Government Spending under Walker Cloaked in Secrecy!! What is he hiding?

Walker and the Republicans promised transparency...another broken promise...another campaign issue for Walker's challenger. Holy crap, we even lost out to Texas and Florida. Hey Walker, make fun of Illinois again.

WKOW: The grades are out and Wisconsin received an "F" when it comes to government spending transparency.

A new report from WISPIRG ranks the 50 states on how much online access people have to government spending information. It ranks Wisconsin as the fourth worst when it comes to accessibility, saying the state lacks one go-to website for information on state spending.

"We give the public very little information about individual state budget expenditures, about economic development subsidies and tax expenditures like tax breaks or deferments," Bruce Speight of WISPIRG told 27 News today at the Capitol.

The states with most transparency are Texas, Massachusetts, Florida and Illinois.

Gun Store Owner denies Right to Bear Arms for Customer Based on Politics. Goodbye Constitution?

While the Second Amendment is the most important guarantee, according to all conservative pocket Constitutionalist's, right wingers can still come up with reasons to take the right away.

In this amazing example of hypocrisy, authoritarianism, and another reason to never believe conservative ramblings about the Constitution, one gun store owner decided not to sell a firearm to a guy based purely on politics.

Kinda blows the whole rabid “right to bear arms” bullshit, doesn't it?

TPM: Mark Kelly's purchase of an AR-15 high-powered rifle has been canceled by the owner of a Tucson, Ariz. gun store, because the former astronaut and husband of former Rep. Gabriele Giffords (D-AZ) planned to turn the gun in to police, the Arizona Daily Star reported Monday.

Douglas MacKinlay, who owns the store, Diamondback Police Supply, explained the decision in a Facebook post Monday:

“While I support and respect Mark Kelly’s 2nd Amendment rights to purchase, possess, and use firearms in a safe and responsible manner, his recent statements to the media made it clear that his intent in purchasing the Sig Sauer M400 5.56mm rifle from us was for reasons other then for his personal use. In light of this fact, I determined that it was in my company’s best interest to terminate this transaction prior to his returning to my store to complete the Federal From 4473 and NICS background check required of Mr. Kelly before he could take possession this firearm. A full refund was sent to Mr. Kelly, via express mail, on Thursday of last week."

Kelly purchased the rifle earlier this month, along with a pistol, to show how simple the background check process is. 

Lawrence O'Donnell even covered the story, because it means that much:

One Nation under One Party Rule: Republican Fascism is Real.

I recently called out Republicans for their obvious endorsement of creeping fascism.

But looking into the reason why the word “fascism” is rarely used (no one else wants to state the obvious), I found that academics have tried to make it sound utterly confusing and way too multifaceted (it is, but today's conditions can be fine tuned).  So I pieced together the following points that should clarify and update the word fascism, to describe the Republican/Tea Party agenda:

“Fascism should more appropriately be called Corporatism because it is a merger of state and corporate power”-Benito Mussolini

 “When fascism comes to America, it will be wrapped in the flag and carrying the cross.”-Sinclair Lewis's (alleged) comment

Check out the statement below that reminded me of Paul Ryan’s rush to experiment with an untried system of government based on the free market: 

“Fascist originated within a matrix of élite experimentation with novel forms of political control and populist legitimation.”-Sage Journals

With Republican governors and legislatures ignoring local control for a more top down approach to expanding their agenda, along with vilifying descent, isn't it time to call it what it is? The following article said it best for me. A little bit of Naomi Klein’s concept of “disaster capitalism” is thrown in for good measure:

Two Ways of Looking at Fascism, by Matthew N. Lyons, draft April 2007

Gregory Meyerson and Michael Joseph Roberto, in an October 2006 Monthly Review article, "It Could Happen Here," see fascism as an intrinsic structural tendency of capitalism in crisis, a form of rule that is promoted strictly from the top down. The substance of their argument seems to be that the growing crisis may persuade most representatives of capital that they need to establish a much more repressive and authoritarian state. 

