Okay. Do you change your answers each time?
Yes.
You get tripped up if you like try and repeat the same thing because I can't answer the same question twice.
Yup, it's always something different.
I always have to repeat and re-arrange how I'm doing it.
Yeah, it's always different too because of the way they ask you.
Or sometimes the question in front makes you think about the different answers.
Yeah.
Okay.
Good.
Before we start, real quick, lower your mic just a little bit.
Just a little bit of your hair is kind of the screen.
There we go, perfect.
Thank you.
And we're good.
All right.
Well, thank you for joining us for this.
Thank you.
Looking back at 2024, what stands out as the significant moments of the year for you?
So I think we had three good bipartisan wins for the state of Wisconsin.
Certainly shared revenue was important to a lot of city towns and villages.
Unfortunately, we kind of left Madison in the dark on that one, so we have to revisit so that can be more.
The money can be distributed more equitably.
So that was disappointing.
I wasn't able to vote for the shared revenue bill.
But we did the Milwaukee Brewers.
We were able to ensure that they're going to stay in the state of Wisconsin.
And that's really important to everybody.
That's mom and apple pie stuff.
And then we did the overhaul of the alcohol licensing bill, which is technical and strange.
But we got it done.
So you are new in this position a year ago.
You were not the minority leader in the Senate.
What have you learned in your first year running this caucus?
Even a few months in session and then the election?
Yeah, well, conversations matter and treating people with respect matters.
And I think that's what I've always tried to do since I was first elected to this in 2012 and I will continue to do that.
I really feel that you can disagree without being disagreeable.
That's something that my whole caucus can lead with.
So walk me through the election and the results for you.
I am so excited.
I mean, it was just so disappointed on that night with what was happening with President Trump and his gains in so many states, including ours.
But at the same time, during that same time, we were getting wins.
And so we'd find out, like, oh, Jamie Wall one, Green Bay, or this one won, or Sarkyski won.
So at the same time, when inwardly, I was like, oh my gosh, this is terrible for the United States, the Senate Democrats, in a very tough Trump election year.
We won.
We wanted to win all five seats that we set forth to win, and we did it, and we flipped four of those.
When the original narrative was, you know, Republican blowout, has you recalculated that?
Have people started to reevaluate what actually happened in Wisconsin on election night?
I think they have.
I think they realize that in a Trump wave, we were able to hold on to Tandy Baldwin, which is extremely important in the U.S. Senate, and then making gains in both the Wisconsin State Senate and the Wisconsin State Assembly.
It was really huge.
And I really, you know, think that's because we finally have fair maps.
And people finally had a chance at the ballot box to really vote how they wanted to.
In the context of redistricting for legislative Democrats, is there any more significant shift in the last few sessions?
I think as far as fair maps, yeah, I would just say with fair maps, I think finally we have a shot to get the majority in two years.
I know that's what we're going to be working for.
So we obviously have a budget coming up next year.
What does the new makeup of the Senate means in terms of Democrats maybe having a voice in the budget,
as opposed to relying on Governor Evers and just protecting his veto?
So we're now no longer in the super minority, right?
The Republicans no longer have a super majority in the Senate.
And with 18 Republicans and 15 Democrats, I'm really hoping that we can work in a bipartisan fashion the entire way through the state budget.
So maybe for the first time, since I was first elected in 2012, maybe I can get to a yes to vote for a budget would be really exciting.
I think the Republicans are going to need our votes to get through.
And certainly I haven't opened our policy to try to make that happen.
At what stage in the process do you think Democrats are most likely to be involved in that?
Well, I've already had a meeting with Senator Lomikue and Senator Fakowski this week.
And we're going to continue to have those conversations starting in January.
Because the original joint finance process usually takes quite a while and that's where a lot of the work gets done.
But then there is that kind of free-for-all when it comes back to the floor and you can offer some of your own amendments.
Do you think by then it would be too late to change what's already in the bill?
It might be, but they also might need our votes to get things done.
So we'll see.
I mean, we're going to be talking the entire way through and hopefully get to a finished package that we can all live with or at least the majority of us can live with and be happy about.
But we'll see.
We're certainly open to however we can maneuver so we can get something positive to the governor's desk.
