Jobs

Walker-Appointed WEDC Chief DEFENDS Giving Tax Breaks To Outsourcers

Wow. When it was first uncovered that Scott Walker's WEDC was giving massive tax credits to companies that ship jobs…

Scott Walker's WEDC Nightmare Continues

Scott Walker hasn't seen a good headline in a loooong time. Last week was no exception. Walker has been getting hammered by the media after a WKOW investigation revealed that Walker's economic development agency, WEDC, has given tax credits to companies that ship jobs overseas. Moreover, the companies at the heart of the controversy, and their board members, have donated significant money to the Walker campaign. The outsourcing debacle has been covered by ABC, NBC and CBS affiliates across Wisconsin, from Madison and Green Bay to LaCrosse and Wausau, and an AP story has been picked up across the country. Scott Walker is having all sorts of trouble bringing new jobs to Wisconsin. But he's pretty good at shipping them away.

Scott Walker, Where Are The Jobs? (They're In Other States)

Scott Walker isn't just failing to fulfill his own job creation promise--he's failing to keep up with surrounding states. A new report shows that Wisconsin has created about 45,000 fewer jobs than would have been expected if the state kept up with historical trends. Moreover, the analysis shows that by December of 2010, towards the end of the Doyle administration, Wisconsin had regained a higher percentage of jobs lost in the recession than any other state included in the study. But by September of 2013, after three years under Gov. Walker and his hyper-conservative policies, Wisconsin had recovered a fewer percentage of its jobs than Minnesota, Michigan, Iowa and Indiana. The state's job gap doubled in Walker's first year, and increased again in his second year. This report is more than just a confirmation that Scott Walker's agenda has been bad for Wisconsin. It's a real-world indictment of the very policies that the Republican Party constantly champions. We've been told time and time again that if only we slashed taxes and shrank government, the free market would bring prosperity to all. But this austere path has only stifled once-booming job growth in Wisconsin, and the state is set to spend $559 million more than it takes in next year. Walker's conservatism has long been the toast of the GOP. Chris Christie praised his reforms for making Wisconsin "a better place to live and work." Grover Norquist declared that "his success in Wisconsin will change America." And AFP president, Tim Phillips lauded his agenda as "the new model for the country." Well, the results are in. The model has failed. And America is not soon to follow in Walker's footsteps.

Wisconsin's Economy Is Struggling Under Gov. Walker, But AFP Has $866K To Tell You Otherwise

Scott Walker has long-been considered a darling of the Tea Party movement and a contender for the 2016 Republican nomination for president. But these days, things aren't going so well for Walker, who has been tainted by scandals, and new polling shows him tied with Democratic contender Mary Burke in his reelection bid. Cue Walker's allies, the Koch-funded group Americans for Prosperity. AFP has already poured $10 million into supporting Walker's extreme agenda in Wisconsin, just announced that they are spending nearly $900,000 on a new ad to help the embattled governor. The ad, which champions Walker's budget reform, is called "It's Working!" Only there's one problem: It isn't! The speakers in the ad praise Walker for his "bold leadership" on budget reform, "keeping education dollars in the classroom," and the fact that "Wisconsin's getting back to work, too." But just last week, it was reported that Wisconsin is set to spend $559 million more than it takes in next year, and job growth in the state continues languish in the bottom third, nationally. Scott Walker ran for governor promising to create 250,000 jobs by the end of his first term, but PolitiFact Wisconsin now says the current job growth pace "is not nearly enough to meet the goal." And on top of all that, he implemented the biggest education cuts in Wisconsin history. Yet another misleading ad from AFP, another poor economic record from a high-profile Republican governor (see Christie, Chris).

TPM: "GA GOPers Meet Unemployment Debate Question With Awkward Pause (VIDEO)"

Via TPM:

When a moderator for a recent Georgia Republican primary debate asked candidates by a show of hands whether they would vote to extend benefits for the thousands of American workers who have been stuck with long-term unemployment, the question was met with an awkward pause. At the Mayor's Day Senate Forum in Atlanta earlier in the week, none of the six candidates raised their hands in favor of extending benefits, but when the opposite question was asked -- who would vote against such a proposal -- all six candidates raised their hands. Rep. Paul Broun's (R-GA) arm shot up the fastest. The candidates' reaction could indicate that the extension of unemployment benefits could become an issue in Republican primaries.

