Here & Now

Race for Governor: Mahlon Mitchell

Frederica Freyberg:

Now for state politics and the still-crowded primary field of Democrats running for governor. We continue our series of one-on-one candidate interviews tonight with Mahlon Mitchell. Mitchell was born in Milwaukee and grew up in Delavan. He has served as a firefighter for 20 years and is currently the president of the Professional Firefighters of Wisconsin. This is Mitchell’s second run for statewide office. He ran unsuccessfully for lieutenant governor in 2012. Mahlon Mitchell joins us now. Thanks very much for being here.

Mahlon Mitchell:

Thanks for having me again.

Frederica Freyberg:

First I want to ask you about Act 10. What is your response when people say that you had initial praise for Scott Walker’s Budget Repair Bill?

Mahlon Mitchell:

Well, first my response is they’re wrong. What we did was that bill came out on Friday and before we actually were able to read the bill, the 150-page Budget Repair Bill, myself as well as the police, my colleague in the police, we wrote just saying that we appreciate that Scott Walker felt that public safety is important. Now, after I actually read the bill, and actually after seeing how detrimental it was to public sector employees in the state, we came out against it right away. We were at the first protest. Look at the body of work we did every day, day in and day out, in 2011, where we stood with our brothers and sisters. Now they call is solidarity. Back then we were just calling it the right thing to do.

Frederica Freyberg:

Why do you believe that you should be the progressive choice for Wisconsin?

Mahlon Mitchell:

Because I’m progressive, but I want to be productive and pragmatic. And being pragmatic, you have to actually work with both sides of the aisle to get things done and then you’re productive. If you’re not productive, then who cares how progressive you are. But I’m a progressive. I think the state is one of progress and that is moving forward, that’s looking forward and making sure we get back to a government that actually takes care of people.

Frederica Freyberg:

Why do you think that you in particular can beat Scott Walker?

Mahlon Mitchell:

Well, it’s going to require something different. It’s going to require something uniquely different to actually beat Governor Walker this time. We’ve tried the elder statesman in the past with Tom Barrett who I supported as well. We tried Mary Burke four years later who had the business acumen who I thought would have made a great governor. We, me and my firefighters, also supported. But it’s going to require us to get people excited around the state. We’re going to have to do well with our base but also fire people up in rural areas and across this entire state. I believe I’m the best candidate suited to do that.

Frederica Freyberg:

The latest Marquette Law School Poll had you at 4%. Another candidate polling at that same place has dropped out. What will you do?

Mahlon Mitchell:

I’m in it to win it. I’m not dropping out. I’ve never quit anything. We’re in it. We built a campaign and a structure that in my opinion is second to none. Polls are one thing. Polls take a snapshot of that time at that day. But I’m looking–the polls I’m looking at come August 14. That’s people actually going to the polls. I believe we have the best chance of winning the primary.

Frederica Freyberg:

Foxconn, as you know, just broke ground in Wisconsin. You opposed the state incentive plan for Foxconn. But now that it’s a reality, are you behind it?

Mahlon Mitchell:

I’ve always said Foxconn’s a bad deal. There’s no bank that would give you a loan, $4.5 billion, to get a return on investment 25 years later. But now, like you said, Foxconn is here. The bill’s been signed. The bill’s been passed. The contract has been signed. What I think, what I know we have to do with Foxconn, what our next governor has to do, is make Foxconn accountable. And also make sure those 13,000 jobs if that’s true indeed what we’re going to have, that people that are under-employed and that are unemployed are able to actually get to those jobs and get to those positions. So that’s setting up a regional transit authority so that people on the north side of Milwaukee and people in Milwaukee and Racine and Kenosha and in-between that need those jobs can get to those jobs. Because if we can give $4.5 billion to Foxconn, we gotta work like hell to make sure we can actually get people to those jobs.

Frederica Freyberg:

On the economy, of the priorities that you state to grow it and maintain it, what’s the most important?

Mahlon Mitchell:

I think we got to give the state of Wisconsin a raise. When middle class and those that live below middle class wages, when working class families have money in their pocket, they spend it. When they spend money, they actually boost our economy. I’ve come out for $15 an hour way before it was sexy. A lot of my opponents are saying that now but I’ve been fighting for $15 for a long time and that’s going to boost our economy. We will be able to pump billions of dollars back into our economy. At the end of the day, together we rise. When everyone has more money and when the economy is doing well, we all will be doing better in our state.

Frederica Freyberg:

On education one of the things you say you want to do is instate a college loan forgiveness program for public service. How would that work?

Mahlon Mitchell:

Well it’s simple. I actually got the idea from watching my son unfortunately play video games for 12 hours one day on a Sunday. I wanted to see how long he would do it. So I said I don’t believe he should be able — he’s in 8th grade. Go from 8th grade to doing four years at high school, then we give him free tuition. I would have those 5th graders, 6th graders get off their phones, get off the video games and actually do public service. Actually do community service, meaning that they go back in their communities, they’re going to shovel snow, rake leaves for a senior who shouldn’t be doing it and can’t do it. They’re going to help the veteran who served our country. They’re going to help at the vet hospital. They’re going to help at the local soup kitchen, help at the homeless shelter. Once they meet a threshold of hours, then they’ll have earned tuition, paid for by the state for a four-year program.

Frederica Freyberg:

Very briefly, what would you do to change health care in Wisconsin?

Mahlon Mitchell:

Well we have over 300,000 people in the state that need health care that don’t have any. So we need to shore up the ACA. I would have taken– as governor I will fight for the federal dollars for the Medicaid expansion to make sure we put — that could insure about another 85,000 folks. But I want to make sure we have a BadgerCare for all. And it’s going to cost money, right? And people say, “How are you going to pay for it?” Well, again, if we can give $4 and a half billion to Foxconn, we can make sure every person in the state actually has adequate health insurance.

Frederica Freyberg:

All right. We leave it there. Mahlon Mitchell, thanks very much.

Mahlon Mitchell:

Thanks for having me.