MADISON, Wis. – GOP gubernatorial candidate Rebecca Kleefisch held a press conference this morning where she was unable to explain why she’s advocating for increasing police resources when she cut shared revenue as lieutenant governor.

The truth is, the Walker-Kleefisch administration radically cut funds for public safety and put sexual assault survivors at risk. Her cuts to public safety made it harder for cities like Milwaukee to fund their police, as noted by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Editorial Board in 2015.

It’s not surprising that Kleefisch dodged questions on her abysmal record this morning. When pressed by reporters, she dismissed concerns, saying “shared revenue is what it is, certainly.”

When Kleefisch was lieutenant governor, the Walker-Kleefisch administration:

  • Slashed $76 million from shared revenue, the largest such cut in at least a decade. Shared revenue funds can help fund critical public safety measures, including firefighters and police.
  • Proposed abolishing the Parole Commission in 2017 despite having nearly 3,000 on “parole eligible” sentences in Wisconsin. Their cuts would have shrunk the agency to one employee.
  • Cut grants from its sexual assault victim services program by 42.5 percent in 2011.
  • Lost track of nearly 3,000 people convicted of sexual crimes.
  • Had only 18 Department Of Corrections agents assigned to keep more than 25,000 sex offenders in compliance.

“This is the opposite of public safety – Rebecca Kleefisch would make our state less safe,” said Democratic Party of Wisconsin Communications Director Iris Riis. “We need evidence-based solutions from leaders who are actually committed to making our communities safer, not just focused on politicizing tragedies and spewing out talking points to rile up their political base. That’s why Governor Evers invested $45 million in safer communities last year that included funding directly to Milwaukee’s Office of Violence Prevention.”
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