Rick Scott's 2014 Budget: A Textbook Case Of Election Year Pandering

As Governor Rick Scott delivers his 2014-2015 budget address, Floridians would do well to see Scott’s budget for what it is: A textbook case of election year pandering. While Scott’s budget plans included hundreds of millions of dollars in vague tax breaks for special interests and dramatic cuts to various revenue sources, the Tea Party governor has also discovered an election year infatuation with spending on Everglades reconstruction, child welfare, and teacher pay raises. Scott’s predilection for election year pandering is nothing new, but the extent of it in his latest budget proposal is staggering. Scott Has A History Of Election Year Pandering (VIDEO). According to a news segment highlighting clips of Governor Rick Scott, Scott has a history of election-year pandering. In the clip, a FOX reporter states of Scott: “He’s the Tea Party Republican who slashed school funding then raised it as he prepared for re-election, after he tied teacher pay to performance, before giving out raises regardless of performance.”

BRIDGE BRIEFING: Romney’s Poor Jobs Record In Massachusetts

Massachusetts Job Creation Ranked Poorly Under Romney

In Romney’s Four Years As Governor Massachusetts Ranked 47^th Out Of 50 In Jobs Growth. According to Marketwatch, “The Republican contender was the governor of Massachusetts from January 2003 to January 2007. And during that time, according to the U.S. Labor Department, the state ranked 47th in the entire country in jobs growth. Fourth from last. The only ones that did worse? Ohio, Michigan and Louisiana. In other words, two rustbelt states and another that lost its biggest city to a hurricane. The Massachusetts jobs growth over that period, a pitiful 0.9%, badly lagged other high-skill, high-wage, knowledge economy states like New York (2.7%), California (4.7%) and North Carolina (7.6%). The national average: More than 5%.” [Marketwatch, 2/23/10]

In Romney’s First Year In Charge, Massachusetts “Ranked Dead Last In America In Job Growth.” According to Marketwatch, “So far Obama has been in office for just one year. How was Romney’s performance by his first anniversary? Fiftieth out of fifty. That’s right. In Romney’s first year in charge, Massachusetts ranked dead last in America in jobs growth.” [Marketwatch, 2/23/10]

Massachusetts Unemployment Rate “Showed Little Movement During Romney’s Tenure” And Went From Below The National Average When He Took Office To Above The National Average When He Left. According to the Associated Press, “The state’s unemployment numbers also showed little movement during Romney’s tenure. In December 2002, as Romney prepared to step into office, Massachusetts unemployment rate stood at 5.6 percent, slightly lower than the national unemployment rate of 6 percent. By December 2006 - Romney’s last full month in office - national unemployment had fallen to just 4.5 percent while Massachusetts unemployment numbers had inched down to 5.2 percent. ‘We’ve had a very slow economic recovery and we’ve trailed most of the rest of the nation,’ said Michael Widmer, president of the business-backed Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation. ‘It’s not the turnaround he’s advertised.’” [Associated Press, 2/4/08]

BRIDGE BRIEFING: Romney And The Auto Rescue

Romney Opposed Government Involvement In The Auto Industry

Romney Wanted To “Let Detroit Go Bankrupt” And Said The Demise Of The Auto Industry Would Be “Virtually Guaranteed” By A Government Bailout. According to Romney, “If General Motors, Ford and Chrysler get the bailout that their chief executives asked for yesterday, you can kiss the American automotive industry goodbye. It won’t go overnight, but its demise will be virtually guaranteed. Without that bailout, Detroit will need to drastically restructure itself. With it, the automakers will stay the course — the suicidal course of declining market shares, insurmountable labor and retiree burdens, technology atrophy, product inferiority and never-ending job losses. Detroit needs a turnaround, not a check.” [Romney Op-Ed, New York Times, 11/19/08] Romney Opposed The Bailout Of The Domestic Auto Industry. According to the Detroit News, “On the federal ‘bailout’ in 2008 of the domestic auto industry, Romney writes he opposed the billions provided ‘because it enabled GM and Chrysler to avoid the restructuring and productivity improvements essential for their success.’ The federal government has provided the auto industry with $86 billion, including $50 billion for GM and $12 billion for Chrysler. Romney urged a managed bankruptcy, a step the Obama administration eventually took to help stabilize GM and Chrysler Group LLC. ‘The managed bankruptcy that I proposed ultimately occurred,’ Romney writes, ‘but only after tens of billions of taxpayer money had been wasted, and only after sweetheart deals and paybacks for favored interest groups had been engineered with the public’s money.’” [Detroit News, 2/24/10] Romney Believed Automakers Should Have Had Private Bankruptcy Without Federal Aid. According to the Associated Press, “Romney told a diner at the Senate Coney Island restaurant Thursday morning that the automakers should have gone through a private bankruptcy without the federal aid. The businessman and former Massachusetts governor says he believes ‘in the process of law’ rather than bailouts.” [Fox News, Associated Press, 6/9/11] Romney Believed Things In Detroit Would Be Better Without Intervention.  According to a Detroit News op-ed, Romney wrote “The president tells us that without his intervention things in Detroit would be worse. I believe that without his intervention things there would be better.” [Detroit News, 2/14/12]

