WI GOP Chief: Milwaukee’s ‘History With Socialism’ Makes It ‘Obvious Choice’ For DNC

MILWAUKEE - SEPTEMBER 13: Milwaukee Skyline, photographed from the lakefront in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on September 13, 2018. (Photo By Raymond Boyd/Getty Images)
Start your day with TPM.
Sign up for the Morning Memo newsletter

As former Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) praised the economic benefits of the Democratic National Committee’s decision to host its convention in Milwaukee, the head of the state’s Republican Party suggested the decision was fueled by the city’s “long history with socialism.”

In a statement to local newspapers — the Journal Sentinel and the Capital Times — Wisconsin GOP executive director Mark Jefferson called out Hillary Clinton and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) as well as the city’s past “three socialist mayors.”

“No city in America has stronger ties to socialism than Milwaukee,” Jefferson said in a statement. “And with the rise of Bernie Sanders and the embrace of socialism by its newest leaders, the American left has come full circle. It’s only fitting the Democrats would come to Milwaukee.”

Jefferson’s comments break slightly with Walker — who said the convention will boost the economy: “It’s not red, it’s not blue, it’s green” — as well as the Wisconsin Republican Party’s own Twitter feed. The account retweeted Jefferson’s statement, and then reiterated the economic benefits of the convention.

Latest News
Masthead Masthead
Founder & Editor-in-Chief:
Executive Editor:
Managing Editor:
Associate Editor:
Editor at Large:
General Counsel:
Publisher:
Head of Product:
Director of Technology:
Associate Publisher:
Front End Developer:
Senior Designer: