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Wausau bars GOP from Labor Day parade

Wausau - Community parades often feature local politicians waving to the crowds, but this year's annual Labor Day parade in Wausau may be short a few elected officials.

That's because the head of the group that sponsors the Wausau Labor Day Parade, the Marathon County Central Labor Council, is telling Republican lawmakers from the area that they're not welcome Sept. 5.

"Usually they've been in the parade, but it seems like they only want to stand with us one day a year, and the other 364 days they don't really care," said Randy Radtke, president of the council.

The council is made up of about 30 local unions from the Marathon County area.

In a statement, Radtke added that the parade is intended to celebrate working men and women and what the labor movement has given them: weekends, a 40-hour workweek, child labor protection and a safe working environment.

"It should come as no surprise that organizers choose not to invite elected officials who have openly attacked worker's rights or stood idly by while their political party fought to strip public workers of their right to collectively bargain," Radtke said.

Some of the snubbed Republican representatives from the Wausau area include U.S. Rep. Sean Duffy, state Sen. Pam Galloway (R-Wausau) and state Rep. Jerry Petrowski (R-Marathon).

Sheboygan barn fire draws many units

Town of Holland - A barn fire in the early hours Saturday had the Sheboygan County Sheriff's Department and a host of neighboring firefighter units working to control the flames.

The call about the barn fire at N1509 state Highway 32 in the Town of Holland came in about 2 a.m., and when responders arrived the hay barn was engulfed in flames, according to the Sheriff's Department.

Responders to the barn owned by Marion Walvoord included 11 fire departments from jurisdictions in Sheboygan and Ozaukee counties.

The firefighters saved two other barns in the vicinity, according to a news release.

There were no injuries. The fire remains under investigation.

Milk production drops 1% in state

Madison - The rate of milk production continues to rise nationwide, even as it slows in Wisconsin.

The U.S. produced 15.4 billion pounds of milk last month, a 1% increase from the same month last year.

That improvement was driven by increases of 8% in Texas and 5% in Idaho.

But Wisconsin and Minnesota continued their trend of recent months, producing less milk this year than in comparable periods in 2010.

Wisconsin milk producers harvested 2.2 million pounds last month. Even though that keeps the state solidly in the No. 2 position behind California, it's a 4% drop from last year.

The decline was even steeper in Minnesota because of summer heat. Dairy farmers there produced 735,000 pounds, a 7% decrease.

From Journal Sentinel staff and wire reports.