Lyons article continues, by focusing on the “right wing” of 2007:

By right-wing I mean a political orientation that reinforces or intensifies social oppression as part of a backlash against movements for greater equality, freedom, or inclusiveness. Populism means a form of politics that uses mass mobilization to rally "the people" around some form of anti-elitism. Right-wing populism mobilizes a mass movement around a twisted anti-elitism (often based on conspiracy theories) at the same time that it intensifies oppression. In place of leftist conceptions of class struggle, fascists often draw a phony distinction between "producers" (including "productive" capitalists, workers, and middle classes) and "parasites" (defined variously as financiers, bureaucrats, foreign corporations, Jews, immigrants, welfare mothers, etc.)

Right-wing populism appeals largely to middle groups in the social hierarchy, an important part of fascism's mass base. The fascist vision is totalitarian in that it celebrates one group -- national, ethnic, religious, or racial -- as an organic community to which all other loyalties must be subordinated, advocates coordinated top-down control over all institutions, and rejects in principle the concepts of individual rights, pluralism, equality, and democratic decision-making.

The collective rebirth aspect of the vision declares that the community must be rescued from a profound inner crisis, largely by purging "alien" ideologies and groups of people that are considered threats to the community's unity and vitality. This vision often draws on romanticized images of the past but points toward a radically new cultural and political order. Historically, fascists have colluded with capitalists and bolstered the economic power of big business.

A few good reads: Chris Hedges wrote American Fascism back in 2008.  Another book, by David Neiwert, The Eliminationists came out in 2009. Also, Friendly Fascism, and The Anatomy of Fascism, by author and historian Robert O. Paxton, who offers up this fairly comprehensive and useful definition:

"Fascism may be defined as a form of political behavior marked by obsessive preoccupation with community decline, humiliation, or victimhood and by compensatory cults of unity, energy and purity, in which a mass-based party of committed nationalist militants, working in uneasy but effective collaboration with traditional elites, abandons democratic liberties and pursues with redemptive violence and without ethical or legal restraints goals of internal cleansing and external expansion."

Pridemore's Media Blacklist...sure.

State Republican Rep. Don Pridemore tried for awhile to walk back his successful attempt to blacklist a few media outlets and reporters, but found out how hard it was to keep lying, so he eventually decided to just come out and admit it. And even laugh about it. From Upfront with Mike Gousha, Pridemore shows us how Republicans would run things if they had complete power without the threat of challenge.

State Rep. and Schools Superintendent candidate Pridemore paints Irresponsible picture of private voucher education

The race for State Schools Superintendent is an opportunity for all of us to get a much clearer picture of the Republican Party's plans for education. Just like the national party's admission they really want to privatize our social safety nets, Republican Rep. Don Pridemore lays it our for us; he would love to hand over the guaranteed market of educating out kids to private interests. Appearing on WPT's Here and Now, here's some "choice" moments:

Rep. Pridemore stresses one of the most misleading talking points about voucher schools; popularity. Voucher advocates always talk about the growing numbers choosing vouchers. Well, a lot of  people bought Snuggies, you know what I mean. Pridemore trashes the states big test used to grade schools, for touchy feely intangibles, and incumbent superintendent Tony Evers nails him for it.

Plus, the Racine school district budget director and supporter of vouchers warned property taxes will go up, but who cares says Pridemore:



Bonus incentive payments have another big flaw, effectively explained by Superintendent Evers; the richest and best school districts will be rewarded with even more money, and become even wealthier, instead of spending that money turning failing schools around. Evers wins this one hands down:



Superintendent Evers shines a bright light on the "target" painted on teachers backs by the unintended (or intended) consequences of Act 10. Teachers are now dealing with the fear factor of their profession:



From WKOW's Capital City Sunday, Greg Neumann asks whether public school will actually lose money, and Evers explains how Milwaukee's 20 year voucher experiment should have been paying dividends by now, and hasn't:

Spreading Government Around the State, away from Madison's "Closeted Cocoons...higher educations...and lower Crime rates."

This editorial was just too humorous to pass up without passing it along first. Who thinks of this stuff? Even though it's lightly edited, "you'll get the message:"

Beloit Daily News: ONCE AGAIN, the State of Wisconsin is preparing to spend more than a billion dollars in capital projects to be used to house government workers. And, once again, the vast majority of the money will go to build up Madison.

We understand that government has been housed in the capital city for longer than anyone alive can remember … FRANKLY, THAT’S PART of the problem with government.

