Job creation and fixing the state's crippling budget mess must be the top priorities for Wisconsin's next governor.
Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker is the best choice to tackle these difficult tasks.
The State Journal endorses Walker for governor.
Under Democratic Gov. Jim Doyle, the state has lurched from one budget crisis to another for years now — long before the recession ever began.
Chronic budget deficits have distracted Wisconsin leaders from thinking big and devising bold strategies for competitive advantage in the knowledge-based, global economy.
Did the Democrats in control of state government adopt comprehensive school finance reform with incentives to boost performance?
Nope. Just a big favor for the teachers union: repeal of a pay-raise cap without accountability for better results.
Have the Democrats given Wisconsin a modern and more competitive tax structure?
Nope. Wisconsin's property and personal income tax burdens — especially on the middle class — still rank among the nation's worst.
What about a Commerce Department with laser-like focus on encouraging private business and job growth?
Nope. Five Commerce secretaries in seven years under Doyle with only one out of every 10 Commerce workers focused on business development.
Walker's record as county executive suggests he's much more likely than his Democratic opponent, Tom Barrett, to prioritize private-sector job creation and control spending to fix the budget.
Walker has consistently proposed county budgets that hold down property taxes while seeking efficiencies in county services. He's made tough decisions during tight times, such as trying to close swimming pools with high costs and low attendance. He's pared back county board spending with vetoes.
Since his election in 2002, Walker has made a huge personal sacrifice by giving back $370,000 of his salary to county taxpayers.
Walker's pledge to stop a modern, high-speed passenger train — one that's already paid for — is disturbing. So is Walker's excessive pandering to social conservatives on issues such as embryonic stem-cell research and abortion.
But Walker is no extremist. The Republican has been repeatedly re-elected in a hugely-Democratic county.
In another election year, we could support Barrett, a likeable and seasoned leader with high character and some interesting ideas.
But not this election. This fall's decision is about jobs and the economy.
Walker is the best choice for getting Wisconsin back on track financially and competing for more good-paying jobs.
Showing posts with label Assembly Democrats. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Assembly Democrats. Show all posts
Sunday, October 10, 2010
State Journal Endorsement of Walker Contains Harsh Criticisim of Legislative Dems
From the October 10th edition of the Wisconsin State Journal:
Friday, October 8, 2010
Unemployment up as Election Nears
Unemployment is up to 10.1% according to Gallup but perhaps more significantly, under employment or those working part time but looking for full time work is nearing 20%. This could explain the sharp, 24% rise in food stamp use in Wisconsin over the past year. Clearly things aren't going the right way.
Wisconsin specific unemployment figures won't be revealed until the end of next week. While I expect the Doyle Administration to do everything it can to soften the blow, I don't think they will be able to cushion the impact of rising unemployment enough to save the Democrats this November. Unlike states that have taken steps to improve their economic climate, Wisconsin's Democrat controlled government has made things much worse. Just look at the tax increases that Phil Garthwaite and the Democrat majority voted for over the last two years:
Phone Tax - $107 million
Utility Tax - $18 million
Garbage Collection Tax - $69 million
Gas Tax Increase - $224 million (failed to pass the Senate despite Garthwaite's efforts to pass it into law).
Nursing Home Tax - $71 million
Hospital Patient Tax - $1.1 billion
Meat Tax - TBA
Capital Gains - $242.5
Large Employer Tax - $215 million
New Income Tax Bracket for Small Businesses and "rich people" - 1% income tax increase
E-commerce Tax - $11 million
Forced Property Tax Hike - $1.5 Billion
Look at this list and then think about the top claim Garthwaite makes in his campaign literature: lower taxes. Phil Garthwaite voted for each of the tax increases listed above. That's not rhetoric, that's a fact.
Wisconsin specific unemployment figures won't be revealed until the end of next week. While I expect the Doyle Administration to do everything it can to soften the blow, I don't think they will be able to cushion the impact of rising unemployment enough to save the Democrats this November. Unlike states that have taken steps to improve their economic climate, Wisconsin's Democrat controlled government has made things much worse. Just look at the tax increases that Phil Garthwaite and the Democrat majority voted for over the last two years:
Phone Tax - $107 million
Utility Tax - $18 million
Garbage Collection Tax - $69 million
Gas Tax Increase - $224 million (failed to pass the Senate despite Garthwaite's efforts to pass it into law).
Nursing Home Tax - $71 million
Hospital Patient Tax - $1.1 billion
Meat Tax - TBA
Capital Gains - $242.5
Large Employer Tax - $215 million
New Income Tax Bracket for Small Businesses and "rich people" - 1% income tax increase
E-commerce Tax - $11 million
Forced Property Tax Hike - $1.5 Billion
Look at this list and then think about the top claim Garthwaite makes in his campaign literature: lower taxes. Phil Garthwaite voted for each of the tax increases listed above. That's not rhetoric, that's a fact.
