Obama Looks To Inspire Voter Turnout For Burke With Visit To Milwaukee

President Barack Obama is due in Wisconsin on Tuesday afternoon to help fellow Democrat Mary Burke in her campaign to defeat Gov. Scott Walker in next week’s election.

The president is first scheduled to help the Democratic National Committee raise money at a closed-door event at a Milwaukee sushi restaurant. Then Obama is slated to speak at Milwaukee North Division High School, which has a predominantly African-American student body.

Analysts say turnout in the city’s minority and predominantly Democratic neighborhoods will be an important factor in the Burke-Walker contest. Speaking after Bill Clinton’s rally for Burke last Friday, Jasmine Wilson, a black 18-year-old woman, said she was ready to vote for the Democrat.

“Mary Burke is putting more into our schools than Scott Walker is,” said Wilson. “He cut our money off for somebody else.”

Walker has been critical of the Clinton and Obama visits. On Saturday in West Allis, as he started a 10-day campaign bus tour, Walker said the big-name Democrats will say just about anything.

“They don’t like that we’ve put the power back in the hands of the taxpayers,” said Walker.

Obama’s approval ratings are below 50 percent, but Mary Burke said she has no qualms about the president coming in to campaign for her.

“I think it will help me, or else I wouldn’t have done it,” said Burke. “And I welcome the president coming here.”

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie said he’ll be in Wisconsin twice during the final week of the campaign to help Walker. The Walker campaign declined comment on any Christie visits.