Gov. Scott Walker and Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett met Friday night in the first debate of the recall race for governor.
Walker kicked off the debate defending his record.
"Our reforms are working," said Walker. "It's why largely our opponents don't talk about them anymore."
But Barrett didn't waste any time attacking it.
"We can't do-over the decision of Scott Walker to start a political civil war," said Barrett.
And Barrett kept up his attacks throughout the hour-long debate.
"You decided to use a budget crisis to try to divide and conquer this state," Barrett told Walker.
But Walker—equally persistent—said he's proud of his time in office, and he wants to keep going.
"We're ready to move forward," said Walker. "We don't want to replay those battles. We think it's time to get this state working again and move forward."
Candidates answered direct questions from a panel of three media representatives. The debate format didn't allow for much back-and-forth, as Barrett found out not far into it. He asked for time to respond to a statement by Walker, but was told that wasn't allowed.
During the debate, the two candidates debated jobs numbers, mining legislation, education funding, and other issues.
This was the first of two debates before the recall election on June 5. The debate was sponsored by the Wisconsin Broadcaster's Association.
