Contact:
Representative Terese Berceau
(608) 266-3784
State Representative Terese Berceau (D – Madison) issued the following statement regarding Governor Walker’s press conference in Fitchburg this morning to pressure his fellow Republicans in the legislature to approve his transportation budget:
“This dog and pony show where the governor pretends to care about adequately funding transportation illustrates he is in full campaign mode even though he hasn’t officially announced he’s running for another term. His mismanagement of transportation already delayed the Verona Road project until 2020, causing significant economic harm to the area businesses he used as props this morning.
“For the six years the governor has been in office, basic transportation needs have been ignored. Town, city, and county governments have been pleading for sufficient funding for local roads and bridges. U.S. News and World Report recently ranked Wisconsin’s roads second worst in the entire nation. This problem is entirely one of the governor’s own making.
“He is trying to gloss over the gaping divide with legislative Republicans who aren’t willing to mortgage our future instead of finding a stable, long-term source of funding for road and highway projects. Even they don’t support his plan for more massive borrowing, which just continues to kick the can down the pothole-filled road.
“The current impasse over the transportation budget shows the difficulty that arises when blind fealty to Grover Norquist’s no-tax increase pledge bumps up against the harsh reality of putting hundreds of millions of additional dollars on the state’s credit card or delaying major projects all over the state. This “policy” represents campaigning, not governing.”
