Wisconsin's Badger Institute provoked a firestorm of controversy by uninviting national conservative commentator Rich Lowry...

In many battleground states, former President Donald Trump is in better position this election cycle compared to the same time in the 2020 election cycle when he lost to Joe Biden.

In six of the seven consensus states, Trump’s polling average is better than the same point four years ago. Ninety-three electoral college votes ride on Pennsylvania (19), North Carolina (16), Georgia (16), Michigan (15), Arizona (11), Wisconsin (10) and Nevada (six).

Biden won six of those states in 2020 – North Carolina was the exception – and the electoral college 306-232.

Polling information from Project 538 is included in the following state by state summaries.

Michigan

Michigan is a perfect example of this trend.

At this point in 2020, Biden led Trump by nearly 8%. This year, Vice President Kamala Harris leads Trump by only 1.8%, which is well within the margin of error.

Harris polls better than Biden when he was in the race in June and July. Michigan has the trifecta of Democrats for governor and majorities in both chambers of the Legislature.

Biden was leading Trump by 7.9% in polling heading into Election Day. He then won by just 2.8%.

This year, Harris' 5% behind Biden could be pivotal.

Arizona

Arizona is seeing a very similar trend to Michigan.

In 2020, Biden led Trump by an average of 4.8%. Compared to Trump’s lead today in the state of nearly 1%, polling has Trump up nearly 6% compared to his 2020 average.

Harris is still within the margin of error, usually about 3% to 4% on most polls.

Biden led the polls by 2.6% going into Election Day and won by 11,000 votes, or just 0.3%.

Georgia

In Georgia, Trump is polling just 0.4% ahead of Harris – down from 1.4% over Biden four years ago.

In 2020, Biden began leading Trump on Oct. 1. By Election Day, he was 1.2% ahead of Trump. The winning difference was about 11,000 votes, or just 0.2%.

Since 1980, this was only one of two times that the Republican presidential candidate lost in Georgia.

Nevada

While Harris is ahead of Trump in Nevada by 0.5%, it is 5% less than Biden's lead at the same time. Trump never led in polling in the final three months.

This election season, Trump has led the polls numerous times since early August.

In 2020, Biden was polling 5.3% ahead of Trump on Election Day. Yet, he won by only 2.4%.

North Carolina

North Carolina is particularly interesting. It has been the focus of both campaigns over the last few weeks, and Democrats believe they can win the state for the first time since Barack Obama won it in 2008.

Trump outperformed the polls here both four and eight years ago, winning the state twice.

In 2020, Biden was polling 1.8% ahead of Trump going into Election Day and lost by 1.3%. The Democrat never trailed in the final months, and was 1.2% ahead at this same time.

Trump has led all four polls in the last week since his debate against Harris, and his consensus lead is a slim 0.3%.

Pennsylvania

In Pennsylvania, Harris is polling 3% behind where Biden was polling at this point in 2020. She is leading Trump by 1.4%, while Biden was leading him by 4.8%.

On Election Day, Biden was nearly 5% ahead of Trump, and won by 1.2%.

Wisconsin

In Wisconsin, Trump has significantly narrowed Harris' recent lead.

At this point in 2020, Biden was leading by 6.7%, but he eventually finished on Election Day with polling a whopping 8.4% ahead of Trump. He won by just 0.8%.

This time around, Harris is ahead only 1.6%, or within the margin of error. Since August, Trump has slowly been narrowing her lead over him.

Wisconsin Right Now traveled to Springfield, Ohio, this month to find the real story beyond...

(The Center Square) – There are new challenges to Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers’ 400-year school funding increase.

Both the Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty and the Institute for Reforming Government recently filed amicus briefs with the Wisconsin Supreme Court, challenging the governor's veto power.

“The partial veto power is a tool in the governor’s toolbelt, but it has a specific purpose. When it comes to fiscal policy, the partial veto power is a one-way rachet. It empowers the governor to tighten public spending and taxation by eliminating or reducing budgetary items, but it does not permit the reverse. The governor cannot use the partial veto power to increase either appropriations or revenue. That function requires a different tool – legislative power – which is not in the governor’s toolbelt,” IRGs brief states.

Evers changed a line in the current state budget to change a two-year school funding increase into a 400-year increase.

