:05.540 --> 22:09.420 that supports women and girls in our state in every corner 22:09.420 --> 22:11.580 and you look at what our Attorney General's comments 22:11.580 --> 22:13.100 have been in recent years on this. 22:13.100 --> 22:15.100 He was actually asked about those five month 22:15.100 --> 22:18.620 or 20 week protections in 2024 in the fall 22:18.620 --> 22:21.660 and he said it's not a protection, it's a restriction. 22:21.660 --> 22:23.580 He said there should be no government intervention 22:23.580 --> 22:25.780 calling for the legislature to take action, 22:25.780 --> 22:28.380 effectively arguing for a nine month abortion 22:28.380 --> 22:29.620 here in Wisconsin. 22:29.620 --> 22:31.460 We need an Attorney General that's actually 22:31.460 --> 22:33.420 gonna support women and girls here in Wisconsin. 22:33.420 --> 22:36.060 That includes protecting their private spaces, 22:36.060 --> 22:38.380 their bathrooms, their locker rooms and their sports 22:38.380 --> 22:40.620 and we've got a situation that's been going on 22:40.620 --> 22:43.300 in New Richmond, Wisconsin where the school district 22:43.300 --> 22:46.700 has allowed biological boys into girls' bathrooms 22:46.700 --> 22:48.060 and if we need an Attorney General 22:48.060 --> 22:49.780 that's gonna step up and do that 22:49.780 --> 22:51.500 and that's what I would do as Attorney General 22:51.500 --> 22:54.260 is make sure that we're protecting and supporting women 22:54.260 --> 22:56.700 and girls, their bathrooms, their private spaces, 22:56.700 --> 22:57.860 locker rooms and sports. 22:57.860 --> 23:00.660 Do you think abortion should be an issue in this race? 23:00.740 --> 23:02.500 I've said it's something that the people should vote on. 23:02.500 --> 23:04.460 Josh Call thinks the legislature should be making 23:04.460 --> 23:07.460 these decisions and is effectively advocated for nine months. 23:07.460 --> 23:10.260 I'll tell you, one of the things in a district 23:10.260 --> 23:12.780 attorney's office, we had here in Fondelac, 23:12.780 --> 23:16.820 a case in recent years where a young girl under 23:16.820 --> 23:20.940 I believe 15 had been sexually assaulted 23:20.940 --> 23:24.620 and the defendant was I think about 19 years old 23:24.620 --> 23:28.380 and so there was a number of years of age gap there 23:28.380 --> 23:30.300 and she ended up with her family 23:30.300 --> 23:32.980 making that difficult decision to have an abortion 23:32.980 --> 23:35.860 just a few months before that Dobbs decision came out 23:35.860 --> 23:38.340 and one of the things having had conversations 23:38.340 --> 23:40.900 with her family myself and I don't think 23:40.900 --> 23:43.780 any district attorney wants to be in a situation 23:43.780 --> 23:46.980 where we're telling a young girl or a woman 23:46.980 --> 23:49.380 what they can or can't do with the difficulty 23:49.380 --> 23:51.540 of those choices, what I'd like to see us doing 23:51.540 --> 23:53.940 is creating an environment that supports life, 23:53.940 --> 23:56.180 making sure that women and girls have the resources 23:56.180 --> 23:58.180 that life is the choice they wanna make 23:58.180 --> 24:00.180 when it can be difficult in so many different 24:00.180 --> 24:02.460 circumstances but we need an attorney general 24:02.460 --> 24:04.580 that's actually gonna stand with and support them 24:04.580 --> 24:06.540 and when we see our attorney general continue 24:06.540 --> 24:09.260 to fail to do that and supporting women and girls, 24:09.260 --> 24:11.020 sports, bathrooms and locker rooms, 24:11.020 --> 24:13.060 that's something that we need to change. 24:13.060 --> 24:15.380 Do you see any role for the attorney general 24:15.380 --> 24:17.660 in the issue of data centers in Wisconsin? 