“Southeast Wisconsin families trust Peter Barca to stand up for them because that’s what he’s done his entire life. From the State Assembly to Congress to the Evers Administration, Peter has delivered billions in tax relief, protected workers, and taken on special interests. That’s exactly how he’ll lead in Congress – unlike Bryan Steil, who puts his party’s extreme agenda before Wisconsin. Steil has been a disaster for working families by threatening reproductive freedom, voting to keep costs high, and voting against creating good-paying jobs,” said DCCC Chair Suzan DelBene.
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To: Interested Parties From: Mallory Payne
Date: August 13, 2024
Subject: The Case Against Bryan Steil
Bryan Steil hasn’t faced a serious challenger since he was elected in 2018 – Peter Barca changes that. Wisconsin voters will see the stark contrast between Steil, a DC politician who repeatedly sides with his party at the expense of working families; and Barca, a public servant with a strong record of delivering results for Southeast Wisconsin.
Born and raised in Kenosha, Peter has dedicated his life to serving Southeast Wisconsin and going to bat for families as a former State Assembly Minority Leader, Congressman, and Wisconsin Secretary of Revenue.
In the legislature, he stood up to insurance companies trying to take advantage of Wisconsinites, invested in law enforcement, and fought for equal pay protections for women. When former Governor Scott Walker introduced legislation to repeal collective bargaining rights, Peter stood up for workers and led a 60-hour floor debate to attempt to kill the bill. As Secretary of Revenue under Governor Evers, Peter delivered billions in tax relief to Wisconsin families and invested in small businesses and family farms.
Peter is known for being an effective, bipartisan leader, receiving praise from Wisconsin Republicans as “a rare breed in Madison…who can disagree and advocate for his position without being disagreeable,” a “straight shooter” and a “reasonable Democrat who is more than willing to work across the aisle.”
While Peter has spent his life working across the aisle and looking out for Southeast Wisconsin, Bryan Steil is a DC insider who sides with extreme politicians no matter how much it hurts his constituents – from championing the overturning of Roe v. Wade, to voting against lowering prescription drug costs, to peddling election conspiracies that threaten our democracy.
For the first time, Steil will face a strong challenger who has developed decades of trust in this district, is a strong fundraiser, and has a proven record to run on. After 2022 redistricting, Wisconsin’s First Congressional District is solidly purple; Justice Protasiewicz carried it by more than 6 points last year in a highly-contested race for the state Supreme Court.
Peter will flip this seat in November because Wisconsinites know he’s the only candidate in the race who has their backs and will fight for them in Congress.
Steil is Ripping Away Women’s Reproductive Freedom
Bryan Steil never misses an opportunity to attack women’s reproductive health care, and he won’t stop until abortion is banned nationwide.
Steil signed onto an Amicus brief urging the Supreme Court to overturn Roe v. Wade, paving the way to allow states to ban abortion and put politicians in control of women’s reproductive health care decisions.
When Roe was overturned, Steil called the decision a “great victory,” which enabled Wisconsin’s 174-year-old abortion ban to go into effect and outlawed almost all abortions for more than a year. Even as his constituents faced one of the most restrictive bans in the nation, Steil votedtwice against codifying Roe v. Wade and restoring reproductive freedom for Wisconsin women.
Now, he’s part of a Washington group that’s pushing to pass a nationwide abortion ban with no exceptions for rape, incest, or the woman’s life and that could also outlaw fertility treatments like IVF. Steil has repeatedly voted to restrict abortion access nationwide, including punishing doctors who perform abortions, allowing federal funds to target pregnant women and spread misinformation, trying to block reproductive health care access for members of the armed services, and restricting access to the safe and effective abortion medication mifepristone.
Wisconsin women have already faced a restrictive, dangerous abortion ban and they know they can’t afford an anti-abortion extremist like Bryan Steil to stay in office and take his agenda nationwide.
Peter Barca, on the other hand, will always stand up for reproductive freedom and protect women’s right to choose if, how, and when to start a family.
