EP 65: The Underdogs that Could Save Democracy

Kristin and Kirk talked to “Iron Stache” Randy Bryce, the iron worker that tried to warn Wisconsin that former Governor Scott Walker was trying to ...

November 3, 2022

EP 64: Drop a Pebble in the Water

Pat, Kirk, and Kristin spoke with Senator Chris Larson about the grass roots energy needed to fuel progressives to vote during these last two weeks...

October 27, 2022

EP 63: We Have to Protect Wisconsin from a Veto-Proof Republican Majority

Synopsis: Kirk, Pat, and Kristin talk to candidates Kelly Westlund and Laura Gapske from the Superior/Ashland area of Northwest Wisconsin about ho...

October 22, 2022

EP 62: The Doomsday Scenario if Evers Loses

Kirk, Pat, and Kristin talk to Jim Santelle, Former US attorney for Wisconsin’s eastern district, on how there is a likely chance that if Wisconsin...

October 15, 2022

EP 61: Public Opinion be Damned

Pat and Kirk spoke with Charles Franklin, the Director of Wisconsin’s gold standard Marquette Law School Poll, about how negative ads can hurt cand...

October 7, 2022

EP 60: Que Sera Sera, Whatever Will Be Will Be

Pat and Kirk talk to Jill Normington, a professional political pollster currently working for Senator Tammy Baldwin and recently for democratic pri...

September 29, 2022

Ep 59: Nurses Stand Up for their Rights

Pat, Kristen, and Kirk speak with Becky Schacter, a nurse at UW Health, about the reasons nurses felt they needed to unionize. She then discusses ...

September 24, 2022

Ep 58: When Judges Play Politics

Kirk, Kristin, and Pat talked to former US Attorney Jim Santelle in Milwaukee about the decision to grant Trump a “Special Master” and hindering th...

September 16, 2022

Ep 57: Losing Our Innocence

Kristin and Kirk talked to Congressman Mark Pocan about his reactions to the January 6th hearings, and then talked to the Executive Director of the...

July 29, 2022

Ep 56: When Zealots Gain Power

Kirk, Kristin and Pat discuss the different ways that people who used to be considered on the extreme fringes of the political spectrum are now in ...

July 22, 2022

Ep 55: Peaceful Transition? Not These Guys

Kirk, Kristin and Pat discuss the latest Jan. 6 Committee hearing on the Trump campaign’s connection to the violent extremist groups. They talk to ...

July 15, 2022

Ep 54: Battle Cry

Kirk, Kristin and Pat discuss the right-wing takeover of the US Supreme Court and how the illogical repeal of Roe v. Wade is a harbinger of other r...

July 2, 2022

EP 53: Fake Electors and Real Mules

Kirk, Kristin and Pat visit again with attorney Mel Barnes of Law Forward to review the case of the fake electors, and attorneys Mark Leitner and J...

June 24, 2022

Ep 52: : I May Have Committed Some Light Treason

Kirk, Kristin and Pat talk to attorneys Mark Leitner and Joe Goode for a Wisconsin interpretation of what’s happening with the special congressiona...

June 18, 2022

Ep 51: Be a Light

Kirk, Kristin and Pat talk to Denise Gaumer Hutchison of the Wisconsin Public Education Network about the reality behind the claim that schools are...

June 11, 2022

EP 50: Running on Empty

Kirk, Kristin and Pat talk about the exhausting but rewarding process of getting on the ballot to run for office—and how some people who've tried t...

June 3, 2022

Ep 49: Playground Politics

Kirk, Kristin, and Pat talk about what some are doing in Wisconsin to ensure that our students stay safe when politicians fail to address the schoo...

May 28, 2022

Ep 48: Doctors, Lawyers, Guns, and (UW) Money

The lawyer is our own Sarah Yacoub, who is joined by Dr. Kristin Lyerly for some important updates. The guns on our streets are causing endless tra...

May 21, 2022

Ep 47: Taking Time to Save Democracy

Call them advocates, activists, or “democracy’s little helpers,” there are some folks who pay extra attention to policy issues and inform other vot...

May 13, 2022

EP 46: Enjoy in Moderation

Kirk, Sarah, and Pat talk about the leaked Supreme Court document indicating Roe v. Wade is about to be overturned. Dr. Kristin Lyerly, an obstetri...

May 7, 2022

Ep 45: Gone Country

Kirk, Sarah, and Pat talk about how the issues of rural Wisconsin should matter to everyone—especially certain big-city political types who keep wr...

April 29, 2022

Ep 44: Authoritarianism on the March

Kirk, Sarah, and Pat talk about the Wisconsin Supreme Court conservatives locking in criminally rigged maps for another decade. Conservatives are a...

April 22, 2022

Ep 43: Socioflakes!

