Wisconsin U.S. Senator Ron Johnson proposes Juneteenth, Columbus Day swap

(The Center Square) — Wisconsin's Republican U.S. Senator Ron Johnson is proposing a holiday swap.

Johnson on Wednesday filed an amendment to replace Columbus Day with Juneteenth on the federal holiday schedule. 

“We support celebrating emancipation with a federal holiday, but believe we should eliminate a current holiday in exchange," Johnson said. 

Johnson said the idea is to try and save money, as much as it is about promoting one holiday over the other. 

"We chose Columbus Day as a holiday that is lightly celebrated, and least disruptive to Americans’ schedules," Johnson said. "In response to a bipartisan effort to give federal workers another day of paid leave by designating Juneteenth a federal holiday, we have offered a counter-proposal that does not put us further in debt.”

Not everyone is happy with the idea. 

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Fox New host Tucker Carlson spent part of his show Wednesday night blasting Johnson for caving to what he called the "woke mob."

"It's easier to give them what they want," Carlson said. "Ron Johnson of Wisconsin and James Langford of Oklahoma are both Republican Senators. They've both introduced legislation to abolish Columbus Day." 

Carlson added: "The people who are pushing Juneteenth on the country do not consider Abraham Lincoln a hero. They are pulling down his statues, along with Columbus."

But Langford insisted the idea is purely fiscal, not political. 

“Throughout our history, we have strived to become a more perfect union and Juneteenth was a huge step in attaining that goal," Langford said. "We should celebrate these strides on the federal level while remaining cognizant of the impact the existing 10 federal holidays have on federal services and local businesses."