(Sun Prairie) – Yesterday, the Republican co-chairs of the Joint Committee for Review of Administrative Rules held a hearing to try to undermine the Evers administration’s Emergency Order limiting public gatherings. State Rep. Gary Hebl (D-Sun Prairie), the ranking assembly member on the committee, released the following statement afterwards:
The committee hearing was an absolute sham. From the very outset it was clear that it was not a serious attempt to do our jobs as legislators. The co-chairs of the committee, without authority, want to try to force the Evers administration to convert their emergency order limiting public gathering to an emergency rule. The only reason they want it to be a rule is so that they can strike it down as a committee.
The reasons for that are clear; they want to erase everything that Gov. Evers is doing, but don’t want to have to subject some of their more vulnerable members to a tough vote in front of the full legislature. Instead, they are trying a petty procedural maneuver that would allow six GOP members of the 132-member legislature to overturn an emergency order. That is simply not how a democratic system is supposed to work.
Regardless, it is revealing that after 180 days of Republican inaction in Wisconsin their highest priority is to undermine Governor Evers’ attempts to keep Wisconsin residents safe. They have had ample time to come up with meaningful legislation that could protect individuals and small businesses in the state. Instead, they have dug their heels in and refused to help anyone. Their focus is almost entirely on campaigning, without regard to the people in our state that are getting sick and dying. They have had control of Wisconsin for nearly a decade. You would hope that in that time they would have learned how to be leaders in our state; alas, you would be sorely mistaken. Unfortunately, almost 1500 people in Wisconsin have died because Republicans have been unable to lead in a crisis.