24:17.660 --> 24:19.780 I think it's gonna depend on an individual basis, 24:19.780 --> 24:22.380 you know, I've visited all 72 counties in the selection 24:22.380 --> 24:24.340 and I've heard a lot of things from people 24:24.340 --> 24:26.580 but I've yet to meet the person that wants a power line 24:26.620 --> 24:28.820 or a data center in their backyard 24:28.820 --> 24:30.460 and that's something we're clearly gonna need 24:30.460 --> 24:32.500 to see legislative and gubernatorial action 24:32.500 --> 24:33.780 on here in Wisconsin. 24:33.780 --> 24:35.500 What the attorney general can do is make sure 24:35.500 --> 24:37.700 that we're protecting our natural resources 24:37.700 --> 24:40.580 and our power grid to make sure that if we see data centers 24:40.580 --> 24:43.300 coming into Wisconsin, that it's not jacking up 24:43.300 --> 24:45.580 the utility rates for people or being a threat 24:45.580 --> 24:47.900 to our natural resources, the attorney general's office 24:47.900 --> 24:50.260 has to make sure we're guarding our natural resources 24:50.260 --> 24:51.620 including our water. 24:51.620 --> 24:54.020 There was also recently an officer involved shooting 24:54.060 --> 24:58.260 in Madison and then a protest is only set up downtown. 24:58.260 --> 25:00.380 You went through that area and you called 25:00.380 --> 25:02.860 for the Department of Justice to come in and clear it out. 25:02.860 --> 25:05.500 The DOJ was already involved with the officer involved 25:05.500 --> 25:07.100 shooting investigation. 25:07.100 --> 25:09.700 Would it be appropriate for another arm or the DOJ 25:09.700 --> 25:11.820 to be coming in and handling the protesters as well 25:11.820 --> 25:13.420 or should that be left to local officials? 25:13.420 --> 25:15.420 Well, one of the things we saw, you know, 25:15.420 --> 25:16.660 I walked through that area, 25:16.660 --> 25:18.620 you couldn't get emergency service vehicles 25:18.620 --> 25:21.020 through the area, business owners couldn't open 25:21.020 --> 25:23.500 for a period, employees couldn't get to their job 25:23.500 --> 25:26.660 and residents couldn't get to their homes in that area. 25:26.660 --> 25:29.460 And that was going on day after day after day. 25:29.460 --> 25:31.260 We saw a report, one of those businesses 25:31.260 --> 25:34.500 reportedly lost, I think, over $100,000. 25:34.500 --> 25:36.860 And so that's where we have statutes on the books right now 25:36.860 --> 25:39.220 where a chamber of the legislature or governor 25:39.220 --> 25:40.980 can give our attorney general authority 25:40.980 --> 25:43.380 to prosecute crime in certain circumstances. 25:43.380 --> 25:44.500 And so that's what I've said, 25:44.500 --> 25:46.940 that that should have happened to make sure 25:46.940 --> 25:48.660 that we work with the governor's office 25:48.660 --> 25:50.900 and the attorney general with the state patrol 25:50.900 --> 25:52.780 and our DCI agents to have declared 25:52.860 --> 25:56.220 an unlawful assembly ordered the individuals dispersed 25:56.220 --> 25:58.100 and that anyone that failed to follow that 25:58.100 --> 26:00.660 would be arrested and prosecuted ultimately. 26:00.660 --> 26:02.660 Our attorney general sat on the sidelines 26:02.660 --> 26:05.300 during that difficult time for so many people 26:05.300 --> 26:07.580 in the Madison area when we need to make sure 26:07.580 --> 26:08.620 that we're protecting people, 26:08.620 --> 26:11.220 that we're not allowing intersections to be taken over. 26:11.220 --> 26:13.260 People have an absolute right to protest 26:13.260 --> 26:14.340 but there are ways to do it 26:14.340 --> 26:16.660 and it doesn't give someone the right to take over 26:16.660 --> 26:19.300 an intersection and on my watch as attorney general, 26:19.300 --> 26:20.780 I will do everything I can to make sure 26:20.820 --> 26:23.140 that doesn't happen anywhere in Wisconsin. 