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WATCH: US Sen. Baldwin touts programs to help Western Wisconsin during public townhall with La Crosse’s chamber of commerce

Healthcare, immigration and transportation are among the issues US Sen. Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin is promoting during the early days of her third term.
Baldwin spoke about priority issues Monday during townhall for residents of Western Wisconsin and moderated by the La Crosse Area Chamber of Commerce’s Beth Franlin.
Among the local projects for which Baldwin has arranged funding is La Crosse County’s Hillview Healthcare Center expansion, which will be discussed in the 7 a.m. hour Tuesday on WIZM’s La Crosse Talk in terms of an intergenerational daycare being set up there.
“I was able to secure a grant of $1 million to provide housing for unsheltered people, and address affordability of childcare in La Crosse County,” Baldwin said.
Baldwin, just re-elected in November, said she’s seeing housing costs “skyrocket” in the La Crosse area and around Wisconsin with the median price of homes in the state having doubled in the past 10 years.
Along with the daycare, Hillview is adding an assisted living center and bridge housing for people who have recently become homeless.
Baldwin also said Congress has to fix a “broken” immigration system. She is also supporting bills to clean up PFAS water contamination, such as on French Island in La Crosse, where they have been on bottled water for four years.
Baldwin declared that former Republican US House Rep. Sean Duffy of Wisconsin is a good choice to become the new Secretary of Rransportation.
Baldwin had introduced Duffy at his recent confirmation hearing in D.C. She said Duffy has been supportive of Wisconsin’s railroad programs and thinks he did well before the committee.
“I feel he answered those questions successfully,” she said. “I feel like he will be supportive of those programs, and the Borealis service that goes from Chicago to Minneapolis, with eight stops in Wisconsin, including in La Crosse.”
Amtrak’s new Borealis train began service last year. The company just secured $38.6 million more from the US Department of Transportation to continue service.
“Investing in commuter rail gives Wisconsinites and visitors alike more options to explore the Badger state, support our local economies, and visit their loved ones,” Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.) said in a statement back on January 13. “This investment doubles down on the success of Amtrak’s Borealis Service, reducing wear and tear on our roads, attracting new visitors, and bringing new business to our state.”

R head
January 28, 2025 at 8:53 am
Why is she I town , she should be in Washington to vote on the president’s cabinet. Do your job!!!!!!
walden
January 28, 2025 at 6:54 pm
It makes complete business sense for the Chamber to stay close to area elected representatives regardless of their political affiliation. However, after a 10+ minute introduction by Ms Franklin that sounded like an in-kind political advertisement followed by another 10 minutes of Baldwin’s filibustering “I did this… I accomplished that” with no added substance or discussion it was just too much.
Does the Chamber really have a pro-abortion position or did Baldwin simply not know what group she was talking to?
Dropped out at that stage of the event.
Kevin
January 29, 2025 at 7:32 am
Baldwin makes a statement about a broken immigration system. I disagree, the system isn’t broken, people that are in the system, this includes the voters, refuse to make it work.
You can’t claim something is broken while not enforcing the laws that you made, you funded or didn’t fund, you voted for. You can’t claim something is broken and then bitch because the laws aren’t being enforced! You can’t claim something broken and not work to update it…
Politicians piss me off anyway, and then they start talking and they really piss me off.
I am still in the ‘fire them all’ and let’s revert to tribalism mode, woke up cranky…. seems to be the only thing we can do right now anyway. Let the pop singers and professional athletes run the country, states and communities, supported by the media talking heads. they are the smartest people in the world anyway! Open the borders, step back and let’s create equity in the world!