In past budgets, Senator Lomikue has been able to allow some of his more conservative members to vote no against the budget because he's had that flexibility in terms of his raw numbers.
Do you anticipate that means he'll be leaning more on them or do you think he'll be leaning more on Democrats?
I think it will be both.
I think he's going to have a hard road and navigate.
But I know, like I said, I have an open-door process and I'm willing to help out where I can.
This will be the fourth budget that Governor Evers will be proposing and each of the last three Republicans have immediately set aside and then worked from the existing state budget.
Would you like to see the governor go with a vision document more of his vision of the budget or should he go for a more realistic proposal that may actually be worked from?
I think he should do what he thinks is best for the state of Wisconsin.
That is what people elected him to do.
And so I expect him to put forth a budget that he would like to see adopted.
And if the Republicans peel that back again and they decide to do what they're going to do, which is probably what they're going to be, hopefully they can have negotiations and an open conversation going forward.
In terms of the surplus that exists, what would it take for Democrats to come around voting for some of the tax cut proposals that Republicans have said they want to use that money for?
Yeah, I think we're open to some of those ideas, but also we really need to be focusing on K-12 education.
It's something that we've been underfunding in our state for years, and I think that's one of the reasons why we have that surplus in the first place.
So because we've been underfunding it, all these referendums have happened around the state asking voters to increase their property taxes to help support their local schools, and that's just not sustainable long term.
And so I'd like to see something more we can do for K-12 so people don't have to keep going for referendum to referendum to referendum.
Looking at the national perspective, there's been a lot of money flowing from the Biden administration into Wisconsin.
What shifts do you expect to occur with the Trump administration?
Well, I'm worried about what the Trump administration is going to do, but I'm hoping that we can continue working together and getting some things done for the people in the state of Wisconsin.
I think Sean Duffy, being in transportation, is going to be helpful for us.
I don't know him personally, I've never met him, but I think somebody that knows Wisconsin is good for us.
There have been talk at the Trump level to eliminate the Department of Education altogether and, quote, return education to the states.
What would that look like and how would that play out in terms of the legislature having to take some steps?
Yeah, I'm curious of how that would look because certainly, you know, we get federal money from the federal government for education,
and honestly our IEPs that we do with federal protection for kids that have special needs and special disabilities and to help them move forward in their educational process.
So I have a lot of questions if they return things to the states.
I know that in our state, Superintendent Gillanderly is doing a really good job, but I'm worried about what's going on in other states in Alabama and Texas,
and where their scores are really not doing well, and so I'm kind of worried what that would do.
In terms of this budget and education, special education a priority in terms of increasing the state's percentage of funding?
Absolutely, that is certainly mental health funding both in K-12 education and for everybody in general.
It's a really priority for one of us.
I'm really excited that one of our new members, Sarah Kieski, is a mental health therapist, and I think having her in the mix of this conversation to see what she's been seeing,
the last few years of her practice is really going to be helpful moving us forward.
There have been a number of Governor Evers appointments that have stalled out in the Senate.
Do you think this new makeup of the body will change some of that?
Do you think some of them could actually get to the floor and get votes?
I hope so. I think these are partisan parlor games that people just don't have an appetite for anymore.
The Governor should be able to pick who's going to be running their state agencies and the fact that Republicans are sending good people that want to be on boards, whether it's a natural resource board or it's a UW hospital board.
It's been ridiculous and it's been petty and it's unfortunate.
In terms of winning back the majority, most everyone acknowledged it would take two cycles for Democrats to have a shot.
You've set yourself up for that.
Yes.
Are there targeted members of the Republican side, people know what districts they're looking at, that you'll be paying very close attention to what their votes are,
and how they're acting and calling those out as you go along.
Could you see a shift in their behavior?
Absolutely.
I think that's probably what's going to happen.
Possibly.
We'll see.
Do you think that the maps will make Senators more responsive to their district?
I hope Senators will be more responsive because they want to do what's best for the state of Wisconsin and not really partisan games.
That's what I'm hoping.
If fair maps have some get there, then that's fine.
You were not the minority leader last year, but I did ask Senator Agar to question regarding how she would define success a year from now,
and I want to give you a few cliff notes on what she said.
