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JFC Democrats Suspect Republican "Dysfunction"
Democrats on Wisconsin’s budget-writing committee are questioning whether the Republican split on the new state budget is more political than philosophical.
Sen. Kelda Roys, D-Madison, on Thursday accused Senate Republicans of caving to their “extremist” members who have suggested not voting for a budget at all.
“The dysfunction that we’re seeing here in Wisconsin is mirrored by the chaos and dysfunction that we're seeing out of Washington, where the Republican party is really struggling to govern, even though they have generous majorities, they're not able to agree amongst themselves,” Roys told reporters at the Capitol. “I think Republicans here know that they're going to actually have to run under more competitive maps [in 2026]. They've got a very difficult election cycle coming up.”
Republicans have a two-seat majority in the Wisconsin Senate currently, and many in Madison expect them to lose the chamber in the next election.
Sen. Chris Kapenga, R-Delafield, and Sen. Steve Nass, R-Whitewater, have both said they intend to vote against any budget that they feel spends too much.
Their holdouts means Senate Republicans don’t have enough votes to pass a new state spending plan on their own.
“What we really need is for Republicans to pick up the phone. For the Senate Majority Leader to decide that he is not willing to risk his majority and his more vulnerable members to kowtow to the most extreme voices that have clearly said that they're actually not interested in a budget,” Roys added.
LeMahieu hasn’t said anything about the politics of 2026, or the politics of his caucus. Instead he issued a statement Thursday saying that Assembly Republicans must change their approach.
“These [budget] discussions are heading in a direction that taxpayers cannot afford,” LeMahieu said. “Senate Republicans are ready to work with the State Assembly to pass a balanced budget that cuts taxes and responsibly invests in core priorities.”
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