Kirk, Sarah, and Pat talk about how tough-guy conservatives lose their credibility when they lose their cool and encourage violence. They also talk...

April 15, 2022

Ep 42: No Peace for the Insurrectionists

Kirk, Sarah, and Pat talk to John Bonifaz, president of Free Speech for the People, about the ongoing efforts in multiple states including Wisconsi...

April 8, 2022

Ep 41: Vote April 5 Like You Remember January 6

Kirk, Sarah, and Pat talk to the outgoing mayor of Merrill about the creeping authoritarianism that’s being found at all levels of government—feder...

March 31, 2022

Ep40: Oconto or Encanto?

Kirk, Sarah, and Pat debate their favorite counties. But first, the more serious topics of a US Supreme Court striking down new maps that were good...

March 25, 2022

Ep 39: May the 14th (Amendment) Be With You

Kirk, Sarah, and Pat talk to Milwaukee lawyers Joe Goode and Mark Leitner about the federal lawsuit they filed against Senator Ron Johnson and Cong...

March 17, 2022

Ep 38: New Maps, Who Dis?

Kirk, Sarah, and Pat talk to attorney Mel Barnes of Law Forward and political analyst Joe Zepecki about the new political maps Wisconsin voters wil...

March 11, 2022

Ep 37: Wisconsin’s Real Main Street Voice

Season 2, Episode 22 Kirk, Sarah, and Pat talk to Shawn Phetteplace of the Main Street Alliance about being a small business alternative to the big...

March 4, 2022

Ep. 36: Thank a Teacher

Kirk, Sarah, and Pat talk to state Sen. Chris Larson about holding responsible the fake electors who tried to sabotage the 2020 election. Larson an...

February 26, 2022

Ep35: Nobody’s Senator

Kirk, Sarah, and Pat talk to Bob Lynk, President of UAW local 578, and Tim Jacobson, Chief Steward, UAW local 578 about Oshkosh Defense jobs not co...

February 18, 2022

Ep 34: Matters of Honor and Trust

S2 E19, Show #34 Kirk, Sarah, and Pat talk to former DNR Secretary George Meyer about how Republicans have destroyed the honor system that guided s...

February 11, 2022

Ep 33: Protecting Choice in Wisconsin

S2, Ep 18 After introducing Minocqua Brewing Company’s new hard seltzer called Choice, where 5% of the profits go to Planned Parenthood of Wisconsi...

February 5, 2022

Ep32: Fighting the Real Election Fraud

Sarah, Kirk and Pat are joined by Congressman Mark Pocan to discuss his call for a federal investigation into Trump supporters who fraudulently pos...

January 28, 2022

Ep 31: Slaying the Gerrymander

Kirk and Pat are joined by Dr. Kristin Lyerly and former GOP State Sen. Dan Theno to talk about ongoing efforts to build public support for nonpart...

January 21, 2022

Ep. 30: King for a Day—and Then Some

Sarah, Kirk and Pat talk to Scott Thompson of Law Forward about the fraudulent electors in Wisconsin and elsewhere who tried to help Donald Trump o...

January 14, 2022

Ep29: Battleground: Wisconsin

Sarah, Kirk and Pat talk to Ann Jacobs, chair of the Wisconsin Elections Commission, about the anniversary of the Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection and how...

January 7, 2022

EP 28: Christmas Is More Than Words

Sarah, Kirk and Pat talk to Pastor Kris Kramer about the original lyrics to cherished Christmas songs and how those messages should guide our actio...

December 25, 2021

Ep 27: Of Maps and Mayors

Kirk and Pat talk to Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes Conway about Chief Inspector Gableman’s bumbling election investigation—and Law Forward attorney Do...

December 17, 2021

Ep 26: Local Control? You Believed That?

S2 E11, Show #26 Kirk, Sarah, and Pat talk about how conservatives used to claim they fought for local control, until they got control of the leve...

December 4, 2021

Ep 25: Shop Local, Serve Local

Kirk, Sarah and Pat discuss ways to shop local with a Marshfield coffee shop owner. And they talk to a Lincoln County Board member about how people...

November 26, 2021

Ep. 24: Murderous Vigilante or Self Defense?

Kirk, Sarah and Pat talk to Portage Co. District Attorney Louis Molepske and Keith Findley, a criminal law professor at UW-Madison about the Kyle R...

November 20, 2021

Ep. 23: Follow the Money

Kirk and Sarah talk to retired Wausau executive Lon Newman about why some his city’s elite are still donating to a member of the sedition caucus (T...

November 13, 2021

Ep. 22: What's Next, Kids in Coal Mines?

Kirk, Sarah and Pat talk to the author of a book about labor history in light of a Republican proposal to let 14-year-olds work until 11 p.m. Also,...

