WATERTOWN, Wisconsin — President Joe Biden visited a small town in western Wisconsin on Thursday and discussed his infrastructure and energy spending at a local electric supply company.
This was his first visit to the dairy state. stepping out The presidential race's main candidate came on official presidential business and had no connection to the Harris-Walz campaign – but that didn't stop Biden from mentioning his “predecessor” Donald Trump several times during his twenty-five minute speech.
Beyond criticizing the former president who sits atop the Republican ticket, Biden on Thursday appeared to have several other presidents on his mind.
When announcing $7.3 billion in grants for rural electric cooperatives in Wisconsin, he said it was “the most significant investment for rural electrification since FDR's New Deal.”
He later included himself among other great American presidents, telling attendees that he had done more to modernize transportation than anyone “since Eisenhower.”
The bipartisan infrastructure bill passed in 2021 allocated $3.1 billion for projects in Wisconsin, distributed through grants and formula payments to state and local governments. But there are conditions attached to the spending, causing Wisconsinites to balk at the program's so-called benefits.
“Seven out of 10 construction workers in Wisconsin have decided not to be part of a construction union,” John Schultz, who runs legal and government relations for one of the largest trade associations for Wisconsin builders and contractors, told The Post.
Wisconsin is a right-to-work state, so union membership is voluntary — and Harris is not happy about that. On Labor Day, she Promises to outlaw Right to work while meeting with Biden in Pittsburgh.
Industry insiders say most Wisconsin contractors are merit-based, meaning they pay workers based on their experience and qualifications — not a negotiated union wage.
Biden says contractors to “modernize” these projects would be required to pay the prevailing wage — a standardized wage rate that’s set by the government and based on labor market conditions, among other things.
Critics of the prevailing wage say it artificially inflates project costs and locks merit-based shops — and potentially better contractors — out of the competition for federal spending projects.
“For an infrastructure package to work successfully, there should be no conditions or mandates,” Cheryl Sment, president and CEO of Interstate Sealants & Concrete, told the Post.
“There are too few contractors willing to do the work that needs to be done to repair our crumbling infrastructure. Why not make the best of it and have the best?” he asked.
“That's what I would want as a taxpayer. With inflation playing a big part in the cost of construction, you're getting less of the improved roads.”
Schultz points out that the prevailing wage for workers in construction isn’t as high as it’s made out to be.
“Union construction workers cannot take over from their employer and become bosses, or be promoted to management or other positions within a company. Open shop construction workers can and often do both,” Schulz said.
“It’s troubling that President Biden would oppose the dreams of these Native Americans to get promoted in the construction industry and become their own boss,” he said, before taking a final dig.
“The unions, I understand, spent over $240 million on Biden and other Democrat politicians in 2020, and they expect a return on that investment. The unions are going to do even more for Harris in 2024, and will expect even more from her if she’s elected,” Schultz told the Post.
Wisconsin Democratic Gov. Tony Evers announced last week that his state had received $177 million of the $3.1 billion the Biden administration awarded under bipartisan infrastructure legislation passed two years ago.
