DEERBROOK, WI (WSAU-WAOW) — The Democrat challenging incumbent State Senator Tom Tiffany says Tiffany’s “Wolf Summit” this week is a political ploy and masks what he says is his voting record.
Bryan Van Stippen of Deerbrook says the issue wolf management needs to be done. But he says the state’s bear population has also grown to abundant numbers, yet the focus is not on controlling that population, even with hunters waiting years to get tags. He says the Summit is politically based.
“We know hunters in the area waiting up to 10 years for their bear tag. Why is Senator Tiffany not addressing that? That is an issue we need to be focusing on and yet he continually talks about the big bad wolf,” said Van Stippen.
“We need to address real issues in the Northwoods in the state of Wisconsin, not focus on what the wolf is going to be doing, staring at my kid as it comes off the school bus as Senator Tiffany will state as his story. This is just politicizing an issue that he can get political points for.”
Tiffany and Representative Adam Jarchow are holding the Great Lakes Wolf Summit in Cumberland Thursday. Tiffany has said they want to put pressure on federal legislators to return management of wolves to individual states. The summit will gather scientific voices and state officials from the entire midwest.
Van Stippen says the event is a ploy to cover Tiffany’s support for cutting veteran’s services at the King, Wisconsin facility and a voting history that includes voting against local control and trying to bring a mine to Iron and Ashland counties.
By Ken Krall, WXPR.
