TOMORROW: Discussion on Broadband Access with Governor’s Task Force Chair

October 12th, 2020

EAU CLAIRE, Wis. — TOMORROW, Tuesday, October 13, 2020 at 6:00 PM CT, Opportunity Wisconsin will host a virtual discussion with Badger State residents and community leaders focused on the Trump administration’s failure to address the broadband access crisis across Wisconsin. We’ll be joined by Brittany Beyer, Chair of the Governor’s Task Force on Broadband Access.  

Ranking 30th in the country for broadband access, it's estimated that nearly 23% of rural Wisconsin has no access to high-speed internet. With school back in session and businesses operating on an anything-but-usual basis, access to broadband is an even greater impediment in the education, public health and economic sectors than in the pre-COVID world.  

While state officials have looked for ways to make sure Wisconsin does not fall further behind, the Trump administration has failed to focus on addressing this urgent need for working Wisconsinites.

WHAT:
Virtual Conversation about Broadband Access in Wisconsin  

WHEN:
TOMORROW
October 13, 20206:00 - 7:00 PM CT 

WHO:

• Becca Cooke (Moderator) - Executive Director, Red Letter Grant; Opportunity Wisconsin Steering Committee

• Brittany Beyer - Chair, Governor’s Task Force on Broadband Access; Executive Director, Grow North Regional Economic Development Corporation

• Wisconsin Residents 

RSVP: 
Get more details and stay up-to-date on this event here.

About Opportunity Wisconsin
Opportunity Wisconsin is a coalition of Wisconsin residents fighting for an economy that works for working people. Through our stories, we’re elevating the real consequences of the destructive economic policies championed by President Trump and his allies these past three years, and showing how they have made Wisconsin’s economy worse off. Join us in demanding our elected officials focus more on growing the economy for middle class folks and expanding opportunity for all Wisconsinites, not just the wealthy few. To learn more about Opportunity Wisconsin, visit OpportunityWisconsin.org or stay connected on Twitter at @OpportunityWI and on Facebook at Facebook.com/OpportunityWI.

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Opportunity Wisconsin and Main Street Alliance Hear from Tourism Industry Leaders

October 7th, 2020

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LA CROSSE, Wis.—Last night, community leaders from La Crosse, Door County, and Bayfield gathered for a virtual conversation hosted by Opportunity Wisconsin and Main Street Alliance to discuss COVID-19’s impact on Wisconsin’s tourism industry. Community leaders held the discussion within hours of President Trump ending hopes of additional COVID-19 relief before flip flopping and suggesting Congress pass an inadequate, piecemeal relief package.   

“We know it did not have to be this way and that the summer 2020 season could’ve been and should’ve been just like any tourist season for our speakers and their communities,” said Shawn Phetteplace, Main Street Alliance Wisconsin State Manager. “President Trump’s failed leadership, botched handling, and continuous downplaying of the pandemic have led to these communities making tough decisions and we cannot make these folks whole again until President Trump shows leadership and we squash the virus.” [WATCH]

By walking away from coronavirus relief, President Trump is finally admitting what we already knew: He has no interest in helping Wisconsin workers and families recover from the economic crisis that he exacerbated and deepened. He would rather focus on rushing to confirm a Supreme Court nominee who would take away people’s health care than on working with Congress to help Badger State families impacted by a pandemic. 

“Tourism is not red or blue. It’s green. It’s about money and we want more of it here in Wisconsin,” said Wisconsin State Representative Jill Billings. [WATCH] “We need more from the Federal government. We need another package going forward as we hit the lean late fall-winter months. I’m disappointed that there’s no better leadership on the Federal level. “ [WATCH]

In 2019, Wisconsin’s tourist economy generated $1.6 billion in state and local revenue taxes. Without these revenue taxes, every Wisconsin household would pay “an additional $687 to replace traveler taxes to maintain existing services.” Without revenue coming from the tourism industry, more money will come out of Wisconsinites’ pockets.

Because President Trump ended the negotiations for a broader stimulus package:

• Thousands of Wisconsin families hoping for additional relief will now be unable to afford their rent and mortgages, and overall demand will continue to drop, which will hurt the economy and make this crisis last longer.

• Wisconsin small business owners across the country will now be forced to permanently lay off workers they were hoping to bring back on.

• Teachers, firefighters, and other essential state and local workers across the Badger State could lose their jobs as state government budgets hit a cliff with no additional federal support.

