[applause]
>> And it all starts with education.
>> Zac: Republican Tim Michels has a few lines
in his stump speech that refer to education in Wisconsin.
But the only reference to educators
talks about empowering parents to shut down "woke teachers"
who supposedly teach about critical race theory.
>> We are gonna put parents back in charge of education
and we are gonna stop the CRT and get back to the ABCs.
>> Zac: When asked directly
about the staffing shortage,
Michels says it's politics that are driving teachers
out of the profession.
>> Teachers are frustrated.
They don't feel like the administration has their back.
And I hear that from teachers.
That's not my opinion.
Everywhere I go, teachers are saying "I love my students,
I love working hard, I love teaching,
but I feel like it's become so political
and so bureaucratic."
>> Zac: Democrat Tony Evers agrees
that politics are driving teachers out,
but in a different way.
>> I think people have disrespected teachers,
especially politicians over the last several years,
and they don't get paid enough.
And so those are kind of two basic things.
Those things aren't gonna be changed overnight.
And so I do believe that at the end of the day,
we have to continue to support our teachers
in our schools and provide the resources they need.
>> Zac: As for what to do about it,
Michels says the solution isn't in the state budget,
meaning more funding for schools.
>> It starts with leadership at the very top,
and it starts with the guidance
that we're giving those school administrators.
And it starts with DPI
and all the other institutions that are out there.
>> Zac: But Evers says the solution
is actually quite simple.
>> So I think increasing teachers' wages
and essentially start respecting what they do.
>> Reporting from Wauwatosa,
I'm Zac Schultz for "Here And Now".
>> Coalition of strength.