‘The Circus’ comes to state for political documentary
“The Circus” has officially come to town.
The weekly documentary series on Showtime filmed in Wisconsin this week as part of a tour of five states and Washington, D.C., in five days. The footage is set to air during Sunday’s episode, “The Circus: Inside the Biggest Story on Earth.”
Show host Mark Halperin — who co-authored the popular political book “Game Change” — and the rest of the “Circus” crew stopped in Janesville and Milwaukee on Thursday to speak with voters about their opinions on President Donald Trump and his job performance so far.
Wisconsin stops included the shuttered General Motors plant in Janesville, a nearby bar, House Speaker Paul Ryan’s favorite Irish Pub and San Giorgio Pizzeria Napoletana in downtown Milwaukee.
Halperin also interviewed people about the Milwaukee School Board’s resolution declaring itself a safe haven for students and families threatened by deportation.
“People in Wisconsin, again people both opposed to the president and for him, are less hysterical, less excitable about what’s happened than you see on TV, on cable TV, or you see even among the politicians,” Halperin said in an interview with the Journal Sentinel. “There’s a calm and a confidence that, you know, the country’s not in some crisis, even if they’re very skeptical about the president or don’t like him at all.”
He added that Wisconsinites had “more of a grounded sensibility about it, often even a sense of humor about it.”
During his stop in Milwaukee, Halperin had dinner at San Giorgio with longtime conservative talk show hosts Vicki McKenna, Jerry Bader and Charlie Sykes.
Halperin said part of the inspiration for stopping in Wisconsin came from Trump’s loss in the 2016 Republican primary followed by his surprising win here in the November general election.
“Obviously, part of the reason to come here is the prominence that Wisconsin has played because of Reince Priebus and Paul Ryan and Gov. Scott Walker, but also because it was arguably in the nomination period the low point for the president and then in the general election arguably the high point,” Halperin said. “Of all the states he won, it was kind of the biggest surprise.”