MADISON, Wis. – Republicans keep claiming they have plans to make Wisconsin safer, but all they have to offer are talking points.
Rebecca Kleefisch’s proposals for public safety have already been panned by her primary opponent, Kevin Nicholson, who has called them “not serious” and said that police don’t even understand it.
Kleefisch has also historically made Wisconsin less safe by drastically cutting funds for localities, which are largely responsible for public safety. The Walker-Kleefisch administration slashed shared revenue to localities by $76 million in 2011 alone, the largest cut in at least a decade. These dollars were crucial for localities to be able to support programs such as police departments and firefighters. The cuts during the Walker-Kleefisch administration correlate with a decrease in police officers in Wisconsin of 15 percent.
Kevin Nicholson’s public safety plan is no more than talking points, and Tim Ramthun continues to have exactly one focus: illegally decertifying the 2020 election and encouraging a constitutional crisis.
Thankfully, Governor Evers has been doing the right thing to address public safety and invest in violence prevention.
Gov. Evers announced more than $50 million to help make our communities safer, which will go to every tribal and local law enforcement agency in the state, as well as integrate licensed mental health professionals into Milwaukee’s 911 dispatch center, prevent reckless driving with road repairs, and expand pre-trial supervision staffing. More than $16 million will go toward reducing the pandemic-related backlog of criminal cases statewide, to include the backlog of cases in Milwaukee’s criminal division. Read more about how Governor Evers has taken action to make Wisconsin safer below.
Up North News: While Governor Evers Takes Action to Make Wisconsin Safer, Republicans are All Talk
Governor Tony Evers announced more than $50 million in new federal funds to make communities safer across Wisconsin.
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The American Rescue Plan also gave Evers the ability to invest in local governments, all of which are facing continued challenges due to the pandemic. From this pot of money nearly $100 million has gone into violence prevention, victim services and criminal justice in just the last six months.
According to a release from Evers office, every single law enforcement agency in the state will receive resources to address local community needs, from combatting reckless driving to expanding pre-trial GPS supervision or alleviating court backlogs.
Why does it matter?
In a few months Wisconsinites will decide who they want to be their next governor. While Gov. Evers is taking action, Wisconsin Republicans are just…complaining. Listen to any Republican candidate for Governor for more than five minutes and you’ll likely hear them fear mongering about rising crime rates and public safety. What’s missing? Any actual plan for how the state can do more to keep communities safe.
A perfect example is former Lieutenant Governor Rebecca Kleefisch’s campaign website.
What does it say about public safety? This is it in its entirety:
“As governor, Rebecca Kleefisch will defend the men and women of law enforcement and provide the funding needed to keep us safe.”
Does that sound like a plan?
Long story short
This week’s announcement from Evers made clear that these new investments in public safety will allow local agencies “to address the unique needs facing their communities” and keep people safe. Evers is using the tools available to him to directly address real challenges to public safety exacerbated by the pandemic, while his potential Republican opponents just talk.