November 6, 2021

Ep 21: What Does and Doesn't Belong Up North

Kirk, Sarah and Pat talk to UpNorthNews reporter JT Cestkowski about his road trip covering stories in Ashland, Washburn, and a Culver's where he t...

October 30, 2021

Ep 20: Inspector Gableman

Get ready for frequent appearances by the Pink Panther theme song because Inspector Clouseau's replacement is on the case of the nonexistent electi...

October 22, 2021

Ep. 19: Schools Under Siege: A Right-Wing COVID Love Story

The politicians who’ve literally created toxic work environments are finally getting blowback. Kirk, Sarah, and Pat talk to a parent who’s filed th...

October 15, 2021

Ep. 18: The Legal Cavalry

Kirk, Sarah, and Pat talk to Doug Poland of Law Forward, a group dedicated to protecting Wisconsin from right-wing court assaults on democracy and ...

October 9, 2021

Ep. 17: The Brewery vs the Wayward School Boards

Only in Wisconsin could a brewery care more about kids' safety than some of our state's school boards. Kirk talks to his SuperPAC director and an a...

October 2, 2021

Ep. 16: Wake Me When September Ends

The Green Day song has never felt more relevant. Guest host Dr. Kristin Lyerly joins Kirk and Pat to discuss a long month and a long summer of watc...

September 25, 2021

Ep. 15: What Have We Learned?

Kristin, Kirk, and Pat talk to Rep. Jodi Emerson of Eau Claire about the final state budget bill passed by Republicans in our season finale. They c...

July 3, 2021

Ep.14: How to Blow a $4 Billion Surplus

Wisconsin has a once-in-a-generation opportunity to use a budget surplus to fix long-running problems. Instead, school students aren't getting anyt...

June 26, 2021

Ep. 13: PFAS and Clean Water Up North

Kirk, Kristin, and Pat talk to Zach Vruwink, city administrator in Rhinelander, and Doug Oitzinger, former mayor of Marinette, about GOP and WMC ef...

June 19, 2021

Ep. 12: Farmers, Fair Maps, and Fair Taxes

Kirk and Pat talk to Hans Breitenmoser, a Lincoln County dairy farmer and activist for putting an end to gerrymandered political maps. Kristin file...

June 12, 2021

Ep. 11: The Laundry List of Badness

June 5, 2021

Ep. 10: Dear White People

Kirk, Kristin, Kirk and Pat talk with Marathon County Board member Ka Lo about the difficulties and divisions that opened up when the board was ask...

May 22, 2021

Ep 9 What's This Button Do?

Kristin, Kirk, and Pat talk to Rep. Francesca Hong about the so-called labor shortage which is actually a red flag to fix our broken system for pay...

May 15, 2021

Ep 8 Ladies' Night!

Kristin, Kirk, and Pat talk about the resumption of social activities for those who’ve been doing the right things. Also, Rep. Evan Goyke about mas...

May 8, 2021

Ep 7 Cheeseheads and Chuckleheads

Kirk, Kristin, and Pat talk about the assorted characters who do everything from block vaccination progress to complain about Cardi B. Our guest is...

May 1, 2021

Ep 6 Holy Balls!

Kristin, Kirk and Pat are joined by Wausau Mayor Katie Rosenberg. Topics include goats, buckthorn, local government in northern Wisconsin, our new ...

April 24, 2021

Ep 5 Feel The Power... of Getting Nothing Done

Kirk and Pat are joined by State Rep. Jodi Emerson of Eau Claire to discuss the many ways Assembly Speaker Robin Vos wants to wield power: governo...

April 17, 2021

Ep. 4 - Radioactive

Kristin, Kirk and Pat on the radio! The show touches on fish fries, elk hunting, and even the pros and cons of what cheese should be the state cheese!

April 10, 2021

Ep. 3 - Trails and Tribulations

Kristin, Kirk and Pat discuss how local governments have to balance listening to businesses that want to attract trail riders, and residents who wa...

April 3, 2021

Ep. 2 - Up North Podcast - Squeaky Cheese and Smoking Meat

Pat Kreitlow from Up North News is joined by Kirk Bangstad of the Minocqua Brewing Company and Kristin Brey from “As Goes Wisconsin” in the Up Nort...

March 20, 2021

Ep. 1 - Up North Podcast - Only One Fishing Shanty Left On Lake Wissota

Pat Kreitlow from Up North News is joined by Kirk Bangstad of the Minocqua Brewing Company and Kristin Brey from “As Goes Wisconsin” in their first...

March 12, 2021

Up North Podcast Trailer

Launching March 12, 2021, the Up North Podcast will feature Pat Kreitlow, Kristin Brey, and Kirk Bangstad.

March 10, 2021