IRG CEO C.J. Szafir said the governor’s veto is both “unconstitutional and sets a disastrous precedent for policy.”

“Separation of powers is worth the fighting for and while we do not file a lot of briefs, we felt this was a debate that we couldn't sit out,” Szafir added.

WILL Attorney Skylar Croy called Evers’ veto both “dangerous and unconstitutional.”

“No executive should have the power to single handedly manipulate bills into something entirely beyond the legislature’s intentions. Continuing to operate this way will create negative consequences far into the future,” Croy added.

Evers changed the line “for the limit for the 2023-2024 school year and the 2024-2025 school year, add $325” to read “For the limit for 2023-2425, add $325.”

WILL’s argument to the court states that while the Wisconsin Constitution gives the governor a limited partial veto power.

“Appropriation bills may be approved in whole or in part by the governor, and the part approved shall become law,” the constitution states.

“However, a ‘part’ refers to a ‘part’ of the policy proposal in the bill, not the alphanumeric characters,” WILL argues to the court.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court in June said it would consider the case and has asked for arguments.

Evers has defended the 400-year funding increase as a way to “provide school districts with predictable long-term increases for the foreseeable future.”

The court has not said when it will hear oral arguments in the case.

Wisconsin Right Now is in Springfield, Ohio, reporting on the ground. Stay tuned for more. Springfield,...

(The Center Square) – Fond du Lac County District Attorney Eric Toney said Wisconsin needs a proper process to check its voter rolls for noncitizens and remove them, ensuring election integrity in the state.

Currently, election commissions cannot check their rolls with the Wisconsin Department of Transportation to ensure an estimated 90,000 individuals who are currently legally in the state, who can get a drivers license, do not register to vote.

Toney was one of several officials statewide to take part in a Tuesday morning press conference from the John K. MacIver Institute for Public Policy about Wisconsin election integrity.

Wisconsin election managers recently pushed for an Office of Election Transparency and Compliance, with a $2 million budget request for the office approved by the Wisconsin Election Commission.

“We want to make sure that it is easy to vote but hard to cheat,” said Republican Congressman Tom Tiffany, who holds the state’s Seventh Congressional seat.

Tiffany pointed to the SAVE Act, pushed by Wisconsin U.S. Rep. Bryan Steil, Chairman of the Committee on House Administration. The bill passed the House in July with a 221-198 vote but has not been taken up by the Senate.

Tiffany said that the bill would setup a process ensuring that only citizens are registered to vote and that states must check voter rolls to ensure that is true. Ohio and Arizona were just some of the states where noncitizens have been removed from rolls.

Dodge County Sheriff Dale Schmidt, meanwhile, said that it’s essential that each citizen gets just one vote and that election laws are followed. He pointed to a Supreme Court ruling that only the voter can put their own ballot in a ballot drop box as one way to ensure that.

Dodge County does not use drop boxes because it did not have proper monitoring to ensure that only the voter was dropping a ballot. The only exception to the rule comes if a person is bedridden.

“Election laws are just like any other laws, they must be followed,” Schmidt said.

Toney called election and ballot integrity a nonpartisan issue that all in Wisconsin should want to ensure. He said that it would be more difficult for someone in the country illegally to vote because they cannot get a driver’s license but it essential to have a process in place to check those who are in the country legally but are not allowed to vote.

“It is a felony to do this and it is a deportable offense,” Tiffany said.

House Oversight Committee Chair Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., threatened Tuesday to subpoena the head of border patrol, saying he has not received answers when asked about Vice President Kamala Harris' role as border czar.

Comer sent a letter to Troy Miller, the acting commissioner for the U.S. Customs and Border Protection, requesting documents and communications regarding Harris' role in working with CBP to address the border crisis.

"The deadline to produce has passed, and CBP has failed to provide the Committee with any responsive documents, communications, or even a timeline for when CBP intends to comply with the request," the letter said.

CBP did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

"If CBP continues to withhold documents and communications on this matter, the Committee will consider alternative measures to obtain this information, including through the compulsory process," Comer said in the letter.

Harris has tried to distance herself from her role in handling the border issue for President Joe Biden, in part because the border has been in crisis throughout the administration with millions of illegal immigrants pouring into the U.S. in just under four years.

