The Recombobulation Area is a 19-time 21-TIME! Milwaukee Press Club award-winning opinion column and online publication founded by Milwaukee journalist Dan Shafer.
We are just days away from the Nov. 3 election in Wisconsin, and … THE MILWAUKEE BREWERS HAVE WON THE WORLD SERIES!
Former WisDems chair Ben Wikler joined The Recombobulation Area the morning after the Milwaukee Brewers won the World Series, so of course, we started the episode talking about the game, this team, and what it means for Milwaukee and Wisconsin.
And, of course, Wikler connected this to our current political moment.
“This should be a state that makes people feel as idealistic as Brewers fans do this morning,” he said.
So yes, we also have an election coming up in just a few days, so we talked about what’s happening around the state, thoughts on the race, and the home stretch of this campaign.
“I toggle between feeling good and feeling nauseously optimistic,” said Wikler.
We also talked about the fundraising in the race, and how Tiffany’s outsized billionaire funding of his campaign is different from anything Wikler and WisDems have been a part of, and why Democrats need to do what Republicans have never shown any inkling of doing, and close the “Walker loophole” if they win a trifecta.
And about that trifecta possibility… does Wikler think it can happen? Well…
“I would feel more likely than not that Democrats are going to win the trifecta, which is such a gigantic deal,” he said.
Finally, Wikler closed with a call to action as we get close to Election Day.
“Treat every person you talk to like they could be the voter that determines whether Democrats get a trifecta in this election,” he said.
For a beat-by-beat breakdown, see below:
00:00 Going live
00:43 The Brewers win the World Series!!!
03:08 The winning moment and fireworks across Milwaukee
06:44 Why Wisconsin’s teams reflect its working-class roots
08:33 Friday’s parade and the Brewers fever doctor’s note
09:05 Election big picture: “nauseously optimistic”
11:36 “Adrift in Western Wisconsin” feature and the vanishing Trump signs
14:36 Marquette poll: tariffs, the Iran war, and inflation
16:01 Stories from the road: Racine, Eau Claire, and student housing costs
18:12 The affordability crisis and Trump’s “making a fortune” remarks
20:28 Tom Tiffany, Diane Hendricks, and billionaire campaign funding
24:22 The Walker loophole explained
28:30 Supreme Court term limits and campaign finance reform
30:13 Gerrymandering and the first fully post-gerrymander election
32:42 Can Democrats win a trifecta?
36:08 The “four horsemen”: gerrymandering, union busting, campaign finance, voter suppression
37:21 Why Wisconsin is one of the hardest states to vote in
39:40 Final stretch: “Pet out the vote” at Library Mall
41:36 Every vote counts: margins and Virginia 2017
43:01 Wrap-up and go Brewers
Watch this episode on The Recombobulation Area’s YouTube Channel here:
For audio-only listeners, you can find The Recombobulation Area podcast on Spotify and Apple Podcasts. Here’s this episode, embedded below:
Dan Shafer is an independent journalist from Milwaukee who writes and publishes The Recombobulation Area. He worked with Civic Media from 2024 to 2026. He’s written for The New York Times, The Daily Beast, Heartland Signal, Belt Magazine, WisPolitics, and Milwaukee Record. He previously worked at Seattle Magazine, Seattle Business Magazine, the Milwaukee Business Journal, Milwaukee Magazine, and BizTimes Milwaukee. He’s won 24 Milwaukee Press Club Excellence in Journalism Awards. He’s on Twitter at @DanRShafer.
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Thank you Jonathan Brodie, Mark Miller, Klarity, Mary Schneider, Ned Murphy, and many others for tuning into my live video with Ben Wikler! Join me for my next live video in the app.
