Wisconsin Republicans splinter, halting budget talks

(The Center Square) – A standoff between Assembly and Senate Republicans over how to strike a deal with Gov. Tony Evers brought Wisconsin budget talks to an impasse, canceling a budget meeting and sparking finger-pointing between party leadership from both chambers Thursday.

Talks between legislative leaders and Evers had quietly resumed earlier this week with nearly two weeks left until the state budget deadline.

However, while Assembly Republican leadership pushed to strike a deal with Evers, Senate GOP leadership held firm in opposition, derailing the week's negotiations and cancelling a key Joint Finance Committee meeting.

"Assembly and Senate Republicans have met in good faith with Gov. Evers over the past couple weeks," Assembly Speaker Rep. Robin Vos, R-Rochester, and Assembly Joint Finance Cochairman Mark Born, R-Beaver Dam, said in a joint statement. "Assembly Republicans will not pass a budget that doesn't have a guarantee from Gov. Evers of tax relief in it. We have chosen to work together so our tax reductions actually become law, schools continue to be funded, Medicaid patients continue to receive care, and road construction projects do not stop."

The Assembly leaders say striking a deal with Evers is "the most conservative and most responsible option."

If passed as they want, Born and Vos insisted that the budget is on "a trajectory to have a more conservative growth rate" than the budget passed by the Legislature two years prior. 

Senate Republicans, however, see the situation from a different angle.

Sen. Steve Nass, R-Whitewater, said Assembly Republicans' approach projects "too much spending, special interest pork and the creation of a structural deficit."

However, Nass also objected to working with Evers more broadly, citing the governor's rhetoric and policies.

"Unfortunately, some legislators in the Capitol would rather cut a bad deal for the taxpayers with a governor that calls women 'inseminated persons' and uses his extremist majority on the state Supreme Court to gut the constitutional powers of the Legislature," Nass said.

Senate Republicans see the deal as a "recipe for fiscal disaster" and instead have been fighting for "tough but fair spending decisions," according to Nass.

"There is nothing preventing the Republican majority in the Legislature from passing a conservative state budget except for the lack of willingness at the highest levels in the Assembly," Nass said.

Senate Majority Leader Sen. Devin LeMahieu, R-Oostburg, said while all sides "negotiated in good faith," budget discussions were "heading in a direction that taxpayers cannot afford."

"Senate Republicans are ready to work with the state Assembly to pass a balanced budget that cuts taxes and responsibly invests in core priorities," LeMahieu said.

Born and Vos said they hope Senate GOP leaders will "come back to the table" to make the deal with Evers and complete the budget on time.