She said they hope they would pick up seats, that they would reaffirm trust in Wisconsin's elections,
and that they would be able to hopefully address some real-life issues.
Hearing that, how would you grade her prediction for what success was and do you think you've accomplished?
She got an A+.
Yeah, I think those were great things to be aspirational, and I think she did just that.
In terms of how you would define success a year from now, what are some of the things that you would be pointing to?
I would hope that we could pass a bipartisan budget that the government could sign.
I really hope that.
That's really not up to me, right?
That's up to my Republican colleagues working with me, so I'm hoping that can get done.
I'm hoping we could pass the right-of-first refusal to roll for a bill.
It was really important for our utilities and for workers in the state of Wisconsin.
That should be something bipartisan.
The postpartum care for 12 months for people in Medicaid, that passed the Senate, stalled in the assembly.
The only other state that hasn't been able to do that is Arkansas.
So let's get that done for people that need help.
So I'm hoping those would be bipartisan wins.
We have a very important Supreme Court election coming up in April.
There are a number of historic cases sitting in front of that court.
The abortion, Governor Evers, education funding, vetoes.
Megan Wolf's appointment to WEC, potentially Act 10.
Can you stress enough to voters how significant that election is?
Everything is on the line in April and everybody needs to show up because I think you're voting for who you see moving Wisconsin forward in the direction that you want.
And I think it's a clear choice.
In terms of the number of cases that they're dealing with that do affect the legislature or affect the budget,
does that impact how you will approach things this spring, especially if they have not released their decisions?
No.
I think the legislature moves and we do things because we think it's best for the state of Wisconsin.
I don't really pay attention to everything that the Supreme Court is doing.
I know they have a lot of cases.
I'm not a lawyer.
I trust them to do what's right.
And I know that I will do what's right.
Specifically, one of those has to do with Governor Evers' education vetoes, which created additional funding for years and years to come.
If that was to be struck down, does that change what the legislature would need to have in place?
Or do you think they will approach with that, assuming that that will stay there?
I think we'll just be looking to see how much we can be putting on that education budget moving forward, whether that's there or not.
And what does the new blood mean for you going forward?
You've been in the minority?
Yeah.
Long time.
So what does it feel like if you can actually see daylight potentially for Democrats in the Senate?
So I'm really excited.
We've got four new members that bring forth energy and enthusiasm, and they have knocked on tens of thousands of doors.
And the conversations that they've just told me anecdotally that they've had are super exciting because we're going to bring those voices from those doors, from those homes, from those apartments into our state house and actually work on issues that they care about.
So we have a caucus next week. I'm super excited to hear what they have to say and to know a positive agenda moving forward.
So I'm really excited that we have four new members with a variety of backgrounds and what their voices mean for the state, not just the Senate, but the entire state of Wisconsin.
In past decades, there have been older members of the legislature that kind of bring in and guide the new members, often in terms of how bipartisanship works.
There really are very few people here who served back when bipartisanship was common and it was expected to work with the minority party.
Are there people there to teach younger and newer members of the legislature what it's like to work across the aisle?
I think so. I mean, I've been here since 2012 and I've been able to get bills passed in a bipartisan manner, even last session in the Senate being in the Democratic minority leader.
So I think you just continually define those relationships with Republicans, try to find something in common.
And then when you go to them with an idea, hopefully they'll listen and maybe you can get that bill or that idea forward and become the law.
There will be a new Senate president this year. What does that mean in terms of how the chamber operates?
I'm hoping that the chamber works well. I think we all want the institution to work well.
We had a really bad last session day where we weren't allowed to have amendments.
There's a lot of frustration on the floor. I don't want to see that again.
I've always said that, you know, the Republican Party, the majority party has been Republicans since I've been in, has their way.
But the minority party has their say. And then because we're really frustrating when you don't even have your say during a session day.
So I'm hoping we can not have that happen again. I really want us to be kind of that beacon of hope, that beacon of light,
and send an example for people that are watching all over the state of Wisconsin, that the Wisconsin state Senate is working for the people in the state.
Senator Hasselbla, thanks for your time. Thank you very much.
All right. That was a really long sentence at the end. All of a sudden I was like, I need a period. I need a comma. I'm so sorry.