Anniversary Of A Divided Wisconsin

Assembly Democratic Leader Peter Barca (D-Kenosha) released the following statement late last week.

One year ago, Gov. Walker set Wisconsin on a course that has left our state more polarized than ever before. Beginning with his unprecedented attack on workers’ rights, the governor has continued to divide us while ramming his agenda through before people have had time to object.

After Gov. Walker dropped the collective bargaining ‘bomb’ – as he put it – last February 11, he demanded a rushed vote in less than a week, without debate or scrutiny, and refused to even sit down and talk with his employees about it. Republican leaders followed that approach with abuses of power such as putting the Capitol on lock down, holding illegal meetings and ending public hearings while citizens waited to speak.

Gov. Walker has pursued two main courses of action in the past year – dividing Wisconsin and undermining democracy. He has divided our state by taking $1.6 billion away from public schools while giving another $40 million to voucher schools. He approved $2.36 billion in giveaways to large corporations and special interests while raising taxes on senior citizens and people working for modest wages.

And he has undermined democracy by consolidating rule-making power at the top, replacing public employees with political cronies and restricting citizens from exercising their First Amendment rights to gather at the Capitol and other state buildings.

In the past year, Gov. Walker has continued to push his extreme agenda that clearly is not working for middle-class families. That is why people across the state are upset and fighting back.

They are tired of the division, the governor’s assault on clean and open government and the disrespectful way their wishes have been ignored. They deserve leaders who will bring us together and work for and with them.