Editorial: Robin Vos and Scott Fitzgerald refused to work with Gov. Tony Evers to contain coronavirus. They have made things worse. – Milwaukee…

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Colectivo asks that customers use a mask at its Shorewood cafe. The village of Shorewood now requires a mask in all buildings open to the public.(Photo: Jeff Rumage/Now News Group)

Mandate face masks. Close or limit numbers in bars. Limit seats in restaurants.

Republicans in other states have taken strong action when faced with rising coronavirus cases.

But in Wisconsin, Republicans who control the Legislature instead run to court to overturn an order by Gov. Tony Evers mandating face masks in public spaces.

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos and Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald have offered NO plan of their own to fight the deadly virus.

Track COVID-19 in Wisconsin: See the latest numbers and trends

If youve been wondering why case counts rose exponentially during a terrible September in Wisconsin far higher than surrounding states look no further than this:

Wisconsin has no statewide plan to fight coronavirus.

And neither does the federal government.

"I think, unfortunately, more people are going to have to die before our policymakers accept we need laws and policies that improve the health and safety of our state," Patrick Remington, former epidemiologist for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and director of the University of Wisconsin-Madison's preventive medicine residency program, told the Journal Sentinel's Molly Beck.

On Monday, Wisconsin was third in the U.S., behind only North and South Dakota, in a New York Times analysis of case counts per capita. The situation is dire in the Fox Valley and Green Bay, where hospitals are in danger of being overwhelmed and people are standing in line for hours to get a test.

Much of this was preventable.

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But at a time when Wisconsin desperately needed thoughtful leadership from Fitzgerald and Vos, as well as Evers, it got petty political games. Evers issued a new order on Tuesdayto limitindoor gatherings, including in bars and restaurants. It's a good idea, but it remains to be seen how Republicans will react.

Obstructivebehavior is nothing new from Fitzgerald and Vos, who rammed through a bill limiting Evers powers as governor during a lame-duck session right after he was elected and before he took office.

The pair successfully sued Evers earlier this year over the extension of the governor's first public health emergency. Although the administrative branch of state government has had public health emergency powers since the 1800s, the Republican-backed state Supreme Court justices gave their friends in the Legislature veto power over Evers' ability to act. They struck down his "safer at home" order and instructed the governor to issue statewide actions through the legislative rulemaking process.

Gov. Tony Evers wears a face mask during a briefing with reporters on the state's response to the coronavirus pandemic.(Photo: Molly Beck / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

After the court's divided vote, the Department of Health Services submitted Evers' plan to the legislative rules committee in May.It was rejected by committee leaders, who offered no alternatives or made any attempt to negotiate or compromise. Vos claimed there was no need to negotiate new guidelines, even though the premise of the lawsuit was to block Evers order and force him to work with the Legislature.

Vos and Fitzgerald have the power to convene the two houses they lead in the Legislatureat any timeto cancel Evers' current emergency mask mandate or put their own rules in place. If they put the public's welfare above their personal interests, they would work with Evers and state health officials to craft a bipartisan plan to get this pandemic in check.

But in this election year, Vos and Fitzgerald fear requiring party members to vote against the governor's mask mandate.An August poll by Marquette University Law School found 69% of registered Wisconsin voters supported the mask requirement. Vos and Fitzgeraldfear losing power if voters don't like their rejection of Evers' common-sense order.

So instead they hire private attorneys with our taxpayer dollars to support lawsuits against the governor while they sit on their hands.

Public health officials agree: Mask-wearing, frequent hand-washing and social distancing reduce the spread of coronavirus.

It has become clear that too many people in Wisconsin are not willing to take personal responsibility to slow the spread of this deadly disease on their own. The mask order, where enforced, helps protect our vulnerable neighbors.

William Melms, chief medical officer at Marshfield Clinic Health System, described what he saw driving throughcentral Wisconsin recently.

"Going past the bars, I saw that the parking lots were all full," he told the Journal Sentinel's Mark Johnson."There's less and less mask-wearing and social-distancing. To a great extent, people have become complacent."

And so the seven-day average of new cases has skyrocketed in our state from 674 on Sept. 3 to 2,346 by Tuesday. Deaths are rising rapidly, too, with the virus claiming 1,399 since the pandemic began and the seven-day average of deaths hitting a record.

When we'restruck by a public health emergency, our elected representatives should be looking out for all of their constituents, regardless of party, rather than playing political power games.

Sadly, that is not the case.President Donald Trump, who was hospitalized with coronavirus last weekend, has long discouraged the wearing of masks, mocking former Vice President Joe Biden at the recent debate for frequently wearing one.Vos and Fitzgerald are following lock-step behind their leader.

Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald, R-Juneau, left, and Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, speak to members of the media.(Photo: Steve Apps, Associated Press)

Heres what needs to happen now:

Vos and Fitzgerald should work with Evers to impose a statewide mask mandate, close bars or limit their capacity to safe social-distancing numbers, and take other responsible actions to reduce infections. Citizens who support mask-wearing should let them know who's boss their contact information is below.

We hope our leaders actually lead. But if they dont, we can still take responsibility for ourselves.

We can wash our hands frequently. Wear a mask. Practice social distancing. Avoid large gatherings.

And, we can vote against anyone who ranaway from their responsibility whenwe needed them.

Editorials are the product of the Journal Sentinel's Editorial Board, which operates independently of the news department. Email: jsedit@jrn.com

Contact the Legislature and ask representatives to work with Gov. Tony Evers to develop a plan to combat coronavirus in Wisconsin.

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos:(608) 266-9171; email:Rep.Vos@legis.wisconsin.gov

Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald:(608) 266-5660;Sen.Fitzgerald@legis.wisconsin.gov

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Editorial: Robin Vos and Scott Fitzgerald refused to work with Gov. Tony Evers to contain coronavirus. They have made things worse. - Milwaukee...