UP: Mining companies. The state Assembly approved, and then Gov. Scott Walker signed, a bill that would allow iron mining in the state, paving the way for a massive mine in the Penokee Hills in northern Wisconsin. Rep. Chris Taylor (D-Madison) criticizes the law, saying "the Wisconsin state Assembly sold out Wisconsin and our most precious assets to an out-of-state corporation at a bargain-basement price."
DOWN: Brett Hulsey. The Democratic assemblyman from Madison has been getting press lately for bizarre behavior, including bringing a box cutter to work to teach staffers self-defense. Even worse, an article about Hulsey in Sunday's Wisconsin State Journal was worthy of Oprah. He reportedly fought back tears as he talked about his pending divorce, abuse he endured as a child, and his trouble coping with high-stress politics. "It's hard for me right now," he tells the paper. And hard to watch.
