Derrick Van Orden and Rebecca Cooke finally debated.

Did voters get the debate they deserved? It's the first one in the district for Van Orden since 2019.

William Garcia, Democratic Party chair of Wisconsin's 3rd Congressional District, stopped in studio to break down the matchup — from Van Orden’s attacks on Cooke to the fight over health care subsidies.

We also get into Wisconsin’s governor’s race, the state’s school funding problems and the money pouring into Republican Tom Tiffany’s campaign. 

Garcia argues that Wisconsin needs a new approach to funding public schools, while we look at how a campaign finance loophole has allowed three billionaires to funnel tens of millions of dollars toward Tiffany’s run for governor and other Republicans.

In this show:

• The Cooke-Van Orden debate: Why the first debate between the candidates came with so little promotion, why Garcia wanted more debates and how he viewed their approaches to policy and personal attacks.

• Van Orden’s health care vote: Garcia challenges Van Orden’s claim that he supported restoring Obamacare subsidies and explains the parliamentary maneuvering behind the vote.

• Public school funding: Wisconsin’s two-thirds funding standard, declining state aid and David Crowley’s push to redesign the school funding formula.

• Tiffany’s tax-cut plans: Who stands to benefit from the Republican governor candidate’s proposals — and what Wisconsin should do with its budget surplus.

• Billionaire campaign cash: How a campaign finance loophole helped funnel tens of millions of dollars from three billionaires through the Republican Party to Tom Tiffany.

• The data center debate: Why Garcia says Tiffany’s congressional voting record conflicts with his current position on data centers, and whether Wisconsin needs a statewide approach.

• The cost of politics: How big-money campaign spending shapes elections and why Garcia says campaign finance reform requires Democrats to win more seats.

• A legislator’s job: We also talk about what elected officials should be doing when the Legislature is out of session — and why public access to candidates matters.