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
In case you missed it...
Readers of this blog are well aware of Rep. Garthwaite's violent outburst on the floor of the Assembly last year when he screamed at businesses to take their jobs out of Wisconsin if they don't agree with his liberal, anti-jobs policies.
Readers may not have seen Milwaukee Journal Sentinel columnist Patrick McIlheran's column on the subject.
Here it is for your reading pleasure:
'Reform' that helps no one
I think McIlheran nails it here:
Readers may not have seen Milwaukee Journal Sentinel columnist Patrick McIlheran's column on the subject.
Here it is for your reading pleasure:
'Reform' that helps no one
I think McIlheran nails it here:
Nor do they (Democrat lawmakers) show the least comprehension of why all this might spook employers. Entrepreneurs fret about hiring a malcontent who will drag them into court over random dissatisfactions, but state Rep. Phil Garthwaite (D-Dickeyville) was denouncing as bigots any employer who might flee such jeopardy, saying in Assembly debate, "Good. Get your ass back down to the South. I don't want you here."
Monday, September 27, 2010
Sunday, August 29, 2010
Assembly Democrat Campaign Efforts Take Major Blow
For months the Assembly Democrats have been touting Dana Schultz as their best hope to pick up an Assembly seat this fall and possibly to hold off the coming Republican wave that could switch party control of the legislature. Last week, her campaign hit a brick wall when the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel revealed what she really thinks of her would-be rural constituents.
In a blog she wrote while running the Milwaukee chapter of Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), Schultz referred to the rural Wisconsinites from her hometown stating:
Her blog goes on and on displaying an attitude towards rural Wisconsin that is all too common amongst the Democrat establishment.
These revelations about her core beliefs should be enough to end her chances at representing the rural 87th district. If they are not, I'm sure that more damning evidence of her animosity toward rural, working class people will come out of her work as the head of Milwaukee's SDS.
If you're unfamiliar with it, SDS is a Marxist organization bent on the "revolutionary transformation" of American culture and ending capitalism because it is the root cause of "racism and white supremacy,... patriarchy, heterosexism and transphobia, authoritarianism and imperialism."
If the best candidate the Democrats can come up with is a Marxist that thinks that the people she hopes to represent are racist, sexist, homophobic, and ignorant then they are in for a rude awakening this November.
In a blog she wrote while running the Milwaukee chapter of Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), Schultz referred to the rural Wisconsinites from her hometown stating:
"I know all about the huntin, fishin, snowmobilin, country music beltin, beer drinkin, working class, gossipin, people who attend christian church every sunday and are racist, sexist, and homophobic, but more just ignorant because of lack of exposure." She wrote that she understands rural brain drain: "Why would people go back to face fatter and less educated Ann Colture's?"
Her blog goes on and on displaying an attitude towards rural Wisconsin that is all too common amongst the Democrat establishment.
These revelations about her core beliefs should be enough to end her chances at representing the rural 87th district. If they are not, I'm sure that more damning evidence of her animosity toward rural, working class people will come out of her work as the head of Milwaukee's SDS.
If you're unfamiliar with it, SDS is a Marxist organization bent on the "revolutionary transformation" of American culture and ending capitalism because it is the root cause of "racism and white supremacy,... patriarchy, heterosexism and transphobia, authoritarianism and imperialism."
If the best candidate the Democrats can come up with is a Marxist that thinks that the people she hopes to represent are racist, sexist, homophobic, and ignorant then they are in for a rude awakening this November.
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Phil Garthwaite Fact Check
With the campaign season upon us you might find the following flier from Rep. Garthwaite on your door.
Let’s take a few moments to analyze his claims and citations.
Garthwaite Claim 1: Passed legislation to help workers who have lost their jobs. – 2009 WI Act 2
Fact: This statement is partially true but rather misleading. 2009 WI Act 2 was a massive government bailout bill dubbed the Wisconsin Stimulus by the Democrats.
Some provisions of the bill probably did help a select group of laid off union workers, however, many of those jobs may have been ironically lost because of the massive tax hikes on employers that Garthwaite supported in the bill.
Act 2 included the now notorious Combined Reporting tax on large employers that do business in multiple states. This $215 million tax increase has directly caused countless layoffs in Wisconsin. For instance, just days after announcing that the new tax would hit them for a whopping $25 million, Harley Davidson laid off 400 employees. The Wisconsin icon later announced the closing of two Wisconsin plants and is now seriously considering leaving the state all together.
