State Senator Met With Mixed Reaction at Oak Creek Town Hall

Chris Larson was never going to get everyone at his Oak Creek town hall meeting to agree with him.

The outspoken Democratic state senator was in the for about two hours Monday evening, answering questions and giving his views on some of the biggest issues facing the state.

Larson and a sharply divided audience revisited some of the union debates of 2011, the recall debates of 2012 and fresh debates about how best to heal and come together as a state.

Sometimes Larson was shouted down. Other times he was applauded.

Whatever the case, Larson said he doesn't mind a good give-and-take from people across the political spectrum.

"I don't think we should shy away from it," Larson said in an interview afterward. "I was fine with it. It's just when people start to demonize or drown each other out, then it starts to become a problem.

"This is democracy in action. This is what it is and people who show up have a right to be heard."

The conversation between Larson and about 40 audience members inside the library meeting room got particularly feisty when it came to education, why he and during the budget battles of February 2011.

A year and a half later, Larson said heading to Illinois was necessary so that more time could be had to debate Wisconsin Act 10, though he never thought they would be gone three weeks.

"I realize it was controversial. It was controversial at the time, and I stand by the decision," he said. "Knowing that there is going to be some people, you might be among them, who are going to be upset about it."

The conversation shifted toward education after a question about how Act 10 has impacted education. Larson differed with a resident who felt Gov. Scott Walker's budget helped schools' finances, saying his discussions with school administrators in his Senate district painted a different picture than statistics Walker has presented.

The ensuing discussion showed wounds from the 2011 debate were anything but healed. One Oak Creek teacher said she worried the hostile climate would lead younger teachers to leave the profession.

"The general feeling is 'let's bash the teachers,'" she said. "I'm going to tell you ... these people are there early, they stay late. We work hard. You don't go into teaching to make money. Are there bad teachers? Yeah. There's bad doctors, there's bad welders. Any profession you choose, you're going to find a couple of rotten apples."

On the "brat summit," which Walker hosted last week at his Madison residence in an attempt to mend fences, Larson said he had to stay at home with his weeks-old baby.

However, he continued his push for Walker to call a special session of the Legislature. The Legislature won't otherwise meet until after the November elections.

"Given the state of disrepair we're in, until there is compromise, until we're actually doing it, I remain as skeptical as ever," Larson said.

Larson also pointed to a few of his proposed bills he felt could get bipartisan support, including one that would .

"I had a friend who died in high school, so people want to oppose me on drunk driving, great. I don't need you on my side," he said. "But I'm going to continue to push for that because I think every family in our state has been affected by drunk driving."