RNC Milwaukee: Donald Trump Way? Milwaukee mayor responds
Herb Kohl Way sign in place ahead of the 2024 Republican National Convention (RNC)
MILWAUKEE - Republican National Convention organizers planned to place Donald Trump's name over that of a late Wisconsin senator and business magnate, but Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson said Friday he took action to change it.
"Herb Kohl Way," located on the plaza outside Fiserv Forum, was named in honor of the late Democrat and former Milwaukee Bucks owner. Convention organizers, though, initially covered the street sign that honors Kohl to "Donald J. Trump Way" for the convention.
"As soon as I learned that the honorary sign bearing his name was covered, I reached out to convention organizers immediately," Johnson wrote in a Facebook post. "They understood the importance of Senator Kohl to our community and the covering signage has been removed."
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FOX6 reached out to the RNC for comment on the decision, but did not immediately hear back.
Kohl died in December 2023 at the age of 88 following a brief illness. The Democrat served 24 years in the U.S. Senate, from 1988 to 2012, before he was succeeded by fellow Democrat Tammy Baldwin.
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Kohl owned the Bucks from 1985 until 2014 and, a longtime champion of NBA basketball in Milwaukee, contributed $100 million toward Fiserv Forum's construction.
The Kohl family's name lives on in the department stores he co-founded. There are now more than 1,100 Kohl's stores across the country.
Statement from Wisconsin Democratic Coordinated Campaign Manager Garren Randolph:
"Herb Kohl is a Milwaukee legend who left an indelible mark on our city, ensuring the Bucks remained here and bringing to life Fiserv Forum – the very place hosting the MAGA extremists who just insulted him.
"It is disgraceful that the RNC would replace his legacy – for even a minute – with that of a failed businessman who called Milwaukee ‘horrible.’ It’s clear – in his self-serving campaign of revenge and retribution, Donald Trump is willing to disrespect Wisconsinites over and over again. In November, Wisconsin will send a strong message: Trump is not welcome here."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.