Act 2 included other tax increases including the $1.1 billion Sick Tax on hospital and clinic visits, an $11 million I-Pod Tax, new taxes on online purchases, and a tax on Wisconsin companies that design custom software in-house.
Act 2 also used several sources of taxpayer dollars to bailout government and increase spending. To do this, the legislature raided the Conservation, Petroleum Inspection, Recycling, Environmental Management, and Universal Service funds.
Rep. Garthwaite supported all of these tax increases and fund raids.
On the flip side, Act 2 included some small job creation initiatives including an expansion of Wisconsin’s Angel Investment program and the creation of a Research and Development tax credit. In order to save money, however, the legislature pushed off the start date for these job creation programs for at least one year and in some cases more.
Act 2 also included several grants targeted at individual union locals for worker re-training. Republican critics argued that these grants were nothing more than payback to Democrat campaign supporters, however, Democrats like Garthwaite claimed that the grants would help workers find jobs. I believe this is what Garthwaite is referring to in this flier.
Moreover, Garthwaite could argue that Act 2 and the tax increases it contained were necessary to balance the budget as required under state law and to protect the jobs of public sector workers.
For another opinion on Act 2 see Reason Magazine’s write up on it.
Or see this column from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Garthwaite Claim 2: Authored and passed powerful job creation measures to grow Wisconsin’s businesses. – 2009 WI Act 266
Fact: This statement is slightly true. Rep. Garthwaite authored and passed a bill, however, it was not powerful nor will it grow Wisconsin’s businesses.
Here is the Wisconsin Legislative Council’s description of Act 266.
As you can see, Rep. Garthwaite’s bill increased the number of Enterprise Development Zones in Wisconsin from 10 to 12. Sounds helpful to business right?
Wrong.
At the time of its passing, Wisconsin’s lack-luster Department of Commerce had only approved two enterprise development zones. They only had plans to designate two more this year. None of them are in Grant County and all of them are in urban and suburban areas.
All Rep. Garthwaite’s Act 266 did was give him an excuse to write a press release and to put a line on a lit piece. This is exactly the sort of politics as usual garbage that should make people fed up with their elected officials. Here is a clear case of our State Representative trying to pull the wool over our eyes but I think the voters of Grant County are smart enough to know that one do-nothing jobs bill doesn’t make up for nearly $5 billion in job killing tax increases.
Furthermore, to show what a partisan he is, Rep. Garthwaite rejected a Republican amendment to his bill that would have mandated that these zones be created in rural areas like say…Grant County.
Garthwaite Claim 3: Passed important bills to bolster our local rural businesses. – 2009 WI Act 295 and 2009 WI Act 169.
Fact: This claim is true, but perhaps a bit of an exaggeration.
WI Act 295 helps food processing plants expand and modernize. The bill enjoyed wide bi-partisan support and passed overwhelmingly. It will have a small but positive effect on businesses in several rural communities in Wisconsin. Act 169 regulates honey. This might have a negligible impact on a handful of honey producers in Southwest Wisconsin…might…
Garthwaite Claim 4: Bumped the reconstruction of Hwy 61 up to 2011
Fact: This is probably accurate.
This was the Democrat leadership’s piece of pork for Mr. Garthwaite. They are probably counting on it getting him through a tough reelection bid this November. While, the HWY 61 project had been scheduled to happen long before Garthwaite was elected, it might not have happened as soon as next year. Assembly Democrats placed it in the budget along with dozens of other pork projects for other areas of the state. Here are some articles about all those projects that went along with this one:
Slice Sneaky Earmarks from the Budget – Wisconsin State Journal
Budget Includes Millions in Earmarks – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Recycling Bins in the State Budget? – WLUK-TV
At the end of the day, this small but very important project will probably get done a couple years sooner due to the last state budget. At the same time, taxpayers in Grant County will be paying millions for similar projects (and recycling bins) for other parts of Wisconsin – and that is not to mention the $3.5 billion in higher taxes that passed in the same bill.
Garthwaite Claim 5: Found and authored funding for various road projects across SW Wisconsin. NO CITATION
Fact: This is completely false.
Notice how there is no citation for this claim. That is because it is 100% false. Rep. Garthwaite did not author or find funding for various road projects in SW WI. He is making that up.
The only things that come close to backing up this claim are the handful of American Recovery and Reinvestment Act road projects conducted across Wisconsin.
While the state legislature, Rep. Garthwaite included, did approve some Federal Stimulus funded projects, Rep. Garthwaite did not find or author them and they did not take place across Southwest, WI. Nearly all of these funds were devoted to urban areas near Madison, Milwaukee, Beloit, Janesville, Racine, or Kenosha.
This claim is bogus.
Garthwaite Claim 6: Secured important federal funds to help rural critical access hospitals cover their MA costs and reduce cost-shifting onto the average family.