26:23.140 --> 26:25.780 But this has just been a troubling pattern 26:25.780 --> 26:27.740 for our attorney general and some of these 26:27.740 --> 26:29.300 very critical incidents. 26:29.300 --> 26:33.380 He continues to fail the leadership test. 26:33.380 --> 26:35.100 We saw that happen in Madison. 26:35.100 --> 26:37.380 We saw it in the wake of the Kenosha shooting 26:37.380 --> 26:39.420 back in 2020 involving Jacob Blake 26:39.420 --> 26:41.620 which was determined to be a justified shooting. 26:41.620 --> 26:43.300 We saw the governor putting out false 26:43.300 --> 26:46.620 and incorrect information that Josh called new Jacob Blake 26:46.620 --> 26:49.140 had to have had a knife that very night 26:49.140 --> 26:50.220 and he said nothing. 26:50.220 --> 26:53.780 And we saw the consequences of those reckless statements 26:53.780 --> 26:55.180 where people burned Kenosha, 26:55.180 --> 26:57.660 there was a loss of life we need an attorney general 26:57.660 --> 27:00.660 that's gonna be willing to push back against 27:00.660 --> 27:02.060 their own party when necessary 27:02.060 --> 27:04.220 especially in those circumstances. 27:04.220 --> 27:06.140 And there's a reason that we're seeing 27:06.140 --> 27:07.940 law enforcement across the state 27:07.940 --> 27:10.420 that do not want to work with Josh Call 27:10.420 --> 27:13.180 in doing these officer involved shooting investigations. 27:13.180 --> 27:15.700 The DCI agents do a fantastic job 27:15.700 --> 27:18.140 but they don't trust him from what they've seen 27:18.140 --> 27:19.300 in these circumstances. 27:19.300 --> 27:21.140 And that's something that we're gonna have to work 27:21.140 --> 27:23.860 to rebuild that trust to be able to continue to assist. 27:23.860 --> 27:26.340 There are still agencies that use our Department of Justice 27:26.340 --> 27:28.420 but there are many that will choose not to 27:28.420 --> 27:29.780 based on what they're seeing. 27:29.780 --> 27:32.140 And so what we have to do is rebuild trust 27:32.140 --> 27:33.860 with our law enforcement agencies. 27:33.860 --> 27:35.780 We have to make sure that we're getting 27:35.780 --> 27:38.500 some of that key evidence to our district attorney sooner 27:38.500 --> 27:40.180 to be able to make timely decisions 27:40.180 --> 27:42.860 while protecting the integrity of the investigation 27:42.860 --> 27:44.820 while having transparency to the public. 27:44.820 --> 27:46.740 What we're seeing is about a 30 day window 27:46.740 --> 27:50.260 before a DA will get sometimes any of the evidence 27:50.260 --> 27:53.380 to review and then they have to go through that mountain 27:53.380 --> 27:54.660 of evidence to make a decision 27:54.660 --> 27:56.540 where the public is waiting for the result. 27:56.540 --> 27:59.700 You've got an officer or officers on administrative leave. 27:59.700 --> 28:02.060 The impact that that can have on small agencies 28:02.060 --> 28:03.180 can be tremendous. 28:03.180 --> 28:05.540 And one of the things I worked on more recently 28:05.540 --> 28:07.380 when we had one here in Fond du Lac County 28:07.380 --> 28:10.620 was getting some of that key evidence to my office sooner 28:10.620 --> 28:13.180 so that I could have eyes on that to begin my review 28:13.180 --> 28:16.300 to help make that decision on whether that shooting 28:16.300 --> 28:17.660 was justified or not. 28:17.660 --> 28:19.340 And so what we're gonna be working to do 28:19.340 --> 28:20.860 is change some of the policies 28:20.860 --> 28:22.700 but working with our law enforcement partners 28:22.700 --> 28:25.300 on what that should be to ensure and our DA's 28:25.300 --> 28:27.580 to make sure they're getting that information quicker 28:27.580 --> 28:30.740 and that we're getting information to the public sooner. 