MILWAUKEE — The man who parlayed a run on TV’s “The Apprentice” and became president of the United States said the nation needs a stronger system of apprenticeship to match workers with millions of open jobs.
“I love the name apprentice,” President Donald Trump declared. He said he wants every high school in America to offer apprenticeship opportunities and hands-on-learning.
The president toured a classroom full of tool-and-die machines that simulated a factory floor, accompanied by Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker.
The White House said President Trump’s push is aimed at training workers with specific skills for particular jobs that employers say they can’t fill at a time of historically low unemployment. However, the most recent budget for the federal government passed with about $90 million for apprenticeships, and President Trump so far isn’t proposing to add more.
During Trump’s Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker raised more than $1 million at a fundraiser headlined by President Donald Trump in downtown Milwaukee.
The event required contributions of at least $1,000 for admission and $20,000 for a VIP seat and a photo with Trump and Walker.
Trump told guests the event raised $1.5 million for Walker’s next gubernatorial campaign in 2018, according to one attendee. However, that figure was not confirmed.
Walker supporters gathered in the Regency Ballroom at the Hyatt Regency, 333 W. Kilbourn Ave. A group of perhaps three-dozen protesters opposed to Trump and Walker gathered northwest of the hotel behind a Milwaukee police perimeter at North Fourth Street and Kilbourn Avenue.
Trump spoke on topics including his support of the Keystone pipeline and singled out Diane Hendricks of ABC Supply Co. in Beloit for praise.
Trump turns 71 on Wednesday.
