Wisconsin
In Wisconsin, Tim Walz says Democrats must ‘push as far as we can’ against Trump

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz on how Democrats can combat President Trump
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz traveled to Des Moines Friday, March 14, 2025, as part of several stops to competitive congressional districts.
- Minnesota Governor Tim Walz encouraged Democratic governors to challenge unconstitutional mandates from President Trump.
- Walz visited Wisconsin to support liberal Supreme Court candidate Susan Crawford and criticize Republicans for not holding in-person town halls.
- Walz attributed the Democrats’ 2024 presidential election loss to an inability to connect with rural voters seeking change.
EAU CLAIRE – Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz said Tuesday he and other Democratic governors should not follow unconstitutional mandates from President Donald Trump in an effort “to challenge and push as far as we can” against the new administration.
The former Democratic vice presidential nominee in his first visit to the Badger State since the 2024 presidential election made the comments ahead of a town hall-style event in Eau Claire, a liberal-leaning city in a congressional district held by Republican U.S. Rep. Derrick Van Orden.
Walz stopped in the battleground district this week to rally voters for liberal state Supreme Court candidate Susan Crawford and as part of a multi-state tour to highlight Republicans who have stopped holding in-person town halls after backlash over the Trump administration’s government cuts.
Walz told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel in an interview that he attributes losing Wisconsin and other battleground states in November to an inability to effectively offer enough change to rural voters.
Trump defeated Harris in Wisconsin by about 29,000 votes as part of a victory that swept battleground states. Now, as he is floated as a potential 2028 presidential candidate, Walz said he and other Democratic governors should refuse to go along with orders from the Republican president made outside of the bounds of the U.S. Constitution. “What governors can do is use our authority and states’ rights, which, again, the Trump administration doesn’t believe anything about right now … and we’re very clear about that,” Walz said.
“I’ll continue to follow the law, but I think we have a responsibility to challenge and push as far as we can. And when Donald Trump issues an order that is unconstitutional, we have no responsibility to follow that, and we won’t in Minnesota.”The event was part of a tour Walz organized characterized as filling a gap where Republicans have declined to hold public events so to avoid confrontational audience members.
Three Trump supporters turned away from Tim Walz event
However, at least three supporters of Trump were turned away from the Eau Claire event. One told the Journal Sentinel he had a ticket and was stopped after entering the Pablo Center in downtown Eau Claire because of the red Make America Great Again hat he was wearing.
“We were proud to welcome more than 900 people to our town hall in Eau Claire tonight, and I’m confident we had folks join in who did not agree with us on absolutely everything,” Joe Oslund, a spokesman for the Democratic Party of Wisconsin, said when asked about the decision to turn the Trump supporters away. “We’re always happy to engage with folks who hold different points of view, but when you show up in funny hats looking to cause shenanigans, let’s just save each other the trouble here.”
A Republican who tracks Democrats at events to find content for attack ads was allowed to stay in the audience, according to the party.
Ahead of the event, Van Orden said Walz’s tour to his district that borders Minnesota “is simply a desperate attempt to save face and remain relevant after his embarrassing defeat, which sent him back to Minnesota in disgrace.”
“America is finally moving in the right direction, thanks to President Donald J. Trump and Vice President JD Vance, and voters throughout the Third District have no desire to Minnesota their Wisconsin.”
Walz’s first stop was Friday in Des Moines, Iowa, in a district represented by U.S. Rep. Zach Nunn, a Republican who has not committed to holding town halls this year.
Walz took questions for about an hour from Democrats who asked how to combat potential cuts to Medicaid programs and ways to compete with Republicans in public appeal, among other topics.
“I don’t think we would have won the election if we’d gone on Joe Rogan, but I don’t think we would’ve got beat any worse,” Walz told the crowd, referring to a decision by the Harris campaign to not appear on Rogan’s mega-popular podcast.
“I worried about this in the last couple weeks of the election. I was in Pennsylvania and North Carolina and in the countryside, I saw a sign split in half: Trump good, Kamala bad,” Walz said.
“I’m like, Jesus, are we first graders? What the hell, it worked. It worked. They did it. They made it simple.”
Walz told the Journal Sentinel the Harris-Walz campaign failed to represent enough change to turn out the number of voters needed to defeat Trump.
“It was our job to win these these states, I think especially rural Wisconsin, they wanted change. They didn’t feel like they were getting that. And quite honestly, they didn’t think the message they were hearing was the one to make a difference.”