Government culture becomes so separated from the realities of everyday life elsewhere that the level of understanding and, therefore, responsiveness can be severely compromised. The rules and regulations are produced in closeted cocoons and citizens become mere abstractions. Think about it.

Demographically, Madison enjoys higher educations, higher home values, higher household incomes, lower crime rates ... well, you get the picture. It’s that way not just because state government is there, and the University of Wisconsin flagship, but also because of the vast army of lawyers and lobbyists and others who flock to Madison to buy influence. It’s a potent combination that leads to affluence, security — and out-of-touch smugness.

THERE WAS A TIME when locating all government offices and personnel in physical proximity to one another made sense. That was when transportation was by horse and communication was by telegraph.

In the day of jet planes and interstate highways … Skype and Facetime; of fiber-optic networking, such considerations hold no sway.

Spreading government around would accomplish at least two worthy goals: (1) An economic shot-in-the-arm for any community lucky enough to host a government facility, and (2) culturally, government would benefit from a closer connection to common people.

Change is never easy … time may not yet be ripe for blowing up the bureaucracy and spreading it out among the people.

That doesn’t mean it’s a bad idea. We would love to hear a debate on the subject from those elected to represent Wisconsin’s citizens. After all, they’re supposed to be looking out for us, not just the system.

Walker to co-write autobiography with former Bush and Rumsfeld adviser. Credibility Problem?

Feel free to contribute a possible title for Scott Walker's upcoming book:

The Hill: Republican Gov. Scott Walker of Wisconsin is co-writing a book with Marc Thiessen, who served as a chief speechwriter for former President George W. Bush. In addition to focusing on Walker’s governorship, the book will also be autobiographical … The as-yet untitled work will be published by Sentinel, an imprint of Penguin Group. Walker tapped Thiessen, a former adviser to Bush and Donald Rumsfeld, to collaborate on the project because of his familiarity with “the political and fiscal aspects of Walker’s efforts.”

"Wisconsin Needs Walker?"

Joe the Plumber goes "Sheriff David Clarke Nuts," says "You can either pee or vomit on yourself and hope that you do not become a victim, or you go to your local shooting range."

Samuel Wurzelbacher, or aka Joe the Plumber, put out his own online PSA (it's cheaper that way) to counter Mayor Bloomberg's own message about gun control. He start his message with the above comment. It's oddly similar to Sheriff David Clarke's fear mongering, check it out:

Clarke: "You could beg for mercy from a violent criminal, hide under the bed, or you can fight back."

Joe the Plumber ended his message this way:

"That way, God forbid, if you or your family is ever attacked, you can shoot the bastard."

What a genius. 

Huffington Post: This isn't the first controversial anti-gun control videos released by Wurzelbacher. During a failed campaign to unseat Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio) last year, he posted a video blaming gun control for the Armenian Genocide and the Holocaust.

“In 1911, Turkey established gun control. From 1915 to 1917, 1.5 million Armenians, unable to defend themselves, were exterminated,” Wurzelbacher said in the video, while loading a shotgun. “In 1939, Germany established gun control. From 1939 to 1945, six million Jews and seven million others unable to defend themselves were exterminated.”

Wurzelbacher is raffling off an AR-15 rifle on his website in protest of debate over an assault weapons ban. 

Recent state pension recipients continue to see cuts in payments, all the while the fund managers are raking in six figure BONUSES. Surprised?

Money redistribution always goes upward:

AP: Wisconsin's pension fund managers were given more than $8 million in bonuses as a reward for strong investment returns, nearly double what they received last year, according to records released to The Associated Press on Friday. The bonuses come as most retirees are about to see their pension payments decrease in May for the fifth year in a row due to effects of the 2008 recession. 

Six figures?

Chief Investment Officer David Villa is getting the largest bonus of nearly $421,000. Two managing directors, Bill McCorkle and Ron Mensink, were the next highest with bonuses of nearly $287,000 and about 282,000, respectfully.

Last year, the state's core fund, a diversified group of investments that includes benefits for all 167,000 retirees in the Wisconsin Retirement System, grew by 13.7 percent. While the state's investments grew, core fund investors will see a cut in benefits of 9.6 percent starting in May because pension payments are based on a five-year smoothing formula. Even in 2008, when core fund investments dropped by 26 percent, the board handed out $1.7 million in bonuses. State of Wisconsin Investment Board spokeswoman, Vicki Hearing said, "If we paid outside managers, it would cost more than three times the money to manage those same funds."