Fact: This statement is partially true and partially false.
Rep. Garthwaite supported a bill to secure increased federal funding for rural hospitals, however, those funds were used to plug a hole that he created in the first place.
During debate on the state budget, Rep. Garthwaite voted against amendments to protect rural hospitals from cuts. As a result of his vote, these hospitals faced a devastating $10 million hole in their budgets.
To try to correct his error, Rep. Garthwaite supported a $10 million tax increase on the patients of rural hospitals. It seems counterintuitive but this tax increase eventually ended up helping the rural hospitals. Through a little bit of clever accounting, the state has been able to temporarily leverage increased federal reimbursement for Medical Assistance programs through the higher revenues brought in by the tax.
Rep. Garthwaite voted to let the state skim a large portion of these dollars from rural hospitals, however, the hospitals still make out ok. They have been able to offset Rep. Garthwaite’s $10 million cut and hope to set aside a couple million dollars to improve doctor recruitment. This should work out well for another year or two until the Feds catch on to the scheme and Wisconsin’s rural residents are left with a higher tax and nothing to show for it.
As to the part about cost-shifting, Rep. Garthwaite is referring to the so-called Hidden Health Care Tax. The Hidden Health Care Tax is the higher prices private payers are charged to offset the losses doctors and hospitals take on some Medicare and Medical Assistance patients. When the government under-reimburses hospitals, everyone else must pick up the tab. Garthwaite’s argument in this case is weak at best since the federal dollars he speaks of were used to fill a hole he created in the first place and not to increase existing government reimbursement rates.
Phil’s Priorities
Priority 1: Cutting waste wherever possible and holding the line on taxes.
Fact: Phil’s real priority is increasing government spending as much as possible and increasing taxes as needed to pay for it.
In the last two years Rep. Garthwaite has supported the stimulus and Government and Public Employee Union bailouts. He voted to increase spending by 10% in the middle of a recession and voted in favor of nearly $5 billion in tax increases to pay for it. He has clearly demonstrated that cutting waste and holding the line on taxes are the reverse of his priorities. Frankly, I’m shocked that he has the audacity to put such a bold faced lie on a flyer.
Priority 2: Supporting and growing small businesses that create jobs here in our community.
Fact: I believe Phil that this is one of his priorities, however, his means of achieving it are backwards.
Last year Phil voted to create a new, higher income tax bracket for successful small businesses. How does that help them? Phil voted to raise property taxes by $1.5 billion. How does that help small business owners? Phil voted against the Jobs Now Tax Credit, which would have cut taxes on small businesses that hired people in the middle of the recession. How did that help small businesses?
The fact is that Rep. Garthwaite might talk about helping rural businesses but he votes squarely against them.
Priority 3: Speaking up for family farms and providing them with the tools they need.
Fact: Rep. Garthwaite supported legalizing raw milk, limiting the development of farm land, and tax credits for some Ag. related industries, however, he also supported several laws that would have devastated family farms.
Rep. Garthwaite supported AB 844, a bill to allow the DNR to strip farmers of their high capacity wells, and he supported a global warming bill that the Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation said would hurt farmers because, “the majority of provisions, if implemented, will lead to higher fuel, fertilizer, and electricity costs.” Thankfully neither bill passed into law.
It’s clear that family farms are one of Rep. Garthwaite’s priorities. They’re just not as high of a priority as the causes of liberal environmental special interests.
Priority 4: Protecting our local institutions so they can continue to provide important and valuable services.
Fact: This is so vague as to be meaningless.
Priority 5: Putting partisan politics aside and reaching across the aisle to focus on the real issues.
Fact: Aside from the smoking ban, Rep. Garthwaite voted lock step with Jim Doyle and the Democrat majorities in Madison. He did not hold public hearings on Republican bills in the committee he chairs. When Republicans introduced more than 130 amendments to the state budget, did he cross the aisle even on one? No. Rep. Garthwaite was the definition of a partisan. He couldn’t find common ground with the other party on anything. On the issue of partisanship, his voting record speaks for itself. Rep. Garthwaite voted with the liberal wing of the Democrat party 99.9/100 times during the last session.
Let’s take a few moments to analyze his claims and citations.
Garthwaite Claim 1: Passed legislation to help workers who have lost their jobs. – 2009 WI Act 2
Fact: This statement is partially true but rather misleading. 2009 WI Act 2 was a massive government bailout bill dubbed the Wisconsin Stimulus by the Democrats.
Some provisions of the bill probably did help a select group of laid off union workers, however, many of those jobs may have been ironically lost because of the massive tax hikes on employers that Garthwaite supported in the bill.
