LA CROSSE, Wis. – AFSCME members and elected leaders came together here Thursday to warn about the ugly consequences of the so-called “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” (OBBBA)
And they vowed to hold their congressman — Rep. Derrick Van Orden — accountable for supporting it.
AFSCME members and retirees joined Wisconsin State Sen. Brad Pfaff and others to call attention to the disastrous consequences that OBBBA will have on their local communities, all in the name of giving tax cuts to billionaires.
In Wisconsin, more than 270,000 people could lose lifesaving health care and 375,000 families could lose critical food benefits as a result of the law. In addition, more than 9,000 jobs are now at risk in the state.
Misha Dancing Waters, a member of AFSCME Council 32, said she sees every day how important food benefits are for working Wisconsinites.
“I hear from farmers who work long days growing the food we eat, but don’t make enough money to feed their families and have basic health care. They work hard, and they need these SNAP benefits,” she said, referring to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
“I work with white collar professionals who lost their job and need to be able to put food on the table for their kids. They need these SNAP benefits. I work with seniors who need SNAP benefits,” she said.
Sue Conard, a retired public health nurse and member of AFSCME Retirees Chapter 32, said she and her family relied on Social Security benefits at critical moments in their lives, and they couldn’t have made ends meet without them.
“I am living proof that giving people a hand when they need it makes Wisconsin stronger,” Conard said. “Without those Social Security benefits, I would have never become a nurse and spent decades taking care of my fellow Wisconsinites. My story is the story of Wisconsinites who depend on Medicaid, on SNAP, on Social Security, on free meals at school.”
OBBBA will also drive up costs in communities across the nation, including in Wisconsin. The $1 trillion cuts to Medicare will force rural hospitals to close their doors, make health care less affordable and increase health insurance premiums, even for people on private insurance.
Both Conard and Dancing Waters expressed their disappointment with Van Orden’s yes vote.
“Derrick Van Orden is taking our future, taking food off our families’ tables, so that Elon Musk can buy his fourth private jet,” said Dancing Waters. “Derrick, we won’t forget this betrayal in 2026. And we will make sure our whole community doesn’t forget this betrayal either.”
Conard pointed out that Van Orden initially opposed the bill, but he “cracked under the billionaire pressure and voted for it anyway.”
“Derrick, you might try to spin this as good for our state, but we know the truth,” she said. “We’re going to make sure everyone in Wisconsin knows that you betrayed us for out-of-state billionaires.”