Several high-profile crimes committed by illegal immigrants have helped push the issue to the forefront as the number of migrants coming into the U.S. under the Biden administration alone has surpassed the total population of most U.S. states.

Now, lawmakers want answers about what exactly Harris did, or didn't do, to handle the border crisis.

"It is important the Committee and the American people understand Vice President Harris's role as the border czar in the ongoing border crisis," the letter said. "The mass illegal entry and release of illegal aliens into the United States under the Biden-Harris Administration has contributed to murders, sexual assaults, and serious bodily injuries committed against numerous Americans at the hands of illegal aliens. These crimes should have never happened."

Three samplings in battleground North Carolina have been initiated since last week’s presidential debate, and Republican former President Donald Trump has led Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris in each.

All, however, remain within the margin of error. And a close finish through 49 more days to Nov. 5 is anticipated by nationwide analysts watching the state.

On the heels of his 1.7% lead from the Quantus Polls and News analysis released Friday, Trump over the weekend picked up a 48.9%-45.9% edge from AmericanGreatness/TIPP Insights and 48.4%-46% from The Trafalgar Group. Sponsors, respectively, were Trending Politics, American Greatness and Trafalgar Group.

RealClear Polling, without the Quantus sampling, has the state remaining statistically even at Trump plus 0.4%. There is no margin of error factored in, though most polls range from nearly 3% to at or just under 4%. This means both candidates are about 3% away from saying he or she leads the state.

Project 538 also computes Trump ahead by 0.4% at 47.5%-47.1%.

North Carolina is among seven states considered pivotal to this election, the group collectively holding 93 electoral college votes. Pennsylvania has 19, North Carolina and Georgia 16 each, Michigan 15, Arizona 11, Wisconsin 10 and Nevada six.

To wit on importance, Harris was in the state last Thursday, her running mate Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz on Tuesday, Trump's running mate U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio comes Wednesday, and Trump is slated for weather-battered Wilmington on Saturday.

Trafalgar Group surveyed 1,094 likely voters on Wednesday and Thursday of last week and had a 2.9% margin of error. American Greatness surveyed 973 likely voters on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday and a had a 3.2% margin of error.

Since Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964, the only Democrats in 14 election cycles since to carry North Carolina were Jimmy Carter (1976) and Barack Obama (2008). Neither repeated four years later.

Trump has won the state twice, beating Hillary Clinton in 2016 and the ticket of Joe Biden-Harris in 2020. The differences were narrow, 49.8%-46.2% over Clinton and 49.9%-48.6% over Biden.

American Greatness was created in 2016, billing itself as “the leading voice of the next generation of American Conservatism.” TechnoMetrica conducted the American Greatness/TIPP survey.

Trafalgar polls and surveys originated in 2016. It is based in Atlanta; does release methodology for its polling contrary to published reports; and boasts of an “approach to polling” that “is markedly different from most of the industry.” RealClear Politics named it the best polling firm of the 2016 presidential race in a remarkable rookie of the year accomplishment.

Quantus Polls and News, acquired since the poll came out by Quantus Insights, operates off the emerging substack journalism model. It provides election forecasting, economic and political analysis and commentary.

This is an opinion column. Is anyone else sick and tired of this? I lost faith...

(The Center Square) – A Dane County Circuit court ruled against former Independent party presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr., siding with the Wisconsin Election Commission’s decision to keep Kennedy’s name on the state’s ballot this November, despite his withdrawal from the race and request for removal.

Kennedy’s lawsuit argued that, absent a compelling reason, the state’s different treatment for third party candidates violates the Equal Protection Clause and the First Amendment. It claimed the different deadlines for ballot withdrawal for major party candidates versus third-party candidates – Sept. 3 for the former and Aug. 6 for the latter – are unlawfully discriminatory.

Judge Stephen E. Ehlke disagreed, saying Kennedy’s request was essentially that the WEC ignore Wisconsin election law, which only allows a certified candidate to exit the ballot in case of death.

“Courts are required to apply the law as written, not as some party wishes it were written,” Ehlke said. “Under the statute, the commission clearly was correct when it certified Mr. Kennedy for inclusion on the November ballot.”