Act 2 included the now notorious Combined Reporting tax on large employers that do business in multiple states. This $215 million tax increase has directly caused countless layoffs in Wisconsin. For instance, just days after announcing that the new tax would hit them for a whopping $25 million, Harley Davidson laid off 400 employees. The Wisconsin icon later announced the closing of two Wisconsin plants and is now seriously considering leaving the state all together.
Act 2 included other tax increases including the $1.1 billion Sick Tax on hospital and clinic visits, an $11 million I-Pod Tax, new taxes on online purchases, and a tax on Wisconsin companies that design custom software in-house.
Act 2 also used several sources of taxpayer dollars to bailout government and increase spending. To do this, the legislature raided the Conservation, Petroleum Inspection, Recycling, Environmental Management, and Universal Service funds.
Rep. Garthwaite supported all of these tax increases and fund raids.
On the flip side, Act 2 included some small job creation initiatives including an expansion of Wisconsin’s Angel Investment program and the creation of a Research and Development tax credit. In order to save money, however, the legislature pushed off the start date for these job creation programs for at least one year and in some cases more.
Act 2 also included several grants targeted at individual union locals for worker re-training. Republican critics argued that these grants were nothing more than payback to Democrat campaign supporters, however, Democrats like Garthwaite claimed that the grants would help workers find jobs. I believe this is what Garthwaite is referring to in this flier.
Moreover, Garthwaite could argue that Act 2 and the tax increases it contained were necessary to balance the budget as required under state law and to protect the jobs of public sector workers.
For another opinion on Act 2 see Reason Magazine’s write up on it.
Or see this column from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Garthwaite Claim 2: Authored and passed powerful job creation measures to grow Wisconsin’s businesses. – 2009 WI Act 266
Fact: This statement is slightly true. Rep. Garthwaite authored and passed a bill, however, it was not powerful nor will it grow Wisconsin’s businesses.
Here is the Wisconsin Legislative Council’s description of Act 266.
As you can see, Rep. Garthwaite’s bill increased the number of Enterprise Development Zones in Wisconsin from 10 to 12. Sounds helpful to business right?
Wrong.
At the time of its passing, Wisconsin’s lack-luster Department of Commerce had only approved two enterprise development zones. They only had plans to designate two more this year. None of them are in Grant County and all of them are in urban and suburban areas.
All Rep. Garthwaite’s Act 266 did was give him an excuse to write a press release and to put a line on a lit piece. This is exactly the sort of politics as usual garbage that should make people fed up with their elected officials. Here is a clear case of our State Representative trying to pull the wool over our eyes but I think the voters of Grant County are smart enough to know that one do-nothing jobs bill doesn’t make up for nearly $5 billion in job killing tax increases.
Furthermore, to show what a partisan he is, Rep. Garthwaite rejected a Republican amendment to his bill that would have mandated that these zones be created in rural areas like say…Grant County.
Garthwaite Claim 3: Passed important bills to bolster our local rural businesses. – 2009 WI Act 295 and 2009 WI Act 169.
Fact: This claim is true, but perhaps a bit of an exaggeration.
WI Act 295 helps food processing plants expand and modernize. The bill enjoyed wide bi-partisan support and passed overwhelmingly. It will have a small but positive effect on businesses in several rural communities in Wisconsin. Act 169 regulates honey. This might have a negligible impact on a handful of honey producers in Southwest Wisconsin…might…
Garthwaite Claim 4: Bumped the reconstruction of Hwy 61 up to 2011
Fact: This is probably accurate.
This was the Democrat leadership’s piece of pork for Mr. Garthwaite. They are probably counting on it getting him through a tough reelection bid this November. While, the HWY 61 project had been scheduled to happen long before Garthwaite was elected, it might not have happened as soon as next year. Assembly Democrats placed it in the budget along with dozens of other pork projects for other areas of the state. Here are some articles about all those projects that went along with this one:
Slice Sneaky Earmarks from the Budget – Wisconsin State Journal
Budget Includes Millions in Earmarks – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Recycling Bins in the State Budget? – WLUK-TV
At the end of the day, this small but very important project will probably get done a couple years sooner due to the last state budget. At the same time, taxpayers in Grant County will be paying millions for similar projects (and recycling bins) for other parts of Wisconsin – and that is not to mention the $3.5 billion in higher taxes that passed in the same bill.
Garthwaite Claim 5: Found and authored funding for various road projects across SW Wisconsin. NO CITATION
Fact: This is completely false.
Notice how there is no citation for this claim. That is because it is 100% false. Rep. Garthwaite did not author or find funding for various road projects in SW WI. He is making that up.
The only things that come close to backing up this claim are the handful of American Recovery and Reinvestment Act road projects conducted across Wisconsin.
