Administration is betraying working Wisconsinites say union leaders on Labor Day.

WISCONSIN - On Labor Day, ahead of Mike Pence’s visit to La Crosse, AFT Wisconsin President Kim Kohlhaas, Wisconsin Farmers Union President Darin Von Ruden, and AFSCME Council 32 Representative Valerie Landowski blasted Trump and his administration’s betrayal of working Wisconsinites. Whether it’s teachers, students and their families, farmers, manufacturers, or essential workers, Trump has systematically put these people in harm's way with his chaotic and dangerous policies.

See, in part, what the speakers said below or watch the full event here.

AFT Wisconsin President Kim Kohlhaas: “Donald Trump and Betsy DeVos are trying to pretend that all is right in the world when we see everyday how far we are from gaining any sense of normalcy because Trump failed to contain the virus. It is because of this failure that so many students are either learning virtually or only attending school a few days a week...It didn’t have to be this bad, but Trump and DeVos have forced states to fend for themselves, and now teachers, students and parents are paying the price. Trump had over seven months to get things under control, including getting us a back to school plan, a national testing and tracing program to flatten the curve, but was simply too ineffective to do so. We can’t afford another four years with this failed leadership...Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have a plan to get us back to school safely. They respect the science, they respect students and families, and they respect the values teachers bring to our communities.”

Wisconsin Farmers Union President Darin Von Ruden: “To date we have lost 2255 dairy farms here in the state of Wisconsin. That's in the upper 24% of all dairy farms in states since Trump took office...Trump’s been bragging about how great the USMCA and phase one of the China trade deal has been for agriculture in the U.S., [but] we still have one and a half dairy farms a day in the state of Wisconsin...He calls our war heroes and war veterans losers and suckers. Are the Wisconsin farmers -- the 2255 of us who have gone out of business that he’s called patriots for the last four years -- are we losers and suckers too?...Joe Biden and Kamala Harris are workers. They want to help us get through these tough times. Through their leadership we’re going to be much better off in four years than we are today.”

AFSCME Council 32 Representative Valerie Landowski: "Our members are on the frontlines fighting COVID every single day...Every move the Trump administration has made has been a failure. It’s put working families underwater and it’s risked the lives of hard working Wisconsinites...In Trump’s 2017 tax-scam bill he encouraged companies to outsource jobs, and rewarded executives with even bigger bonuses while our front line workers and companies haven’t gotten wage increases, hazard pay, or the benefits they were promised. We aren’t getting the PPE we need in our facilities, while we’ve seen thousands of layoffs and furloughed employees, which has created an economic downturn that will destroy Wisconsins and the country's economy for years to come. Mike Pence came here to pretend that everything is great...but if you talk to any of our essential frontline employees they’d tell you a very different story; Wisconsinites are suffering greatly under Trump and his administration."

http://newiprogressive.com/images/stories/S5/vets-coming-home-s5.jpg"We thank them for their service, but we forget them when they need us," says Navy veteran Palzewicz. You can express your appreciation better by ensuring their needs are met, before and after they come home.

MADISON —​ Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions Secretary Kathy Blumenfeld today delivered the Democratic Radio Address on the Governor's Task Force on Student Debt final report. The report outlines recommendations for how Wisconsin can provide relief, education, and protection to its students debtholders now and in the future. To learn more, read the final report on the task force website.

Audio file of radio address.

Hi, I’m Kathy Blumenfeld and I’m the Secretary for the Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions.

This summer I had the honor of chairing the Governor’s Task Force on Student Debt. The task force was created by Governor Tony Evers to address the growing student debt crisis here in our state.

In Wisconsin, we have more than $24 billion in outstanding student loan debt, and making matters worse, 53% of Wisconsinites live paycheck-to-paycheck.

Over the course of our meetings, we heard from experts and stakeholders in the field, as well as from borrowers on the challenges they face when repaying their student loans. We used this input to inform our work and provide the governor with eight recommendations to help our most vulnerable borrowers.

These include, among others, creating a Borrower Bill of Rights, improving financial literacy education, expanding targeted loan forgiveness programs, promoting refinancing opportunities, and creating a student debt relief tax credit.

Overall, our recommendations provide a multi-faceted and multi-generational approach to solving Wisconsin’s student debt problem, helping Wisconsinites before they borrow, while they are enrolled in school, and after they graduate.

Now, we must collectively move forward on the hard work ahead. You can read our final report by visiting: LookForwardWI.gov. Thank you.

