Citizen Action Weekend 2025 Newsletter, Friday, June 6th
Friday, June 6th
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Listen to “Republicans Play Hardball: Dare Governor to Veto Partisan Budget.” Battleground Wisconsin Podcast
We take a deep dive into the huge breaking news that Speaker Robin Vos and Republican leaders walked away from state budget negotiations with Governor Tony Evers on Wednesday. Ratcheting up the battle, Republicans taunted the Governor by predicting he would sign a partisan budget that under-funds his priorities. We talk about how this decision provides a new opportunity for Evers to re-engage the public about what is at stake in the budget battle and how their engagement in the fight is critical to winning on key public priorities.
We and our allies continue to encourage people to call Governor Evers (1-608-266-1212) and urge him to veto any state budget that fails to meet key public priorities: properly funded public schools, expand BadgerCare, fund child care, and no new prisons. Contact your State Legislators today and tell them to reject any state budget that fails to meet these minimum standards.
We review a new UW-Extension study finding rising housing costs are prompting many to forgo or delay medical care, and we discuss the significant implications of these findings.
We close with an update on the federal budget battle where Senator Ron Johnson has positioned himself on center stage in the developing budget drama. Johnson, who recently called Medicaid recipients “grifters,” publicly opposes the House budget because it does not cut enough from Medicaid, SNAP, and other critical public programs.
Listen to the show.
Sign our joint letter to Governor Tony Evers urging him to veto any state budget that does not meet key public priorities.
“As supporters of your proposed 2025-2027 State Budget, we are writing to respectfully urge you to use your full constitutional power to push over the finish line a budget that meets the needs of Wisconsin communities by making it clear that you will veto any budget that fails to meet minimum standards for investments in education, health care, child care, and effective criminal justice reform.”
Read more of our letter to the Governor and sign on in support.
Citizen Action members gather outside Ron Johnson’s office to express outrage he called them “grifters” and wants deeper cuts to Medicaid.
Citizen Action members who are Medicaid recipients and caregivers from the Milwaukee area gathered outside Senator Ron Johnson’s Milwaukee office Thursday to express their outrage with the Senator’s charge that they are “grifters.”
Speaking at the Milwaukee Press Club last week, Johnson said that slashing cuts to Medicaid are not a problem because “nobody would be harmed other than the grifters who are sucking down the waste, fraud and abuse.”
Multi-millionaire Ron Johnson’s insults are intended to hide the real grift, wealthy members of Congress cutting healthcare for working families so they can have tax breaks for the wealthy.
Call or visit Ron Johnson’s office today and tell him what you think about his support for deeper cuts to Medicaid and calling working people who need healthcare, “grifters.”
Phone: (202) 224-5323
Milwaukee: 517 East Wisconsin Avenue, Suite 408
Oshkosh: 219 Washington Avenue, Suite 100
Madison: 5315 Wall Street, Suite 110
Join our healthcare organizing, contact: Timothy.Faust@citizenactionwi.org
Citizen Action members travel to Washington, D.C. to lobby the U.S. Senate against Budget bill that cuts Medicaid.
This week Citizen Action of Wisconsin members join hundreds of People’s Action leaders from around the country to make sure our voices are heard in Washington, D.C. by our elected leaders. Members attended protests and lobbied U.S. Senators against the Budget bill that recently passed the U.S. House.
Watch video of Keviea Guiden speaking in Washington, D.C. this week.
This week also saw Wisconsin’s multi-millionaire Senator Ron Johnson continue his call for deeper cuts to Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act, removing coverage from more working people. He also said he supports cutting funding for hospitals that care for more Medicaid recipients, hurting rural Wisconsin hospitals. So dumb. So bad.
Call or visit Ron Johnson’s office today and tell him what you think about his support for deeper cuts to Medicaid and calling working people who need healthcare, “grifters.”
Phone: (202) 224-5323
Milwaukee: 517 East Wisconsin Avenue, Suite 408
Oshkosh: 219 Washington Avenue, Suite 100
Madison: 5315 Wall Street, Suite 110
Join our healthcare organizing, contact: Timothy.Faust@citizenactionwi.org
Citizen Action Driftless Coop member holds Healthcare “House Party”
Citizen Action member leader, Kelly Leibold, hosted a “house party” this week in the La Crosse area. Attendees discussed our healthcare organizing on federal Medicaid and the State Budget fight to expand BadgerCare.
