Did Madison and Dane County just cancel Thanksgiving? Our political podcasters talk turkey about the latest COVID-19 restrictions locally and across Wisconsin. Milfred won't invite Hands to his house for a holiday dinner if Dane County Executive Joe Parisi is going to be outside with binoculars trying to bust them for a public health violation. Hands proposes moving Thanksgiving and Christmas to the spring, which would allow him to eat a drumstick while watching a baseball game. Though local liberals appear to be going overboard with restrictions to try to stop the virus, state Republicans are doing next to nothing to stem the coronavirus. The best news is that a vaccine appears close to putting this pandemic to rest.

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Milfred and Hands recap the 2020 election, higher turnout, the eroding suburbs and Dane County surge. President Donald Trump isn't conceding to President-elect Joe Biden just yet and might not ever. But if history is a guide, the president's pledge to recount Wisconsin's votes won't change much. 

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Phil Hands threatens to switch his vote if the Democrats keep calling him at home. Scott Milfred wants the begging for campaign cash to finally end. He counts 15 requests for his money from myriad candidates over just 12 hours last week -- and he's never given a politician a dime. On this week’s political podcast, Milfred and Hands deliver their last licks on the 2020 election, with shots at Trump, paranoid Democrats, and a reminder that the spring election was safe -- so Tuesday's vote should be, too. Milfred and Hands also warn pollsters that they're in big trouble if they get the presidential election wrong again. Hands looks forward to drawing Biden in the future. Milfred warns that, even if Trump loses on Tuesday, he might run for president again in 2024.

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Milfred and Hands harpoon the latest pitch for a full-time Madison City Council that would lead to entrenched politicians raising tens of thousands of dollars in campaign cash to try to keep their jobs. A better way to improve the council is to reduce the number of committees aldermen and alderwomen serve on while embracing technology to make their public service more efficient. Our political podcasters play and comment on audio clips from recent city meetings debating the merits of enshrining professional politicians at City Hall.

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Having interviewed dozens of candidates in recent weeks for the Wisconsin Legislature in the Nov. 3 election, Milfred and Hands unveil the State Journal editorial board's endorsements. They also explain the newspaper's recommendation of Joe Biden for president. Hands gives advice to politicians for how they can appear in his cartoons. Milfred touts the honesty of a lawmaker who reminded the editorial board that he had promised years ago he wouldn't run again.

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Madison's congressman says he's progressive and pragmatic. That might sound contradictory to some. But in U.S. Rep. Mark Pocan's case, it actually rings true, given his efforts to befriend and work with colleagues he sharply disagrees with to get things done. The Democrat from rural Dane County tells Milfred and Hands about being flamed on Twitter -- from the left. He tells about his recent visit to his hometown of Kenosha, where the police shooting of Jacob Blake led to mass protests, senseless destruction and two subsequent deaths. Pocan wants to adopt national training standards for police, and he agrees with the State Journal editorial board's push for body cameras on officers. Pocan touts his efforts to support UW-Madison on the House Appropriations Committee. This includes securing money for ag research. A magician in his youth, he has forged an unlikely friendship with another politician who dabbled in magic -- a staunch conservative from Alabama who wants to help farmers, too.

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Milfred and Hands recap the Wisconsin moments and blooper at the Democratic National Convention. The four-day infomercial touting Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden was based in MIlwaukee. But most delegates and media stayed home because of the pandemic. Still, the event was largely successful for the Democrats, given that Biden performed well and all those digital connections came through. Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes couldn't get Biden's name quite right during his national moment in front of the cameras. Gov. Tony Evers was boring -- a trait that's more appreciated than ever given President Donald Trump's chaotic tenure. Gwen Moore had the best rhyme. Tammy Baldwin made the most of her prime-time address, though public television skipped it. 

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Milfred and Hands assess the long list of candidates for the Wisconsin Senate seat representing Madison. They reveal who the State Journal editorial board is endorsing in the race and why. The winner of the Aug. 11 Democratic primary will replace Sen. Fred Risser, who is retiring after more than a half century in office. (No Republicans are seeking the post.) The editorial board interviewed six of the hopefuls for the seat. Our opinionated podcasters play audio clips from those meetings, and talk about the strengths and weaknesses of each contender. 

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Milfred and Hands play and comment on the latest campaign messages from Donald Trump, Joe Biden and a host of special interest groups hoping to influence the Nov. 3 election. Trump's allies go back 30 years to find faults with Biden they hope will re-resonate now. Biden and Democrats are fixating on Trump's failings with the coronavirus pandemic. Curiously, the TV ads have been running in just about every Wisconsin media market except Madison. Trump is behind in the polls, but he was behind in 2016, too, when he squeaked out victory. Our editorial board members reference "Hamilton," Trump's exaggerated baseball career, and Biden's touchy-feely habit that the Democratic nominee oddly embraces in his ad about character. With only 118 days before the November election, the presidential campaign ads are just the beginning of an onslaught targeting the airwaves in our swingiest of swing states.

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Milfred and Hands ask Sheri Carter, Madison's first black female City Council president, about race, police, protesters and what white people in the capital city don't understand about the African American experience here. "The civil rights movement never ended," she says, recalling growing up in Madison with what today would be described as helicopter parents on the South Side. Her parents came here in the 1950s from Louisiana, and her father called Madison "a breath of fresh air" in comparison. But Madison still has stark disparities that Carter wants to address. And in recent weeks, protests over the police killing of George Floyd, an unarmed black man in Minneapolis, have led large protests on State Street in Madison, late-night looting, the toppling of statues on the Capitol Square, and senseless violence. A strong leader during turbulent times, Carter has a knack for pulling people together. But she has no plans to run for mayor anytime soon (though she dodged a question about Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway.) 

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