Washington, DC – Later today, President Trump will head to Chippewa County, Wisconsin, to try to spin his economic agenda that has raised costs while leaving Wisconsinites to foot the bill. While he tries to spin Wisconsin communities and convince them that the worsening affordability crisis is somehow good for them, the truth couldn’t be more painful for American pocketbooks. 

Trump will also be joined by Representative Derrick Van Orden, who represents the district and has accepted tens of thousands of dollars from Wisconsin utilities and even more from oil and gas interests. All while utility prices have risen significantly under his and Trump’s watch. So let’s take a look at how disastrous Van Orden and Trump’s leadership have been in terms of costs in Wisconsin:

  • Since Trump attacked Iran on February 28th, gas prices in Wisconsin have spiked by more than 48% to $4.09. 
  • Since Trump took office, Wisconsin’s electricity prices have increased by more than 8%, and in the district, average utility bills are up by 6.9%. 
  • Since 2025, at least six utilities have enacted rate hikes in Wisconsin, affecting nearly 2.6 million electricity customers and nearly 1.9 million natural gas customers.

Trump’s visit also comes as Wisconsin farmers have faced a challenging year due to Trump and Van Orden’s policies:

  • Since Trump attacked Iran, the price of fertilizer has skyrocketed 45%, hurting farmers right as planting season was about to begin. 
  • Diesel prices in Wisconsin have also spiked by 50%, further hurting Wisconsin farmers.

And Trump’s war on clean energy and disaster response, which Van Orden has happily rubberstamped, has also been a disaster: 

  • By 2035, Trump’s clean energy cuts are expected to raise Wisconsin families’ annual energy bills by $300, gasoline bills by $113, and wholesale electricity prices by 180%.
  • In 2025, Trump canceled the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities program, putting 81 applications and $55 million in federal funding for Wisconsin in jeopardy.

It is clear that Derrick Van Orden has no plans to step up to help lower costs for Wisconsinites. Instead, it is apparent that he is happy to rubber-stamp Trump’s disastrous presidency in favor of his utility and Big Oil and Gas donors.