Join our organizing in the Driftless area, contact: Kristie.Tweed@citizenactionwi.org
Citizen Action members fight for child care funding and call for a veto of any state budget that doesn’t fund child care
Citizen Action Northwest Wisconsin Organizing Cooperative member from Eau Claire, Julia Bennker, has been helping to lead advocacy for $480 million in child care funding in the state budget, and yesterday visited Bloomer (about 20 miles north of Eau Claire) for a rally to support families, teachers, and owners of three childcare centers in Bloomer who are saying: “Keep Wisconsin Working: Support Childcare!”
Sign Letter to Governor Evers urging a veto any budget without childcare funding.
To get involved contact Northwestern Co-op Organizer, Jeremy Gragert: jeremy.gragert@citizenactionwi.org
Citizen Action Southeast Organizing Co-op Update: 💥Turning Up the Pressure on Ron Johnson & Building for the Future
🎤 We Took a Stand Against Medicaid Cuts
This week, Southeast Co-op showed up strong at our press conference calling out Senator Ron Johnson’s attacks on Medicaid.
We gathered with partners, advocates, and everyday people who know what’s at stake when billionaires get tax breaks and working people get left behind. Our message was clear: We won’t let them gut our care.
We curated our media. Our voices were heard. And we’re just getting started.
🤝 Thank You for Showing Up at Our Meet & Greet!
On Tuesday, we held a Meet & Greet at the Milwaukee office and it was a great time!
New folks. Familiar faces. Good food. Big energy. Together, we built community and laid the groundwork for the fights ahead. If you missed it — no worries! More events are on the way, and the door is always open.
🌱 What’s Next? Join Our Health Care & Climate Teams
We’re launching two new Southeast Co-op teams, and we want YOU at the table:
- Health Care Team – Fight for BadgerCare expansion, protect Medicaid, and take on the big health insurance corporations that put profit over people.
- Climate Team – Push for green jobs, climate resiliency, and environmental justice that centers Black, Brown, and working-class communities.
These teams are about action, strategy, and building local power. If you care about climate and care, now’s the time to step up.
Want to get involved? Reply to this email or contact Ruben (414 377 2995) and we’ll plug you in.
✊ We’re showing what people power looks like in southeast Wisconsin. Let’s keep going.
Attend Hands Off Medicaid Town Halls in Rice Lake (June 9th, 6:30pm) or St. Croix Falls (June 10th, 6:30pm)
Directly-impacted residents and advocates will speak at two (2) community town hall events to discuss massive federal Medicaid cuts now being debated in Congress. The events are in Rice Lake (June 9th, 6:30pm) and St. Croix Falls (June 10th, 6:30pm.)
In May, the House of Representatives voted on a budget that cuts Medicaid by nearly a trillion dollars – that they’ll hand over to billionaires. These cuts will run people out of their homes, tank local economies, close rural hospitals, and cost lives. Now the vote goes to the Senate, with a goal of getting it to the President by July 4.
The town hall events will include a brief presentation from a Citizen Action of Wisconsin health policy expert, comments from local officials, testimony from directly-affected community members, and an open forum for questions and further testimony.
Wisconsin’s Medicaid program covers 1.2 million people. It contains BadgerCare, a health insurance program for low-income residents; FamilyCare and IRIS, which fund nursing home care and home healthcare services for seniors and people with disabilities; Birth to 3, which provides comprehensive services for infants with developmental disabilities, and several other programs serving vulnerable populations who would otherwise be excluded from healthcare infrastructure. It is also the largest payer of mental health services, one of the primary funders for substance use disorder rehabilitation, and a budgetary lifeline for hospitals and physicians serving rural and low-income patients.
The federal government funds 60% of Wisconsin’s $11 billion Medicaid budget. A cut of even 10% of federal support would require an additional $600 million of state money—a 15% increase in funding from general purpose revenue—or state cuts to Medicaid funding, which would remove people from the program or further reductions in payments to medical providers.
- Rice Lake: Monday, June 9 at 6:30pm (doors at 6) at UWEC-Barron at The Commons in Meggers Hall. RSVP
- St. Croix Falls: Tuesday, June 10 at 6:30pm (doors at 6) in the St. Croix Falls Public Library. RSVP
Citizen Action In the News
Citizen Action Driftless Area Organizing Co-op Members staged an event outside of Congressman Derrick Van Ordin’s office to protest slashing cuts to Medicaid, which combined with cuts to the ACA will take health care away from over 14 million Americans. See coverage from WIZM Radio La Crosse and ABC TV 19 La Crosse.
Also the Barron News-Shield previewed Citizen Action’s Hands Off Medicaid town hall on Monday June 9 in Rice Lake. If you live within driving distance of Rice Lake, please stop by.
Social media post of the week