• More than 30 million unemployed American workers now face permanent income cuts in a pandemic. 

There’s no denying that the economic crisis sparked by coronavirus is being fueled by President Trump’s actions and misguided economic agenda.

“Some of this is COVID-related, but I would also say the bigger issue here is a lot of us, no matter the sector, are having a really tough time, we were having a hard time before this. Main Street, rural, small town, even if you get a lot of tourism, Main Street is going through some rough times so I think the businesses are more fragile,” said Joanne Cirillo, Bayfield Wine and Spirits. [WATCH]

Yesterday’s news came on the heels of Friday’s “massively concerning” jobs report which raised major alarms that the economy is in crisis and the tepid recovery has rapidly decelerated. Job growth has slowed significantly over the last few months, which highlights the fact that the CARES Act supported an initial recovery, and now that it has ended, the economy is starting to sputter.

“I was even more disappointed in the Wisconsin Congressional delegation that’s represented on the Republican side. I was hopeful that at least one or two of the Republicans representing the state of Wisconsin would support Speaker Pelosi and the Democrats’ recent funding bill that would bring us more PPP money and funding for restaurants and bars,” said Lars Johnson, Al Johnson's Swedish Restaurant & Butik. [WATCH]

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About Opportunity Wisconsin

Opportunity Wisconsin is a coalition of Wisconsin residents fighting for an economy that works for working people. Through our stories, we’re elevating the real consequences of the destructive economic policies championed by President Trump and his allies these past three years, and showing how they have made Wisconsin’s economy worse off. Join us in demanding our elected officials focus more on growing the economy for middle class folks and expanding opportunity for all Wisconsinites, not just the wealthy few. To learn more about Opportunity Wisconsin, visit OpportunityWisconsin.org or stay connected on Twitter at @OpportunityWI and on Facebook at Facebook.com/OpportunityWI.

About Main Street Alliance

Since 2008, The Main Street Alliance has engaged over 30,000 businesses in eleven states to build our network. Through grassroots organizing, including in-person surveys at business locations, one-on-one meetings and local events, we seek to understand the issues that matter most to small businesses. Our members include manufacturers, restaurateurs, artists, farmers, accountants, printers, software designers, retailers, mechanics and more. Our primary issues of focus are paid sick and family leave, healthcare, childcare and access to credit.  We recently expanded to Wisconsin and are rapidly growing our network across the state. To learn more about Main Street Alliance, visit http://www.mainstreetalliance.org or stay connected on Twitter at @MainStreetweets and on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mainstreetalliance.

Senator Baldwin to Opportunity Wisconsin Steering Committee: “It Didn’t Have to Be This Way”

October 2nd, 2020

On eve of jobs report showing a slowing recovery, group gathers to discuss state of Wisconsin’s economy under President Trump

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MADISON, Wis.—Last night, shortly before President Trump would reveal his positive COVID-19 diagnosis, Opportunity Wisconsin convened its steering committee for a timely and sobering discussion with U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin. While the participants represented a diverse cross section of lived experiences in the Badger State, there was a common thread in the conversation: President Trump’s failure to lead during this crisis has exacerbated the struggles so many Wisconsinites were already facing due to his damaging economic agenda. 

“You can’t just look at the stock market and say our economy is performing well,” said Senator Baldwin (9:58). “You can’t just look at job numbers before the pandemic and say that the economy is doing well. You have to see whether the economy is lifting people into the middle class. Whether they have jobs that support themselves and their families.” 

President Trump’s economic policies have actively hurt Wisconsin by putting billionaires and big corporations first, and leaving working and middle-class people behind. Between rising housing costs, wages not keeping up with the cost of living, and nearly non-existent benefits, many in the Badger State are just barely getting by.  “All of his policies, even through some decisions around health care, tax policies, all of these decisions have made it harder for people in rural places, people who are lower-income, people who make less money, working-class, to be able to afford anything. I can’t think of a single policy actually that has been helpful for small businesses,” said Anna Landmark (35:41), Landmark Creamery co-owner and cheesemaker.

During the second year in a row that President Trump paid only $750 in federal income taxes, he signed into law the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act which by 2027 will give 83% of the benefits to the top 1%. In Wisconsin, residents with the lowest incomes are expected to pay more in taxes because of the Trump Tax, while the wealthiest 1% of residents can expect almost $8,000 in savings. “We don’t give two hoots about what Wall Street’s doing. We’re not investing in that. We’re trying to pay our rent, we’re trying to pay for food,” said Kyra Swenson (46:54), an early childhood educator from Madison.  

