Successful ‘Run Against Walker’ Shows Wisconsin Will Not Take Walker, GOP Assault on Working Families Sitting Down

MADISON, Wis. — Citizens of Wisconsin enraged by Gov. Scott Walker’s unprecedented corporate tax breaks and massive cuts to Wisconsin public education and healthcare systems joined One Wisconsin Now in Tuesday’s “Run Against Walker,” a run organized as part of the “Walkerville” activities taking place at the State Capitol over the next several weeks. The success of the event showed the continued and massive public opposition of Walker’s policies aimed at assaulting the working class in Wisconsin.

“Gov. Scott Walker and the Republican-controlled legislature are attacking traditional Wisconsin values,” said Scot Ross, One Wisconsin Now Executive Director. “Their giveaways to help corporations and the wealthy, while simultaneously slashing the budget for healthcare and public education have proven that Gov. Walker and the Republican majority do not care about the working families of Wisconsin.”

Despite the near-record heat on Tuesday afternoon, there was good participation, with Wisconsin’s concerned citizens showing up to “Run Against Walker.”

Some of the main concerns amongst those that participated in the event were the recent corporate tax giveaways passed by the Republican-controlled Joint Finance Committee. These giveaways are expected to ultimately contribute over $600 million in tax breaks to corporations every two years. [Legislative Fiscal Bureau Budget Analysis]

In addition to these corporate tax breaks, the JFC Republicans unanimously voted to modify the Earned Income Tax Credit, a program which gives rebates to qualifying taxpayers earning under $48,362 a year. The changes made will take away money from these qualifying low-income citizens and put it right into the pockets of corporations in Wisconsin.

In what is proving to be a continual attack on working Wisconsin, on top of the $60 million in tax increases to the working poor, Walker is also eliminating significant funding to public and higher education, cutting $1.6 billion for public schools, $71 million to the Technical College System and $250 million to the University of Wisconsin System.

“That is why we ran against Walker on Tuesday,” said Ross. “And why we will continue to run against Walker alongside the people of Wisconsin until he stops sacrificing the middle class and the poor in favor of big business.”