Northwest Dems to Constituents: Party Over Parity
Area Republicans Push for Veto Override on Chippewa Valley Mental Health Facility,
Local Democrats Toe Party Line & Reject Bipartisanship
Madison – Today, Assembly Republicans sought to override three of Governor Tony Evers’ budget vetoes; including his vetoed expansion of psychiatric beds at a Northern Regional Crisis Center in the Chippewa Valley.
Despite pleas for Northern Democrats to break ranks and join Republicans in supporting this mental health initiative, not enough votes were garnered to override the Governor’s veto. Following this disappointment, Rep. Summerfield released this statement:
“Just a few short months ago, every single Chippewa Valley Democrat voted against funding the Northern Regional Crisis Center. Since then, even Democrat Attorney General Josh Kaul publicly acknowledged the various detrimental location and transportation issues surrounding emergency detentions.
Yet, when given the chance today to right their wrongs and override the Governor’s veto, they chose again to bury their heads in the sand, stay lockstep with their party’s urban-centric policies, and ignore the mental health of their constituents.
This issue is bigger than politics, and Republicans and Democrats had the opportunity to come together to support mental health priorities for the Northwoods. I am extremely disappointed, if not outright appalled, at Northern Democrats’ behavior today.”
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The 67th Assembly District includes portions of Dunn and Chippewa counties.