Progressive Thinking

MADISON - I refuse to be gloomy!

Yeah, I know, we took a big hit on the GAB bill and the campaign finance bill. But I’m hopeful that things will turn around.

And one of the reasons I’m hopeful is that there is tremendous pro-democracy work going on around this state. For example, at the very time that the State Assembly was rubber-stamping these horrendous bills, I was at an inspiring conference in Milwaukee, where 150 pro-democracy and issue activists came together to chart a promising way forward. I write about it here:

Dark day in Madison, sunny dawn in Milwaukee

While I was in Milwaukee, our research director, Mike Buelow, was looking into a recent court decision that will handcuff the ability of the DNR to regulate high-capacity wells, which are siphoning off our water to factory farms. There’s one big factory farm that may benefit the most, as Mike reported here:

Milk Source, a big Walker donor, wins in judge's ruling on wells

Mike Buelow also uncovered all the money that employees of Johnson Controls have been giving Scott Walker, who doled out WEDC loans of almost $2.5 million to the company, which is now laying off workers:

Love triangle:  Johnson Controls, Walker contributions, and WEDC

By the way, I’m going back to Milwaukee tomorrow night to talk about “The Assault on Democracy in Wisconsin, and How We Can Fight Back.” So please come see me if you can.

Here are the details: I’ll be speaking at ATU Hall (Amalgamated Transit Union), 734 N. 26^th St, at 7:00 p.m. this Thursday night, Nov. 19.

And please tell your Milwaukee friends about it, too. It should be fun, and I promise to be hopeful.

A report published by the Wisconsin Taxpayers Alliance (WISTAX) tracks statistics reflecting the economy, education and quality of life in Wisconsin. It's not rocket science, there's a lot of room for improvement.

MADISON - “My son’s grades improved at report card time,” Mari told me. Her son struggled in school for many years. “We had a great teacher conference. He got mostly Bs and Cs – which was an improvement.”

Wisconsin recently got its own report card. Our state also got mostly Bs and Cs. Although in several cases, these scores represent benchmarks that are not improving.

The report published by the Wisconsin Taxpayers Alliance (WISTAX) tracks statistics reflecting the economy, education and quality of life in Wisconsin.

Our focus on education has historically been a great strength of our state. The report card reviewed education through “workforce readiness” and assigned Bs for all benchmarks measured – the only category to receive this consistent high mark.

More students graduate from high school in Wisconsin than any other Midwest state but Iowa. On national tests (NAEP), our students score better in math than every surrounding state but Minnesota. Wisconsin’s average ACT score beat every surrounding state but Minnesota.

Although Wisconsin’s K-12 students perform better than the national average, we lag the US average, and Minnesota and Illinois, in the number of people over age 25 with a bachelor’s degree. We need more people with a college degree.

Higher education improves income. Wisconsin also has an income problem.

The report card gave a D+ to Wisconsin’s average earnings. Wisconsin’s average earnings have been at least 10% behind the US average in 26 of 32 years between 1983 and 2014. We also lag the US per capita income. All neighboring states have higher per capita income.

Wisconsin also has a job growth problem. WISTAX reports a meager 1% growth per year since 2011. The five-year job growth is less than the national average and any surrounding state.

Traditionally, Wisconsin’s unemployment rate tracks about two percentage points below the national rate. Over the past few years that gap has narrowed. The recent Bureau of Labor Statistics September numbers showed Wisconsin’s unemployment rate less than a percentage point below the US average. Less people are filing for unemployment but job growth is anemic.

Measures of quality of life in the WISTAX report card include those without health insurance, safety as measured by violent crime and poverty.

Wisconsin has traditionally led the Midwest in those covered with insurance. Recently, Minnesota and Iowa edged out Wisconsin in health insurance coverage. The 2015 report card pegged the number of those uninsured at a hair over 9% of Wisconsinites.

The violent crime rate in Wisconsin has generally been steady over the past twenty years. Although our neighbor to the west, Minnesota, has both a historically lower rate and more success in sending that low rate even lower.

Fewer Wisconsinites own homes in 2014 than in even 2013. The roughly two-thirds of Wisconsin residents that own homes is better than the national average but lower than every surrounding state except Illinois.

Poverty has been rising in Wisconsin over the past fifteen years. WISTAX used the federal definition of poverty. For example, in 2014 a family of four with an annual income of $23,850 was at the poverty threshold. About 11% of Wisconsin residents earned less than the poverty threshold in 2013. As a percent of the population, Wisconsin has more residents below the poverty threshold than Minnesota and Iowa but fewer than Illinois or Michigan.

The report card covered several other measures but space limits us.

The WISTAX study isn’t nearly as easy to read or understand progress as your child or grandchild’s report card. The measures have changed over the years and letter grades have replaced an earlier “pass/fail” or “plus/minus” system.

Other factors make historical comparisons difficult. For example, when all students take the ACT college entrance exam, Wisconsin’s numbers are sure to drop.

Value can be achieved, however, in pausing to compare. Using benchmarks – both historical and across states – help us reflect on our progress and our continued challenges.

There is a lot of room for improvement in Wisconsin’s report card. Jobs, increasing wages and the number of college graduates are all on the list of challenges.

MADISON - It happened late Friday night.

I was almost all alone in the Wisconsin Senate Gallery. A cop was there, and a page, and occasionally one other person. That was it.

We were the only witnesses, other than the media, to the mugging of democracy that was happening right below us, on the Senate floor.

The Republican senators, with the notable exception of Sen. Rob Cowles, managed to make a horrible campaign finance bill more horrible, and then all of them smashed the Government Accountability Board to bits.

