GOP Fundraiser Under Investigation for PPE Business
Mike Gula, who has fundraised for Sen. Ron Johnson, tried to cash in on the pandemic but didn't deliver.
Johnson claims: “I am the working man”. However, throughout his tenure the millionaire businessman has tried to take health care coverage from hundreds of thousands of Wisconsinites. But Johnson says he is a “change agent” and wants to help Trump in “draining the swamp”. What the heck does that mean? After Johnson was elected in 2010 he hired a lobbyist as his first chief of staff (WP). It gets worse.
Trump set the stage for this malfeasance. “In the early days of the pandemic (January), the U.S. government turned down an offer to manufacture millions of N95 masks in America” (WP). Trump and his cronies take no responsibility for PPE and other medical equipment shortages. Trump said: “You know, we’re not a shipping clerk”. And, governors were told don’t call unless they were “appreciative”. It is the “Wild West”, predatory capitalism. No wonder Blue Flame wanted to “cash in”.
Wisconsin Democratic Governor Tony Evers has been trying his best to function in this environment. He said: “Frustration level is high. … The federal government needs to help us … .” Evers put together a public-private state partnership to increase COVID-19 testing, but still needs chemicals and swabs for the tests. Moreover, rural WI is in a tough spot if COVID-19 spreads further. Rural hospitals are “already stretched to a breaking point” (Kaiser Health News). They lack staff, intensive care beds, PPE and other needed equipment. The outbreak in Green Bay should wake up state Republican lawmakers.
Johnson needs to address the corrupt conduct of his former fundraiser. He has not been “draining the swamp” of incompetence, corruption and Trump’s misdeeds.
This column was originally published by Wispolitics.com
Bill Kaplan wrote a guest column from Washington, D.C. for the Wisconsin State Journal from 1995 – 2009.
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The Minnesota Business Partnership along with Governor Walz formed a Critical Care Supply Working Group to insure that the State medical personnel have the PPE they need. Among the group’s members are Target, Polaris, Toro, 3M and the Mayo Clinic are all lending their expertise to this project. In Wisconsin, a Republican political swamp operative supporter of Ron Johnson looks to con the system and walk away with alot of money doing the pandemic.