The Scott Walker Way: Getting Your Public Dollars Into Private, Corporate Hands

Set aside speculation about the Koch brothers getting Wisconsin power plants at a discount as the model for Walker's privatization strategy - - take a look right now at his plans to use government power to transfer public dollars to various private interests who supported his campaign for Governor:

* Walker wants to put food stamp eligibility into private hands, siphoning off some of the dollars to the vendor's profit-driven bottom-line. This is what is called "running government like a business."

*  Local public transit systems run by Wisconsin cities, under Walker's proposed budget, are to be denied dedicated funding, while a new, all-purpose (sic) transportation fund directs more millions and billions to Walker-favored highways - - and to road-building executives who support him politically.

* School systems like Milwaukee's are seeing sharp reductions in support, due, in part, to cuts in state education dollars while more money is shifted to private, choice schools.

School choice was begun to offer low-income - - and generally minority - - parents educational options already available to middle-class families; now Walker wants to make the program available to middle-class/suburban parents, and to private schools in the choice system.

Who loses?

MPS, the children who remain and taxpayers who support the system, as every child who opts into the choice program takes along about $6,000 in state aid.

Walker is just as much a Big Government devotee as were his predecessors. Only the spending priority is different - - along with his candor about the budget and his political goals.