Wisconsin leaders praised Senator Kamala Harris following the Vice Presidential debate after Senator Harris outlined how Joe Biden will invest in the middle class and help our country build back better.
Senator Tammy Baldwin: “President Trump and Vice President Pence have repeatedly put Wisconsin workers last, and Wisconsin farmers, manufacturers, and workers have bore the brunt of their failed policies. Kamala Harris and Joe Biden will not just help us recover from the coronavirus pandemic — they have a real plan to help us build back better.”
Congresswoman Gwen Moore: “In the past four years, the only thing the Trump administration has accomplished is deepening chaos and division. Last night, Kamala Harris spoke the truth about the Trump administration’s dangerous attempt to rip away protections for pre-existing conditions and send health care costs spiraling out of control. Let’s be clear — Joe and Kamala have the experience and empathy to move our country forward. Donald Trump has proven he’s simply not fit for the job.”
Jill Biden implored Milwaukee Democrats Saturday to make a plan to vote and participate in organizing efforts in the final weeks of the presidential campaign.
“This is it, there are no do-overs,” Biden said during a virtual campaign appearance as she sought to boost enthusiasm for her husband, former Vice President Joe Biden.
Speaking from her Delaware home, Biden said, “Joe will be a president for all Americans, and he has a plan for all Americans to end this pandemic, to rebuild, to reimagine a future that’s better than ever.”
U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore, D-Wis., and Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes also appeared as they urged listeners to vote while criticizing President Donald Trump.
“Donald Trump has used every single vulnerability in our society to drive a wedge between the racial groups,” Moore, of Milwaukee, said.
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Supporters of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris tuned in to a virtual visit with notable Wisconsin Democrats Saturday.
The push for Wisconsin voters continues, and for the Biden campaign, it’s all virtual.
Saturday, the Biden camp held a Zoom conference with Jill Biden and some of the state’s Democratic leaders. Lieutenant Governor Mandela Barnes, U.S. Representative Gwen Moore, and CEO of the African American Chamber of Commerce of Wisconsin Ossie Kendrix all joined the call.
“We have a real chance to overcome in the past failures and the opportunity to truly build back a better nation that is more inclusive,”
Two big subjects dominated the discussions: economic recovery and racial justice.
“We’re at an inflection point in this country where everybody, every race, creed, gender, nationally recognized the need for some racial reconciliation,” Moore said.
Kendrix said while Black Wisconsinites are losing their lives to COVID-19, some are losing their livelihoods.
“African-American owned firms account for only 10% of the approximately 27 million total US businesses,” Kendrix said. “It’s safe to say that minority-owned small businesses are bearing the brunt of this pandemic, with fewer resources available to weather this storm.”
Barnes touted the Biden plan that would help people of color get their businesses off the ground.
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Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tammy Baldwin hosted a “Joe’s in Your Corner” event at a farm in Western Wisconsin to kick off the campaign’s Build Back Better Rural Roadshow. At the event, Senators Klobuchar and Baldwin discussed Joe Biden’s plan to revitalize rural economies, create good-paying jobs, protect health care for people with pre-existing conditions, and help Wisconsin recover from the coronavirus pandemic.
Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar and Wisconsin Sen. Tammy Baldwin toured an organic farm on top of a ridge in the Driftless Region, making a case for Vice President Joe Biden for president.
The two Democrats on Friday toured the facilities at Hamburg Hills Farm in Stoddard, just south of La Crosse, owned and operated by three generations of farmers.
Then, to a group of supporters, including several candidates running for local and state office, all in masks and sitting in social distanced chairs outside of the farm and over moos and gusty winds atop the ridge, the senators advocated for Biden’s plan to revitalize rural America.
The Minnesota senator, who formally shared a presidential campaign stage with Biden, tried to appeal to the broad Midwestern values at stake during the election.
“We know what it means to look out for each other, we stand by our work. We aren’t afraid of compromise,” Klobuchar said of Wisconsin and her neighboring state, painting a unified picture.
WIZM: Senators Klobuchar and Baldwin discuss rural economy on Stoddard Farm
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According to Baldwin, Biden would begin revitalizing rural communities with new trade policies. She also said he will partner with rural communities to help them capitalize and compete for federal resources. She was also hopeful for Biden’s plan to protect and build the affordable care act and offer a new public option like Medicare with eligibility lowered to 60-years-old.
