I'm curious from your perspective, Tim, what kinds of projects are most likely to move forward next in downtown Milwaukee?

Yeah, it's a great question.

And if you go back to 2015, downtown has seen a stunning number of almost $5.5 billion of current investment during that time and almost another $4 billion proposed.

And so what you see are new housing largely, some hotel, and some downtown office space.

And we often think about downtown as a place for people who live and work downtown.

But more than 104,000 people commute every day from outside Milwaukee County into Milwaukee County to work.

And almost 30,000 of those people come downtown to work.

What are the downtowns that Milwaukee should be looking at or maybe watching? And what are they doing that you think our city could learn from?

I'm curious from your perspective, Tim, what kinds of projects are most likely to move forward next in downtown Milwaukee?

Yeah, it, it's a great question, and if you go back to 2015, downtown has seen a stunning number, uh, of almost five and a half billion dollars of current investment during that time and almost another $4 billion proposed.

And, and so what you see are new housing largely, some hotel, uh, and some downtown office space.

And we often think about downtown as a place for people who live and work downtown, but m- more than 104,000 people commute every day from outside Milwaukee County into Milwaukee County to work, and almost 30,000 of those people come downtown to work.

So it's not just downtown for downtown.

Downtown is really an economic anchor for the region, and some 88,000 people work downtown on a daily basis, with almost a third of those coming from outside Milwaukee County.

So it's incredibly important, not just to the city, but to the economic vitality of the metro Milwaukee area.

What are the downtowns that Milwaukee should be looking at or maybe watching, and, and what are they doing that you think our city could learn from?

Why are you here?

Because we're at a pivotal moment in U.S.-Israel relations and world history.

And, of course, the Middle East right now is at a fulcrum of history.

And it's important that we chart the proper course, both domestic and abroad.

And those issues are not delinked.

And I think it's important to be here to send that message.

So you're speaking, have you spoke yet? I speak right after we speak.

us use their bases when we got to go

There's some new figures out that suggest where your best value might be in terms of a degree.

Yeah, and it's even not so much which university.

What they did was compare the cost of college, full-in, tuition, room, books, board, all that kind of stuff, against what you earn over the first 10 years and then net that, right? So the cost of your college and here are my earnings over the first 10 years and how much above the cost of college do I earn in those 10 years and which degrees put me in the positive and which degrees actually cost me because I'm earning less than the cost of that college degree.

So some obvious ones, electrical engineer, you're going to make about $655,000 more over that 10-year period than the cost of your college.

Chemical engineering, $575,000 more.

An accountant, $356,000.

Social science, which I was kind of surprised at being a graduate in the social science field, $279,000 more.

Are people staying here as adults? Are they fleeing? The things that we've talked about here in weeks past, but how does Wisconsin fare as a state to live and work by comparison, looking at the things that I think matter most to those who would choose to have a spot in Wisconsin?

There's some new figures out that suggest where your best value might be in terms of a degree.

Yeah, and it's even not so much which university.

What they did was compare the cost of college, full-in, tuition, room, books, board, all that kind of stuff, against what you earn over the first 10 years and then net that, right? So the cost of your college and here are my earnings over the first 10 years and how much above the cost of college do I earn in those 10 years and which degrees put me in the positive and which degrees actually cost me because I'm earning less than the cost of that college degree.

So some obvious ones, electrical engineer, you're going to make about $655,000 more over that 10-year period than the cost of your college.

Chemical engineering, $575,000 more.

An accountant, $356,000.

Social science, which I was kind of surprised at being a graduate in the social science field, $279,000 more.

But How does Wisconsin fare as a state to live and work by comparison, looking at the things that I think matter most to those who would choose to have a spot in Wisconsin?

The results of these reports, what does it say about how Metro Milwaukee fares when people are looking to relocate?

Yeah, it's a very interesting question.

And, you know, as we've talked about this, kind of growing our workforce population is critical to the prosperity of the community and in our economy.

What Wisconsin has going for it actually is that 71% of the people relocating that were born here are in Wisconsin, and that's way above the national average of about 41%.

So we kind of keep our homegrown to a great extent.

The challenge is people migrating out, leaving Wisconsin or leaving Metro Milwaukee.

