Wisconsin
Wisconsin GOP leadership up in the air with calls from exec team for Brian Schimming to resign
The apparent move to oust Schimming comes after months of infighting among Wisconsin Republicans over the direction of the party and its leadership.
Wisconsin Republican Party chairman Brian Schimming and former Gov. Tommy Thompson speak after state presidential electors cast ballots.
Wisconsin Republican Party chairman Brian Schimming and former Gov. Tommy Thompson speak after state presidential electors cast ballot.
MADISON – Wisconsin Republican Chairman Brian Schimming’s future as head of the party is up in the air after members of the Republican Party of Wisconsin’s executive committee asked him for his resignation.
Schimming told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that he received a call from an executive committee member “suggesting to me that a majority of the Board is asking for my resignation.”
He said he has since received “calls of support” from around the state and indicated he had no immediate plans to step aside as the party’s chairman.
“We’ll have a meeting of the Board to determine what is happening and to ensure the RPW remains an effective organization in a crucial battleground state,” Schimming said, claiming multiple members of the party’s executive committee were not aware of this week’s move to seek his ouster.
Multiple GOP sources told the Journal Sentinel on June 21 that Schimming was given 24 hours to resign as party chair, though others said the exact timing of the demand was unclear.
The apparent move to oust Schimming comes after months of infighting among Wisconsin Republicans over the direction of the party and its leadership following another resounding state Supreme Court race defeat and years of fundraising woes. It falls just over a year before the 2026 midterm elections that are expected to be difficult for Republicans.
Schimming has been under scrutiny by his party in recent months following two consecutive double-digit losses in races for the state Supreme Court that cemented liberal control of the state’s highest court for years. Even with President Donald Trump’s win in November, GOP sources told the Journal Sentinel in May that Schimming could soon face moves to remove him as chairman.
Recently, much of the Republican infighting has come from the northeastern 8th Congressional District, where Republicans clashed over the election of their new district chairman. The new chairman, Ken Sikora, has been openly critical of the state party and has called for new leadership.
Members of the conservative dark money group Turning Point Action, which is expanding its influence in Wisconsin, have also criticized Schimming and the party.
In May, disgruntled grassroots Republicans considered a vote of no confidence in Schimming at the state party’s convention in Rothschild, but ultimately, a vote was not called. The state’s top Republicans at the time sought to tamp down those divisions and issued calls for unity.
U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson told the convention crowd he had “never seen as many squabbles” during his years in Wisconsin electoral politics. Schimming, for his part, vowed to serve out his new two-year term leading the state party.
Still, some top Republicans in recent weeks have noted the addition this spring of new members to the party’s executive committee, some of whom are seen as opponents of Schimming, put more pressure on Schimming to step aside.
Schimming, who was first elected state party chairman in December 2022, is the Wisconsin GOP’s first paid chair — a move made to prevent turnover in the position and aid fundraising efforts.
From the beginning of 2023 until just before this year’s high court race, though, Wisconsin Republicans raised about $40.9 million across their state and federal accounts as Wisconsin Democrats raked in just over $116.3 million during the same period.
Some executive committee members have floated the idea of making changes to the chair’s compensation, but one committee member told the Journal Sentinel in May that a vote to oust Schimming was more likely to happen than a vote to alter the chair’s salary.
“The compensation is not the issue. The issue is do we have a chairman who is not performing,” the executive committee member said of Schimming at the time. “There are members who are concerned he is not fulfilling the terms of his contract.”
Both Wisconsin Democrats and Republicans in recent weeks have grappled with who should steer their respective ships into the 2026 election cycle, which is already underway.
Democratic Party of Wisconsin chairman Ben Wikler, a fundraising powerhouse, left his post this summer and state Democrats’ former executive director Devin Remiker was picked as his successor.
On Saturday, Schimming told the Journal Sentinel his “support from Republicans across Wisconsin was in evidence at our successful state convention last month.” He did not say when the next executive committee meeting would be held.
And while some executive committee members have quietly discussed removing Schimming, there has been no clear consensus as to who should replace him.
Residents can attend the July 16 meeting in Sheboygan or submit written comments by email to NOAA.
Wisconsin Shipwreck Coast National Marine Sanctuary has 36 shipwrecks
Discover the history, shipwrecks and impact of the Wisconsin Shipwreck Coast National Marine Sanctuary, established to protect maritime heritage in Lake Michigan. This video was created by the Wochit AI tool.
Wochit
SHEBOYGAN – Residents can attend or comment on an upcoming meeting of the Wisconsin Shipwreck Coast National Marine Sanctuary Advisory Council scheduled for July 16 in Sheboygan.
The gathering will take place from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Sheboygan County Museum, 3110 Erie Ave., according to a community announcement. Members of the public are invited to attend and observe discussions.
The agenda includes routine council business, updates from working groups, community reports and briefings from NOAA staff on sanctuary programs, research and upcoming events.
Public can provide comments during meeting
A public comment period is planned for about 7:50 p.m., giving attendees a chance to share feedback directly with council members.
Those unable to attend may submit written comments by email to jean.prevo@noaa.gov, according to the announcement.
Council shares updates on sanctuary programs
NOAA’s Office of National Marine Sanctuaries will provide updates tied to the Wisconsin Shipwreck Coast National Marine Sanctuary, including research initiatives and community engagement efforts.
More information about the council and its activities is available online at sanctuaries.noaa.gov.
This story was created by reporter Nida Tazeen, NTazeen@usatodayco.com , with the assistance of Artificial Intelligence (AI). Journalists were involved in every step of the information gathering, review, editing and publishing process. Learn more at cm.usatoday.com/ethical-conduct.
Wisconsin
A Wisconsin family is suing Target after their 10-month-old died from swallowing a water bead
A Wisconsin family lost their ten-month-old daughter after she swallowed a water bead. They blame Target and the water bead manufacturer for her death.
This week, Taylor and Tyler Bethard filed a lawsuit against Target in Hennepin County, claiming that the company failed to warn them and other customers about the dangers of a water beads product that used to be sold exclusively at Target.
Water beads are marketed as toys that come with sensory kits or craft sets, but data shows the products are prone to injuring young children. The polymer material is extremely absorbent, allowing water beads – which are often colorful – to expand around 100 times their original size when they interact with water or liquid. This presents a hazard for kids; the United States Product Safety Commission states that between 2017 and 2022, there were 6,300 water bead-related ingestion injuries that required treatment from emergency departments across the country.
In 2023, a 10-month-old girl died. Her name is Esther “Jo” Bethard. According to court filings, Taylor Bethard found her daughter unresponsive in her crib on the morning of July 7, 2023, after she had suffered symptoms of a stomach illness overnight. Medical examiners told the family that her death was caused by swallowing a single water bead.
The Bethards had purchased a Chuckle and Roar water bead set in the spring of 2022 for Esther Jo’s older siblings, never intending for the infant to interact with the water beads.
Target and the Chuckle and Roar manufacturer, Buffalo Games LLC, mutually agreed to pull the product from the shelves in November of 2022. Court records show an email exchange between Buffalo Games and a product safety employee at Target where the manufacturer noted that while their water beads had met safety standards at the time, they wanted to “avoid any future unintended misuse of the product.”
That conversation was prompted after Buffalo Games was informed that an infant required surgery after ingesting a water bead from the Ultimate Water Beads kit. Target agreed to end sales, indicating that this would be classified as a “safety removal.”
The Bethard’s lawsuit alleges that Target clearly knew how dangerous these water beads could be, but failed to warn them or other customers. Target stopped selling the product about eight months before Esther Jo died. Daniel Mann, a personal injury attorney representing the Bethards in this case, said that Esther Jo would still be alive if Target had acted.
“With all this information Target didn’t do anything to reach out to the family or other consumers to let them know about this problem,” Mann said, “I think 10/10 people would say Target had a responsibility to do more than what they did, which was nothing.”
A spokesperson for Target said that they would not comment on ongoing litigation, but the company had already responded to an identical complaint filed by the Bethards in the State of New York. In 2025, the Bethards sued both Target and Buffalo Games in Erie County, N.Y., because that was where the manufacturer was based. In response to the lawsuit there, court filings show that Target denied the allegations that they knew of an extraordinary danger posed by the water beads and failed to notify customers.
The complaint was dismissed against Target in New York, Mann explained, due to jurisdiction. This lead to them refiling in Hennepin County this week.
In a statement to WCCO on the new legal action, a Target spokesperson said “We extend our deepest sympathies to those affected by this tragedy, and we worked closely with the manufacturer of the product at the time the incident occurred.”
Taylor Bethard, Esther Jo’s mother, has lead the charge to ban water beads entirely. Her efforts lead to the United States Consumer Product Safety Commision recalling the more than 52,000 Chuckle and Roar Ultimate Water Beads Activity Kits that were in circulation. The recall took effect in September of 2023. Target, Walmart and Amazon announced that they would stop marketing water beads to children.
Bethard is also working with Wisconsin U.S. State Senator Tammy Baldwin to establish federal legislation to permanently outlaw all water beads. This past spring, the CPSC established new legal guidelines that restrict the size of water beads to try to ensure high safety standards.
(WLUK) — Wisconsin State Patrol troopers are teaming up with truckers to better spot dangerous driving behaviors.
The annual Trooper in a Truck initiative kicks off next week in Wisconsin.
Troopers will ride along with with semitruck and bus drivers to use the higher vantage point to spot dangerous driving behaviors, especially near commercial motor vehicles.
Troopers will be looking for risky driving behaviors, including distracted driving, speeding, following too closely and seatbelt violations. When an officer identifies a violation from the truck or bus, they will radio to patrol cars in the area for appropriate enforcement action.
Drivers can expect to see Trooper in a Truck enforcement in the following areas:
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