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32nd Wisconsin State Senate Candidates

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Jennifer Shilling (D)

Dan Kapanke (R)

On Tuesday, Nov. 8, area voters will make choices on the national and state election levels. One of those races is the 32nd Wisconsin State Senate District. Candidates are incumbent Jennifer Shilling (D) and challenger Dan Kapanke (R), who formerly held the seat but was recalled and replaced by Shilling in a 2011 recall election. Editor Correne Martin spoke with both of them personally to ask them a number of questions. Their answers are below.
 

Tell me about yourself.
JS: Chris and I live in La Crosse; we have two boys who are 8 and 11. In 1992, I received my Bachelor of Arts from UW-La Crosse in political science and public service. I was on the La Crosse County Board and the Wisconsin State Assembly. I was first elected to State Senate in a recall in 2011 and re-elected in 2012. Currently, I’m the Democratic Minority Leader.
DK: I was born and raised on a small farm in La Crosse County. I went to a one-room grade school and Luther High School in Onalaska. That’s where I met my wife Ruth and, now, we’ve been married 47 years. We have four kids and 13 grandkids. My primary job was as a district sales rep for a seed company. I was a local elected official, the chairman in the town of Campbell, La Crosse County. In 2000, I ran for State Senate and was beaten by Mark Meyer. I ran again in 2004 and was elected. In between that time, my wife and I were fortunate enough to bring the La Crosse Loggers to La Crosse. So we’ve been operating that for 14 years. It’s a family operation for me, my wife, one of my sons and one of my daughters. I sell peanuts at the games and that allows me to get around and meet the fans and see our employees work.

Why are you running for State Senate?
JS: Wisconsin is a great place to live and we are very fortunate to live here. But too many people continue to struggle. We’re seeing continued cuts to our universities and natural conservation of our beautiful state. We need more people to stand up  and do better for our working families. We need to stop handing out tax breaks to millionaires. We have 11 millionaires in the top 1 percent who earn over $35 million yet received $21 million in tax breaks. But 99 percent of Wisconsin folks don’t qualify for those breaks through the Wisconsin Budget Project. I support middle class tax relief. We also need to better support technical colleges and public schools, many of which have seen their funding cut by 10 percent since 2011. We need quality schools, roads that are maintained and good wages and benefits for our workers.
DK: I was out five years and very comfortable in my position with the Loggers. I’ve always been active in the community in various ways. But, it came to me earlier this year, that 2016 was a very critical election year and I just could not sit on the sidelines. On top of that, I just have not heard enough positive things about Wisconsin from my opponent. So I want to be that person saying good things about western Wisconsin.

How do you think Obamacare has impacted Wisconsin and what are your thoughts on the state rejecting the Medicaid expansion?
JS: The right thing to do is to recapture the federal dollars back to Wisconsin so we can cover more people. If we had an infusion of federal dollars, that would relieve tension in our budget for Medicaid expansion in the state and it would save the state money.
DK: I’ve been out here listening to constituents about some horror stories relative to their health care coverage through Obamacare. One guy in particular had this deductible that he had to take $11,000 out of his 401k to pay. At the end of the year, Uncle Sam came calling and it was a double whammy for him and his family and very difficult to deal with. I have another story of a farmer, who, in 2015, paid a premium of $18,000 a year with a $6,000 deductible. Then it went up to $24,000 with a $6,000 deductible. So, they’ve got to spend $30,000 before they have $1 in benefit from Obamacare. It’s absurd. Before Obamacare, Wisconsin was really a shining example of how people can have coverage, whether it be through Badgercare, Medicaid or a high-risk program for those who were uninsurable. We had 90-plus percent of our people, regularly, with some kind of coverage. Though Obamacare takes care of everybody, look at what’s happening. So, Wisconsin is the only state that has no gaps. We have Badgercare, Obamacare after that, credits depending on your income, Medicare and private insurance. That speaks well for this state.

What is your opinion of Gov. Walker’s roads plan and how it addresses the state’s transportation needs?
JS: The problem is licenses, vehicle registration and the gas tax pay for our roads, but cars are more efficient so consumers are paying less in fuel taxes. I’m not seeing that what the governor is proposing on postponing projects is the right idea, though my opponent praises that. We have to come together on this one. I’m not in favor of borrowing to put forward a quick fix, but we need to look at other revenue sources.
DK: I think his plan is a step in the right direction. First, there’s more money going to local road improvement and the bridge program. Second, the bonding in his plan is $500 million, which is still a lot of money, but it’s less bonding than has taken place in previous budgets over the last 10 years. I would take a look at the secretary of transportation report from the audit bureau and then decide on a pathway to sustainable infrastructure and maintenance.

