MADISON (AP) — Democratic gubernatorial candidate Mary Burke will meet privately with President Barack Obama on Monday but not speak at the Labor Day rally in Milwaukee.
Burke spokesman Joe Zepecki says it is not appropriate for Burke to speak at the rally Obama is attending because it is an official White House event and not a campaign rally. Zepecki says Burke hopes Pres. Obama will return for a campaign event before the election.
Pres. Obama is scheduled to attend Laborfest in Milwaukee, a celebration of organized labor that attracts thousands. He last appeared at the event in 2010, just months before Gov. Scott Walker proposed the bill that effectively ended collective bargaining for most public workers.
Polls show Burke and Gov. Walker are in a dead heat as the Republican seeks re-election.