Technology startup businesses and jobs not on Scott Walker's radar either?

There’s no getting around it, Scott Walker is focusing his job creation around manufacturing.

For the last 3 years, as chairman of the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation, Walker did almost nothing to encourage tech and science startups.

Milken Institute’s State Tech and Science Index once ranked Wisconsin at #11 in 2010 for risk capital and entrepreneurial infrastructure, during the Doyle administration. Now under Walker, the state slipped to 36.

Now that’s he’s more desperate than ever, Walker relented. In the last year, angel and venture capital investments are starting to play a bigger role in business and job creation. But Walker was warned over and over Wisconsin wasn't doing enough.

So the state has slipped dramatically since Walker became governor, and our anti-science and technology Republican legislature steered clear of tech completely as a way to bring jobs to Wisconsin:

WSJ: Wisconsin draws an overall ranking of 25, the same as in 2012, with higher marks for its technology and science work force (No. 17) but lower for its risk capital and entrepreneurial infrastructure (No. 36).

Tom Still, president of the Wisconsin Technology Council, took issue with some of Milken’s scoring. For example, in 2010, Wisconsin was No. 11 for risk capital and entrepreneurial infrastructure but now ranks 36th. “Those more familiar with Wisconsin know that the number of angel and venture capital deals in the state continues to climb and that more venues, networks and opportunities are available today for people interested in starting and growing a company (here),” Still said … workforce development programs also have “dramatically expanded.”

Tech investment only came as a last resort, and mostly in the last year.

Does Milken have a bias against the Midwest? Still said the rankings “appear to lump the Midwest into the same basket, with only Minnesota breaking into the top quartile (12th).”

Uh oh, there’s Democratically run Minnesota again.