And interestingly enough, the three states that we exchange population with the most are Illinois and Minnesota, which I understand the proximity, and then this one threw me for a bit, Texas.

At what point does population stagnation start limiting economic growth?

I guess, right off the top, you know, what are your thoughts on, on the season so far and what you're seeing, and what are some solutions? Where do we go from here?

You hit the nail on the head, Tim, where when you said we've come to accept this a- as normal, and that's just to me unacceptable.

I refuse to accept that we are supposed to accept this as normal.

And, you know, that makes me unpopular in a lot of circles, certainly with some of our, you know, traditionalists who, who are telling us this is just the way it's gonna be.

Um, and I refuse to accept that.

And, and, you know, when you look at every other disaster that, uh, I'll just talk about the United States for the time being, but the US is subject to, um, we don't accept natural disasters to wipe out cities and towns and ways of life, um, in any other scenario.

I mean, think about hurricanes.

Yeah

What happened?

Well, listen, Iran plays the long game, and I think you, as everyone knows, the president knows, that they're a patient group.

Uh, no one ever accused them of being stupid.

They are radical and crazy, and they're bloodthirsty savages, but they are not stupid.

And they have invested billions of dollars all over the world over the past half century in universities and media outlets to make sure that they win the messaging war.

And I think you can, uh, say pretty confidently over the past couple of years, especially these past six to seven months, they've bought off a lot of people to spread their ideology.

They've done it through mass migration.

What's the, what's the reality?

unseated a Democrat, like because of open borders, in part.

I mean, it, it was a generational race, ours was, because the control of the Senate, of course, was, uh, arguably just as important as Trump winning the presidency.

Because if he won the presidency and didn't have the Senate, you know, we wouldn't be able to confirm any cabinet nominees, wouldn't be able to enact any of his policies, and he would've been getting impeached from day one.

So, uh, our Senate race was the race that decided that.

And to your point, a huge aspect of the '24 race across the board from coast to coast was the Americans realizing exactly what Nick is saying, which is Western civilization, our way of life, our entire bedrock of what modern Western society is built on is threatened by weaponized mass migration.

And you see it all over the world, and our southern border became ground zero because our government decided they were going to open the border.

It wasn't an accident.

Uh, by whom and for what purpose?

What was going on on the Senate floor that day that caused you to go down there and give that speech?

Well, Scott, you know, most folks don't understand the, the peculiar ongoings of the US Senate.

It is a strange place, as you know.

And, uh, as a freshman, I, I'm the youngest Republican senator and, and, and the most junior, so we have to do something called presiding, which means we have to sit in the big throne there for hours a day and, and basically manage the floor of the Senate.

And I am the most, uh, leading presider as far as I've sat in that chair more than any other senator this Congress, because I am the youngest, newest guy.

And so I have to sit there every day and have for the last, you know, several months and listen to the Democrats stand up and attack, uh, our president, our troops, defend these lunatic savages who've been killing Americans in brutal, terrible ways for, for decades.

And, you know, this day in particular, as I was sitting there last Thursday, just a day prior, we had four war fighters be brought home to Dover Air Force Base.

Do you have any for us today?

What was going on on the Senate floor that day that caused you to go down there and give that speech?

Well, Scott, you know, most folks don't understand the peculiar ongoings of the U.S. Senate.

It is a strange place, as you know.

And as a freshman, I'm the youngest Republican senator and the most junior.

So we have to do with something called presiding, which means we have to sit in the big throne there for hours a day and basically manage the floor of the Senate.

And I am the most leading presider as far as I've sat in that chair more than any other senator of this Congress because I am the youngest, newest guy.

And so I have to sit there every day and have for the last, you know, several months and listen to the Democrats stand up and attack our president, our troops, defend these lunatic savages who've been killing Americans in brutal, terrible ways for decades.

Do you have any for us today?

Will Wisconsin have enough workers to meet the needs of its economy over the next 20 years?

Yeah, so here's a little perspective.

If you go back to the 1970s and look at a decade, 23 million people entered the workforce in the 1970s.

By the 2000s, we were down to 18 million entering the workforce.

The decade we're in right now, from 2020 to 2030, we're gonna have 9.1 million entrants, new entrants to the workforce.

