@robertmentzer

Managing editor of news @WPR. Subscribe to the Wisconsin Today newsletter and the “Wisconsin Today: Morning News” podcast!! [email protected]

 Wausau, WI
wpr.org/newsletters
Joined October 2007
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2.6KMedia
Rob Mentzer retweeted
Joe Schulz@JoeSchulz3Oct 8
Both candidates running for Wisconsin governor agree that affordability is the state’s biggest challenge, but they’re offering starkly different ideas on how to address it. wpr.org/news/affordability-w…

Affordability is voters' top issue. Wisconsin governor candidates clash on addressing it.

Republican U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany’s plan addresses affordability primarily through tax cuts and deregulation, while Democratic Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley’s plan focuses on creating or...

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Apparently there is something called “natural” American cheese. How can that be? A WPR investigation. wpr.org/news/american-cheese…

'Natural’ American cheese? Wisconsin company says it's made a low-ingredient alternative

Wisconsin-based cheese company Sargento is hoping to update the processed classic to reflect how consumers are eating today.

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Found it interesting that Bayfield County Economic Development supported and then withdrew support for the proposal to make the Apostle Islands a national park. wpr.org/news/apostle-islands…

Should Apostle Islands be a national park? Some say proposal lacks community buy-in.

Two years ago, U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany first introduced a bill to redesignate the Apostle Islands as a national park. While some elected and economic development officials backed the proposal, it was...

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NEW: First post-primary head-to-head poll finds David Crowley leading Tom Tiffany by 4 points. Lots of caveats, of course. wpr.org/news/crowley-leading…

Crowley leads Tiffany by 4 points in new head-to-head poll of likely voters

A new poll of likely Wisconsin voters shows a tight race for governor, with Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley slightly leading Republican Congressman Tom Tiffany.

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Rob Mentzer retweeted
Matthew DeFour@MattD4thJun 20
Grateful to work with @Jmalewitz @deejhall and the rest of the @WisconsinWatch team on this investigative journalism/true crime story. Nearly 40 years after Shelly Hansen vanished in Wisconsin’s Northwoods, unsealed records reveal a hidden suspect wisconsinwatch.org/2026/06/w…

Nearly 40 years after Shelly Hansen vanished in Wisconsin’s Northwoods, unsealed records reveal a...

The Price County Sheriff’s Office obtained a search warrant for Michael D. Raskie’s DNA in 2008, but he wasn’t charged in Hansen’s case before he died in 2015.

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Some breaking news from @WPR this afternoon: A Trump-appointed judge has ordered the leader of Wisconsin’s largest mosque to be released from immigration detention, with criticism of the government’s arguments in the case.
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Here’s the story —> wpr.org/news/milwaukee-musli…

Milwaukee Muslim leader released from immigration detention after court ruling

The president of Wisconsin's largest mosque must be immediately released from detention as his immigration case moves forward, a federal judge ordered Thursday.

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How big was liberal judge Chris Taylor’s Supreme Court victory in Wisconsin? a) She won Dane County by more than any liberal candidate basically ever And b) You could remove every single vote from Dane County and she still would have won handily.
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Always read @SJohnsonWPR —> wpr.org/news/liberals-domina…

Liberals dominated Wisconsin's Supreme Court race. Will it carry over to November?

Liberal Justice-elect Chris Taylor's dominant victory continued two trends. Liberals can't seem to lose statewide judicial races. And the pendulum keeps swinging in their direction.

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Rob Mentzer retweeted
Molly Beck
@MollyBeckFeb 13
GOP congressional candidate named in $44M 'Ponzi scheme' settlement (via ⁦@RichKremer⁩) wpr.org/news/republican-cong…

Wisconsin GOP congressional candidate named in $44M settlement of alleged 'Ponzi scheme' lawsuit

Two years ago, Republican Paul Wassgren was involved in a $44 million settlement ending a class action lawsuit in which investors alleged the Florida-based company Wassgren represented orchestrated a...

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People are drinking more whole milk, less soy milk is up and "cottage cheese is having a real moment right now." WISCONSIN'S TIME TO SHINE BABY. wpr.org/news/americans-drank…

Americans drank more milk in 2024, reversing a decade-long decline

The latest federal data shows sales of milk beverages turned around in 2024, increasing by 358 million pounds or just under 1 percentage point from the previous year.

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WPR spoke to Somali Wisconsinites about being called “garbage” by the president of the United States. wpr.org/news/somali-resident…

Somali residents in Wisconsin uneasy following Trump comments, federal raids

Federal immigration "strike teams" are in Minnesota looking for undocumented Somali immigrants, after President Trump referred to them as "garbage" and said he doesn't want them in the U.S.

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I've been doing journalism a long time and don't recall a public official ever demanding a "public correction" of an entire story, and then proposing a bunch of fixes to the exact problems highlighted in the @CapTimes story. thecentersquare.com/wisconsi…

Wisconsin DPI updates teacher license database following criticism

(The Center Square) – Wisconsin’s Department of Public Instruction announced Tuesday it has launched a new online database related to teacher licenses in response to an investigation of how DPI

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Ron Johnson has been a very consistent defender of the filibuster, both as a member of the minority and majority party in the Senate. This is a big change!
Max Cohen@maxpcohen5 Nov 2025
Ron Johnson backs Trump’s call to eliminate the filibuster and said he backed Trump up during the breakfast meeting. “Most Republicans realize that the minute Democrats control the Senate, they’ll nuke the filibuster. So why be shmucks and let them do it first?”
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A WPR investigation. wpr.org/culture/asparagus-gr…
Why is there so much asparagus growing along the side of the road in Wisconsin?

ALT Why is there so much asparagus growing along the side of the road in Wisconsin?

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The McFarland Police Department posted this photo of a suspected drunk driver’s one-vehicle crash in which *no one was injured* if you can believe that.
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Rob Mentzer retweeted
Corri Hess@CorriHess28 Oct 2025
NEW: Nearly 400 Wisconsin children will lose Head Start next month due to the government shutdown. Another 1,100 will lose benefits in December if the shutdown continues wpr.org/news/400-wisconsin-c…

Nearly 400 Wisconsin children will lose Head Start in November with government shut down

Nearly 400 Wisconsin children will lose access to Head Start services starting next month if the government shutdown continues. 

wpr.org
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This seems good
The Washington Post
@washingtonpost23 Oct 2025
Covid-19 vaccines, credited with saving millions of lives during the pandemic, set off a powerful alarm that rallies the human immune system against cancer and nearly doubles the median survival length of patients, according to a new retrospective study. wapo.st/4qmTVhl

Study finds mRNA coronavirus vaccines prolonged life of cancer patients

A study found that covid-19 vaccines appeared to awaken the immune system in lung and skin cancer patients, helping them live longer than those not vaccinated.

washingtonpost.com
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Interesting moment to do this press release
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Wild interview. Ryan Porter’s Riverwest home raided yesterday by FBI. He says agents interviewed him for 6 hours and decided not to press charges. Porter returned home later that day and told a WISN reporter — on camera — that he sells weed and cocaine, but it’s small potatoes.
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