MILWAUKEE — Was Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers surprised that he was able to reach a shared revenue deal with Republican lawmakers?
“Yes and no.”
Gov. Evers joined The Steve Scaffidi Show on Wednesday morning to discuss the shared revenue deal that was recently met between himself and Republican lawmakers. The conversation touched on recidivism, the role of school resource officers (SROs), bipartisan cooperation and gun control.
“I felt that there was more willingness to have conversations, so that opened it up to actually figuring out how to solve some problems,” Gov. Evers explained. “To be truthful, I’ve signed many many many more bills than I’ve vetoed over my time as Governor, so I think some of the iciness that some people may have viewed was somewhat of a mirage.”
Despite a long and drawn out process in developing the shared revenue agreement, Gov. Evers felt this was the latest advancement in an increasingly cooperative discussion between Democratic leaders and Republican leaders in Madison. This is a trend he’s seen since grow since the last election.
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While that doesn’t mean relations between Wisconsin Democrats and Republicans are going to be smooth sailing in the future, he believes that both parties have the same common interested in mind. Scaffidi asked the Governor whether or not the Democrats conceded too much in this agreement, to which he replied:
“Clearly, Democrats want Milwaukee and Milwaukee County to succeed as much as republicans do, so I think we’ve made good progress.”
Gov. Evers cited the billion-dollar investment into public education as well as the investments in both the City of Milwaukee and the greater Milwaukee County area as two major wins for Democrats that were reached in the shared revenue deal.
“It’s frankly just doing the right thing for Wisconsin,” Gov. Evers said. “We’ve met the issue square on. Each side gave up on something that’s important to them. That’s how compromise is made.”
The conversation turned to crime rates in Wisconsin — particularly in Milwaukee — and how government action can prevent offenders who re-enter the public from committing more crimes. The Governor noted the roles of gun control and background checks, as well as broader systemic issues including transit, public housing, hunger and the speed as which the legal process plays out.
RELATED: Gov. Evers, GOP Leaders Reach Shared Revenue Deal
“Instead of having people waiting for a trial for months and months and months because there’s not enough people to do that, there’s all sorts of things we can do from simply fixing the roads and making it more difficult for people to speed; to making sure that people can get into the system and have their day in court as soon as possible,” Gov Evers said.
Also included in the shared revenue agreement is a clause that will put 25 SROs into Milwaukee public schools — a topic which has drawn contending positions from politicians and community members on either side of the aisle.
“My personal opinion is I’m fine with it, but I also believe that school boards are in the best position to make that decision, so forcing it on school boards is something I don’t feel very comfortable about,” Gov. Evers said. “There’s been enough talk on this issue that we should be able to move on.”
When push comes to shove, the outcome of this agreement is an overall positive for the people of Wisconsin in the Governor’s mind.
“It’s a win for Wisconsin. It was the right thing to do. Everybody gave some, and that’s the way it’s supposed to work in a divided government.”
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