This is an old report, but it bears repeating.
Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker has his eye on the Republican presidential nomination in 2016, and as he tries to boost his national poll numbers, there are numbers at home that also bear watching — his state’s finances.
Tax cuts and Medicaid spending are contributing to a projected budget deficit that may reach $2.2 billion in the two-year period starting in July 2015, according to his administration’s analysts. While Walker aides call the projections premature, Democrats say the figures prove the governor’s policies — especially income and property-tax reductions — turned a $517 million surplus at the end of June into a shortfall.
Tax collections and decisions by Walker and the Republican-controlled legislature will determine the size of the deficit. Yet the swing to a shortfall limits Wisconsin’s financial choices as the governor prepares his February budget presentation. Last week, he called for more property-tax cuts.
I suspect the deficit was done purposely so that he could starve government programs to death or at least cut them significantly to play to his conservative base for his presidential run. This Grover Norquist style of governing will play well in Iowa and New Hampshire. He will keep Wisconsin in the dark relative to the fiscal mess he’s created by borrowing and refusing to pay debt; simply refinancing it and passing it on to the next generation. I fear he is going to leave this state in fiscal ruin before he gets out of here and he’s already destroyed our educational system.
Thanks Jerry. IMHO, another goal was simply to trade tax cuts for donations to his campaign chest.
Love the Left. If we put the govt on short budget it is crime but if the people get to hold their property taxes inline you have fit. no wonder you cannot win any elections. You talk more spending, the Conservatives help people keep their homes.
Dohnal, aka WI Con digest,
If conservatives help people keep their homes, why isn’t Gov. Walker demanding Obama and Congress bring back the FULL holiday on both sides of the payroll tax (FICA)? There are two sides, the employee side and the employer side?
“(Federal) Taxes For Revenue Are Obsolete” http://www.huffingtonpost.com/warren-mosler/taxes-for-revenue-are-obs_b_542134.html … means you can increase SocSec and cut federal taxes.
All Gov. Walker is doing is pushing the elites austerity:
“Wall Street is warming up to Wisconsin @ScottWalker’s likely Republican presidential candidacy. http://on.wsj.com/1F3viw2 via @WSJ”
That’s crushing the value of residential real estate in a DEFLATIONARY dive bomb.
If you or Gov. Walker were conservatives, you’d understand that the real “job/wealth creators,” are CONSUMERS with money to spend.
Dohnal, aka WI Con digest,
Any idea when Gov. Walker will hire a copy editor so he can quit embarrassing the State of Wisconsin?
Congratulations to Aaron Rodgers and Ron Wolfe
What a fantastic week for football fans in Wisconsin! Aaron Rodgers was named the NFL’s Most Valuable Player (MVP) for the second time, and Ron Wolf, former General Manager of the Packers, was voted to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
These men embody the spirit of Wisconsin football, and I’m pleased to extend to them my sincere congratulations. The Green Bay Packers truly are the team we know and love today thanks to the efforts and dedication of both men, and the recognition of their achievements are well-deserved. Go Pack!
– See more at: http://www.wisgov.state.wi.us/media/e-update/e-update-february-6-2015#sthash.LibhpXAy.dpuf
Gov. Walker claims that newsletter comes right from his desk. He got the spelling of Ron Wolf’s name wrong in the title, but spelled it correctly below.
http://www.wisgov.state.wi.us/media/e-update/e-update-february-6-2015
The $5 Gov. Walker saved me in taxes really didn’t help me keep my home, Dohnal, and the fact that you’d parrot that talking point so blindly just proves what a loyal little Walker-bot you are.
It seems to me that Walker has really missed his calling.
The gambling with other people’s lives, both economically and educationally, coupled with an ideology replacing a conscience, as evidenced with Walker’s failures as Milwaukee County Exec and Wisconsin’s Governor, suggest he would have been better suited to a career elsewhere.
Walker’s talents for half truths/half lies, a disregard for humanity, and his snake oil salesman capabilities would have better qualified him for a career on Wall Street.
Really!
Medically and literally not only gambling with peoples’ lives, he will be taking peoples’ lives if the Legislator allows Senior Care to be defunded. His refusal to accept set up a health exchange and accept the federal funding was estimated to directly lead to the deaths of between 500 and 740 needless deaths to WI citizens. Already a serial murderer. Nothing to mince words over or feign politeness on the matter.
Thank you, nonquixote; forgive me for forgetting the deadly impact of Walker’s phony pro-life stance with his denial of funding health care for those in need.
Walker’s deliberate denial rises to the level of “crimes against humanity” in this age of modern medicine which should be available to all regardless of financial ability and to which we stand alone among civilized countries because of governors such as Walker. Unfortunately, the tragedy will continue beyond the departure of Walker et al until the basic morality of “he’s not heavy; he’s my brother” returns to Wisconsin and other “serial murderer” states.
As I recall, “Moral Theology” was a required course at one time at Marquette University. Either Walker did not take the course or failed it or forgot everything he was taught.
P.S. I would appreciate your source on the estimate so I could pass it on.
This from Uppity WI blog:
http://www.uppitywis.org/blogarticle/new-chart-shows-predicted-wisconsin-deaths-due-walker-medicaid-p
There was another study I can’t find at the moment, which said something like a “best case,” (riiggghhht) of at least 500 and tops around 740, iirc.
I’ll have to go back to the video to remember who it was that Walker was asking for blessings for after the state of the state and the budget speeches. Makes one rethink the definition of being thrown under the bus and certainly all that mumbo-jumbo about pro-life.
All you letter to the editor writers out there, get on board and get this out in your home towns and counties.
Zach, I agree that Walker’s bad math or guesses in his budgets, past and new, will be a determining factor in his presidential bid.
But let us not forget his lack of talent in appointments or hiring skills such as in his Milwaukee County “Doe” staff. And do you remember the high rate of turnover at WEDC, notably at the top level such as its PIO: http://democurmudgeon.blogspot.com/2013/05/scott-walker-is-wedc-incompetent-and.html?
Would the likes of a Louie Gohmert or Sarah Palin have a place in a presidential cabinet?
YIKES!
Walker’s lack of management capacity will not affect his Presidential chances amongst voters one iota. The kind of people who vote for him are ideologically driven, activated by issue buttons and fact free.