Kenosha – Sen. Bob Wirch (D-Somers) and Reps. Tod Ohnstad (D-Kenosha) and Tip McGuire (D-Kenosha) issued the following statement in response to Republicans’ (Senator Ron Johnson, Congressman Bryan Steil and former Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch) comments at the Lincoln Day Dinner in Kenosha, where they made false assertions about Governor Evers’ actions to calm unrest following the shooting of Jacob Blake:
“I was in a meeting shortly after the National Guard had arrived in Kenosha, where local officials from both the City and County thanked Governor Evers for his actions in mobilizing the National Guard and getting Kenosha the help we needed as quickly as possible. You have to remember, the National Guard is made up of citizen soldiers; they have families, jobs, and other commitments in their everyday lives. Even in the best of circumstances, mobilization can take 24 hours or more. These comments by three Republican leaders, one of whom is clearly planning to run for Governor, are distortions of the truth meant to hurt Governor Evers and score political points for their side. It’s a disgrace that they would use this tragic and painful time in recent Kenosha history for political gain,” Wirch said.
“From the moment Governor Evers and our National Guardsmen and women got the call to service in the middle of the night, they snapped into action to address the situation,” stated Ohnstad. “Despite difficult circumstances, they responded to the needs of our community. It is troubling that Republicans are choosing to rewrite history on this unfortunate period for Kenosha and use it for a cheap political stunt.”
McGuire added, “As has been reported consistently, the Wisconsin National Guard, at the direction of Gov. Evers, responded to every request that our local leaders asked for. Republicans are taking cheap shots at Gov. Evers purely for craven political reasons, and in the process, are unfairly diminishing the extremely difficult work that the Wisconsin Guard did for our community. Only through the most partisan lens could one believe that the same President who refused to mobilize National Guard to defend an assault on our U.S. Capitol somehow held all the right answers to mobilizing them for Kenosha.
The last year has been incredibly difficult for our community, but from the historic investments in our local small businesses when they needed help the most, to prioritizing the future of our local economy by funding the Kenosha Innovation Neighborhood in his proposed budget, Governor Evers has consistently championed Kenosha’s recovery.”
