A Birds Eye View By Jimmy Cardinal Four years ago, then-gubernatorial candidate Scott Walker promised us that by this point in his first term as governor the state would have 250,000 more jobs than it did when he took office. Well, here we are four years later and Governor Walker missed the mark. As of last month, Wisconsin had created only 102,195 jobs, which is about 40% of Walker’s promised amount. This is a point that Walker’s opponent, Trek Bicycle executive and Democratic gubernatorial candidate Mary Burke, has focused on. But in reality, Walker’s failed promise shouldn’t be the focus of our attention. There are so many more jobs-related issues to be discussed. Besides, Walker’s 250,000 job promise was nothing more than rhetoric anyways, a shtick to get votes. Maybe the governor has more faith in the power of his office than he should, but the reality of the situation is that there is little that a government executive (president, governor) can do to create jobs. Certainly it takes more than rhetoric and tax cuts, which has been the governor’s plan over the past four years. This is not to say that governors have absolutely no ability to affect change within their state, governors can implement policies that may help with job creation within the state, even though those policies themselves do not create jobs. Policies like tax incentives, creating a venture capital fund, tort reform and regulation can create an atmosphere in the state that boosts the economy. The effects of these efforts can be doubled if they are focused on the strengths of the state that already exist and are efficient and prudent in how they spend taxpayer dollars. Our strengths as a state include a foundation left behind from a once-great industrial economy, two level-one research universities—UW-Madison and UW-Milwaukee, and access to the greatest freshwater resources in the world. If we combine these assets and add much-needed cash from a venture capital fund to encourage entrepreneurship, we can get Wisconsin’s economy back on track. Even with all that, it will be the companies that create jobs, not politicians, not even the governor. It’s also not going to happen overnight. This is one of the places where the governor went wrong. The idea that Wisconsin’s declining economy could just turn around in four short years is the equivalent of a Mack truck doing a 180° turn on a dime. It isn’t as if economic stagnation is a new issue for Wisconsin. For the past decade, Wisconsin has lagged behind the rest of the nation. This time period includes both Governor Walker and Governor Doyle’s administrations. Right now, Wisconsin is 33rd in the nation in economic growth. But this isn’t a Republican or Democrat issue, it’s an economic issue. A major reason for Wisconsin’s sluggish economy is that it is currently being driven by industries that are slow-growth. Paper making and manufacturing, while at the heart of our economy, will not grow it as we move forward into the future. Industries like biotechnology, electronic medical recordkeeping, and energy have all taken a foothold within the state. They deserve our attention because they are high-growth areas and can grow our economy. With all of this in mind, while we shouldn’t focus on his failed promise, we also shouldn’t simply let Governor Walker off the hook. I’ve always been distrustful of anyone who claims to have all the answers. The governor was arrogant to make his 250,000-job promise as a candidate and he continues to be arrogant as governor. This arrogance more times than not gets in the way of his judgment. This is certainly true of his tax cutting. Governor Walker is too blinded by his arrogance and pride to realize that his measly tax cuts have done nothing except put the state into debt. That can be the only reason that he has promised to further cut taxes if he’s reelected. Yes, Wisconsin has more jobs than it did when he took office, but we continue to lag behind the region and the nation in job creation, new business creation, wages and economic growth. We will continue to lag if Governor Walker is reelected. The economic plan on his website reads word-for-word the same as his economic plan for this past term. It’s time for a change in Madison so that we can start moving Wisconsin’s economy forward again.
Posted on: Wed, 05 Nov 2014 16:51:53 +0000
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