Some comfort and transparent distraction. It's funny, but if we didn't have these geniuses on the board, I wonder how many other geniuses would take the job for so much less with small or no bonuses. 

Imaginary Wisconsin needs Laws Restricting Absentee Voting Hours.

Absentee voting has taken a bizarre surreal turn, thanks to big government Republicans living in imaginary Wisconsin. I have little doubt Republicans will somehow restrict absentee voting hours statewide, but it’s their missteps that have betrayed them, and their attempt to suppress voting.

For instance, did you know supposed "cheap" rural taxpayers didn't want to pay for expanded absentee voting hours? Well, many of them didn't know that either. In fact, rural areas have expanded hours and special weekend times too. But no one told our now embarrassed Republican legislators.

Walker Republicans fabricated a war between rural and urban areas over absentee voting hours, saying rural areas can’t afford to expand hours.

Even though it’s a choice made locally, to spend the money or not, our big government authoritarians are trying to convince people that it’s unfair to country folk to make that choice. So they drafted a law limiting hours.

That when the law ran into a buzz saw of complaints from rural and urban communities alike.

Damage control is out of Control: Our supposed grand supporters of “local control” and opponents of “one size fits all” big government regulations are proving to be big liars on both fronts. 

Embarrassed Republicans are now playing the blame game, and it’s not pretty or smart:

Republican Sen. Mary Lazich: “Despite statements by a Milwaukee talk show radio host, I never once shot down, killed, voted against, or held up Assembly Bill 54 (AB 54) relating to the standardization of times for voting by absentee ballots in person. The bill is not a senate bill. I expressed that it is unfair that some voters have much more opportunity to vote than other voters. I explained that the bill needed some work and was not ready for prime time.

The reality? 

The proposal could be even more vexing for clerks in small towns, who often work part-time and at the convenience of local residents, said Richard Stadelman, executive director of the Wisconsin Towns Association … it's not unusual for small-town clerks to open their offices on nights and weekends to accommodate in-person absentee voting. He said his group opposes the bill as written.

Lazich supports a statewide restriction on absentee voting that matches a fictional problem rural areas have when it comes to accommodating voters after hours and on weekends.

Republicans may not like any of the laws passed by Democrats to solve real problems, but writing laws that apply to problems seen in some imaginary world? We've got a big problem.

Gay Son vs Faith? Really?

USA Today should be ashamed of themselves, even on their opinion page...but what did you expect from the main stream media.

One Dumb Parent Changes National Test Question because she Disagreed with Correct Answer regarding 9/11!!

No one else complained! And why would they, when the answer to a test question on 9/11 happened to be true. Yet after only one uninformed parent complained, all hell broke loose. But more on that in a moment.

But first, the issue that set her off; the CIA’s listed reason why Al Qaida attacked the U.S... It was our policy's abroad in the Arab nations. It’s true no matter how angry bumper sticker patriots deny it, like Kara Sand for instance:  

Checking your child’s homework is a natural duty for any parent, but one mother stumbled upon a controversial question on her fifth graders quiz, and she’s ticked off.  “It asks why the U.S. may be a target for terrorism. Her son chose the correct answer - ‘decisions we made in the United States that negatively impact people elsewhere.’” (Via KRISTV) Kara Sand believes the question suggests America was partially to blame for the September 11 terrorist attacks. She took a photo of her son’s test, and posted it to Facebook where it went viral, garnering support from thousands of other angry parents.

The test was based on an educational video by the company Safari Montage, which provides downloadable educational videos on several subjects for grades K through 12. The company stands by its video on government and terrorism, but has apologized.
Promote the general welfare…

There are so many people who want to force their ignorance of the constitution on everyone else. The General Welfare Clause is settled law, and allows the federal government the ability to provide for it citizens. But because one totally rabid and clueless individual can’t tell the difference between personal responsibility and the Clause, students will be deprived of the chance to be a little bit brighter than she is now.

