Minutes before we go to air, the state Supreme Court in Wisconsin overruled Gov. Tony Evers earlier order to cancel in-person elections. La Crosse County District Attorney Tim Gruenke joined to talk about all the court stuff. 

Minutes before we go to air, the state Supreme Court in Wisconsin overruled Gov. Tony Evers earlier order to cancel in-person elections. La Crosse County District Attorney Tim Gruenke joined to talk about all the court stuff.&nbsp;

Listener conversations about the days events in and around the La Crosse area.  Weekdays from 5-6pm on WIZM 1410AM and 92.3FM

La Crosse Talk PM WIZM

Rick Solem talks about the days events in and around the La Crosse area. Weekdays from 5:07-6pm on 1410 WIZM

Rick Solem talks about the days events in and around the La Crosse area. Weekdays from 5:07-6pm on 1410 WIZM

WIZM - La Crosse

The Wisconsin election *bleep* show

La Crosse’s household survival budget. The bare minimum it takes for a person, a family, to get by.

It’s called the ALICE report. It was just released by the Great Rivers United Way and executive director Mary Kay Wolf stopped in the WIZM studio for the Rick Solem Show to discuss it.

ALICE stands for (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed). It comes out every two years and looks at households that earn more than the Federal Poverty Level, but less than the basic cost of living for the county. 

Wolf talks about the report, where La Crosse stands and how we can improve our situation — whether that’s through talking with elected representatives, helping groups in the area that work in these fields or donating. 

Listen live weekdays at 5:06 p.m. Find the pod on Spotify, Apple Podcast or here. Tune in on the WIZM app or on air at 92.3 FM / 1410 AM / 106.7 FM (north of Onalaska)

La Crosse&rsquo;s household survival budget. The bare minimum it takes for a person, a family, to get by.
It&rsquo;s called the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.unitedforalice.org/county-reports/wisconsin">ALICE report</a>. It was just released by the Great Rivers United Way and executive director Mary Kay Wolf stopped in the WIZM studio for the Rick Solem Show to discuss it.
ALICE stands for (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed). It comes out every two years and looks at households that earn more than the Federal Poverty Level, but less than the basic cost of living for the county.&nbsp;
Wolf talks about the report, where La Crosse stands and how we can improve our situation &mdash; whether that&rsquo;s through talking with elected representatives, helping groups in the area that work in these fields or donating.&nbsp;
<hr>
Listen live weekdays at 5:06 p.m. Find the pod on&nbsp;<a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/1k1QCGhGrFA5KH9Rxh6fIO">Spotify</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/la-crosse-talk-pm-wizm/id1445077021">Apple Podcast</a>&nbsp;or&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wizmnews.com/la-crosse-talk-pm-with-rick-solem/">here</a>. Tune in on the WIZM app or on air at 92.3 FM / 1410 AM / 106.7 FM (north of Onalaska)

Great Rivers United Way's Mary Kay Wolf on household survival budget

How much would it take for you to move to Fond du Lac?

That's one of the many topics discussed with Adam Murphy on Friday's The Rick Solem Show. Murphy is a small business owner, economist and — as we learn — handyman.

Before we get into moving to Fond du Lac and the political landscape of Wisconsin's governor's race — and whether they should just run on an anti-AI data center platform — we talk about Murphy remodeling his cottage and how that lost handyman art needs to be passed down to the next generation.

That segwayed nicely to Fond du Lac County trying to pay people to move there.

Murphy basically said there's not enough money in the world, but he did point out the dilemma for the area and the state in general with an aging and declining population, cities need more residents to stay alive.

But is Fond du Lac County's incentive package worth it?

We also looked at the governor's race, why Mandela Barnes gets unfair flak for his past Senate run, and what a lieutenant governor actually does all day.

Finally, we dig into the infrastructure drain of AI data centers and how it should be used in campaigns. Murphy uses his IT background to explain why these massive hubs redline the power grid while providing almost zero long-term local jobs, leading into a debate on why universal childcare is a much smarter economic investment for the state's aging population.

Murphy is the owner of a small business in Milwaukee called Big Bang LLC, he also ran for US Senate for the Democrats in Wisconsin, and holds degrees in economics and political science from UW-Milwaukee.

How much would it take for you to move to Fond du Lac?
That's one of the many topics discussed with Adam Murphy on Friday's The Rick Solem Show. Murphy is a small business owner, economist and &mdash; as we learn &mdash; handyman.
Before we get into moving to Fond du Lac and the political landscape of Wisconsin's governor's race &mdash; and whether they should just run on an anti-AI data center platform &mdash; we talk about Murphy remodeling his cottage and how that lost handyman art needs to be passed down to the next generation.
That segwayed nicely to Fond du Lac County trying to pay people to move there.
Murphy basically said there's not enough money in the world, but he did point out the dilemma for the area and the state in general with an aging and declining population, cities need more residents to stay alive.
But is Fond du Lac County's incentive package worth it?
We also looked at the governor's race, why Mandela Barnes gets unfair flak for his past Senate run, and what a lieutenant governor actually does all day.
Finally, we dig into the infrastructure drain of AI data centers and how it should be used in campaigns. Murphy uses his IT background to explain why these massive hubs redline the power grid while providing almost zero long-term local jobs, leading into a debate on why universal childcare is a much smarter economic investment for the state's aging population.
Murphy is the owner of a small business in Milwaukee called&nbsp;<a href="https://bigbangllc.com/">Big Bang LLC</a>, he also ran for US Senate for the Democrats in Wisconsin, and holds degrees in economics and political science from UW-Milwaukee.

How much would it take for you to move to Fond du Lac?

Brad Pitel in studio helping us preview the four-day July 4 celebration at Riverside Park.

Riverfest kicks off Thursday afternoon and ends with a firework show on the 4th of July.

Pitel, who is on the Riverfest board, talks about the wide array of acts from national country star Mitchell Tenpenny to the RCCW pro wrestling events, where they bring a ring to Riverside.

Pitel also talks about how Misty Lown's reign the Riverfest Commodore. Lown, owner of Misty's Dance Unlimited in Onalaska, is the first woman Commodore ever since Riverfest began in 1983.

Check out the full schedule for each day of Riverfest here.

Brad Pitel in studio helping us preview the four-day July 4 celebration at Riverside Park.
Riverfest kicks off Thursday afternoon and ends with a firework show on the 4th of July.
Pitel, who is on the Riverfest board, talks about the wide array of acts from national country star Mitchell Tenpenny to the RCCW pro wrestling events, where they bring a ring to Riverside.
Pitel also talks about how <a href="https://www.wizmnews.com/2026/05/13/misty-lown-named-2026-riverfest-commodore/">Misty Lown's reign the Riverfest Commodore</a>. Lown, owner of <a href="https://mistysdance.com/">Misty's Dance Unlimited</a> in Onalaska, is the first woman Commodore ever since Riverfest began in 1983.
Check out the full schedule for each day of <a href="https://www.riverfestlacrosse.com/eventschedule">Riverfest here</a>.

The Wisconsin election bleep show

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