Walz visits Waukesha, Manitowoc on Monday

WAUKESHA, Wis. (CBS 58) -- With his seventh visit to Wisconsin since launching his campaign with Vice President Kamala Harris, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz made two stops in the state on Monday, Oct. 28. 

Walz started his day with a trip to Manitowoc where he addressed what he called his party's plan to strengthen American manufacturing. He called out former President Donald Trump for losing jobs in the workforce. 

“He was an absolute disaster for working people," said Walz. "He was one of the biggest losers of manufacturing jobs in American history."

Vice President Kamala Harris has made similar statements at her campaign events. At a rally in Michigan in early October, Harris said, "America lost nearly 200,000 manufacturing jobs" when Trump was president. Harris also claimed, "those losses started before the pandemic."

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, by the time Trump left office in January 2021, the U.S. had 178,000 fewer manufacturing jobs than when his presidency began. However, prior to March 2020, the U.S. had seen a net gain of over 350,000 manufacturing job gains during Trump's term in office.

As the COVID-19 pandemic shut down parts of the economy in 2020, the U.S. lost 1.3 million manufacturing jobs between March and April of that year. The numbers began to trend upwards again in the months that followed but did not return to pre-pandemic levels by the time Trump left office in January 2021.

More context related to the past decade of American manufacturing jobs in the state is available on CBS News. 

At his second stop in Waukesha, Gov. Walz was joined by Mayor of Waukesha Shawn Reilly, a lifelong Republican who became an independent after Jan. 6. While delivering remarks at Co-Pilot Cade in Waukesha, Mayor Reilly and Gov. Walz endorsed Vice President Harris by stating she would upkeep democracy in office. 

“I know I will not support all the policies and programs of Vice President Harris," Reilly said. "But I do know our democracy and our country will survive with Harris and Walz in office.”

“Mayor Rielly adds his name from Liz Cheney to Mark Milley, to John Kelly to a whole bunch of folks across the spectrum that we can have differences on policy, but the core values of the democracy are unwavering," Walz said. 

On Monday, Dr. Jill Biden and Mrs. Gwen Walz also campaigned in Wisconsin, visiting La Crosse in an attempt to rally educators.