Major national Democratic figures, including both members of their party’s presidential ticket, have not converged on Milwaukee the way planners of the 2020 Democratic National Convention had planned. Meanwhile, President Donald Trump, Vice President Mike Pence and Trump’s son Eric chose to stump in Wisconsin during the week of the mostly-virtual convention.
Democrats including Wisconsin Senator Tammy Baldwin say the decision to protect public health in the era of COVID-19 is more important than making sure your face is shown in a battleground state.
“It is a pandemic. Democrats and Vice President Biden are putting public health and safety above anything else. By their actions, they are encouraging others to do the same, to be safe, to be healthy, to help fill the void of inaction by this President,” Baldwin told WTMJ’s Steve Scaffidi on Thursday.
“I think it’s pretty important that we always follow the science and public health guidance.”
The chairman of the DNC says that the substance of the Biden/Kamala Harris platform should far outweigh where a candidate appears on the campaign trail.
“It’s one thing to step foot here for a two-hour publicity stunt. It’s another thing to actually fight for the issues people care about,” Tom Perez told Steve Thursday.
“What is the candidate going to do for me (compared) to a two-hour publicity stunt?”
However, many still believe simply appearing in a particular state during the campaign matters, especially after Hillary Clinton did not appear in Wisconsin during the 2016 presidential campaign and lost Wisconsin and the election to President Trump.
Baldwin says, however, that any decision on when Biden and Harris come to the Badger State will be based on science. She also believes the Biden campaign presence is large enough to help their efforts in Wisconsin.
“I believe that as conditions warrant, the decisions will be made. There’s a very robust Biden campaign presence in the State of Wisconsin. Joe Biden has personally, and also through people like me, reached out to Wisconsin voters time and time again, talking about his agenda, but more specifically listening,” the Senator explained.
“There will be a very visible presence. Then we have to see. If we continue to see the pandemic getting worse and worse because of the mis-steps and negligence of this President, we’re going to have to assess. As conditions get better, we’ll see what will happen next. We can’t forget. This is a pandemic.”
