(The Center Square) – One of the people who writes Wisconsin’s state budget is accusing Gov. Evers of grandstanding with claims lawmakers are unwilling to help during the coronavirus outbreak.
Rep. John Nygren, R-Marinette, who heads the powerful Joint Finance Committee said on Twitter Monday that Gov. Evers could not name a single piece of legislation that he wanted help passing.
“[The] media finally asked Gov. Evers what bills he wants the [legislature] to pass in response to the pandemic. He came up with ZERO,” Nygren tweeted.
He’s referring to last week’s news conference where a reporter asked the governor for “three to five big priorities” that he’d like to see the legislature do to help fight the spike in the coronavirus in the state.
“I’ve asked for specific ideas from Republicans, and their response up until this point in time, has been a lawsuit here, a lawsuit there. Criticism in public,” Evers answered.
The governor eventually did find one thing that he’d like lawmakers in Madison to do.
“They sent a letter, several dozen of them I believe, to the federal government early on in the pandemic saying ‘Don’t send us any money,'” Evers explained. “I would like them to retract that. We need money. We need federal money. They can print it, we cannot.”
Nygren said the federal government gave Wisconsin $2 billion in Coronavirus Air, Relief, and Economic Security Act money, of which only about a half-billion dollars has already been spent.
“The only thing he asked for: Send a letter to the federal government asking for a bailout,” Nygren said in another tweet. “Never mind that isn’t a bill, Evers seems to forget he is sitting on hundreds of millions from the federal government.”
Almost all of Wisconsin’s CARES Act money has been promised, but only a small fraction of it has actually been spent.
Nygren ended his tweets with a reminder that the legislature has already passed “over 50 items” at the governor’s request.
By Benjamin Yount | The Center Square
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Reposted with permission