While the state legislature, Rep. Garthwaite included, did approve some Federal Stimulus funded projects, Rep. Garthwaite did not find or author them and they did not take place across Southwest, WI. Nearly all of these funds were devoted to urban areas near Madison, Milwaukee, Beloit, Janesville, Racine, or Kenosha.
This claim is bogus.
Garthwaite Claim 6: Secured important federal funds to help rural critical access hospitals cover their MA costs and reduce cost-shifting onto the average family.
Fact: This statement is partially true and partially false.
Rep. Garthwaite supported a bill to secure increased federal funding for rural hospitals, however, those funds were used to plug a hole that he created in the first place.
During debate on the state budget, Rep. Garthwaite voted against amendments to protect rural hospitals from cuts. As a result of his vote, these hospitals faced a devastating $10 million hole in their budgets.
To try to correct his error, Rep. Garthwaite supported a $10 million tax increase on the patients of rural hospitals. It seems counterintuitive but this tax increase eventually ended up helping the rural hospitals. Through a little bit of clever accounting, the state has been able to temporarily leverage increased federal reimbursement for Medical Assistance programs through the higher revenues brought in by the tax.
Rep. Garthwaite voted to let the state skim a large portion of these dollars from rural hospitals, however, the hospitals still make out ok. They have been able to offset Rep. Garthwaite’s $10 million cut and hope to set aside a couple million dollars to improve doctor recruitment. This should work out well for another year or two until the Feds catch on to the scheme and Wisconsin’s rural residents are left with a higher tax and nothing to show for it.
As to the part about cost-shifting, Rep. Garthwaite is referring to the so-called Hidden Health Care Tax. The Hidden Health Care Tax is the higher prices private payers are charged to offset the losses doctors and hospitals take on some Medicare and Medical Assistance patients. When the government under-reimburses hospitals, everyone else must pick up the tab. Garthwaite’s argument in this case is weak at best since the federal dollars he speaks of were used to fill a hole he created in the first place and not to increase existing government reimbursement rates.
Phil’s Priorities
Priority 1: Cutting waste wherever possible and holding the line on taxes.
Fact: Phil’s real priority is increasing government spending as much as possible and increasing taxes as needed to pay for it.
In the last two years Rep. Garthwaite has supported the stimulus and Government and Public Employee Union bailouts. He voted to increase spending by 10% in the middle of a recession and voted in favor of nearly $5 billion in tax increases to pay for it. He has clearly demonstrated that cutting waste and holding the line on taxes are the reverse of his priorities. Frankly, I’m shocked that he has the audacity to put such a bold faced lie on a flyer.
Priority 2: Supporting and growing small businesses that create jobs here in our community.
Fact: I believe Phil that this is one of his priorities, however, his means of achieving it are backwards.
Last year Phil voted to create a new, higher income tax bracket for successful small businesses. How does that help them? Phil voted to raise property taxes by $1.5 billion. How does that help small business owners? Phil voted against the Jobs Now Tax Credit, which would have cut taxes on small businesses that hired people in the middle of the recession. How did that help small businesses?
The fact is that Rep. Garthwaite might talk about helping rural businesses but he votes squarely against them.
Priority 3: Speaking up for family farms and providing them with the tools they need.
Fact: Rep. Garthwaite supported legalizing raw milk, limiting the development of farm land, and tax credits for some Ag. related industries, however, he also supported several laws that would have devastated family farms.
Rep. Garthwaite supported AB 844, a bill to allow the DNR to strip farmers of their high capacity wells, and he supported a global warming bill that the Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation said would hurt farmers because, “the majority of provisions, if implemented, will lead to higher fuel, fertilizer, and electricity costs.” Thankfully neither bill passed into law.
It’s clear that family farms are one of Rep. Garthwaite’s priorities. They’re just not as high of a priority as the causes of liberal environmental special interests.
Priority 4: Protecting our local institutions so they can continue to provide important and valuable services.
Fact: This is so vague as to be meaningless.
Priority 5: Putting partisan politics aside and reaching across the aisle to focus on the real issues.
Fact: Aside from the smoking ban, Rep. Garthwaite voted lock step with Jim Doyle and the Democrat majorities in Madison. He did not hold public hearings on Republican bills in the committee he chairs. When Republicans introduced more than 130 amendments to the state budget, did he cross the aisle even on one? No. Rep. Garthwaite was the definition of a partisan. He couldn’t find common ground with the other party on anything. On the issue of partisanship, his voting record speaks for itself. Rep. Garthwaite voted with the liberal wing of the Democrat party 99.9/100 times during the last session.