Last night’s conversation took place against the backdrop of another record-setting day of COVID-19 cases and deaths in the state of Wisconsin. Dr. Rachel Hughes, an emergency physician in Dane and Iowa counties, shed some light on one of the reasons the United States was not prepared to handle the pandemic (21:16), “The problem is that we had a public health infrastructure that had been underfunded for years and had suffered pretty drastic cuts and a focus on health care profitability, particularly under conservative administrations and under the Trump administration. As a result, the hospitals were not set up to be engines of public health, which is what they need to be in a pandemic. Instead, they are profit-making healthcare centers focused on the procedures and surgeries that are compensated the highest, not on primary care and public health infrastructure.”  

Unknowingly painting a contrast with the kind of health care and benefits President Trump will receive during his recovery from COVID-19, Dr. Hughes continued (24:46), “The vast majority of Wisconsinites cannot take two weeks off of work and still pay their bills...Having no structured paid leave in this country for the vast majority of Americans, you can’t deal with a pandemic like this and appropriately control it if people can’t act in their best interest and stay home.” 

On Friday, the U.S. Department of Labor released their jobs report showing nonfarm payrolls rose by 661,000, which was lower than expected and signals a slowdown in the country’s recovery.   

“Here we are now in September and October and things are continuing to stay the same - we’re not back to business as usual and we’re not going to get back to business as usual before the end of the year and there has, from the administration, been no real response to what that will look like,” said Becca Cooke (28:41), Eau Claire entrepreneur and Executive Director of Red Letter Grant.  

The Opportunity Wisconsin steering committee is made up of a diverse group of leaders who span the urban/rural divide and live and work in communities and industries through Wisconsin. Each of these leaders represents so many unique voices across our state. From ranchers and cheesemakers to restaurant owners and elected officials, the Opportunity Wisconsin steering committee reflects the values, the tenacity and the passion that makes Wisconsin so special.

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Opportunity Wisconsin Statement on President Trump's Nomination of Amy Coney Barrett to SCOTUS

Saturday, September 26, 2020

MADISON, Wis.—Opportunity Wisconsin, a coalition of Wisconsin residents fighting for an economy that works for working people, released the following statement after President Trump officially nominated Amy Coney Barrett to fill the U.S. Supreme Court vacancy left by the passing of Justice Ruth Badger Ginsburg. 

“Amy Coney Barrett's abysmal track record on everything from healthcare to workers' rights should give every Wisconsinite pause. However, what's equally—if not more—alarming is the fact there is even a Supreme Court nominee to begin with,” said Program Director Meghan Roh. “President Trump and Senator Johnson should be focused on one thing: getting us out of this pandemic and helping our economy recover, including addressing unemployment. However, they refuse to do any of that. They should listen to a majority of Americans who disagree with any attempt to jam through this nomination, especially as President Trump and Senator Johnson refuse to act on protections and overdue relief for our health, safety, and economy.”

According to a Washington Post-ABC News poll released this morning, "a majority of Americans oppose efforts by President Trump and the Republican-led Senate to fill a Supreme Court vacancy before the presidential election."

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COVID-19 and the Childcare: “I Don’t Feel Like I’m Worth Anything”

September 23rd, 2020

Milwaukee Alderwoman Marina Dimitrijevic joined parents and childcare providers from around the  Badger State to discuss the impact of President Trump’s failed leadership on their families and finances

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GREEN BAY, Wis. — As President Trump claims COVID-19 “affects virtually nobody,” Opportunity Wisconsin, joined by Milwaukee Alderwoman Marina Dimitrijevic, convened a group of parents and childcare providers to discuss how the Trump administration’s failure to lead has created an unnecessary crisis for so many across the Badger State. 

“Everyday we’re just trying to get through each day on top of the fear of the pandemic itself, the fear of finances,” said Alderwoman Dimitrijevic. “We were promised time and time again to get funding or relief from the federal administration, and quite frankly we just feel completely forgotten about, even to this date. Nothing has gotten better - it’s actually gotten worse. It just feels like there’s no end in sight.”