WKBT: Senators Baldwin, Klobuchar support Biden campaign in Vernon County
A campaign stop brings two U.S. Senators to our areas to support Joe Biden’s presidential campaign. Wisconsin Senator Tammy Baldwin and Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar toured a farm near Stoddard Friday. The pair discussed Biden’s plans for rural economies, job creation and recovering from the pandemic.
WXOW: Wisconsin and Minnesota Senators visit Vernon Co. family farm
Wisconsin Senator Tammy Baldwin and Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar visited Hamburg Hills Farm in near Stoddard to show their support for Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden and discuss his plan for rural America.
Senators Baldwin and Klobuchar were taken on a tour of the farm by owner Tim Servais who has been living there since the fall of 1972 when his parents took it over.
With tennis shoes tied tight and masks on, U.S. Sens. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota and Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin stepped onto a Stoddard farm Friday morning to speak about presidential candidate Joe Biden and the Democratic Party’s connections and goals for agriculture.
Biden for President Wisconsin launched a statewide “Joe’s in Your Corner” tour. The virtual tour takes national, state, and local leaders throughout the state to listen directly to Wisconsinites about the kitchen table issues that matter most to them, like access to affordable health care and the economic impact of the pandemic. At the event, participants highlighted Joe Biden’s promise to protect and expand access to affordable health care for all Americans, including protections for the more than 2.4 million Wisconsinites with pre-existing conditions.
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“The people of Wisconsin need a president who will listen to them, who will understand the issues they’re facing, and who has a plan to beat this dangerous virus and build back better. Joe Biden is the leader we need to meet this moment and rebuild the middle class,” said Senator Tammy Baldwin, in a statement.
Senator Tammy Baldwin, Congressman Ron Kind, State Senator Patty Schachtner, and State Senate Candidate Brad Pfaff kicked off the tour in Western Wisconsin.
Read the endorsement editorial here and below:
Wisconsin State Journal: OUR ENDORSEMENT: Joe Biden is the better choice to restore, unite America
This election is about more than the two candidates seeking the presidency. This is about the office itself. It’s about restoring a sense of higher purpose and professionalism to the White House.
America needs a leader who can lead again — someone with a vision for our nation that unites and moves us forward.
He served eight years as vice president and more than three decades in the U.S. Senate. He will assemble a strong team of advisers and respect their expertise. Biden will approach the job of being the most powerful person on the planet with the seriousness it deserves.
The Wisconsin State Journal editorial board endorses Biden in the Nov. 3 vote.
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Please engage in the Democratic process and make your choice.
We strongly recommend casting your ballot for Biden.
Senator Kamala Harris had a message for Wisconsin voters and urged them to vote early in this year’s election.
Biden for President Wisconsin hosted a Black Faith supply pop-up with State Senator Lena Taylor at Holy Cathedral Church in Milwaukee. At the event, supporters picked up yard signs, stickers, buttons, placards, and other campaign supplies. Supporters shared why they are excited to vote for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. The supply pop-up was one of more than 250 events across Wisconsin that were part of a “Get Out The Vote” Weekend of Action.
Biden for President Wisconsin hosted a “Health Care in Indian Country” roundtable discussion with Ho-Chunk Nation member and Congresswoman Sharice Davids and health care professionals. At the event, participants discussed health disparities that are impacting Wisconsin’s Native communities and highlighted Joe Biden’s plan to lower health care costs and protect coverage for people with pre-existing conditions. Additionally, the leaders outlined the Biden-Harris plan for Tribal Nations, which includes dramatically increasing funding for Indian Health Service — and making that funding mandatory, providing funding to keep our rural hospitals open, developing a pipeline of rural providers, and reducing the unacceptably high maternal mortality rate, which disproportionately affects Native women.
In an interview with Fox6 Milwaukee and WISN Milwaukee, Cindy McCain — a lifelong Republican — praised Joe Biden’s ability to unite the country and be a president for all Americans, regardless of party. The wife of the late Senator John McCain and mother of combat veterans also slammed President Donald Trump’s disgraceful comments about members of our armed forces.
