Wisconsin Assembly President Robin Vos, R-Rochester, speaks to members of the State Assembly about public access to the State Capitol building during the first legislative session of 2021-22 in the Assembly Chambers at the Wisconsin State Capitol in Madison, Wisconsin, Monday, January 4, 2021.
MADISON, Wisconsin – Republican leaders in the Wisconsin state legislature are accusing Governor Tony Evers of playing political games after he vetoed an approved coronavirus bill on Friday afternoon.
Evers quickly rejected the bill after it passed, saying it was not enough to deal with the state’s pandemic and abandoned a previously agreed compromise with Senate Republican majority leader Devin LeMahieu.
“Wisconsin residents recognize an agreement when they see it, and it’s not this one,” Evers said in a statement signaling his veto.
In response, LeMahieu and the President of the Assembly, Robin Vos, issued a joint statement on Friday afternoon, criticizing the decision to veto the legislation.
“It seems that Governor Evers is more concerned with his own power than with the people of Wisconsin,” the statement said. “The legislature passed a Coronavirus Relief Act that provides the state with more than $ 100 million to fight the virus and ensures that Wisconsin residents have access to the necessary drugs, vaccines and COVID-19 tests.”
Evers indicated that he would sign the bill he agreed with Senator LeMahieu last month, but Vos and the Assembly rejected the proposal because, among other things, it cut off the Assembly’s provisions that would have prohibited employers from requiring employees to receive a vaccine and limit the ability of local health departments to close businesses.
The bill passed by the Legislature on Friday also included an amendment that would ensure that Wisconsin would still receive federal food assistance benefits if the State Supreme Court rejects the governor’s emergency order. Under current law, an emergency order must be in place for Wisconsin to receive $ 50 million per month in SNAP benefits.
With the veto, Wisconsin could lose those benefits if the Court decides against the governor.
“It is sad that Governor Evers is playing at the expense of disadvantaged people, putting $ 50 million in food assistance benefits at risk if the court eliminates the illegal public health emergency,” said Vos and LeMahieu in their joint statement.
In announcing the veto, Governor Evers asked the legislature to approve the version of the bill through the Senate as soon as possible to avoid further delays in obtaining relief from COVID for the state.
“Wisconsin residents don’t care about political points or who gets the credit. They just want to know if your family, your business and your neighbors will be fine as we continue to fight the virus, ”said Evers.
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