KRONENWETTER, WI (WSAU) -- Governor Scott Walker made his re-election pitch to supporters and employees of G 3 Industries in Kronenwetter on Wednesday.
Walker used most of the time to tout his history of job creation and industrial growth in the state, emphasizing the state's current run of unemployment numbers at around 3%. He also outlined a plan to help companies that are currently seeking employees to fill vacancies by allowing students who graduate from any two or four-year college in Wisconsin to receive a tax credit.
"You could go to Northcentral Technical College, UW-Stout, or a private college or university. They'd be eligible to receive $5,000 in tax credits." Walker says those students would need to make a five-year commitment to working in Wisconsin in order to receive the benefit. He says the idea came from companies like G 3 who are constantly looking for workers.
"The #1 issue they tell me is they don't have enough people to fill the jobs they have open today. That's a great contrast from where it was when I was running for Governor." Walker went on to say the $5,000 credit is just one piece of his plan to recruit more workers to the state. A regional marketing campaign was recently launched to bring in millennials from across the region and programs have also been put in place to help Veterans transition to civilian jobs in the state.
The Republican incumbent also took time to set the record straight on his stance on health insurance coverage for those with pre-existing conditions, which has been the target of special interest advertising statewide.
"Our opponent and his allies have spent millions of dollars lying about our record," said Walker. "My wife is a type 1 diabetic, my mother is a cancer survivor, and my brother has a heart condition. So like a lot of families in this state, pre-existing conditions is personal to me. As long as I am Governor we will continue to cover pre-existing conditions."
ON THE SEARCH FOR JAYME CLOSS
Walker also took time to comment on the search for 13-year-old Jayme Closs who was taken from her home in Barron, Wisconsin early Monday after her parents were killed by intruders.
Walker says he knows Barron County Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald personally so he knows the case is in good hands, and the state is offering him all of their resources as they work to find the girl. "The state patrol, the department of justice, they're all aligned. But this is bigger than the state, this is a nationwide search."
He said time is critical in this case, so anyone with information needs to pass it along as soon as possible either to officials in Barron County or to their local law enforcement agency. "Get that to local law enforcement as quickly as possible. The more time goes by, the more challenging it is to find her. Again, if anyone has any information, please let your local law enforcement know."
Officials say over 200 tips have come in since an Amber Alert for Closs was issued on Monday afternoon. None of those tips have led to a verified sighting of her. Officials in south Florida said they received a tip of a potential sighting at a gas station in Miami. That tip has not been verified.
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