Monday, February 1, 2010
Assembly Democrat Leadership Woes Forcast a Tough Fall for Vulnerables Like Garthwaite
This tersely worded story from Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reporter Patrick Marley spells trouble for Assembly Democrats. According to this and other stories, rumors spread around the Capitol Friday that Assembly Speaker Mike Sheridan was in jeopardy of losing his leadership post over an alleged, inappropriate relationship the married speaker had carried on with a lobbyist.
Sheridan, Rep. Garthwaite's boss in the Assembly, denied these allegations Friday, stating that the lobbyist was just a friend and that they had gone on just one date. He has since amended his story stating, "I have dated a gal who is a lobbyist. It's not been a conflict, and I have no problem saying that..." The Speaker also told the Journal Sentinel that, "We (He and the lobbyist) went to a Christmas party. I think we went out with like a group of people a couple different times and that type of thing." "Like a group of people." "That type of thing." Why does the Speaker of the State Assembly sound like a kid who broke curfew and doesn't want to fess up to his parents about what he was out doing?
The Assembly Democrats already faced a tough election fight. The mood of the country and state is swinging back against their big taxing, big spending policies. Their total lack of focus on jobs and the economy over the last year doesn't help their cause much either. This potential scandal, however, adds a whole new dimension to the challenges that vulnerable Representatives like Garthwaite will have next fall.
For starters, this issue will further divide an Assembly Democrat Caucus that is already split over the proposed mayoral take over of the Milwaukee Public Schools. Coupled with their failure to put the Jeff Wood incidents behind them, the Assembly Democrats will be distracted this spring and will likely leave this session without having accomplished anything of substance on jobs, the economy, or anything else. What will they have to run on in the fall? A failed stimulus bill and honey regulation?
Secondly, an embattled and divided Assembly Democrat leadership will not be able to properly organize and fund raise for members facing tough challenges. Democrat Majority Leader Tom Nelson was already set to be in the fight of his life over budget pork that cost his district and comments he made in regards to the Democrat auto insurance premium hike of 2009
Sheridan too will now be preoccupied with his own survival.
Traditionally, Assembly Democrats have counted on large third party expenditures from public employee unions, trial attorneys, and tribal gaming interests to bail them out of situations like this. This year, however, those groups will be focused on getting a Democrat into the vacant Governor's mansion first, maintaining a precarious majority in the State Senate second, and keeping vulnerable Assemblymen like Garthwaite in office a distant third. This all spells trouble for the Democrat from Grant County next fall.
Sheridan, Rep. Garthwaite's boss in the Assembly, denied these allegations Friday, stating that the lobbyist was just a friend and that they had gone on just one date. He has since amended his story stating, "I have dated a gal who is a lobbyist. It's not been a conflict, and I have no problem saying that..." The Speaker also told the Journal Sentinel that, "We (He and the lobbyist) went to a Christmas party. I think we went out with like a group of people a couple different times and that type of thing." "Like a group of people." "That type of thing." Why does the Speaker of the State Assembly sound like a kid who broke curfew and doesn't want to fess up to his parents about what he was out doing?
The Assembly Democrats already faced a tough election fight. The mood of the country and state is swinging back against their big taxing, big spending policies. Their total lack of focus on jobs and the economy over the last year doesn't help their cause much either. This potential scandal, however, adds a whole new dimension to the challenges that vulnerable Representatives like Garthwaite will have next fall.
For starters, this issue will further divide an Assembly Democrat Caucus that is already split over the proposed mayoral take over of the Milwaukee Public Schools. Coupled with their failure to put the Jeff Wood incidents behind them, the Assembly Democrats will be distracted this spring and will likely leave this session without having accomplished anything of substance on jobs, the economy, or anything else. What will they have to run on in the fall? A failed stimulus bill and honey regulation?
Secondly, an embattled and divided Assembly Democrat leadership will not be able to properly organize and fund raise for members facing tough challenges. Democrat Majority Leader Tom Nelson was already set to be in the fight of his life over budget pork that cost his district and comments he made in regards to the Democrat auto insurance premium hike of 2009
Sheridan too will now be preoccupied with his own survival.
Traditionally, Assembly Democrats have counted on large third party expenditures from public employee unions, trial attorneys, and tribal gaming interests to bail them out of situations like this. This year, however, those groups will be focused on getting a Democrat into the vacant Governor's mansion first, maintaining a precarious majority in the State Senate second, and keeping vulnerable Assemblymen like Garthwaite in office a distant third. This all spells trouble for the Democrat from Grant County next fall.
Saturday, January 30, 2010
Assembly Democrat Global Warming Bill to Put 43,000 out of Work
Rep. Garthwaite has long been a supporter of legislation that would increase fuel and energy prices in order to reduce greenhouse gas production in Wisconsin. He's campaigned on it and is even on record as having voted in support of one radical proposal, 2006 Assembly Bill 157.