How can we best improve economic development for our rural communities?
JS: I want to make sure every city and community has access to rural broadband. Access and speed are important for entrepreneurs in small business as well as for health care, education, agriculture and tourism. In 2011, I was in a meeting of first responders in Seneca and they had dial-up Internet at a county building. That’s what they were using to get the appropriate certifications and training they need to do their jobs. I couldn’t believe it. I also had a meeting with three business owners outside of Ferryville—a wood manufacturer, a flower grower and an insurance person—who wanted to move their businesses forward, but they couldn’t because they didn’t have broadband. So I sat together with Rep. Kind and Senator Baldwin, CenturyLink and representatives from the federal broadband commission to discuss this issue. For me, that’s one way to spur economic development. Second, with our retiring population, workforce development is key. We need to continue to support apprenticeship and skilled training programs by ensuring campuses receive the support they need to be nimble for the workforce of tomorrow. We must partner tech schools with manufacturers to ensure the future workforce is training on the large machines that are out there. We should embrace the workforce trend of paid maternity leave, paid sick leave and affordable child care. Distance technologies, workplace flexibility, paid leave—those are the things we need to take a hard look at in order to attract and keep our millennials.
DK: I’m a huge believer in marketing. Prairie du Chien brought a company in, Solomon Corporation, which could’ve gone to a lot of different places. But they settled on Prairie du Chien based on proximity, road work here and the people. I know they’re happy to be here. That’s a good story. Businesses relocate to a state where there’s financial stability, pension funds that are fully funded, a good school and higher ed system, and a good infrastructure. Wisconsin has all of these things. I would spend more money marketing this state to bring such businesses here. That creates jobs.

How can we reclaim democracy from the influences of money and negativity in politics?
JS: In two ways: campaign finance reform and redistricting reform. The Republicans put forward bills this year that doubled contributions to campaigns. There’s too much money in our elections. We don’t have transparency and accountability to find out who’s donating. Redistricting will come up again in 2020 and we need to do it in a non-partisan commission. The majority party is drawing their own lines to make sure their influences stay intact. They did it behind closed doors in 2010. We also need to have more competitive races.
DK: There is a lot of money in politics. We need to look at it as though we’re hiring someone to represent us when we vote. I would just say, forget about the money. Find out more about that candidate, his background, and what he stood for in the past. Money can buy influence but, for some candidates, it doesn’t matter. When I was in the seat, if somebody gave me money, sometimes I was aware of it and sometimes not. But it never altered how I dealt with somebody. I’m representing everybody. Also, I think we can remove the negativity one candidate at a time. I have a reputation of working across the aisle. I actually worked with Jennifer Shilling on some dental and health care issues. On two particular votes, I was the lone Republican Senator who crossed over and voted with the Dems because I believed in it. I can do that and that’s what it takes. I don’t think bashing your opponent, the other party or the state of Wisconsin or our governor is respectable. I served under Jim Doyle and had great differences with him. I call him out on issues, but I always respected him.

Name the part of your agenda that’s nearest and dearest to your heart.
JS: Because I want my sons to go on to be fourth generation UW-La Crosse students, I would say the public schools and university systems are closest to my heart. I worry about the reputation of the UW System and also the affordability. Our college students deserve a quality education without being burdened with decades of student debt and, when they graduate, they should be able to refinance their debt. We have one million people carrying a ridiculous $19 billion in student debt.
DK: I’m passionate about people. I want to represent people in the 32nd; it would be a great honor for me to do that again. When I was in the Senate for six years, the culture in our office was, first and foremost, to serve the people. When people called, we were there for them. I was in the district as much as I possibly could be, dealing with the issues and fighting for the people, whatever the case might be.

What’s the biggest difference between you and your opponent?
JS: He’s been a rubber stamp for Gov. Walker for collective bargaining, Act 10, the transportation plan and tax policy for wealthy tax breaks. He agrees with the governor that we saved $5 billion due to Act 10. The truth is, it was a tax shift; it was a one-year fix. Now, our roads are in disrepair, we have more school referendums, there are teacher shortages and staff shortages in our correctional facilities. And he’s always supported voucher schools, which are not accountable. Furthermore, women can make their own decisions on health care. It’s their right to access reproductive health care.
DK: The role that government should play in our lives is a big difference. Her party believes that government is the end all be all of our lives. But I view the government as a safety net. We start with responsibility for our own situations, and, unfortunately, some people have challenges. But I think it’s personal, family, church, community, family and friends, and if all that fails, there are some programs in government that can help. Other differences are that I’m a big proponent of the second amendment—the right to bear arms—and I’m a big advocate of pro-life.

Why do you believe voters should choose you?
JS: I believe Wisconsin does better when we all do better. There’s still economic disparity. Gov. Walker put together an agenda that’s out of touch with Wisconsin’s priorities for our working families. We want good libraries, good roads, good schools. My opponent supports our governor’s agenda that’s been harmful to those entities. Two examples of local bipartisanship I’ve been involved with are the opioid and heroin issue and railroad safety. We need to gather all our officials at the table and address this drug epidemic. When it comes to rail safety, I mean train derailments and protecting our communities from hazardous concerns while assuring access for hunting, fishing and trapping. They might be putting in a few dozen crossings but that doesn’t really address the problem.
DK: I’ve got experience. I love the 32nd district and its people. I served it six years and then, for over 20 years, I traveled the 32nd in the seed business and met with the people. Once elected, everyone will know, as they did in the past, that I will fight for them. I call the campaign a journey and my life will be richer having gone through the journey because I’ve met so many great people. We’re confident we can win this thing.

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