Ehlke also said Kennedy’s First and Fourteenth amendment rights were not violated, given that “there is no constitutional right to have your name removed from a ballot after you voluntarily submitted your nomination papers with full knowledge that the statutes don’t allow you to withdraw your name.”

After withdrawing from the presidential race and endorsing former President Donald Trump, Kennedy had sent a letter Aug. 23 to the WEC, requesting his name be removed from the ballot.

But in its certification of presidential candidates five days later, the WEC voted 5-1 to put Kennedy’s name on the ballot, saying he had missed the Aug. 6 deadline for third party candidates to withdraw from the General Election. Following the decision, county clerks were authorized to begin printing ballots and Kennedy filed his lawsuit.

“The bottom line here is that Mr. Kennedy has no one to blame but himself if he didn’t want to be on the ballot,” Ehlke said.

(The Center Square) – The University of Wisconsin is telling school leaders not to pick sides in political debates after adopting a new viewpoint-neutral policy at all of its campuses.

“The Board acknowledges that “different ideas in the university community will often and quite naturally conflict,” and stipulates that, in instances of such conflict, “It is for the members of the university community, not for the institution itself, to make those judgments for themselves,” the policy states. “In accordance with RPD 4-21, and in order to uphold and protect academic freedom, freedom of expression, and an environment in which competing ideas can be freely discussed and debated by all members of the university community, it is necessary that all official statements issued in the name of and on behalf of the institution are limited to matters that directly affect the operations and mission of the university, and that maintain viewpoint neutrality in any reference to a matter of political or social controversy.”

The new policy comes after last spring’s campus protests over the war in Gaza and accusations the chancellor at UW-Milwaukee sided with protesters against Jewish students.

“This policy applies to UW System Administration and all UW universities, including all units. It also applies to any person seeking to issue public statements in the name of and on behalf of any university or unit in their official capacity as an employee, or who could be reasonably perceived as issuing a public statement in the name of and on behalf of any university or unit under their purview,” the policy adds.

A UW spokesperson says the new policy is intended to create an opportunity for more people to speak their minds and is not aimed at limiting the political speech of UW faculty, staff members or students.

UW-Madison’s chancellor said when school leaders pick a side, no matter how well intended, they can crowd out other points of view.

“When an institutional leader — whether a chancellor, a dean, or a department chair — speaks in an apparently “official” way on an issue of controversy or concern, it may, however inadvertently, discourage free expression among the plurality of voices within our university. Such position statements may chill the broad exchange of ideas that is foundational to our enterprise,” Chancellor Jennifer Mnookin wrote in a statement.

Mnookin said she has written statements that take political sides, both at UW-Madison and at past universities.

But she now says that strategy is harmful.

“For our campus to best thrive as a center of curiosity, debate, and knowledge-creation, our institutional leadership should show restraint and limit, as much as possible, taking sides in these discussions. If UW–Madison is to be a place of ‘fearless sifting and winnowing’ by its faculty, students, and staff, then the leaders of the university, as a whole and of its units, must not favor the sifters over the winnowers and vice-versa,” Mnookin added.

The new policy went into effect immediately. UW leaders say it does not need to be approved by regents first.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Monday declared the Venezuelan gang, Tren De Aragua (TDA) as a foreign terrorist organization. Texas Department of Public Safety is aggressively targeting gang members who were released into country by Biden administration, he said.

“I will not allow them to use Texas as a base of operations to terrorize our citizens,” Abbott said at a news conference in Houston. “Texas is a law and order state and I will ensure that law enforcement has every tool they need to keep our community safe.”

Tren De Aragua is characterized as “MS13 on steroids,” Abbott said, referring to a violent El Salvadoran gang. It’s “the largest criminal organization in Venezuela … that has now expanded to a transnational criminal organization … dominating the international flow of migrants from South America through Mexico into the United States.”

They are known for brutal violence, murder, kidnapping, extortion, bribery and human and drug trafficking, Abbott said, linked to more than 100 law enforcement investigations nationwide. TDA gang members were “involved in the brutal attack and assault” of New York Police Department officers, the murder of Georgia medical student Laken Riley, and many others, he said.