Kara Sands tells us the quiz opened her eyes to the content in lessons taught at the school. Her biggest concern is curriculum called CSCOPE. One worksheet on the Bill of Rights names food and medicine as rights, not personal responsibility. "He got marked wrong, because it is, it is our responsibility for shelter, it’s our responsibility for food for medicine, it’s not the government's responsibility," Sand said.

Yes it is our personal responsibility if we can afford it, but when we can’t, the government will provide the essentials of life and not let us die. I thought that’s what made our nation great.

Sands says parents need to get involved. "When I teach my children that you have to work hard and you have to earn a living and they go to school and learn something different I absolutely take issue with that," Sands said.

Maybe mom needs to sit in on a class a learn a little something.

Tina Fey's "Actors Studio" performance of Sarah Palin.

Deficit doesn't have to be Zero!!! Just More Republican Fear Mongering.

I saw this from Bloomberg's Josh Barro, and thought it summed up nicely why zeroing out the debt is another ridiculous obsession from the Republicans...and Paul Ryan.

Barro: "The federal government has run a budget deficit in 46 of the last 50 years. So if budget deficits are going to destroy the American economy, they're taking an awful long time about doing it."

Bloomberg News: My colleague Evan Soltas has ably explained why we never need to balance the budget: So long as the economy keeps growing, the government can keep borrowing more money, and it’s all sustainable if the debt does not grow too large relative to the economy. That’s how it’s been possible for the U.S. government to run budget deficits every year since the 1970s, save a handful during the Bill Clinton administration, without blowing up the economy.

People are resistant to this message.

There are appropriate times for individuals to borrow, such as when getting an education or buying a home. But over a lifetime, the individual is supposed to be working to pay down debts and build wealth But the government does not have a life cycle; it plans to exist indefinitely. So it makes much more sense to compare the government to a corporation, which also plans for indefinite existence and therefore may have debt as a permanent part of its capital structure. There is not necessarily an expectation that a firm will decrease its debt load over time, and if a company keeps growing, its debt load may keep getting larger without being a sign of financial distress. 

Good News for possible challenger Rob Zerban, Ryan unfavorable rating 54% according to Rasmussen Poll

People are finally catching on. jsonline:

A Rasmussen Reports poll released this week says 35% of likely U.S. voters have a favorable view of House Budget Committee chairman Paul Ryan. That's down from 50% … The new poll says 54 percent now view Ryan unfavorably. 

Middle Class Duped, Ripped-off!!! The Dumb Ron Johnson Promise not to pay back borrowed money from Trust fund

The bizarre Republican campaign to stiff the middle class, by not paying back the borrowed Social Security Trust Fund money is getting little if no media attention.

Congress has been raiding our Social Security retirement trust fund for decades, to spend on tax cuts among other things. Now, the Republican tightwads in the tea party want to walk, and not even pay it back.

Before we reform the tax code and make spending cuts, why not pay off our bills first? That's if Republicans really want to save our kids from the crushing pain of deficits. Instead, the Republicans want to leave the Trust Fund empty, and steal money from our kids Medicare and Social Security benefits in the future, by reducing what they'll get in retirement.

It almost takes your breath away. Am I the only one who's noticed?

Dumb Ron Johnson is even telling us that point blank. But the money isn't gone, it's borrowed. It's not "worth zero," as Johnson claims, unless dumb Americans can be lead by dumber Americans like Johnson.



Talking point Tips: To make it easy...here goes.

Republicans refuse to pay down their debt after spending like drunken sailors.

Republicans refuse to pay back the money they BORROWED from the Social Security Trust Fund.

Republicans are stealing from our kids Social Security and Medicare funding by reducing their benefits so they can reduce taxes today. 

Dumb Ron Johnson plays the old "Let's Blame Obama for Slow Economic Growth" game.

Thanks to the Paul Ryan House, and the Senate GOP filibuster's, U.S. economic growth has been slowed enough to start blaming Obama for his "spending failure." Well, he couldn't spend.

Again, the slow recovery is Obama's fault, not the senate filibuster or the actual body of government that won't spend, and controls the purse strings, the House.

Dumb Ron Johnson tried to make that point with the chart below. If Republicans hadn't obstructed stimulus spending with filibusters, there's a good chance liberal Keynesian economic policies would have succeeded, proving supply side a failure. And the GOP couldn't take that chance. That's why dummy is out trying to reinforce the idea that Obama's to blame:

Wishful thinking makes voter fraud a reality. They got caught, even without Voter ID.