Steil is Hurting Wisconsin’s Working Families
Steil has no interest in working to address the challenges working families are facing or making it easier for them to get ahead – following in the footsteps of his former boss Paul Ryan, who’s deeply unpopular in the district, Steil’s first priority is acting as a rubber stamp for the extremists in his party.
Despite so many families struggling to make ends meet, Steil refuses to help bring down costs. He repeatedlyvotedagainst lowering prescription drug costs and capping the price of insulin at $35 per month for seniors.
Steil has also been a disaster for Wisconsin jobs, repeatedlyopposing bipartisan legislation boosting domestic manufacturing, creating good-paying jobs, and bolstering U.S. global competitiveness.
Finally, Steil opposed the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which is investing in Wisconsin communities and creating good-paying union jobs while fixing our crumbling roads and bridges and expanding high-speed internet access.
Peter Barca, meanwhile, has always put working families first by putting money back in their pockets and bringing good-paying jobs to Wisconsin.
Steil is Abusing His Power to Threaten Democracy
Bryan Steil is leading attacks on our free and fair elections and, as Chair of the House Administration Committee, is weaponizing a historically bipartisan committee to push election conspiracies.
Steil not only hired a staffer who was involved in a fake elector scheme following the 2020 election, but he tasked that staffer with overseeing election integrity for the committee. Steil then spearheaded legislation that would overhaul our elections and restrict voting access. A nonpartisan watchdog accused Steil of making “undercutting voting rights and peddling false election conspiracies [the committee’s] core mission.”
Steil continues to dodgequestions about who won the 2020 election and voted against establishing a commission to investigate the January 6th insurrection. Now, he’s teaming up with extreme election denier Jim Jordan, calling on Wisconsinites to “prevent out-of-state money from influencing our elections” despite receiving hundreds of thousands of dollars from out-of-state money himself.
WHAT THEY’RE SAYING
Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel: Wisconsin U.S. Rep. Bryan Steil’s committee tasked with election oversight hires an ex-Trump campaign aide tied to the fake elector scheme [Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, 5.10.23]
Washington Examiner: House committee accused of undermining democracy with proposed election laws [Washington Examiner, 2.28.24]
Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel: Democrat Peter Barca to challenge Bryan Steil in 1st Congressional District [Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, 4.18.24]
“Barca told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that he’ll formally launch his campaign for the 1st Congressional District on Thursday, a move that’s likely to re-energize Democrats’ chances of competing for a seat that on paper is one of the state’s closest battlegrounds.
“‘We have just a do-nothing, dysfunctional Congress, and people are hungry for leadership,’ Barca said. ‘I have a long record of bipartisanship, working across the aisle and getting things done for our community… So, now as much as ever, I think we’re at a critical point.’
“The decision makes Barca, who represented the district in Congress from 1993 to 1995, the first big-name Democrat to enter the race against Steil, a Janesville Republican seeking his fourth term. Barca is likely to attract quick support from national Democrats who have listed the 1st District as a top target to flip as they seek to regain control of the House in November.”
PATH TO VICTORY
After 2022 redistricting cut Republicans’ modeled partisan advantage substantially, Wisconsin’s First Congressional District is firmly in play. Democrats have frequently won this district, including Senator Baldwin by 8 points in 2018 and Justice Protasiewicz in 2023 by more than 6 points.
This seat is winnable for Democrats, and Peter Barca has the momentum, resources, and record to flip it. He raised more than $250,000 in his first 24 hours in the race. Despite launching in mid-April and not having the full quarter to fundraise, Peter nearly matched Steil’s second quarter haul. Peter also has the support of dozens of labor unions and local and state leaders, including Governor Evers.
In a presidential year and with Tammy Baldwin on the ballot again, Democrats will have a strong ground game in Wisconsin’s First Congressional District, investing significantly to mobilize and turn out the voters needed to win.
Bryan Steil hasn’t been seriously contested since he was elected in 2018. For the first time, his record of putting partisanship over Wisconsin will be on full display. And there’s no better contrast to that record than Peter Barca’s history of going to bat for Wisconsin families.