You can read my account here:

The mugging of democracy in Wisconsin

We recently unveiled our “Influence Peddler of the Month.” For November, it’s none other than Americans for Prosperity, which was founded by the Koch Brothers. You can see how that group throws its weight around in Wisconsin by clicking here:

Influence peddler of the month - Americans for Prosperity

And if you’ve got any spare time, please come hear me speak over the next few days about “The Assault on Democracy in Wisconsin, and How to Get Money Out of Politics.” This is where I’ll be:

• Nov. 10: Green Bay, 11:30 a.m., The Village Grille, 801 Hoffman Rd.
• Nov. 11: River Falls at 7:00 p.m. at the public library
• Nov. 12: New Richmond, 7:00 p.m., at Ready Randy’s, 1490 131^st St.
• Nov. 19: Milwaukee, 7:00 p.m., 734 N. 26^th St.

If you know anyone who also might be interested, please share these details with them.

MADISON - Wisconsin was once a state that protected and prioritized its workers.

Under Walker’s Wisconsin we are seeing stagnant wages, a shrinking middle class, and businesses fleeing our state. What’s more, we are one of the bottom 15 states in the nation that have a minimum wage at the federal minimum. Hardworking Wisconsinites are the economic engine for successful local businesses and vibrant communities. The Fight for 15 is the frontline battle for economic justice of our day.

Wisconsin families should not have to choose between paying for housing, putting food on their table, or caring for their family. No one should be working a 40-hour week and still be living in poverty.

For these reasons, I am a co-sponsor of Assembly Bill 264, which would raise our state’s minimum wage to a livable wage of $15. Making sure our Wisconsin neighbors earn a fair day’s pay for an honest day’s work is a win-win for our state as it strengthens our local economy and businesses. My Democratic colleagues and I are committed to working towards a future that invests in our neighbors and creates family-supporting opportunities in our local communities.

Today, I again call on Governor Walker and legislative Republicans to raise the minimum wage in order to support building an economy that works for all of us, not just corporate interests and wealthiest 1%.

It is time to put an end to backroom favors for big dollar donors and special interests and return to our state’s traditional values of prioritizing and rewarding our real profit creators: Wisconsin workers.

Speed and secrecy was the game plan Friday night in Madison as the Senate debated two bills that made significant changes to campaign finance laws and the election and ethics watchdog agency. The bills that finally passed in the wee hours of Saturday morning open the spigot for campaign money and rendered the watchdog toothless and blind.

MADISON - It was Friday night at 5:00 pm.

Most people were leaving work and looking forward to the weekend. Maybe they headed to see friends and family at the fish fry or watch the prep football playoffs.

At that same hour, Senators received details on two very important bills. Legislation that rewrote laws related to elections, campaign finance, lobbying and the ethics of elected officials.

Leaders kept details about changes to the bills secret until the last minute. Details we had not seen; the press had not read; no member of the public had an opportunity to provide comment.

By 7:00 pm, the Senate debate on the two bills began. Final Senate passage happened before the sun came up on Saturday morning. Most Wisconsinites did not hear the debate or see the vote. No TV news cameras observed the Senate. Most reporters had gone home. Senate galleries were mostly empty.

Few realized what happened and Senate Republican leaders wanted it that way.

GOP leaders called an “Extraordinary Session”: extraordinary because the regular fall floor period for final passage of legislation expired the day before.

Senators waited in Madison all week for details of which bills would be up for a vote and how those bills might be amended – changed – before the Senate vote. But, those details didn’t emerge until the sun went down, most of the press had gone home and Wisconsinites were enjoying the start to their week-end.

Big changes were on the way to campaigns and elections. Changes most people would not like – nastier, untruthful campaign ads, shadowy out-of-state groups buying more ads, and less sunlight on campaign donations. A newly created partisan, gridlocked commission would oversee ethics, lobbying and elections. More opportunity for secret deals in the dark.

Democracy needs sunshine. Wisconsin campaign laws should shine light on who donated to whom, when, how much and where that person worked. Groups that want to influence your vote should be required to say where they got their money and how they spent it. Elections must be fair and lobbying transparent.

Laws passed after dark keep voters in the dark. Legislation moving at warp-speed usually means something bad. Friday night in Madison there was certainly enough confusion among Senators about what the bills did and didn’t do which served as a warning that we didn’t know all the answers.

But, slowing things down to get answers and represent voters was not something on the mind of GOP leaders.

It was almost 11:30 pm.

“I didn’t hear a single word about what we’re going to do to help a voter cast a more informed vote,” said Senator Janet Bewley. “But, instead, they [voters] are going to be buffeted by a fire hose of bad information; too many campaign ads, mail, phone calls… This is madness. And it has nothing to do with voters.”

It was now after midnight. The Senate had only begun debating the dismantling of the Government Accountability Board (GAB) – the nonpartisan judges that oversee elections, campaign finance, lobbying and ethics.

Most of the press had gone home. All who remained was a political news service and a single reporter from the local college newspaper.

Supporters of the bill provided no hard evidence to justify dismantling nonpartisan oversight of elections, campaigns and ethics.

Exasperated, the longest serving state legislator in the United States, Senator Fred Risser stood up. He asked the bill’s author, “You just don’t like this agency?”

It was now almost 2:00 AM Saturday morning.

Senator Mark Miller implored the bill’s author. “GAB rose out of the ashes of one of the greatest political scandals our state has faced; created in an equally bipartisan bill. But this bill was created in the dark, brought forth at the last minute. How can we be sure this legislation has the interest of the public at heart?”

When you do not want the world to pay attention to legislation that is not in the public’s best interest, you pass it in the wee hours of Saturday morning.

Speed and secrecy: that was the game plan Friday night in Madison.