Click on this image to see a short clip from our "Get Out The Vote" tour stop in Viroqua, WI, where musicians Tom Kastle and Tud Bowden played "This Land is Your Land" on the famous "Childless Cat Ladies Unite" truck.
Hi Friends,
I'm simply overjoyed to report that over the last two weeks, we, along with our partner organizations Planned Parenthood Advocates and Citizen Action of Wisconsin, signed up over 195 volunteers in five rural (ish) Wisconsin cities to help "Get Out The Vote" this coming October.
Starting in Minocqua and moving to Platteville, La Crosse, Viroqua, and finally Eau Claire, we met with extremely enthusiastic and patriotic Wisconsinites willing to roll up their sleeves and work to save America's Democracy.
Although my activism generally comes in the form of mass emails written on quiet Sunday mornings, I was uplifted by the infectious positive energy that sprang from event attendees.
There was a palpable joy in the air at each stop, and I sensed that the folks I met believed that not only could we beat Trump in November, but we could also elect a progressive majority in our Assembly and start making some real progress in Wisconsin--a state that's been stunted by Republican nihilism for the last 15 years.
My team and I are taking a breather this weekend, but after restocking our taprooms in Minocqua and Madison with beer on Monday, we'll be back on tour next Tuesday through Friday. Here's where we're going and a run-down of the local progressive superstars we've recruited to speak at each event.
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9/24, Iron River, White Winter Winery, 6-8pm
- Laura Gapske, former State Assembly candidate
- Shawnu Ksicinski, head of Progress North (our GOTV partner)
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9/25, Hudson, Hop and Barrel Brewing, 7-9 pm
- Justin Terbeest, owner of Hop and Barrel Brewing
- Sarah Yacoub, former Executive Director of our Super PAC and State Assembly candidate
- Patty Schachtner, former State Senator
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9/26, Stevens Point, Pfiffner Building, 6-8 pm
- Joel Lewis, North Central Wisconsin organizer, Citizen Action of Wisconsin
- Meleesa Johnson, Exec. Dir. of Wisconsin Green Fire
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9/27, Wausau, Sylvan Hill Chalet, 6-8 pm
- Dan Barth, longtime environmental activist
- John Robinson, former Wausau Mayor, State Assemblyman, and current Marathon County Board Rep
If you'd still like to sign up to come to any of these events, here's the short form to fill out.
Last but not least, two more of our HOPE billboards went up last week in Wisconsin--in Eau Claire and Superior. I made sure to take a picture with one of them when I was in Eau Claire for the event last week.
We're still working on finding billboard availability in Hudson and funding three more billboards in Oshkosh, Appleton, and Green Bay. To put the rest of those billboards up will cost ~$10K, and to fully pay for the costs of the tour itself will be another $6K. If you’d like to chip in, please donate here.
That’s all I have for you this week.
It's a lot of work traveling around the state and helping recruit GOTV volunteers, but the effort is extremely rewarding. I'm satisfied that the Minocqua Brewing Company Super PAC and our partners are giving it our all to keep Wisconsin blue during this existential election season. Please join us or sign up to volunteer with your preferred progressive group throughout the month of October.
Thanks for reading, and thanks for sticking with the Minocqua Brewing Company.
Together, one beer at a time, let's not leave anything on the table between now and November 5th.
Kirk Bangstad
Owner, Minocqua Brewing Company
Founder, Minocqua Brewing Company Super PAC