“In other countries infiltrated by TDA, history has shown they first flood the countries with military age Venezuelan men. Next, they begin to establish a base of operations. Finally, TDA begins a spree of violent and bloody criminal activity. We've now seen the beginnings of these operations in the state of Texas.”

Abbott said wouldn't allow that to happen under his watch and officially declared TDA a foreign terrorist organization.

“We will bring the full weight of the government against the TDA,” he said. "The designation will enable Texas courts to halt their operations using civil asset forfeiture, take their property, and use enhanced criminal penalties to keep them in jail behind bars for longer periods of time.”

Texas DPS has launched a statewide operation to target TDA gang members, elevated it to a Tier 1 gang, the most violent, and is developing a database to track gang members, characterizations, and arrests. No such database currently exists at the local, state or federal level.

“TDA gangsters are like cockroaches,” Texas DPS Commander Steve McCraw said. “They multiply quickly, small intrusions into communities become infestations if not aggressively pursued. These Venezuelan thugs … are highly combative. They're violent, they’re certainly adaptable and they always are involved in criminal activities that first start with human smuggling … of migrants.” They’re involved in extortion, kidnappings, rape, assaults, and sex trafficking, he said. “Once they’re in place, they expand their criminal operations … pushing out other criminal gangs operating in that area.”

McCraw said Texas anti-gang centers already have ongoing criminal enterprise investigations against TDA. They are also asking federal partners to share information on the whereabouts of Venezuelan migrants. “That's very important, because unfortunately, you're either a TDA member or a victim of TDA. This information would be extremely helpful in identifying additional TDA members and their victims.”

He also said that some may “find it harsh using the terms ‘infestation’ and ‘cockroaches.’ But all you have to do is interview or spend some time with some victims … and you'll understand” how dangerous they are.

Abbott made the announcement after a judge ordered that a hotel in El Paso be shut down after it allegedly harbored violent illegal border crossers, including TDA gang members. Texas DPS special agents were involved with arrests as well as arresting 100 suspected TDA gang members involved in El Paso riots, Abbott said.

The U.S. Department of State has designated the gang, which began in the Tocorón Prison in Aragua, Venezuela, as a transnational criminal organization. It’s offering up to $12 million in rewards for information leading to the arrests and/or convictions of its leaders who are believed to be in Columbia and Venezuela.

TDA gang members have recently become entrenched in major cities nationwide, Abbott and other law enforcement officials argue, because after illegally entering the country, they were released into the U.S. because of Biden administration policies. Since fiscal 2021 through July, they total nearly 856,000, the greatest number in U.S. history.

Another 115,000 Venezuelans were granted parole through a program created by Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. The overwhelming majority are single military age adults, according to CBP data. The parole program has been directly linked to perpetrators committing violent crimes against Americans, including TDA gang members, who are being arrested nationwide, The Center Square reported.

In Texas, law enforcement officials have arrested more than 3,000 Venezuelan illegal border crossers; more than 200 are wanted, Abbott said.

Federal authorities in Florida on Monday filed two gun charges against the suspect in what...

The perimeter around the Florida golf course where a gunman with an AK-47 style rifle was perched while former President Donald Trump played nearby was not secure because Trump isn't the sitting president, authorities said.

The FBI is investigating the incident as the second assassination attempt on Trump's life since July. The suspect is in custody.

During a news conference after the gunman was spotted pointing the nuzzle of the rifle through a chain-link fence toward the course, Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw said the suspect was able to get within 300 to 500 yards of Trump because the former president and 2024 Republican presidential nominee doesn't get the same level of security as a sitting president.

"Well, you got to understand, the golf course is surrounded by shrubbery, so when somebody gets into the shrubbery, they're pretty much out of sight, all right," Bradshaw said after a question about how the gunman could get so close. "And at this level that he is at right now, he's not the sitting president. If he was, we would have [the area around the] golf course surrounded. But because he's not, security is limited to the areas that the Secret Service deems possible. So I would imagine that the next time he comes at a golf course, there'll probably be a little bit more people around the perimeter. But the Secret Service did exactly what they should have done. They provided exactly what the protection should have been, and their agent did a fantastic job."

Sunday's incident occurred two months after Trump was the target of an assassination attempt at a campaign rally in Butler, Pa. Trump was grazed by a bullet in his ear in the Pennsylvania shooting just two days before the start of the Republican National Convention. The suspect in the earlier assassination attempt was shot ad killed at the scene.

