Wisconsin Fish Hatchery Closure Proves Next Governor Must Understand State's Critical Industry

Democrat Mandela Barnes still stumped over identity of a cartoon fish while northern Wisconsin reels from the DNR's Brule River Fish Hatchery closure.

Self-proclaimed environmentalist Mandela Barnes, seeking Democratic primary nomination for Wisconsin governor, tries so hard to connect with the state's anglers and outdoorsmen. This winter, Barnes sat for an interview on a frozen lake—a weird place to chill in Wisconsin unless you brought a fishing pole and an auger to cut a hole through the ice.

He didn't.

More recently, Barnes posted his vision for the state, the Wisconsin Way, on social media and included a logo that looks just like a barracuda… a saltwater fish not found in Wisconsin. People tried to correct him, but he doubled down, insisting the blue fish with stripes, extra fins, and yellow eyes is a "cartoon musky."

It isn't.

There really ought to be a test wannabe governors must pass before proving they can identify the elusive, brown-green speckled muskellunge, better known locally as "musky."

The musky is the Wisconsin state fish, a powerful tourism draw, and an economic booster in rural areas—one now threatened by the state's recent closure of the Brule River Fish Hatchery in Douglas County. The hatchery stocks thousands of fish into Lake Superior. Wisconsin's fishing attracts nearly 1.3 million anglers to Wisconsin waters annually who generate $2.3 billion in economic activity each year, according to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR).

If it seems petty to tease Barnes about a cartoon fish, consider what the gaffe reveals about him as a professional politician. If Barnes can't admit when he is wrong about the small stuff he can't be trusted to be a square dealer on the big stuff governors must oversee. No one would be mad if Barnes simply admitted he made a mistake.

We're all tired of politicians telling us not to believe our own eyes. The dude in a dress is a real woman. The 2020 election was the most secure in history. Covid shots will prevent illness. Joe Biden is lucid. The logo is a musky, and Milwaukee-raised Barnes is relatable to Northwoods anglers.

None of that is true as long as thinking people have eyes to see.

Fish On! Fish Off

If Barnes had ever landed a lunker the experience would be pleasantly seared in his memory, and he'd be alarmed instead of silent over the DNR's abrupt closure of the Brule River Fish Hatchery. The closure comes after an ill-timed funding request and a threat from the DNR that turned out to be a political bait-and-switch negotiation best understood in a timeline:

2023-State Sen. Romaine Quinn (R) tours Brule River Fish Hatchery with DNR. The now 99-year-old operation needed repairs.

2023-Quinn allocated $2.5 million in the state budget to repair Brule and Les Voight fish hatcheries.

2023- Gov. Tony Evers (D) vetoed the funding.

March 19, 2026- Wisconsin State Senate officially adjourns for the biennium.

March 27-DNR sends letter to the Joint Committee on Finance—eight days after lawmakers went home for the session—demanding $2.8 million from the segregated Conservation Trust Fund which includes a fish and wildlife account for fisheries, by April 12 (that's 16 days) or they would reduce stocking muskies in Wisconsin waterways by 70 percent, Walleye by 45 percent , and cut down on stocking trout too. The DNR also intended to close both the Osceola and Brule River Fish Hatcheries. There's the DNR's bait: give us money or lose the fish.

May 13 (30 days after DNR's deadline)-the out of session Joint Finance Committee agrees to give DNR $2.8 million on the condition that $1.3 million is spent on fish culture and stocking, and it cannot be used as staff salaries. The money was explicitly intended to maintain stocking levels and save Brule Hatchery.

June 11 (29 days after securing funding)-DNR closes Brule River Fish Hatchery, saying it needs repairs. (Too bad Evers vetoed money for repairs in 2023.) In a June 11 email to a Senate staffer, the DNR cites the Joint Finance Committee's "delayed action" numerous times as the reason DNR will be stocking fewer fish in waterways, and Osceola and Brule River Fish Hatcheries will remain closed. There's the DNR's switch. Thanks for the money. You're losing fish anyway. 

Fishing is for Republicans

The sense in political fishing circles is, it's easier to cut Lake Superior fish stocking because there are fewer state senators in the rural (Republican majority) areas compared to the more populated Lake Michigan region where there's four or five senators.

"All the cuts to any inland lakes and Lake Superior were going to happen up here, and they weren't going to happen on the Lake Michigan side," said Quinn, who represents the area near Brule Hatchery. "So, the fact that they weren't going to treat the entire state fairly in terms of who was to receive less stocking . . . was pretty frustrating, and I think politically motivated, frankly."

After receiving an additional $2.8 million The DNR did not inform Quinn that they intend to keep the hatchery closed anyway. He learned about it in the news

"Now they're trying to say, 'Well, we had some federal money that came in a little short and caused us a bit of a shortfall.' When you run an agency with five revenue streams, you have contingency plans. You don't say, 'Oh, whoops, one revenue stream came in a little short, we're going to make cuts for the whole year and not give the legislature time to respond.,” Quinn said

The DNR wants to increase the cost of hunting and fishing licenses and stamps, the main source of revenue for fish and wildlife. Deer hunting licenses bring in the most money but fishing accounts for a respectable 28 percent. In fiscal year 2024–25, resident fishing licenses raised $12.4 million for the DNR, and nonresident fishing licenses raised $11.2 million.

Stocking fewer fish won't result in selling more fishing licenses, especially considering fishing and hunting license sales have been in decline for years, except archery licenses which have increased.

But sportsmen are paying for more than hunting and fishing when they buy stamps and licenses. A May 12, Legislative Fiscal Bureau report shows the DNR "has typically underspent the wildlife management and fisheries management subprograms . . . to meet increasing state parks system operational costs."

Between 2021 and 2025, DNR underspent the combined budgeted amount for the wildlife management and fisheries management subprograms by an average of $1.1 million annually. From 2015 to 2025, DNR has decreased by 25 percent, the number of fish stocked in Wisconsin waterways.

It is not fair to single out Mandela Barnes alone, just because of his silly cartoon fish. His fellow gubernatorial candidates are not alarmed at the DNR's fisheries closings. Democrats in general don't care about hunting and fishing because sportsmen and women tend to lean Republican. Fish stocking has steadily declined under Evers. Let's hope that trend turns around.

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