Mayor Pete Buttigieg penned an op-ed in The Capital Times outlining why Joe Biden is the clear choice to serve as Commander in Chief and support our men and women in uniform. Buttigieg is a former candidate for president, former Mayor of South Bend Indiana, and Afghanistan War veteran who served as an officer in the U.S. Navy Reserve for seven years. The piece comes after numerous outlets reported that President Trump referred to fallen service members as “suckers” and “losers,” and after Wisconsin veterans responded to the news.
The Capital Times: Trump showed us who he is by calling fallen heroes ‘losers’
In Section 60 of Arlington National Cemetery, reserved for the remains of our most recent war dead, President Donald Trump spoke his mind: “I don’t get it. What was in it for them?”
Standing among the graves of heroes, America’s president asked a father who lost his son in Afghanistan why someone would lay down their life for our country. In one sense, it was a rare moment of truth for this president: he really doesn’t get it.
To this president, there are two kinds of people in the world: suckers, and people like him who take advantage and get ahead. So for him, those of us who put our lives on the line for this country are “suckers,” and those who gave their lives are “losers.”
Of course, those who serve and sacrifice are neither of these things. They are patriots who understand America better than he ever will. Now, the president’s words are reverberating among military families and veterans whom I’ve served or spoken with, in Wisconsin and across the country.
We shouldn’t be surprised. Donald Trump’s disrespect for our military is a lifelong pattern. Born to wealth and privilege, he faked a disability to dodge serving in Vietnam, letting some “sucker” go in his place. He’s picked fights with Gold Star families. He called four-star generals and admirals, who chose the path of service he avoided, “a bunch of dopes and babies.” We watched with our own eyes as he attacked the late John McCain — not despite, but because of the fact that the senator was a prisoner of war. “I like people who weren’t captured,” Trump said.
Throughout his life, Donald Trump has been telling us the kind of person he is. Now we’ve seen the kind of president he is.
In a recent op-ed in the Milwaukee Courier, Wisconsin State Senator LaTonya Johnson highlighted Joe Biden’s plan to bring down health care costs and protect care for people with pre-existing conditions. Johnson wrote about Joe Biden’s fight to protect and expand access to health care for all Americans and praised his commitment to health equity for communities of color.
Milwaukee Courier: Joe Biden Will Build on Obamacare — Trump Will Repeal It
COVID-19 cases are skyrocketing in Wisconsin. Our hospitals are almost at full capacity. The economy is in shambles. And Black and brown communities are being hit the hardest.
It didn’t have to be this bad.
As part of Biden for President Wisconsin’s “Joe’s in Your Corner” tour, Racine and Kenosha leaders — including Racine State Representative Greta Neubauer, Racine City Councilmember John Tate II, and Kenosha Community Advocate Atifa Robinson — discussed Joe Biden’s commitment to protect care for people with pre-existing conditions, lower the cost of health care, address racial disparities in health outcomes, and expand coverage to all Americans. At the event, the leaders also highlighted President Trump’s ongoing attempts to eliminate the Affordable Care Act and gut protections for people with pre-existing conditions.
On Tuesday, the Green Bay Packers announced an indefinite hold on fans for home games at Lambeau Field due to the significant increase in coronavirus cases across Wisconsin. Former Packers Hall of Fame Coach Mike Holmgren issued a statement slamming President Donald Trump’s mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic and how his failed leadership has negatively impacted the Wisconsin economy, particularly small businesses in Green Bay and across the state.
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“We are now months into this crisis, cases are surging across Wisconsin, and President Trump still doesn’t have a plan to get the virus under control,” Holmgren said Tuesday.
Holmgren says Biden offers a plan that will help Green Bay and Wisconsin get through the pandemic.
“Joe will always level with the American people — he’s a man of integrity, and now more than ever, we need him in the White House,” the former coach said.
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Up North News: Former Packers Coach Blasts Trump Over COVID-19 as Lambeau Extends Fan Ban
While much of Wisconsin may be discussing the new restrictions on indoor gatherings made necessary by the nearly unchecked spread of the coronavirus, it’s the new restriction on one of the state’s premier outdoor gathering places that will be especially noticeable on Sunday afternoons as the Green Bay Packers sack any hopes of allowing fans back into Lambeau Field to watch games.