Richard Mourdock Can’t Seem To Make Up His Mind On Indiana Jobs.

We are all well aware of Richard Mourdock’s attempt to cripple the Indiana economy and destroy thousands of jobs by suing to block federal assistance to Chrysler. But when campaigning in South Bend, he seems to have suddenly turned over a new leaf. He is now bemoaning the loss of 24,000 jobs and $1.1 billion dollars that would happen as a result of the sequester cuts of defense spending. Mourdock’s apparently forgotten that he claimed government doesn’t create jobs. And he thinks entire branches of the military should be eliminated. And he doesn’t consider it his job to protect Hoosier jobs. So does Richard Mourdock care more about protecting government jobs or dramatically slashing the federal budget? Or is he really most interested in saying whatever it takes to get elected? Mourdock Backed Away From Sequester Cuts To Pentagon Citing Job Loss. According to the South Bend Tribune, “When the congressional "supercommittee" failed last fall to agree on a plan to reduce the federal deficit by $1.2 trillion over 10 years, it set in motion a default plan for cutting spending. The plan calls for $1.2 trillion in across-the-board cuts, including $600 billion from defense programs, that will start taking effect Jan. 2. Richard Mourdock, the Republican state treasurer running for one of Indiana's seats in the U.S. Senate, believes government needs to be smaller and less expensive. But, during a campaign stop earlier this week in Mishawaka, he warned against allowing the default plan to take effect… Mourdock said the defense cuts would lead to the loss of nearly 24,000 jobs in Indiana and a $1.1 billion hit to the state's economy. He mentioned that companies such as AM General and Honeywell would be affected in the South Bend area.” In addition, “Mourdock said there might be reasonable spending cuts to make in the Department of Defense, but the default reduction of $600 billion would be disastrous.” [South Bend Tribune, 7/25/12]  Mourdock Said Government Doesn’t Create Jobs. Mourdock said, “Congress doesn't create any jobs. There are a bunch of private sector companies who want to create those jobs. The fact that we have congressmen of either party claiming they created jobs is just false. There job should be to keep government at its more limited purpose so the private sector can create jobs.” [AB 21 Tracking Footage, 2/15/12] Mourdock Asserted That “I Didn’t Take A Pledge That I Would Support Every Job In Indiana,” Had No Regrets About Position. “‘I didn't take a pledge that I would support every job in Indiana under whatever means it takes to do it,’ Mourdock said. ‘The oath I took said I would support the laws of Indiana and support the Constitution of the United States. Constitutional rights for people for which I had a fiduciary responsibility were being violated, and I had no choice to do what I did. I certainly have no regrets.’” [Indianapolis Star, 10/19/10] Mourdock Question The Necessity Of All The Branches Of The Armed Services. According to the National Review, “‘here’s always going to be a lot of duplication,’ Mourdock said. ‘We look today at the historical setup of Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard. There’s a lot of duplication and bureaucracy right there. In the 21st century is that necessary? I’m not sure that it is.’” [National Review, 4/30/12]

MOTHER'S DAY MEMO: Romney's Record On Issues Important To Women And Families

As families across the country celebrate Mother’s Day and honor the women in their life, it is also a good opportunity to reflect on the policies that allow women to pursue equal pay for equal work, protect women and families from violence, and help to prevent serious illnesses. Unfortunately for women and their families, Mitt Romney has consistently advocated against these policies. With the Republican Party consistently advocating an anti-women agenda, they have found the perfect standard bearer in Mitt Romney.