Wisconsin moves to shut down anti-Trump brewery over minor permit violations

Wisconsin alcohol regulators are trying to shut down Minocqua Brewing over permit violations so trivial they read less like public-safety concerns than a scavenger hunt for reasons to punish the state's loudest anti-Trump brewery.

Wisconsin's Division of Alcohol Beverages is trying to revoke permits held by Minocqua Brewing Company, an outspoken progressive brewery that recently promised free beer on the day Donald Trump dies. Owner Kirk Bangstad says the cited violations are minor and that the punishment can only be political retaliation. The state says it is merely enforcing alcohol laws fairly and consistently. The brewery will continue to operate while it appeals.

Bangstad, a liberal activist who often posts anti-Trump messages on the company's social media accounts, said he plans to fight against the decision "tooth and nail" after receiving a letter from state officials dated July 15, and asked readers to donate to the brewery's legal defense fund.

"We need all the money we can get to sue the Department of Revenue and stay in business," Bangstad said in an email to The Independent.

"As you can imagine, I'm not taking this lying down," he wrote in the Substack post. "We're going to fight the state of Wisconsin tooth and nail, and once again, they'll have to pry me out of my taprooms before I stop selling beer to thirsty progressives who come to visit us."

Nothing says viewpoint-neutral enforcement like closing the brewery that mocks the president.

You may donate to the brewery's defense here.

Previously:
• 'No One Is Above the Law,' says anti-Trump ad airing on Fox News
• Watch Death Cab For Cutie's new anti-Trump video
• A DEVO founder's new video imagines Trump as a MAGA-zombie dictator