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Someone else who knows a few things about how to win in Green Bay believes President Donald Trump bears a substantial share of the blame for the loss of fan attendance this season. Former Packers coach Mike Holmgren, who led the team to victory in Super Bowl 31 and had a 75-37 record during his tenure at Lambeau Field in the 1990s, said the Trump administration’s failure to lead on the pandemic prompted his decision to publicly endorse challenger Joe Biden.
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Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Opinion: I was a nonpartisan for 40 years in Wisconsin. Here’s why I’m supporting Joe Biden in 2020.
As a former Milwaukee County Circuit Court judge and Wisconsin Supreme Court justice, I have stayed out of politics. Other than running my own campaigns, I stayed away from partisan issues. Judges need to be nonpartisan. We look at issues through a different lens — because the law isn’t red or blue.
Throughout my life, I’ve regularly voted and carried out my civic duty — and I’ve voted for both Republicans and Democrats. In fact, I was appointed to the Wisconsin Supreme Court by a Republican governor, Tommy Thompson. And before that, I was nominated to the circuit court by another Republican, Gov. Lee Sherman Dreyfus.
Like so many across Wisconsin, I vote for the person — not the party. Sometimes, that decision is hard —- but for me, the choice in this election is crystal clear.
I have not publicly supported a partisan candidate for more than 40 years — but the stakes of this election are too high for me to stay silent. I can’t stand by and silently watch this president shred the Constitution and undermine the rule of law. Donald Trump has no respect for our constitutional values and has mocked our democratic institutions. He is rude and an obnoxious bully who does not respect anyone who disagrees with him. That’s why I’ve announced my support for Joe Biden — because I know he’ll be a president for all Americans, regardless of party.
Biden embodies exactly what we look for in a president and commander in chief. First and foremost, unlike our current president, he’s honest and he’s a man of integrity. He has a profound sense of service. He is respectful to people and cares about those who do not have a voice. I know he will promote racial justice and work to reduce violence in our cities. As a military father and a professional who has devoted his life to public service, he knows that public service is about fidelity to our country and improving the lives of people.
We’re also seeing right before our eyes how much is at stake in this election. I’ve watched in horror as President Trump lied and downplayed the coronavirus to the American people, and now, he still does not have a plan to protect families and beat the virus as it surges across Wisconsin. Even as Wisconsinites are being infected and hospitalized at record rates, Donald Trump is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to strike down the Affordable Care Act and protections for pre-existing conditions. It’s truly unconscionable. Many Americans have and will suffer from the virus without adequate treatment.
Finally, I am speaking up for my 16-year-old granddaughter and the youth of our country. I want a president our children and grandchildren can look up to. A president who is an ethical and respectful role model and leader — not a bully like President Trump. I want a president who respects the rule of law. A leader with empathy who cares about the people he serves.
Benjamin Franklin, one of our founding fathers, referred to the United States as “a republic, if you can keep it.” The future of our republic — and our democratic institutions — is at stake in this election. It’s up to all of us to turn out and vote accordingly.
Janine Geske previously served on the Wisconsin Supreme Court and was nominated by Republican Gov. Tommy Thompson.
Wisconsin women leaders held “Trust Her, She’s a Doctor,” an event part of the “Joe’s in Your Corner” tour. Former President of Planned Parenthood Federation of America Cecile Richards and Wisconsin medical professionals — discussed Joe Biden’s commitment to protect care for people with pre-existing conditions, lower the cost of health care, and expand coverage to all Americans. At the event, the leaders highlighted President Trump’s ongoing attempts to eliminate the Affordable Care Act and gut protections for people with pre-existing conditions, and his failed response to the pandemic.
Beto O’Rourke hosted a virtual voter registration rally with Wisconsin students and young voters to discuss the stakes of the election and the critical role young Wisconsin voters will play this November. At the event, he urged young Wisconsinites to make a plan to vote and encourage their friends and family to do the same.
Former Texas Congressional Representative Beto O’Rourke emphasized the power of the youth vote during a virtual Wisconsin student voter registration rally on Tuesday.