“The economic impacts of COVID-19 have disrupted the lives of Americans across the country, but the crisis didn’t have to be this bad,” said moderator Kyra Swenson, a Fitchburg early childhood educator and Opportunity Wisconsin steering committee member. “The Trump administration has mishandled both the health and economic response to the pandemic, and deaths continue to rise daily. Schools reopening this fall have brought renewed spikes of the virus, while federal aid to workers and families has beens slow and minimal, especially compared with the bailouts to huge corporations.”

President Trump and his allies have already pushed our country into a completely unnecessary crisis and have refused to allow critically-needed support for workers and families to pass. The House passed legislation more than four months ago to protect the incomes of unemployed workers and extend key lifelines for workers and families. 

“I did luck out and got a PPP, but 6% of family childcare centers [across the country] got a PPP, and only around 20% of group centers. We definitely did not get enough,” said Corrine Hendrickson, a New Glarus childcare provider. “There was a $50 billion Child Care is Essential Act that was going to strengthen and subsidize and get our industry going. It passed the House, but it’s not even seeing the light of day in the Senate. The latest bill from the Senate had $0 for child care in it. I’m really feeling quite hopeless that we’re not going to get anything.”

President Trump and Majority Leader McConnell have done nothing but delay and obstruct. If they continue ignoring these crises and spend the coming weeks focused solely on a Supreme Court seat that should be left for the next administration to fill, these crises will only get worse.

“Our income has been cut in half since this started,” said Charli Sevrin, a Green Bay parent. “I am still waiting on my unemployment, which I filed for in March. It’s really unfortunate because we pay taxes and we do our duties as Americans, and I just don’t feel like I’m worth anything during this scary, scary time.”  
Even before the pandemic, access to quality child care was largely dependent on economic status. When COVID-19 hit, newly unemployed Wisconsinites were forced to reassess their childcare needs. Many families faced impossible and incredibly difficult decisions around the health, safety, and education of their children. With schools and childcare centers beginning to reopen, these difficult decisions are not going away. 

“The dehumanization of the situation - of knowing that you are electing people who are literally ok with letting you die just so they can get money - is infuriating,” said Christin DePouw, a Green Bay parent. “It’s incredible and it’s disgusting. And so many people don’t have the choice to stay home like I do.”

To speak with an Opportunity Wisconsin representative, please email press@opportunitywisconsin.org

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Opportunity Wisconsin Calls on Senator Johnson to Honor Justice Ginsburg’s Last Wish and His Own Rule: No SCOTUS Appointment Before the Election

September 18th, 2020

MADISON, Wis. — Tonight, Opportunity Wisconsin released the following statement on the passing of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg:

"For nearly three decades, Justice Ginsburg served on our nation's highest court as a champion for those seeking a fair shot, whether it was on issues of equality, education, or economic mobility. Badger State residents will benefit from her judicial legacy that will live generations beyond today,” said Program Director Meghan Roh. “We call on Senate lawmakers and the president to honor Justice Ginsburg's stated wishes before her passing, and the 2016 precedent set by Majority Leader McConnell and supported by Wisconsin Senator Ron Johnson, and refrain from considering a replacement until Wisconsinites' voices are heard November 3rd."  

In February 2016, after the death of Justice Antonin Scalia, Senator Johnson said he strongly agreed "that the American people should decide the future direction of the Supreme Court by their votes for president."

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COVID-19 and the Class of 2020: “We’ve All Been Dealt a Losing Hand One Way or Another”

Thursday, September 10, 2020                                                        

Wisconsin State Treasurer Sarah Godlewski joined recent and soon-to-be college grads to discuss the impact of President Trump’s failed leadership on their futures 

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MADISON, Wis. — As Americans hear directly from President Trump about his effort to conceal the realities of COVID-19, college students and recent graduates across Wisconsin are grappling with an uncertain future thanks to the president’s mismanagement of the pandemic. Last night, Opportunity Wisconsin hosted a roundtable discussion with some of those students and Wisconsin State Treasurer Sarah Godlewski to discuss their struggles and concerns about graduating into the global pandemic. 

Moderator Kate Beaton, an Eau Claire alderperson and Opportunity Wisconsin steering committee member, set the scene for the conversation, “Not only does the class of 2020 carry skyrocketing amounts of student debt - a staggering $32,731 for the average student - but this year’s graduating class also heads into the worst recession since the Great Depression due to the administration’s disastrous response to the pandemic.”

It didn’t have to be this way. The Trump Administration has offered nothing to this next generation of our workforce, many of whom are now drowning in student debt, frantically searching for a footing for their next steps.

