Senate Republicans expected not to sanction governor-nominated Agricultural Secretary Brad Pfaff during the Nov. 5 floor session after a phone conversation between Gov. Tony Evers and the majority leader.
Sen. Scott Fitzgerald, R-Juneau, encouraged Gov. Tony Evers to remove Pfaff before the session, indicating Friday there were not enough votes in the cacus to confirm the Dept. of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection nominee.
Pfaff serves as secretary-designee of DATCP, but has not yet been confirmed by the Senate. Fitzgerald recommended Evers withdraw Pfaff’s nomination before tomorrow’s floor session.
Evers defended Pfaff’s nomination and placed the conflict in context with the inconsistency of the state’s agriculture.
“It is astonishing that, in the middle of a dairy crisis and trade war, Republicans want to create even more uncertainty and instability by firing the leader of the agency charged with fighting for Wisconsin’s farmers and rural communities,” Evers said in a statement.
Pfaff was one of Evers’ first secretaries recommended for approval. Earlier this year, the GOP-controlled Senate Committee on Agriculture, Revenue and Financial Institution’s recommended Pfaff in a bipartisan, unanimous vote, creating surprise surrounding Fitzgerald’s announcement.
Pfaff clashed with Fitzgerald in July when he attempted to persuade the Joint Finance Committee to release funding to help farmers with mental health issues.
Sen. Steve Nass, R-Whitewater, also criticized Pfaff’s recent leadership decision to revise the livestock industry’s siting rules, explaining it would lead to more farm closures.
However, many Democrats defended Pfaff’s advocacy for farming communities in Wisconsin.
Minority Assembly Leader Gordon Hintz, D-Oshkosh, argues “to Republicans, standing up for farmers was a fireable offense,” calling the potential dismissal strictly political.
“Brad grew up on a farm and has dedicated his life to advocating for Wisconsin farmers, agriculture, and our rural communities,” Hintz said. “This is politics at its worst, and most vindictive. To be clear, the only reason this is happening is because Brad Pfaff dared to shine a light on the disgraceful Republican inaction on access to farmer mental health care. ”
This comes as Wisconsin’s farming industry faces unpredictable weather and increasing economic challenges. DATCP data shows Wisconsin lost nearly 638 milk cow herds in 2018, a result of worldwide milk surpluses driving down dairy prices, leading many family farms to declare bankruptcy.
Hintz also referenced recent tariffs when claiming removing Pfaff “will create more instability for family farmers who have already been harmed by a reckless trade war and chaos at the federal level.”
If the Senate rejects Pfaff’s nomination during Tuesday’s floor session, it would be the first rejection of a cabinet nominee in the Wisconsin Legislature since at least 1987. The Senate has only confirmed five of Evers’ cabinet picks.
Hope Karnopp is the news manager and dabbles in music reviews at The Daily Cardinal. She previously hosted the Cardinal Call for WORT-FM and edited state news.