The Secret Service was widely criticized for its lax security efforts after the Pennsylvania attempt. Kimberly Cheatle, the director of the U.S. Secret Service, resigned under heavy pressure.

(The Center Square) – There is more criticism from the Wisconsin capitol after Milwaukee Public Schools missed another deadline on another state-required report.

Sen. Van Wanggaard, R-Racine, said MPS missed last month’s deadline to turn its District Aid Certification into the state’s Department of Public Instruction.

“This was the very first step under the agreed-to Corrective Action Plan and they missed it,” Wanggaard said in a statement. “MPS and State Superintendent Jill Underly agreed that submitting this report on time and accurate was ‘high-priority and high-urgency.’”

MPS agreed to that Corrective Action Plan after the city’s schools failed to turn in two other required financial reports last year.

So far, the failure to file those reports, as well as other reporting failures with MPS’ federal Head Start program, have cost Milwaukee Schools $17 million. MPS has said it could lose as much as $50 million because of its financial reporting problems and their fallout.

Wanggaard said this is not just a Milwaukee problem.

“MPS is so big, and so heavily state-aided, its financial decisions have a huge impact on schools statewide,” Wanggaard added. “This literally impacts every single district in Wisconsin. Superintendent Underly must impose consequences on MPS. She can’t just ignore the problem like she did before Milwaukee’s $256 million referendum that hurt most every district in the state.”

Records show the state superintendent knew about Milwaukee’s late reports, and the looming financial penalties the district faced, before voters cast their ballots on that referendum.

Wanggaard said Underly now needs to do something about MPS’ problems.

“I don’t care if MPS is one of 100 schools that haven’t filed their Aid Certification yet. MPS is the one under the Corrective Action Plan,” Wanggaard said. “Deadlines are deadlines. Without consequences, there’s no reason to meet a deadline. Everyone knows that.”

MPS has said it is working to properly complete and submit its late reports.

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(The Center Square) – A state lawmaker wants a full accounting of how the University of Wisconsin System has thousands of more administrators now than it did 30 years ago, despite having fewer teachers.

State Rep. David Steffen told The Center Square on Wednesday the UW system has hired 6,000 administrators over the past 30 years.

“What are the students and the taxpayers getting as a result of that investment?” Steffen asked. “That becomes very difficult, especially when you dig deeper to realize that it really isn't an increase in the faculty, the in-classroom personnel. These are all ancillary, secondary, non-essential type of additions to the head count.”

Steffen pointed to a memo from the Legislative Fiscal Bureau that showed in the 1992-93 school year, the UW had 26,360 full time employees. In the 2022-23 school year, the UW’s headcount grew to 33,538.

The additions are all out of the classroom. The LFB’s memo shows the faculty headcount in 1992-93 was 7,181. That number fell to 5,729 in 2022-23.

“How are all of these ancillary and secondary staff positions providing a better product?” Steffen asked.

Staffen said he is pressing ahead with his questions because the University of Wisconsin is asking for nearly $1 billion more in the next state budget.

Steffen said lawmakers and taxpayers need to know how the university is spending the $7.5 billion it currently has before lawmakers can give the school more money.

“So, we have an entity that obviously has not applied the same amount of effort to providing better services at a lower cost with less people. They are the only entity in the world that appears to have taken that approach,” Steffen said. “And that's unfortunate for the taxpayers, especially when you are looking to make an ask at the same time for $855 million dollars more in your upcoming budget.”

University leaders say they need the $855 million more to avoid a tax increase, and to keep the university competitive with other colleges and universities.

Gov. Tony Evers is expected to include the university’s request in his proposed budget.

Steffen said he’s shared the LFB information on the rise in administrative staffers with other lawmakers, including the legislature’s committees on higher education, and the Legislative Study Committee that is looking into the UW’s future.

“This is the sort of issue that needs to receive a tremendous amount of attention. I'm glad that we have this now in September, so that for the next four or five months before the governor's budget is presented, we can begin that communication with the university to make sure that it's clear to them we need better justification for your existing funding in any new funding increases,” Steffen added. “No longer can the response be ‘Give us the money because we're the UW system. Period.’.”