“I had an on-campus job, and it was the one form of employment that was bringing in any kind of income to deal with expenses for my housing, my tuition, and my books. Unfortunately, I was part of the furloughs, as were many other working students on campus,” said Trenton Ebel, a senior at UW-Green Bay. “I’m kind of scared to go back to work because I don’t know what the virus would do to me if, God forbid, I were to catch it. We’ve all been dealt a losing hand one way or the other.” 

1.3 million students graduated nationwide from 2 and 4 year institutions in 2020; and they face competition against the 51.8 million people who have filed for unemployment as of July that have experience in their fields.
“You would think that in the nursing profession you would be able to find a job, but a lot of nurses were being furloughed from their jobs as well. I had so much health care experience but it was so challenging finding a job,” said Allyson Arens, a 2020 graduate of Madison Area Technical College. “The administration should have focused on the coronavirus right away and taken it seriously. The sooner we get the virus under control, the sooner people will feel more comfortable with doing things like traveling, eating out, going to sporting events.” 

“My experience was pretty traumatic - it really just came out of nowhere,” said Noah Robinson, a 2020 graduate of the Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design. “I still have yet to receive my degree, my cap and gown, and not to mention a job after college.” 

President Trump’s economic policies have actively hurt Wisconsin by putting billionaires and big corporations first, and leaving working and middle-class people behind. Between rising housing costs, wages not keeping up with the cost of living, and nearly non-existent benefits, many in the Badger State are just barely getting by. The president’s botched policy response to the coronavirus pandemic has only made matters worse for Wisconsin workers.

“It’s not just about the mismanagement of COVID-19, the reality is that the Trump Administration was actually never building an inclusive economy from the beginning,” said Godlewski. “And further, they were never investing in you or me, the next generation.”

To speak with an Opportunity Wisconsin representative, please email press@opportunitywisconsin.org

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This Labor Day, President Trump Continues to Turn His Back on Working People

Monday, September 7, 2020

MADISON, Wis. — This Labor Day, hundreds of thousands of working people across Wisconsin face an interwoven economic and public health crisis like never seen before. For Wisconsin, the economic fallout of the coronavirus pandemic includes more than 100,000 permanently shuttered small businesses, hundreds of closed farms with even more farmers having to dump milk, and nearly 200,000 people struggling to pay rent and put food on the table because President Trump let federal unemployment insurance expire. 

It didn’t have to be this way. But, like his tax and trade policies before the pandemic, President Trump’s crisis response put billionaires and big corporations ahead of working people. Not only did he give corporations a $500 billion bailout, but the President endangered Wisconsin’s essential workers by forcing factories to re-open without proper PPE, leading over 700 Wisconsin food plant workers to contract coronavirus.

Unfortunately, neither the President nor Vice President Pence when he speaks in Wisconsin today will acknowledge how their prioritization of Wall Street during this crisis has actively hurt Badger State workers.  
“Forty-eight million workers are or have been thrust into the ranks of the unemployed, including nearly 700,000 Wisconsinites. President Trump has done very little to help the situation — instead, he has bolstered Wall Street and the large banks at the expense of working families,” said Opportunity Wisconsin Steering Committee Member and Fox Valley Area AFL-CIO President Mark Westphal. “The president has been ignoring the needs of American workers long before the pandemic began. President Trump’s 2017 tax law gave big banks billions of dollars in tax cuts, while raising taxes on Wisconsin’s poorest residents.

Wisconsinites have never stopped working hard, but wages have been stagnant in our state for 40 years, while the cost of living continues to rise. Instead of uplifting these workers, Trump blocked a federal minimum wage increase, a move that denied more than 800,000 Wisconsinites a pay increase and resulted in $3 billion in lost wages.” 

Today, while we honor the contributions that workers have made to our state and nation, we must also continue the call for President Trump to put working people first, not just his billionaire friends and corporations. 

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About Opportunity Wisconsin

Opportunity Wisconsin is a coalition of Wisconsin residents fighting for an economy that works for working people. Through our stories, we’re elevating the real consequences of the destructive economic policies championed by President Trump and his allies these past three years, and showing how they have made Wisconsin’s economy worse off. Join us in demanding our elected officials focus more on growing the economy for middle class folks and expanding opportunity for all Wisconsinites, not just the wealthy few. To learn more about Opportunity Wisconsin, visit OpportunityWisconsin.org or stay connected on Twitter at @OpportunityWI and on Facebook at Facebook.com/OpportunityWI.