Walz stopped in Eau Claire two weeks ahead of the April 1 spring election when Wisconsin voters will cast ballots in the state Supreme Court race for ideological control of the court.
The race has broken national records for the most expensive state court battle in history. The race is being eyed as a test of support for Trump after the first few months of his presidency during which he and billionaire Elon Musk have leveled massive cuts to the federal workforce, including to agencies serving veterans and schools.
“Look, you can start to lame duck this on April 1,” Walz told the crowd Tuesday. “Then we win the Virginia governor’s race. And then you got guys like (Van Orden) here saying ‘shit, Trump’s done in a couple of years, this is looking bad. The momentum is changing. I think I’m feeling something, and it feels like maybe I’m growing a spine and I’m going to stand up for my people, because if I don’t, I’m going to get my ass kicked in the midterm election.’”
‘People v. Musk’ town hall event
Tuesday’s event was billed as a “People v. Musk” town hall event as part of a new Democratic focus on Musk. On Friday, a handful of Senate Democrats joined with Republicans to pass a budget fix that will avert a government shutdown, but which many Democrats derided as caving to Republican pressure and handing Musk a blank check.
Some Democrats have called for Schumer to step down as minority leader. Walz declined to weigh in.
“I don’t question his commitment to protecting the American public but I think being through this fight in the fall and being through this fight as a governor, this is a different fight, and we have to have different tactics,” he told the Journal Sentinel.
Republicans have argued that Democrats are targeting GOP town halls for organized protests as liberal groups have encouraged turnout at the events. Some Republicans, like House Speaker Mike Johnson, referred to those voicing dissatisfaction with the Trump administration as “professional protesters.”
Rebecca Cooke, the Democrat who narrowly lost to Van Orden last November, said this week she will challenge him again in 2026.
Some Wisconsin Republicans have suggested they’ll continue to hold in-person town halls despite the directive from party leadership, though others have been noncommittal.
Van Orden, whose western Wisconsin House seat has become a main target for Republicans as they seek to flip control of the House, said at a tele-town hall earlier this month that he would not hold in-person town halls, citing the push from Democratic groups to send protesters to the events.
Van Orden did not take live questions from the audience during the tele-town hall. A staffer during the call noted “a few folks sent in questions ahead of time,” which the staffer read. Multiple people who participated in the call told the Journal Sentinel that the comment function was turned off on the video call.
Last week and on Tuesday, Democratic Rep. Mark Pocan, one of Van Orden’s loudest critics, held in-person town hall events in Belmont and Viroqua in an effort to highlight Van Orden’s decision not to hold in-person town halls.
Lawrence Andrea of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and Brianne Pfannenstiel of the Des Moines Register contributed to this report.

Wisconsin
Wisconsin Badgers positional recruit snapshot: 2026 edge prospects
With official visits right around the corner, BadgerBlitz.com will be bringing you snapshots in the current recruiting cycle for each recruited position, covering the targets who are legitimate prospects on Wisconsin’s board in the 2026 class. We will discuss the candidates who are most interested in the Badgers, as well as those who came off the board.
As always, this is just a snapshot in time and things remain fluid. Additional offered targets will appear over the next few weeks and some recruits will inevitably choose other colleges.
Today, we continue with a look at the edge prospects.
QBs | RBs | TEs | WRs | OL | DL |
Wisconsin’s outside linebackers room got bigger this offseason, in both numbers and, more importantly, size. The Badgers are using larger athletes to set the edge and help against the run. Corey Walker, Darryl Peterson and Michael Garner are projected to eat up a bulk of those positional reps this fall, with Ernest Willor Jr., Samuel Lateju and Jaylen Williams expected to fall in the same category. UW will also feature a traditional pass rusher, a role Sebastian Cheeks, Tyreese Fearbry and Nicolas Clayton, among others, are set to occupy.
On the recruiting front, Wisconsin already found its jumbo edge in Carmelow Reed, a 6-foot-7, 250-pound prospect from Illinois. Next month, the focus will be on adding a pass rusher to the group, and the Badgers have four scheduled official visitors who carry that skillset.
Wisconsin hosted Carmelow Reed for an unofficial visit in early April and landed a verbal during his time on campus. Commit No. 3 for the Badgers in the 2026 class, Reed chose Wisconsin over scholarships from LSU, Michigan State, Minnesota, Mississippi, Mississippi State and Missouri, among others.