“I really believe that Wisconsin [is] going to decide the outcome of this election and determine who the next president of the United States of America will be,” O’Rourke said.
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“So often it’s young people who are organizing, leading, speaking, compelling us to take action,” he said.
O’Rourke said the country is facing some of the worst issues of our generation with the pandemic and economic depression, and it is crucial that people vote Donald Trump out of office.
“The consequence of failing to do that is to lose not just an election, but I really think if we do not elect Joe Biden this year, we really stand the chance of losing our country,” he said.
O’Rourke said that voting yourself is important, but it is vital to make sure your friends and family are voting as well.
“You must also move other people, help to register those who are in our lives and lay out the stakes of this election in terms that are clear and compelling,” he said.
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Here are some additional highlights from the event:
Kathleen Dunn, a long-time Milwaukee resident and former radio host at Wisconsin Public Radio and WTMJ, penned an op-ed on CNN.com. In the op-ed, she highlighted Trump’s failure to manage the COVID-19 pandemic will ‘not go unnoticed’ in Wisconsin.
CNN Op-Ed: Trump’s Covid failure is top of Wisconsin Democrats’ minds
Louisa May Alcott, author of “Little Women,” wrote in her famous novel, “I am not afraid of storms, for I am learning how to sail my ship.” If only President Donald Trump had learned how to sail the American government’s ship. Perhaps he might have been able to calm the storm that is the Covid-19 pandemic. His failure, however, has brought us perilously close to capsizing.
And this failure is not going unnoticed by Democrats in Wisconsin, a key state to his reelection strategy and one where Joe Biden has led Trump for weeks. I recently spoke with Democratic and Democratic-leaning retirees, teachers, students, lawyers, nurses and essential workers in the state. Among the vast majority, the pandemic is the issue of most concern, tracking closely with national polls on the issues motivating voters this election cycle.
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This frustration makes sense when you consider that Wisconsin, like much of the country, is nowhere near the end of the pandemic. In recent weeks, according to Johns Hopkins University of Medicine, Wisconsin has had the misfortune of being one of the leading states for new Covid-19 cases. Sadly, our state’s cases now exceed 138,000, many among low-income minorities in Milwaukee. And, this week, the Wisconsin Department of Health Services reported that, on average, over 15% of Covid-19 tests have been coming back positive.
The state health department noticed the starkest increase in cases among those 18-24 years old since the beginning of August. Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers said in an online briefing there has been “unprecedented near exponential growth” of coronavirus cases among this demographic, five times that of any other age group. And a New York Times survey of cities with fastest rising cases found Wisconsin had eight metro areas listed, seven where University of Wisconsin campuses are located.
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An Associated Press story highlighted President Trump’s fading support in the blue collar hub of Green Bay, suburban Milwaukee and rural areas he carried in 2016.
Associated Press: Trump 270 path narrows, Wisconsin mirrors swing state plight
President Donald Trump’s once-comfortable advantage in the pivotal region of Wisconsin around the blue-collar hub of Green Bay has dwindled. In suburban Milwaukee, long a Republican-dominated area, it has thinned as well.
And his supporters are far from confident he can find thousands of new voters in the state’s sparsely populated rural areas to make up for the setbacks.
Trump’s path to victory in Wisconsin, a state he won narrowly in 2016, has become increasingly complicated, and so has his path to the 270 electoral votes needed for his reelection.
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A Los Angeles Times story discussed Wisconsin voter confidence in Joe Biden’s ability to lead during the current economic crisis.
Los Angeles Times: In Wisconsin, Trump’s economic edge is blunted by COVID
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Joe Biden, Trump’s Democratic challenger, has maintained a modest but steady polling lead in Wisconsin, a state that Trump won four years ago by fewer than 23,000 votes and which he badly needs to carry again if he is to remain in the White House.
Voters say they trust the former vice president more on handling the pandemic and easing racial tensions. Trump, meantime, has maintained a consistent, albeit narrowing, edge on whom voters prefer on the economy.
“It’s the only area of evaluation that is net positive” for the president, said Charles Franklin, director of the Marquette Law School Poll in Milwaukee.
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