28:30.740 --> 28:32.780 The liberals on the Supreme Court now have a five 28:32.780 --> 28:33.620 to majority. 28:33.620 --> 28:36.260 Would that change how you approach any lawsuits 28:36.260 --> 28:38.500 over state law, how you would change arguments 28:38.500 --> 28:39.620 before the court? 28:39.620 --> 28:41.300 The facts are the facts and the law is the law 28:41.300 --> 28:42.940 and we'll make decisions based on those things 28:42.940 --> 28:44.420 not who the judge is. 28:44.460 --> 28:46.900 And finally, one quick question on flock cameras. 28:46.900 --> 28:48.180 That's the new issue. 28:48.180 --> 28:50.380 Would you see any role for the Attorney General's office 28:50.380 --> 28:53.340 to weigh in on how flock cameras should be used? 28:53.340 --> 28:54.700 Or is that an issue for the legislature? 28:54.700 --> 28:56.180 Well, here in Fond du Lac County, 28:56.180 --> 28:58.060 all of our police agencies that use flock 28:58.060 --> 29:00.700 just recently discontinued that use 29:00.700 --> 29:03.940 and based on my conversations with my local law enforcement, 29:03.940 --> 29:05.580 I support the decision that they've made 29:05.580 --> 29:08.340 because what we've seen is in some other states, 29:08.340 --> 29:11.140 they've released information that contains searches 29:11.140 --> 29:12.420 here in Fond du Lac County 29:12.420 --> 29:16.100 that have had an ability to impact active investigations, 29:16.100 --> 29:17.780 potentially release victim information 29:17.780 --> 29:20.260 and impact the privacy of people in our community 29:20.260 --> 29:21.340 and across Wisconsin. 29:21.340 --> 29:24.380 So it's clear that additional action and guardrails 29:24.380 --> 29:26.060 are needed to make sure that we're protecting 29:26.060 --> 29:28.620 active investigations, victim privacy, 29:28.620 --> 29:30.540 as well as the privacy of community members 29:30.540 --> 29:31.820 here in Wisconsin. 29:31.820 --> 29:34.220 But that doesn't harm investigators, 29:34.220 --> 29:37.260 doesn't limit the ability, is it in flock a tool for them? 29:37.260 --> 29:38.940 That was a decision that the law enforcement made. 29:38.940 --> 29:41.460 There's nobody that told them that they could not use that. 29:41.500 --> 29:43.060 They had a concern about the impact 29:43.060 --> 29:45.300 that that would have on their investigations. 29:45.300 --> 29:47.220 And so they made the decision right now 29:47.220 --> 29:49.380 to discontinue that use and continue 29:49.380 --> 29:50.540 to work through that issue. 29:50.540 --> 29:53.660 We've certainly seen, I've prosecuted cases, 29:53.660 --> 29:55.020 homicides and others where flock 29:55.020 --> 29:57.580 has taken dangerous criminals off the streets 29:57.580 --> 30:00.180 and has helped find missing or endangered children 30:00.180 --> 30:01.020 and adults. 30:01.020 --> 30:03.100 And so we've seen that aid law enforcement 30:03.100 --> 30:03.940 across the state. 30:03.940 --> 30:06.100 But when we see that type of, 30:06.100 --> 30:08.140 at some point, misuse that's occurred 30:08.140 --> 30:10.580 and in other areas, privacy information 30:10.620 --> 30:13.300 or ongoing investigation information released, 30:13.300 --> 30:15.340 there's a balance and we have to make sure 30:15.340 --> 30:16.820 that we're seeing additional action 30:16.820 --> 30:18.980 and guardrails to protect those things. 30:18.980 --> 30:20.180 Eric, Tony, thanks for your time. 30:20.180 --> 30:21.020 Greatly appreciate it. 30:21.020 --> 30:21.860 Thank you. 30:23.060 --> 30:23.900 That was great. 30:23.900 --> 30:24.740 Thank you. 30:24.740 --> 30:25.580 Thank you. 30:25.580 --> 30:26.400 Yeah.