As both Trump and Biden visit Kenosha, we need to put progress over partisanship and find real solutions to bring the community together says 5th Congressional District candidate.

http://newiprogressive.com/images/stories/S5/kenosha-jacob-blake-shooting-wsj-s5.jpgThe Governor called for a special session of the Legislature to reform police practices and improve police accountability. As state leaders, it’s our job to make Wisconsin more just and equitable for all residents.

Republicans came to the floor and gaveled in Monday, but delayed action. Legislature should listen and act now, says Sen. Erpenbach.

WEST POINT, WI - The Wisconsin Legislature must rise to meet this moment. In March, Breonna Taylor was killed while officers executed a no-knock warrant on her home. In May, George Floyd was killed after being arrested by the Minneapolis Police. On August 23rd, a Kenosha Police Officer fired seven shots at Jacob Blake’s back; causing him to be paralyzed from the waist down. Reform is necessary.

In June, Governor Evers released a package of bills designed to begin to restore equal justice in Wisconsin. The bills are an attempt to address real issues that we need to take on in order to make real change. Republicans in the Legislature did not act in June. In fact it has been 138 days since they have done anything at all. Nothing to address unemployment, nothing to address the continued demands of a global pandemic, nothing to address racial justice.

The Republican answer to all of our state’s pressing issues has been to create a task force. How can we be expected to take that seriously when just 3 out of the 30 bills introduced by the Speaker’s numerous task forces have resulted in anything at all? Democrats stand ready to meet this moment and bring about the change that has been desperately needed for far too long.

Monday Republicans came to the floor and gaveled in because they had to; because the rules of a special session called by the Governor require them to. It is now up to them how they answer the demands for justice being heard around Wisconsin.

We stand with those calling for change, with those peacefully protesting injustice. We share the anger and frustration of those who want the Legislature to act. We can no longer turn our backs on this moment and wait for it to pass.

Madison- Rep. Gruszynski (D-Green Bay) released the following statement Monday responding to Assembly Leadership ignoring Governor Evers Call for a Special Session on Police Reform:

“It comes as no surprise that Assembly Leadership chose to abdicate their responsibilities to lead our state. By gaveling in and recessing today’s special session, GOP leadership has decided not to take up these important pieces of legislation and help lead our state. They should stop playing politics and put us to work so we can debate these common sense solutions for policing reform. These bills have already been put into place by numerous states before us -- this is just another missed opportunity to take action.”

http://newiprogressive.com/images/stories/S5/kenosha-militia-street-s5.jpgCommentary on the arrest of the white supremicist militia member who murdered two Black Lives Matter protesters and injured a third in Kenosha, and law enforcement’s apparent lax response before and after he shot his victims.

Trump and his allies have fear-mongered and stoked hate, egged on armed right-wing militias through calls to “liberate” states during stay-at-home orders and protests. Now we see the result.

Union stands in solidarity with the family of Jacob Blake and reiterates that Black lives matter.

MADISON - AFSCME Wisconsin rebukes the atrocious shooting of Jacob Blake at the hands of the Kenosha Police. AFSCME Wisconsin stands in solidarity with victims of police violence and recommits to eradicating all forms of brutality perpetrated against communities of color and the working class.

AFSCME Wisconsin Executive Director Patrick Wycoff stated, “amid a renewed call to honor and protect Black life, officers from the Kenosha Police Department terrorized the families they swore to protect. Shooting a Black man in the back in the presence of his children was not just reckless, it is an abuse of power.

AFSCME Wisconsin demands the implementation of community-controlled policing oversight; robust community services investment in behavioral health, social services, education, and housing; and an end to federally supported militarized police presence in our communities. Without these measures in place, trust cannot be built and repaired with the community and those who the police force swears to protect.

In solidarity with national efforts, AFSCME Wisconsin advocates for federal funding to create a civilian corps of unarmed first responders such as social workers, EMTs, and trained health professionals who are trained to handle nonviolent emergencies and specialize in de-escalation. Moreover, AFSCME Wisconsin lends its support to the creation of a national database to prevent officers who have been removed from employment or resigned in the face of misconduct, from being reemployed by another law enforcement agency.

Executive Director Wycoff stated, “as public employees, we spend our lives and labor investing in our communities. Disregard for the lives of our neighbors of color destroys the trust we have worked so hard to build. We cannot heal the wounds of white supremacy and brutality against the working class while this senseless violence persists. The safety of one means the safety of all. We cannot let up until each community member feels safe. We stand in solidarity with the family of Jacob Blake and reiterate that Black lives matter.”