Wisconsin's paper industry woes shape race
KIMBERLY, Wis. -- There's a campaign going on in this village of 6,444 in the northeast region of this battleground state.
Lawn signs line the sidewalks and organizers talk on cellphones in a temporary office.
The signs are not part of a political campaign. They carry slogans such as "World class work force" and "Save U.S. Jobs" and are part of an effort to save a paper mill, and maybe a town.
It's the kind of a cause, residents and analysts say, that may steer the presidential race outcome in Wisconsin.
"What's happening here is the disappearance of a way of life for middle-class America," said Jim Dercks, a 29-year millworker.
Dercks was one of about 600 people who lost their jobs last month when Miamisburg, Ohio-based NewPage Corp. closed a paper mill it owned in town.
Shawn Hall, a spokeswoman for NewPage, said numerous factors prompted the closure, including energy costs, import competition and the down economy. The mill produced coated paper for catalogs and magazines.
"When the economy is down, advertising slows up, which is a big part of what our business is," she said.
Dercks says he and his former co-workers know their campaign faces long odds, but he says it's a cause worth fighting for.
Manufacturing cornerstone
Wisconsin's paper industry produces everything from cardboard to newsprint and it has long been one of the state's signature industries. But the industry is struggling under growing pressure from the economy and from foreign competition, according to Jeffrey Landin, president of the Wisconsin Paper Council, a trade group.
In a state like Wisconsin, where presidential races frequently hang on paper-thin margins — Sen. John Kerry beat President Bush 49.7% to 49.32% in 2004 and former vice president Al Gore edged Bush 47.83% to 47.61% in 2000 — the paper industry's decline could be an issue on Election Day.
"We are losing a lot of jobs here and it's symbolic for the rest of the nation," says Wendy Scattergood, an assistant professor of political science at St. Norbert College in De Pere, Wis.
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