• Home
  • Archive
  • Media Kit
  • Contact Us
  • May 8, 2025

The Madison Times

The Paper That's More Than Black and White

  • News
    • Local News
    • National News
    • International News
    • Sports News
    • Education News
  • Columns
    • Columnists
    • Editorials
    • Letters to the Editor
    • Life Lessons with Alex Gee
  • Events
  • Health
  • Finance
  • Lifestyle
  • Classifieds
  • Community
    • Middle Spread
  • Milwaukee
EXCEPT WHERE INDICATED, THE OPINIONS EXPRESSED ON THIS PAGE ARE NOT NECESSARILY THOSE OF THE MADISON TIMES

Share this:

  • Tweet
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email
  • Click to print (Opens in new window) Print

Ron Johnson Turned His Back On Family Farmers Like Me

October 22, 2022

By Martice Scales

Martice Scales

I’ve lived in Milwaukee for the past decade, working as the manager on our family-owned farm. Alongside my wife and two children, we grow all-natural produce at an affordable price to provide my community with nutritious, locally-grown food.

Farmers like me have long been the backbone of Wisconsin—bolstering our state’s economy, creating thousands upon thousands of jobs, and providing farm-fresh products to communities in every corner of the state. But in recent years, we’ve lost family farms at a shocking rate, especially here in Wisconsin.

That’s in no small part because self-serving politicians and huge corporations with highly-paid lobbyists have worked together to stack the deck against small farms—including Ron Johnson.

Despite what he might claim, Ron Johnson has spent the last twelve years working against small scale farmers, choosing to side with the large agricultural companies driving us out of business.

In 2018, Johnson voted against the Farm Bill, which was a lifeline for so many small farms in Wisconsin-this bill helped get many of the tools and support I need to maintain our businesses successfully.

In the years since, Johnson has repeatedly voted against lowering costs for working families like mine in favor of enriching himself and his donors. In the last two years alone, Johnson voted against sending out stimulus checks to put money directly into our pockets, he voted against relief for small businesses struggling to keep their doors open during the pandemic, he opposed legislation that expanded access to affordable high-speed internet, and he even blocked efforts to cap the cost of insulin at $35 each month.

Lieutenant Governor Mandela Barnes, Candidate for U.S. Senate

Yet, during his time as Wisconsin’s senator, Johnson voted for legislation that handed massive tax breaks to him and his wealthiest donors, and he even cut taxes for corporations that ship Wisconsin jobs out of state or overseas.

Wisconsinites deserve better than an out-of-touch, self-serving politician like Ron Johnson selling out small businesses and workers to help the rich get richer.

That’s why it’s so important that the next U.S. senator that Wisconsin sends to Washington, DC will fight against special interests, large corporations, and the politicians that have left us behind for far too long—someone who will fight to give small and medium-sized farms a fair shot.

That someone is Lt. Governor Mandela Barnes.

Unlike Johnson, Mandela understands how important our local farms and agricultural workers are to Wisconsin. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he and Gov. Tony Evers invested $100 million in funds to help farmers navigate the unique challenges that impacted farms during the pandemic. Those funds were a lifeline to so many.

Mandela has also taken the time, whether as a state legislator or as Lt. Governor, to meet with farmers across the state. In the past, we’ve seen politicians who falsely claim they support Wisconsin farmers, but never took the time to meet us where we were. That’s not Mandela—as he’s traveled to every county in the state, it’s clear that he not only wants to engage with us directly on the issue, but is prepared to fight for us in the Senate.

Mandela has pledged to crack down on the Big Ag corporations that have put farms like mine at a disadvantage and help lower the cost of doing business. He’s also said he’ll fight to cut taxes for middle-class families, lower the cost of health care and prescription drugs, and make sure every household and business in the state has access to high-speed internet.

That’s the kind of leader we need in Washington, and that’s why I’m voting for Mandela for U.S. Senate.

Martice Scales is a Milwaukee resident and Co-Founder of Full Circle Healing, a family-run, community focused farm.

Share this:

  • Tweet
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email
  • Click to print (Opens in new window) Print

Popular Interests In This Article: Mandela Barnes, Martice Scales, Ron Johnson, U.S. Senate Campaigns

Read More - Related Articles

  • Eric Hovde Remains Out of Touch with Voters
  • Senator Tammy Baldwin Leads Voting Rights Roundtable
  • The Working Families Party Makes Issues Once Politically Improbable to Politically Possible
  • Power to the Polls Addresses the Importance of Voting Rights in Wisconsin
  • Judge Janet Protasiewicz is my Choice for the Wisconsin Supreme Court


Connect With Us

Become Our Fan On Facebook
Find Us On Facebook


Follow Us On Twitter
Follow Us On Twitter

Editorials

Karma Chavez
Amanda Zhang
Julianne Malveaux
Benjamin Chavis
George Curry

Journalists

Jacklin Bolduan
Brianna Rae
Aarushi Agni
Rob Franklin
Claire Miller

Topics

Brown Girl Green $
Young Gifted & Black
Universally Speaking
Ask Progress
Civil Rights

Topics

Police Shooting
Police Brutality
Black Lives Matter
NAACP
Racism

Politicians

Barack Obama
Hillary Clinton
Gwen Moore
Paul Soglin
Scott Walker

Contact Us

Phone:
414-449-4860

Copyright © 2025 Courier Communications. All Rights Reserved.
We use third-party advertising companies to serve ads when you visit our website. These companies may use information (not including your name, address, email address, or telephone number) about your visits to this and other websites in order to provide advertisements about goods and services of interest to you. If you would like more information about this practice and to know your choices about not having this information used by these companies, click here.