“They love my size and see me as a dominant outside linebacker who can rush the passer,” Reed told BadgerBlitz.com. “They think that I’m very raw right now and have a huge upside. They can develop me to be great and into a program-changer for them.”
Wisconsin
Wisconsin Badgers land just ahead of Penn State in ranking of top college football programs of 2000s

Until recently, the Wisconsin Badgers were a model of consistency in college football.
Their run in the 2000s didn’t get as much attention as some of the dynasties they were competing against, but the program always carried a high level of respect.
It was enough to earn them the 16th spot in The Athletic’s rankings of the Top 25 college football programs of the 2000s.
Wisconsin was a picture of consistency until recently, winning at least 10 games all but five times from 2005-19 under coaches Barry Alvarez, Bret Bielema, Gary Andersen and Paul Chryst. It went to three straight Rose Bowls from 2010-12. But the Badgers have also never reached the CFP and have just 10 top-10 wins (tied for 28th).
– Stewart Mandel, The Athletic
The Badgers were the fifth-highest ranked Big Ten team on the list, although two of those programs (USC and Oregon) weren’t part of the conference for most of this century.
Wisconsin is one spot ahead of Penn State and nine spots ahead of Michigan State. Ohio State was No. 1 overall.
UW’s 68.1 win percentage since 2000 is the 13th best mark, but their limited number of big time wins and Big Ten titles brought their ranking down.
Their recent struggles aren’t helping either, and Luke Fickell is under a lot of pressure to bring the program back to the consistency and respectability they developed over the last 25 years.
Wisconsin
Wisconsin Lottery Mega Millions, Pick 3 results for May 23, 2025
Manuel Franco claims his $768 million Powerball jackpot
Manuel Franco, 24, of West Allis was revealed Tuesday as the winner of the $768.4 million Powerball jackpot.
Mark Hoffman, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
The Wisconsin Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big. Here’s a look at May 23, 2025, results for each game:
Winning Mega Millions numbers from May 23 drawing
07-18-40-55-68, Mega Ball: 18
Check Mega Millions payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Pick 3 numbers from May 23 drawing
Midday: 9-1-3
Evening: 1-0-7
Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Pick 4 numbers from May 23 drawing
Midday: 2-8-2-0
Evening: 2-1-5-4
Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning All or Nothing numbers from May 23 drawing
Midday: 01-02-06-07-09-11-13-14-16-20-22
Evening: 02-04-05-09-10-11-13-14-18-19-21
Check All or Nothing payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Badger 5 numbers from May 23 drawing
02-05-10-25-30
Check Badger 5 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning SuperCash numbers from May 23 drawing
06-09-11-26-35-39, Doubler: N
Check SuperCash payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your lottery prize
- Prizes up to $599: Can be claimed at any Wisconsin Lottery retailer.
- Prizes from $600 to $199,999: Can be claimed in person at a Lottery Office. By mail, send the signed ticket and a completed claim form available on the Wisconsin Lottery claim page to: Prizes, PO Box 777 Madison, WI 53774.
- Prizes of $200,000 or more: Must be claimed in person at the Madison Lottery office. Call the Lottery office prior to your visit: 608-261-4916.
Can Wisconsin lottery winners remain anonymous?
No, according to the Wisconsin Lottery. Due to the state’s open records laws, the lottery must, upon request, release the name and city of the winner. Other information about the winner is released only with the winner’s consent.
When are the Wisconsin Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 9:59 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 10:00 p.m. CT on Tuesday and Friday.
- Super Cash: 9:00 p.m. CT daily.
- Pick 3 (Day): 1:30 p.m. CT daily.
- Pick 3 (Evening): 9:00 p.m. CT daily.
- Pick 4 (Day): 1:30 p.m. CT daily.
- Pick 4 (Evening): 9:00 p.m. CT daily.
- All or Nothing (Day): 1:30 p.m. CT daily.
- All or Nothing (Evening): 9 p.m. CT daily.
- Megabucks: 9:00 p.m. CT on Wednesday and Saturday.
- Badger 5: 9:00 p.m. CT daily.
That lucky feeling: Peek at the past week’s winning numbers.
Feeling lucky? WI man wins $768 million Powerball jackpot **
WI Lottery history: Top 10 Powerball and Mega Million jackpots
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Wisconsin editor. You can send feedback using this form.
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