That's the lowest since 1960.

Here's where it gets scary.

But, uh, does this fire at Lincoln Avenue School signal a, a greater issue that MPS needs to tackle?

Will Wisconsin have enough workers to meet the needs of its economy over the next 20 years?

Yeah, so here's a little perspective.

If you go back to the 1970s and look at a decade, 23 million people entered the workforce in the 1970s.

By the 2000s, we were down to 18 million entering the workforce.

The decade we're in right now, from 2020 to 2030, we're going to have 9.1 million new entrants to the workforce.

That's the lowest since 1960.

Here's where it gets scary.

But does this fire at Lincoln Avenue School signal a greater issue that NPS needs to tackle?

But why not? Why should we ask people to pay taxes on inflation, especially Joe Biden's inflation?

Well, it's time to get back to common sense.

And, of course, we're at a point where we're trying to coalesce around Reconciliation 3.0. We've got to rebuild the military.

We want to get the SAVE Act passed.

And the reality is, though, as we're seeing, our majorities are thin, and we've got to do what we can actually get done.

And I think Speaker Johnson is trying to deliver the message that he's got a pretty narrow window here to get something done before the midterms are upon us, and he's going to try to deliver it.

What can you tell us on that one?

Well, the focus here, Larry, as you know, is Russia, of course, in coordination with China, with North Korea, with Iran, with formerly Venezuela, and basically every state actor that seeks to undermine America and our place in the world.

So how could taxpayers ultimately be impacted as the price to replace the courthouse continues to go up? Are we talking about higher property taxes or do we need some more state funding? Is there another financing model here?

Yeah, I mean, I certainly think there's some state funding that will be involved because a lot of what's carried out in the courthouse is mandated by the state.

But to a large extent, the bulk of this will fall on Milwaukee County taxpayers.

I think When I looked last, when the courthouse was estimated to cost about $485 million, it was going to cost the homeowner that had a $250,000 house about $88 a year.

So you could expect that to double.

But this is not the only deferred issue that the county has.

I think there's $500 million of deferred maintenance in the parks.

When you look at the country through an economic lens, what gives you the most optimism?

So how could taxpayers ultimately be impacted as the price to replace the courthouse continues to go up? Are we talking about higher property taxes or do we need some more state funding? Is there another financing model here?

Yeah, I mean, I certainly think there's some state funding that will be involved because a lot of what's carried out in the courthouse is mandated by the state.

But to a large extent, the bulk of this will fall on Milwaukee County taxpayers.

I think When I looked last, when the courthouse was estimated to cost about $485 million, it was going to cost the homeowner that had a $250,000 house about $88 a year.

So you could expect that to double.

But this is not the only deferred issue that the county has.

I think there's $500 million of deferred maintenance in the parks.

When you look at the country through an economic lens, what gives you the most optimism?

Do you support that? And how badly do we need that money?

I absolutely do support it.

And I think one thing that we have to remember is it's not just about Iran.

This is about our ability as the American empire, which we are.

We are the sole bastion of free market capitalist freedom, individual liberty in the world.

And it doesn't please me to say that, seeing Canada and Australia and Western Europe start to devolve towards democracy.

kind of this socialist brand with, you know, who knows what going on in all those places.

So taking a look at where we have things right now, where could we be doing better? Where could we be moving our ships and our carriers and putting more emphasis of our military in different parts of the world that are hotspots for terrorism? We don't often talk about Northern Africa, but Northern Africa is a hotspot.

Do you support that, and, and how badly do we need that money?

money?I absolutely do support it.

And, and I think one thing that we have to remember is it's not just about Iran.

This is about our ability as the American empire, which we are.

We are the sole bastion of free market capitalist freedom, individual liberty in the world.

And it doesn't please me to say that, seeing Canada and Australia and Western Europe start to devolve towards kind of this, this socialist brand with, you know, who, who knows what going on in all those places.

Like, w- we're the last place that is really propping up the global economy with true entrepreneurial innovation capitalist growth.

Why haven't we?

Or do you think this is spreading throughout the p- uh, your opposing party?

I think it's, uh, a systemic widespread for all Democrats, Brian.