Republicans love telling people how easy it is to commit voter fraud, except...it really isn't, and you will get caught. All bad results and all without voter ID.

I’m amazed at the balls a few people had trying to vote more than once. You can’t tell me Republicans didn't have any idea people would try to game the system, after telling them how many different ways they could vote more than once? Nice try, but we got em. Some of the cases are actually do to ELECTION FRAUD, a few unintentional, and some from shear stupidity:

jsonline: Milwaukee County prosecutors Thursday filed voter fraud charges against 10 people, including two accused of double voting in 2012 elections and two felons ineligible to vote.

A Milwaukee woman who is accused of signing a recall petition against Republican Gov. Scott Walker three times; and the petition circulator who collected those signatures.

Chad Gigowski, 27, is charged with voting in the November election in Greenfield and in Milwaukee, providing false information to a Greenfield election official and registering in more than one place … he told investigators he and a friend tried voting in at least two other spots before casting a vote in Greenfield. But records show he cast ballots in each city, according to the complaint. Gigowski faces up to 10 ½ years in prison and $30,000 in fines.

Brittany M. Rainey, 23, was charged with lying about her past as a felon to vote in last November's elections.

Caitlin B. Haycock, 24, is charged with a misdemeanor for signing her name and both her parents' names to a Walker recall petition on Nov 15, 2011. Haycock's parents, Virginia Hirsch and Mitch Haycock, separately signed Walker recall petitions on their own, the complaint said.

In another case linked to the Walker recall, Deborah Mehling is charged with a civil violation for signing a petition sheet as circulator even though her daughter had collected one of the signatures. Mehling faces a fine of up to $200.

Brian Uecker lived in Greenfield but in November voted in a ward in that city where he once resided but no longer lived.

Fozia Nawaz of Milwaukee voted in November in Greenfield, telling investigators she did so because it was easier.

Looks like Fat Cat Republicans in Waukesha County are Unhealthy.

Perhaps we'll see a thinning of the conservative herd. Those fat elitists in Waukesha, the same ones who like to turned their noses up at the hard working rabble in Milwaukee and Dane County, may just be killing themselves off from their own opulence. If Scott Walker stays in power, they’ll be dropping like flies in just a few years.

There’s a price for being an envious white collar Republican:

Waukesha Patch: Waukesha County fell from seventh to 13th among Wisconsin counties this year in the fourth annual County Health Rankings, published by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

An area where Waukesha County has consistently slid is in morbidity (The quality of being unhealthful). The county was 13th overall in 2011, 22nd last year and 32nd in 2013. Notable changes in individual morbidity measurements from 2010 to 2013 include:

Percent of babies with low birthweight, up from 5.9 percent to 6.4 percent

Adults reporting fair or poor health, up from 9 percent to 10 percent

 It’s not like the wealthy elite don’t have great health care nearby:

The county was ranked No. 2 for clinical care and No. 3 in social and economic factors.

It was the second consecutive year the county fell backward. It was ranked fourth in the first two years of the survey, dropped to seventh in 2012 and now is down to 13th, among 72 Wisconsin counties.

The study ranked each county by data in the following areas: Morbidity, Mortality, Health Behaviors, Clinical Care, Social and Economic Factors, Physical Environment.

Wisconsin company headquarters lured to Minnesota with Corporate Welfare.

I doubt I would have been given so many incentives to live in my fair city when I was house hunting. Maybe I should have tried.

It pays off well for business, and not a peep out of tightwad conservatives so worried about people getting something for nothing. But that’s what corporate handouts are, freebees. Oh sure, they may create jobs, but why the freebees? They would have created the jobs anyway.

Where was Scott Walker? Take a look at this outrageous giveaway: 

Hudson Patch: Minnesota persuaded Valley Cartage to move their headquarters across the river with a $940,000 economic development package that includes a tax abatement, a sizable forgivable loan, job-training funds and energy credits. The package also includes $500,000 from the Minnesota Investment Fund and $400,000 from the state’s Job Skills Partnership as incentive to move. The deal means about 50 new jobs in Minnesota—paying an average salary of $52,000—and creating a $30 million impact on the economy.