Here & Now

Hintz on COVID Relief Bill

Frederica Freyberg:

The minority Democrats decried striking down the mask mandate in the first place, but then the potential that doing so would take food relief from people in need, that raised the roof. In the end, again, the Assembly speaker called off the vote to study how to make it work without losing that money. Tonight we are joined by the other side of the aisle, with Democratic leader the Assembly, Gordon Hintz. Thanks for being here.

Gordon Hintz:

Thanks for having me.

Frederica Freyberg:

Quite an unintended consequence in trying to overturn the mask mandate in the governor’s emergency order. What is your response to that almost happening and still being a risk?

Gordon Hintz:

The idea the first act to pass both the Senate and Assembly was going to be something that made our COVID problem worst at probably the most critical time where we’re over 80% in terms of ICU beds filled, hospitalizations rate over 80% and where we know the vaccine is going to take a while before it can make a difference, the idea that we’re going to go against the wishes of just about every major health organization in the state to repeal the mandate is contrary to what our role in government should be. And so having it scheduled as the first act was disappointing. But I can tell you certainly there are unintended consequences, such as the loss of FoodShare dollars. But the reality is thousands of Wisconsinites contacted us. Groups were registering against. I think there wasn’t 100% support in that Republican caucus over whether this was a good idea or not. We need to keep the pressure on and hopefully get them to not repeal the mandate.

Frederica Freyberg:

So what’s your position on the Senate amendment that would prevent the loss of federal funds by allowing the governor to declare an emergency just for the purpose of getting that federal money without the mask part of the order?

Gordon Hintz:

Well, look. If they are really going to go through with doing something that is going to infect more people, probably result in more lives lost in Wisconsin, make our recovery slower, I’m hopeful that we can at least find a way to keep the additional funding that we get from the federal government in FoodShare. That’s a secondary worry to the fact that they’re actually going to do something again that makes COVID worse in our state.

Frederica Freyberg:

But Speaker Vos regards, he says, wearing a mask as a social contract that should not in fact be a mandate. He even cut that public service announcement encouraging it. What about the idea of simply appealing to people’s kind of civic duty to wear a mask as opposed to an order?

Gordon Hintz:

Well, I think the success of it is going to be getting people to understand that wearing a mask is about looking out for others. It’s about looking out for each other. And we really need that collective rally. I think that was certainly a lost opportunity with our president sending the opposite message to people. At the end of the day, we know mask mandates work. There’s enough evidence out there between counties that have done it and counties that haven’t. 39 other states in the country have a mask mandate, including Republican states. So they do it because it works. The choice, I guess, being made by Republicans in the legislature is a political one or an ideological one that seems to sort of be contrary to the health and well-being of our state.

Frederica Freyberg:

As to other changes to the COVID relief bill that the governor had agreed on before Assembly revisions, how do you think the governor would regard the part of it that once again, requires a legislative review of any federal coronavirus funding?

Gordon Hintz:

I think he’ll veto it immediately. I mean it’s a nonstarter. Since Governor Evers was elected, the speaker and the Republican legislature seem to want to be governor. First they took away his powers. Then they sue him when he tries to do his job. There is an executive branch and they are charged with this exact task of managing something like the pandemic. The idea that we would give people that can’t even catch $50 million monthly loss in FoodShare or $25 million loss by delaying unemployment one week repeal in charge of managing federal aid is ridiculous. This is these guys trying to micromanage and continue to try to do Governor Evers’ job for him and I just think that’s a nonstarter.

Frederica Freyberg:

So it gets a veto in your expectation from the governor. Where does that leave the state then with any kind of COVID relief legislation?

Gordon Hintz:

Nowhere. I mean, and that’s the problem. The decision made by the Assembly the other day was essentially to keep doing nothing. They passed something that they knew was going to delay or disrupt the aid that Democrats have been asking for since last summer. It’s been over 290 days now since we’ve acted. And the decision the other day was to delay. Between that and the mask mandate, it’s pretty clear that our health, well-being, economic health, in-person school for our kids is simply not a priority right now for Republicans.

Frederica Freyberg:

All right. We leave it there. Representative Gordon Hintz, thanks joining us.

Gordon Hintz:

Thanks for having me.