State lawmakers discuss Kirk assassination before, during Capitol session
MADISON, Wis. (CBS 58) -- Legislative leaders from both parties addressed the assassination of prominent conservative activist Charlie Kirk before an Assembly session Thursday, Sept. 11, at the state Capitol.
The session was somber for multiple reasons. It began with a moment of silence to remember the anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks, specifically the 12 victims who had ties to Wisconsin.
Assembly Speaker Robin Vos spoke for about five minutes on the subject of Kirk, the 31-year-old gunned down while giving a speech Wednesday at Utah Valley University.
"The state of our nation's politics is rapidly deteriorating," Vos said on the Assembly floor. "Many see the other party as their mortal enemies out to destroy the country, not just the good-hearted political rivals they should be."
Before the session, legislative Democrats held a press conference to introduce a package of education-related bills, including measures seeking to provide free school breakfast and lunch, as well as a proposal that'd require local property taxpayers to be notified how their school levy was being divided between public and voucher school payments.
During that press conference, Democratic leaders mentioned Kirk's assassination, tying it in with a Colorado school shooting that also happened Wednesday, as well as the June assassination of former Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband.
The gunman in those killings was later found with a manifesto that included the names of some Wisconsin Democrats.
"The victims of that senseless violence and Mr. Kirk's family are in our thoughts today," Senate Minority Leader Dianne Hesselbein (D-Middleton) said. "We are still saddened about the assassination of Representative Melissa Hortman in Minnesota. Political violence and violence is never the answer."
During an address from the White House Wednesday night, President Donald Trump listed several recent instances of political violence, including an attempted assassination he survived last year. Mr. Trump omitted Hortman's murder, and unlike with Kirk, he did not order flags to be lowered across the nation following her death.
"I did not see what President Trump said," Vos said when asked about the president's remarks. "But I know in his heart, like in the heart of hopefully every patriotic American, we would say that no matter who is assassinated, on the far-right, the far left, man, woman, rich, poor, gay straight, doesn't matter. Assassination is 100% of the time wrong."
Vos told reporters before the session he did not support increasing security measures at the Capitol, noting the Hortman and Kirk assassinations did not happen at government buildings.
Immigrant healthcare, flag order bills pass
During the Assembly session, a trio of GOP bills passed along party lines following fairly robust debate. None of the bills is likely to become law, as Democratic Gov. Tony Evers is all but certain to veto them if they reach his desk.
One bill would prohibit the funding of healthcare for undocumented immigrants. The measure, authored by State Rep. Alex Dallman (R-Markesan), would make it illegal for any state agency or local government to provide funding for illegal immigrants' healthcare, regardless of whether the funding source was federal, state or local dollars.
The bill passed by vote of 51-44.
Another bill, with an amendment brought forward by State Rep. Amanda Nedweski (R-Pleasant Prairie), would require all state employees to spend at least 80% of their working hours in the office. That measure also passed by a vote of 51-44.
State Rep. Jerry O'Connor (R-Fond du Lac) put forth a bill that would allow only the U.S. and Wisconsin state flags to be flown at state and local government buildings. The measure was in response to the Evers administration flying the Pride and Juneteenth flags above the state Capitol in recent years. It passed by a 50-44 vote.
The Assembly in a voice vote also passed a bill that would make it a felony to create AI-based deepfakes depicting nude images of people. The Senate unanimously passed the bill in May, and Evers will likely sign the bill into law later this fall.