MONROE — The turmoil back in Washington, with a nasty shutdown showdown in Congress, did not show on her face as U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin strode confidently through Green County YMCA on Thursday.
The Madison Democrat was there following in the footsteps of other politicians and dignitaries before her, lauding the unique public, private coalition — and even a little crowd-sourced funding — that turned an old but beloved “Y” into an ultra-modern community space.
It opened much to fanfare earlier this year, and after all told more than $25 million was raised for the initial phase of the project.
“Did you ever dream you’d see yourself in a facility like this?” a smiling Baldwin, in a hot-pink blazer asked Dawn Lederman, Senior Program Director/Gymnastics Director, who was working with a group of home-schooled kids, who seemed unimpressed by the overdressed visitors.
Of course, Lederman said she did not expect such a versatile space for everything from competitive team gymnastics — to rainy-day play for kids to jump on a trampoline, and all shapes of colorful mats.
Baldwin admired the wall lined with trophies from a long legacy of gymnastics here, much of it under Lederman’s guidance.
Security was tight for the senator’s visit, with several officers stationed in the front of the building and another accompanying the tour throughout the building. The bigger show of force reflected the current, politically charged moment.
There are huge issues of contention on the nation’s mind writ large, but the current nuts-and-bolts budget battle is swiftly coming to a head — and Baldwin was eager to address it.
Speaking to the Monroe Times following the tour, she said she was “deeply disturbed” that the Republican leadership won’t even meet with the minority side to try to find a way forward, while recognizing the urgency Democrats feel to use whatever leverage they can to restore healthcare funding.
“We have to work together and this president is saying he’ll have none of that, I’ll just do it on my own,” she said.
Democrats are threatening to shut down the government — still raw from the beating they took for an earlier vote in Trump’s second term to keep the government open, only to get little in return.
She has repeatedly criticized the Republican-led budget proposals, arguing they harm working families in Wisconsin while providing tax cuts for the wealthy and large corporations. As the clock ticks down to the Wednesday, October 1, deadline, Baldwin has been calling for an extension of Affordable Care Act subsidies. In response, the White House is threatening mass firings — rather than layoffs or furloughs — of even more federal workers.
For her part, Baldwin also slammed the current administration’s lack of effort in fighting stubborn inflation — something that helped propel Trump into office following the COVID-19 epidemic.
“How had is it for everyone to make ends meet, with the cost of things?” she said. “His policies are making it worse.”
Back in town at the YMCA, far from the national din, Baldwin, who said she enjoys her own fitness routine, walked briskly around the new indoor track, the place still smelling new and filled with the laughter of kids.
“This is wonderful,” she said, picking up the pace.
The YMCA’s enhanced facility resulted in an additional 60,000 square feet of program space. Moreover, it adds desperately needed childcare slots for the community in a setting bathed in natural light and modern touches like separate televisions at the many of the exercise stations; a spin-room with a giant screen to take epic “rides” with a class; or to bath in trippy lights.
