Last updated: June 2026
By Joe, Ripsaw Saloon — Last updated June 15, 2026
The news hit our feeds the same way it hits every small bar in Wisconsin: sideways, at 9:15 on a Saturday night. A brewery in Minocqua posted “we almost got #freebeerday” moments after shots rang out at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner. The internet exploded. FBI agents showed up. And every bar owner in the state felt the ripple.
We run a bar in Prentice — population about 525, give or take. We pour Old Fashioneds, serve Friday fish fry, and keep the conversations rolling. We don’t do partisan merch. We don’t promise free beer for anyone’s death. And we’re writing this because the Minocqua Brewing story isn’t just about one owner’s post. It’s about what happens to Wisconsin bar culture when politics walks through the door and refuses to leave.
What Actually Happened at Minocqua Brewing Company?
On April 25, 2026, as news broke of a shooting at the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner where President Trump and attendees were evacuated, the Minocqua Brewing Company’s Facebook page posted: “Well, we almost got #freebeerday. Either a brother or sister in the Resistance needs to work on their marksmanship or he faked another assassination to get a positive news cycle. We’ll never know. Regardless, we stand at the ready to pour free beer the day it happens.”
Owner Kirk Bangstad, a former Democratic candidate for Wisconsin’s 34th Assembly District who lost the 2020 general election, has run the brewery as an explicitly progressive brand for years. The “free beer day” campaign , promising free beer when Trump dies , predates the WHCA dinner incident. Fox News reported on the promotion as early as January 2026, when Bangstad said he’d welcome people celebrating Trump’s “impending death” with the caveat “no red hats allowed.”
Rebecca Cooke, a Democratic congressional candidate who previously worked for Bangstad, has not publicly addressed the posts despite calls from the NRCC to condemn her former employer by name. RNC spokeswoman Delanie Bomar called the posts “disgusting behavior.” The silence from Wisconsin Democrats has been notable — and noticeable at bars like ours where customers of every affiliation ask why nobody in the party is willing to say this crossed a line.
Within days of the April post, the FBI and Secret Service confirmed they were investigating. Bangstad livestreamed a five-minute interview with two men in suits questioning whether he knew anyone who wanted to harm the president. The brewery also posted a Secret Service agent’s voicemail and phone number, urging followers to call and “ask this Secret Service agent to stand down.”
Why Wisconsin Bar Owners Should Care
Here’s the part the national coverage skips: the fallout doesn’t stay in Minocqua. When a brewery in our state makes international news for celebrating an assassination attempt, every bar in Wisconsin owns a piece of the stereotype.
We’ve been pouring drinks long enough to know that Wisconsin bar culture is built on something real: showing up for your neighbors, whether you agree with them or not. The fish fry at the Friday night fish fry doesn’t ask your party registration. The stool next to you at any Northwoods bar doesn’t come with a loyalty test.
Bangstad’s stunt reinforces the worst national caricature of Wisconsin: that our bars are just political agitprop with taps. It makes it harder for the rest of us who pour drinks for a living and keep politics off the bar menu because we actually like all our customers.
The Legal Reality: Free Speech Has Hard Edges
Bangstad has framed the free beer promotion as protected speech. The legal picture is more complicated.
Federal law (18 U.S.C. § 871) makes it a crime to knowingly and willfully make any threat to take the life of the president. Courts have generally drawn a line between abstract political hyperbole and specific threats. A brewery offering a promotional event tied to a president’s death sits in uncomfortable territory. The Secret Service investigates all perceived threats against protectees, and their joint statement with the FBI confirmed they conducted a “voluntary interview” with Bangstad , standard procedure when speech brushes up against the statutory line.
Meanwhile, Bangstad’s other legal troubles predate this incident. Wisconsin Public Radio reported he was charged in a harassment case tied to a dispute with a local newspaper publisher, and local reporting confirmed he entered a no-contest plea in a disorderly conduct case, with a guilty finding earlier this year. None of this is about the free beer post specifically, but it paints a picture of someone who uses his bar as a platform rather than a gathering place.
What This Means for Bars Like Ours
We’re not going to pretend this doesn’t affect us. When people Google “Wisconsin bar” and see headlines about a brewery owner promising free beer for a president’s death, it colors every taproom in the state. We’ve had customers from out of state ask us , half joking, half not , whether we’re “one of those political bars.”
We’re not. Ripsaw Saloon exists to serve good drinks and good food in a place where people can actually talk to each other. We accept crypto tips and regular tips from anyone who walks through the door, regardless of how they vote. That’s not neutrality for the sake of it. That’s how a bar stays a bar and not a campaign office.
The Bigger Pattern: When Bars Become Battlegrounds
The Minocqua situation isn’t happening in isolation. An Idaho bar owner made national news for offering free beer to anyone assisting ICE with deportations. That owner also received death threats. Two bars, two ends of the political spectrum, same fundamental mistake: turning a neighborhood gathering spot into a partisan battleground.
In Wisconsin, bars have always been third places , not home, not work, but somewhere in between. They’re where you run into your neighbor who put up the wrong yard sign and still pass them a napkin. When bar owners weaponize their platforms , left or right , they don’t just alienate half their potential customers. They degrade the social fabric that makes Wisconsin bars worth going to in the first place.
FAQ
Is the Minocqua Brewing “free beer day” promotion legal?
That’s for federal investigators and potentially the courts to decide. The First Amendment protects a wide range of political speech, but 18 U.S.C. § 871 criminalizes threats against the president’s life. A promotional offer tied to a president’s death pushes the boundary. The FBI and Secret Service have confirmed an ongoing investigation, and Bangstad was interviewed by federal agents. No charges related to the free beer post have been reported as of this writing.
Who is Kirk Bangstad?
Kirk Bangstad is the owner of Minocqua Brewing Company in Minocqua, Wisconsin. He ran as a Democrat for Wisconsin’s 34th Assembly District in 2020 and lost. He founded the Minocqua Brewing Company super PAC, which targets Trump and Republican candidates. He previously sued to keep Trump off Wisconsin ballots before the 2024 election, and he was found guilty in a disorderly conduct case in April 2026 related to a dispute with a local newspaper publisher.
What happened at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner?
On April 25, 2026, a man identified as Cole Allen, 31, of Torrance, California, allegedly attempted to assassinate President Trump at the WHCA Dinner at the Washington Hilton. Allen is accused of trying to breach a Secret Service checkpoint with a loaded 12-gauge shotgun and other weapons. He was apprehended before reaching the ballroom. He faces federal charges including attempted assassination of the president, discharge of a firearm during a crime of violence, and transporting a firearm across state lines. A judge ordered him held without bail.
Does this affect other Wisconsin bars?
Indirectly, yes. National coverage of Bangstad’s promotion links “Wisconsin bar” to “political extremism” in search results and public perception. For bar owners who keep politics off the menu , which is most of us , that association is unwelcome and unfair. It’s the same reason we don’t serve politics with our Old Fashioneds: because the person on the next stool might not agree with you, and that’s exactly the point of having a bar.
What’s Ripsaw Saloon’s stance?
We serve everyone. We don’t promise free drinks for anyone’s death. We think bars work best when they’re places where people can disagree and still share a round. If you want partisan merch with your beer, Minocqua Brewing sells it. If you want a drink and a conversation, we’re at 1117 Railroad Ave in Prentice.