MILWAUKEE (AP) — U.S. Republican Sen. Ron Johnson from Wisconsin joined in a Juneteenth Day celebration in his home state only to see his speech drowned out by a chorus of boos.
Johnson made an appearance Saturday at a Republican Party booth in Milwaukee, where some people swore at him and said, "We don't want you here."
Last year Johnson blocked legislation to make Juneteenth a national holiday. Earlier in the week, he relented while saying "it still seems strange" that taxpayers should fund a bill to celebrate the end of slavery.
Johnson says he found the harsh reaction "unusual" for Wisconsin residents. One attendee, Robert Agnew, tells the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel he thought the reason for the taunting was because "Ron Johnson's politics are not for us."