I mean, this isn't just New York.

We're seeing the DSA brand spread from coast to coast, and it's kind of this imported red green alliance which most people don't know about, but you know, Marxism and Islamism go back a long ways.

Mamdani's the poster child for it.

The, the red green alliance, which is the Marxist, socialist, communist ideology of constant social revolution, of rising up against whatever e- establishment there is, uh, has been wedded to the Islamist movement for quite some time.

I mean, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps, oddly enough, is connected to this.

Why would they be looking at Columbia University and celebrating and have communication between them, like Mahmoud Khalil a- and some of those links? Don't you think that needs to be fully explored?

So, Senator, do you think this is a New York bubble with the rise of socialists? Because you're on the floor with Democrats on a regular basis, or do you think this is spreading throughout the p- uh, your opposing party?

I think it's, uh, a systemic widespread for all Democrats, Brian.

I mean, this isn't just New York.

We're seeing the DSA brand spread from coast to coast, and it's kind of this imported red-green alliance which most people don't know about.

But, you know, Marxism and Islamism go back a long ways, and Mamdani's the poster child for it.

The, the red-green alliance, which is the Marxist, socialist, communist ideology of constant social revolution, of rising up against whatever e- establishment there is, uh, has been wedded to the Islamist movement for quite some time.

I mean, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps, oddly enough, is connected to this.

Why would they be looking at Columbia University and celebrating and have communication between them, like Mahmoud Khalil a- and some of those links? Don't you think that needs to be fully explored?

What do you think is going on there?

Well, I think it's no secret that in the administration, I think you have a little bit different ideologies with how we're going to approach this problem.

I think you have some, like Stephen Wyckoff, who said very clearly, he's like, I'm a deal guy.

I'm a real estate deal man.

I'm going to try to make a deal anywhere I can.

And that's his mission.

That's why the president's brought him on a special envoy is to make deals.

Right, and Vice President Vance announced very proudly that some of this money was going to be spent on American farm foods and products, but the Iranians immediately contradicted that and said actually no, they had not promised that at all.

But most of the big ones aren't.

Yeah, I think our Nordic partners, you know, Estonia is probably there, and Poland, as you said, some of the shining partners there, that they really understand what those threats look like.

But as you mentioned, so many of the others have been absent, and especially these latest campaigns against Iran, which, of course, the Iranian issue affects all of us.

They want all of Western civilization gone.

They don't just hate America.

They want all free Western countries to be subjugated to their global caliphate.

So we could have used a lot more help from Europe and the campaign thus far.

I mean, is there any way we can get your whole party in the Senate to back him and drive this thing through?

What is leading to this? And nationally, where does Milwaukee compare to other medium market cities across the country?

Yeah, another good question there, I think, are like four factors that are just coming together, the confluence of four factors.

Housing demand during and after the pandemic.

You've got all these millennials entering the market.

You've got rising mortgage rates.

And what that's done is really put a squeeze on the lower price points.

And starter homes are defined as kind of the lower third of the market.

How are we ranking in 2026? And how is the mix, the number of companies changed and evolved over the years?

What is leading to this? And nationally, where does Milwaukee compare to other medium market cities across the country?

Yeah, another good question there, I think, are like four factors that are just coming together, the confluence of four factors.

Housing demand during and after the pandemic.

You've got all these millennials entering the market.

You've got rising mortgage rates.

And what that's done is really put a squeeze on the lower price points.

And starter homes are defined as kind of the lower third of the market.

How are we ranking in 2026? And how is the mix, the number of companies changed and evolved over the years?

Do you feel good about all the things going on?

I'm incredibly proud to see the capability of our many women uniform displayed at this level.

What we have in the U.S. military is an all-volunteer force of some of the most dedicated, capable people on the planet.

And they are capable of governing their systems, the human-machine interface.

that the military represents is such an important interface because it takes the very best of humans and, of course, it takes the very best of our machines and it puts them together, whether it's a stealth fighter, a submarine, you know, parachuting out of a plane, a helicopter, whatever it is.

And our soldiers, sailors, airmen, marines are trained so well and they're so capable.

And this Iran conflict is showing.

I said, how does it feel to be from a drug state?