The Observatory (https://observatory.journalism.wisc.edu/)
Lawmakers, including Wisconsin’s Democratic Sen. Tammy Baldwin, are working to address long-standing issues in broadband access for rural communities. The Observatory investigated Baldwin’s claims surrounding rules and regulations related to rural broadband access.
In May, The Observatory reported about what President Donald Trump’s trade war could mean for Wisconsin farmers. Trump’s first round of tariffs on steel and aluminum imports in March brought concerns about volatile trade relations and higher costs of production for the farm industry. So what’s been happening to Wisconsin farms since then?
Investing in people, not prisons, is what Gov.-elect Tony Evers believes the state of Wisconsin should be doing. During his 2018 gubernatorial campaign, Evers was vocal about criminal justice reform, outlining a number of policies he would like to see changed and saying that reducing the prison population by 50 percent is a “goal that’s worth accomplishing.”
During her unsuccessful run for U.S. Senate, Republican state Sen. Leah Vukmir claimed that 3.4 million people would lose employer-sponsored health care coverage if Congress passed Medicare for All, a bill co-sponsored by her opponent, Democratic U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin. We check that claim.
Wisconsin U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin says the state is losing hundreds of dairy farms a year and needs Congress to pass the 2018 Farm Bill to help dairy farmers through the current economic crisis. We check her claims.
The incumbent Republican governor has touted Wisconsin’s wage growth and low unemployment, but the positive indicators are not shared equally around the state
The debate about Wisconsin’s infrastructure and road quality remains at the forefront of the 2018 gubernatorial election. The Observatory fact-checks Tony Evers’ claims about making fixing Wisconsin’s roads a top priority.
A common argument for stricter gun control in the United States is that the rates of gun violence are much higher than in other countries because other countries have stricter gun control laws. Is this true? The Observatory compares the United States’ gun laws with those of other democracies including Japan, United Kingdom, Canada. Brazil and India.
It’s a waiting game for Wisconsin farmers as they watch the market to see how a recent trading spat between the United States and China will affect prices for their products.
The retiring House speaker claims he accomplished most of what he wanted to accomplish during his 19 years in Congress, including tax reform, a strong military and enterprise zones. The Observatory decided to check.
A newly released study from the Journal of the American Medical Association found that the strength of state firearm restrictions can correlate to the level of gun violence in those states.