MADISON, Wis. — Wisconsin Republicans will be starting fresh on the state budget, tossing out what Gov. Evers proposed last month.

Though that may sound divisive, Democrats still see plenty of room for compromise.

This week, Republicans said too many parts of the governor's spending plan are dead on arrival.

“We're gonna throw out his entire budget like we've done before,” Assembly Speaker Robin Vos (R-Rochester) said during a virtual Wisconsin Counties Association event. “We'll start from scratch.”

Democrats don't seem to be discouraged. During a virtual WisPolitics event Thursday, legislative leaders said people will be able to see the difference between the two plans.

“Education, the university system, getting businesses back on their feet, social justice—these are things the Republicans don't want to do,” Senate Minority Leader Janet Bewley (D-Mason) said.

The minority leaders in both chambers are confident at least some of the governor's ideas, such as broadband expansion, have too much public support to be completely scrapped.

“I'll quote Governor Evers because, you know in his budget address he said 'You can disagree with me if you want, but don't punish the people we serve so you can settle a score no one but you is keeping,'” Assembly Minority Leader Gordon Hintz (D-Oshkosh) said.

State Sen. Bewley is optimistic lawmakers can work together.

“We have some bills we passed on a compromise basis,” Bewley said. “We can do that with the budget. I think the governor has just laid out such a good blueprint that we are going to be able to work from it.”

Meanwhile, State Rep. Hintz is also confident the best ideas will prevail and garner the needed support.

“A budget is about priorities,” Hintz said. “He [Evers] has made significant investments in a lot of priorities that the public wants, that the public needs. If the Republicans have concerns with that, they should decide well what are their priorities, right? We've heard a lot of vague, general spends too much, it does this, but what are their ideas?”

Two years ago, Gov. Evers ended up signing the spending bill the Republican-controlled Legislature came up with though he vetoed 78 items.