Vice President Kamala Harris spent about five hours in southeastern Wisconsin Thursday, on a visit that grew more related to the Biden-Harris reelection effort as the day went on.
The Democrat's first stop was the Sanmina Corp. in Pleasant Prairie, where Harris announced up to 200 jobs will be added as Sanmina makes broadband components for the giant Finnish telecommunications firm Nokia.
Harris said the deal is related to President Joe Biden's push to bring affordable high-speed internet service to the entire nation.
"And when we made this investment, we knew then that there would be an increased demand for fiber-optic cable and for other products that connect people to the internet. We knew companies would increase production and hire more workers. And whereas in the past, many of those jobs would have been created overseas, President Biden and I required the materials and products used in these projects — from steel to electronics to fiberoptic cable must be made in America," Harris told the audience.
Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo also spoke at Sanmina. She said a conversation with Nokia CEO Pekka Lundmark got things started.
"I invited Pekka as the CEO of Nokia to my office some months ago and I said, 'I need you to think about making the electronics that go into the network in America.' And you know, he said, 'We've never really done that before. These are incredibly sophisticated. I'm not sure that's possible.' And to his credit, and his team's credit and all of you here in Wisconsin, and Sanmina, it is happening," Raimondo said.
Kenosha County Executive Samantha Kerkman is a former Republican member of the state Assembly. She said she's glad to hear about the jobs coming, even if the messenger is a top Democrat.
"That's why you have to come forward when there are announcements like this. We are partners in these types of developments, and it's really important that we work together. We might disagree on other policy issues. But when we find common ground, we need to work together and this is a great example of that," Kerkman told WUWM at the Sanmina event.
Kerkman probably would have disagreed with what Vice President Harris said later at a campaign fundraiser outside Milwaukee's North Point Lighthouse. Harris praised the Biden administration's economic record and criticized Wisconsin's 1849 ban on almost all abortions. She also said politicians need to take steps to reduce gun violence.
We're not sure what Harris said at another fundraiser, inside the Milwaukee east side home of former Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Alex Lasry. News media were not allowed in to witness what Harris' staff said was photo taking with attendees.
