WORT Local News

Here's your local news for Wednesday, November 6, 2024:

• We head to some Election Day watch parties,
• Have all the state and local election results you could want - including details on Senator Baldwin's narrow victory and the impact of Wisconsin's new voting maps,
• Analyze Dane County's role in the presidential election,
• Find out why faith leaders were praying yesterday outside some Madison area polling places,
• Learn more about public art – and its funding challenges,
• Broadcast the most comprehensive weather report on the airwaves,
• Travel back in time to 1965,
• And much more.

Welcome to the WORT Local News for Tuesday, November 5 — election day in Madison and across the nation.

On today's show, hosts Faye Parks and Chali Pittman share a special report. We speak with voters at the polls, and get the latest numbers from election officials.

Plus, we speak with several candidates at the top of the ballot and hear from democracy advocates.

Here's your local news for Monday, November 4, 2024:

• We find out how Wisconsin Democrats are drumming up support on Election Day eve,
• Ask Waukesha Mayor Shawn Reilly why he decided to back Kamala Harris,
• Take a look at the week in local government that lies ahead,
• Teach you how to make "the Aviation," a cocktail recipe that disappeared for more than 40 years,
• And much more.

Here's your local news for Thursday, October 31, 2024:

• We check in on the race for president, as both campaigns converge on Wisconsin,
• Learn more about old growth forests,
• Find out how the bump in public scrutiny is affecting election officials,
• Discuss the power of financial literacy,
• Take a closer look at heating pumps,
• Tell a ghostly tale,
• And much more.

Martin O’Malley is the Commissioner of the Social Security Administration. He was in Madison on Wednesday to visit a Social Security field office and host a panel discussion on the past, present and future of Social Security. Commissioner O’Malley stopped by the WORT studio for a longform interview with WORT's Jeannine Ramsey. This is that extended conversation.

O'Malley says one of Social Security's challenges - a crisis in customer service - is already here, and he's calling on administrative funding for the program to be restored to 1.2% of benefits paid. That wouldn't add to the national debt but would help improve customer service.

Meanwhile, Social Security is facing another challenge on the horizon: a potential reduction in benefits in 2035. O'Malley says that income inequality has driven faster-than-expected depletion of the Social Security surplus.

But that cliff would only hit if Congress doesn't act. And one potential fix would be to increase the cap on earnings that can be taxed. In 2025, the cap is estimated to rise to $174,900 -- meaning if you make more than that, you will only pay taxes on the first $174,900 of your income, while someone making less than the cap pays taxes on their full income.

Some senators have proposed raising the cap, with some suggesting it should be on income above $400,000 or $250,000, though proposals to eliminate the cap completely aren't common.

Meanwhile, we ask the Commissioner for his thoughts on the false claim that illegal immigrants are bankrupting the system. He says, "To say that illegal immigrants are bankrupting Social Security is patently false. It is not true. They cannot earn benefits. However, they do pay in for the rest of us, $22 billion a year that they're never, ever going to be able to see a dime of coming back to them in benefits. And they get zero credit for it."

You can create a Social Security account and see the status of your current or future benefit at ssa.gov/myaccount.

Here's your local news for Wednesday, October 30, 2024:

• We'll head to a public test of election equipment,
• Ask folks to share their opinions on early voting,
• Calculate campaign donations in the Madison area,
• Talk about the twin issues facing Social Security with Martin O'Malley, Commissioner of the Social Security Administration,
• Broadcast the most in-depth weather report on the airwaves,
• Travel back in time to 1962,
• And much more.

Here's your local news for Tuesday, October 29, 2024:

• We'll take a closer look at the statewide referendum on next week's ballot,
• Interview the Republican candidate running to represent district 80 in the state Assembly,
• Talk food and farm issues in the 2024 election,
• Check in with student voters at UW-Madison,
• Try to find the elusive rattlesnake,
• And much more.

Here's your local news for Monday, October 28, 2024:

• We share an update on Madison's police oversight efforts,
• Find out why customers at a Stoughton area pizza joint got more than they bargained for last week,
• Attend this year's Olive Harvest event,
• Share the government’s calendar for the week ahead,
• Mark an important anniversary in the Prohibition era,
• Take a closer look at a popular cocktail,
• Review two new documentaries,
• And much more.

Here's your local news for Thursday, October 24, 2024:

• We learn more about the Northern Lights,
• Find out why advocates say a federal agency isn't doing enough to regulate factory farms,
• Hear how immigrants are contributing to the revival of the Great Lakes region,
• Take a closer look at Brady disclosures in Wisconsin,
• Celebrate fall weather fishing,
• Check in on Madison's Flamingos,
• And much more.

Here's your local news for Wednesday, October 23, 2024:

• We get the latest data on gun-related deaths in Wisconsin,
• Hear about private school closures across the country,
• Find out why Catholic dioceses are disavowing "The Catholic Tribune,"
• Talk election security with Dane County Clerk Scott McDonell,
• Broadcast the most comprehensive weather report on the airwaves,
• Travel back in time to some sixties-era campaign visits,
• And much more.