Now Assembly Democrats are promoting a new bill that they call the "Clean Jobs Act." The 174 page bill, which oddly never mentions "clean jobs," not even once, makes wholesale changes to the way Wisconsin produces and uses energy.
According to a study commissioned by the Wisconsin Policy Research Institute and conducted by the non-partisan, independent Beacon Hill Institute, AB 649 will have dramatically negative consequences on Wisconsin's unemployment numbers and on our quality of life.
The Assembly Minority Leader Jeff Fitzgerald explained why in a recent editorial in the Baraboo News Republic where he refuted one of the bill's supporters, Democrat Rep. Fred Clark:
To put it simply, Garthwaite's Democrat colleges in Madison are pushing a proposal, which he has supported at least in concept, that will:
1. Put 43,000 employees out of work
2. Increase Utility Bills by 30%
3. Increase gas prices by $.61/gallon
4. Increase the price of new cars by nearly $1,000
Garthwaite has yet to take a stand against his Democrat Madison leadership on any significant legislation this session. Hopefully he will on this deeply troubled piece of legislation.
Now Assembly Democrats are promoting a new bill that they call the "Clean Jobs Act." The 174 page bill, which oddly never mentions "clean jobs," not even once, makes wholesale changes to the way Wisconsin produces and uses energy.
According to a study commissioned by the Wisconsin Policy Research Institute and conducted by the non-partisan, independent Beacon Hill Institute, AB 649 will have dramatically negative consequences on Wisconsin's unemployment numbers and on our quality of life.
The Assembly Minority Leader Jeff Fitzgerald explained why in a recent editorial in the Baraboo News Republic where he refuted one of the bill's supporters, Democrat Rep. Fred Clark:
Manufacturers depend on reliable and affordable electricity to make their products. In Wisconsin, they already pay some of the highest costs for electricity in the Midwest. The cornerstone of Rep. Clark’s global warming legislation is a new mandate that utilities produce 25 percent of their electricity from renewable resources by 2025. Utilities are already struggling to meet a modest, but important 10 percent renewable standard passed by environmentally conscious Republicans in 2005. To comply with a 25 percent mandate, utilities would have to spend approximately $15 billion more to convert from cheap energy sources to less efficient renewable sources. A significant portion of that cost will be paid for by Wisconsin’s manufacturers. Those billions that could be spent on expanding and hiring new employees will instead be eaten up by costlier electricity.
Though debatable in boom years, Rep. Clark’s proposed mandate is an unequivocal job killer during a recession.
The global warming bill will also cost the Average Joe more, about $1,000 more each year according to the economists at Beacon Hill. It calls for tripling of the "Public Benefits" fee on your utility bill. The aforementioned utility price increases will cause up to 30 percent hikes in the average family’s heating and electricity bills. It also calls for a Wisconsin-specific fuel standard that will ban or restrict the use of several cheap sources of gasoline. According to the Virginia-based George C. Marshall Institute, the new fuel standards in Rep. Clark’s bill will increase the price of a gallon of unleaded regular by $0.61.
In addition to higher prices at the pump, this bill actually makes automobiles more expensive to buy. Rep. Clark’s bill mandates that each car sold in Wisconsin meet California’s Low Emission Vehicle standard. If enacted, this will drive up the price of the average car by $968 with an annualized cost to Wisconsin consumers of more than $350 million.
To put it simply, Garthwaite's Democrat colleges in Madison are pushing a proposal, which he has supported at least in concept, that will:
1. Put 43,000 employees out of work
2. Increase Utility Bills by 30%
3. Increase gas prices by $.61/gallon
4. Increase the price of new cars by nearly $1,000
Garthwaite has yet to take a stand against his Democrat Madison leadership on any significant legislation this session. Hopefully he will on this deeply troubled piece of legislation.
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Garthwaite Linked to Questionable Campaign Materials
Blogger Playground Politics posted an Assembly Democrat campaign document today that was reportedly discovered in the state capitol. As you can see the document entitled Agenda for Meeting with Speaker is clearly a campaign document and had no busisness being in the state capitol. This begs the question, were Assembly Democrats campaigning on state time and the taxpayers' dime, and was Rep. Garthwaite involved as this document seems to indicate?
I would certainly hope that the Republican Party of Wisconsin will soon file an open records request for the calendars of Speaker Mike Sheridan, Rep. Garthwaite, and the other Assemblyman mentioned in the document. If these meetings are taking place in the State Capitol then we have here a clear violation of the public trust and state law.
I would certainly hope that the Republican Party of Wisconsin will soon file an open records request for the calendars of Speaker Mike Sheridan, Rep. Garthwaite, and the other Assemblyman mentioned in the document. If these meetings are taking place in the State Capitol then we have here a clear violation of the public trust and state law.
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