The newly-minted 2013-'15 Wisconsin state budget allows Governor Walker to sell any state asset or property.
There are some purported safeguards - - approvals after the deals
have been cut by the Joint Committee on Finance and the State Building
Commission, both of which are controlled by the GOP and Walker (he
chairs the Building Commission) - - and some sort of competitive and
disclosure process that hasn't been written, let alone tested for
credibility, restraints on insiders' access, and so forth.
The powers that be keep saying don't worry, we won't sell off the
State Capitol, UW dorms won't suddenly become privately-owned apartment
buildings with overnight rent increases and highways won't become instant
toll roads.
But what a temptation for big donors who paid for Walker's recall win
and legal defense fund and who have always thought that a particular
piece of state forest would look better with a gated subdivision.
State office buildings could be leased or sold. Up go the corporate logos, in comes the paid parking.
DMV stations can house tire outlets; why not put a Walgreen or CVS or
a donut shop inside the lobby of the state health department.
Walker gets to decide - - putting real retail into retail politics -
- with checks and balances [Sic] resting in partisan bodies he controls.
Cross-posted at Purple Wisconsin.
I would suggest buying the Governorship, but we could never outbid the Kochs.
ReplyDeleteThat's how we got in this sh*thole in the first place. Walker is bought and paid for now the deep pockets want their pockets refilled.
ReplyDelete"I would suggest buying the Governorship, but we could never outbid the Kochs."
ReplyDeleteI agree. Prior to the implementation of Act 10 it was easy to buy Doyle off. Automatic union dues deductions gave us financial clout. Now we'll be forced to do bake sales to generate revenue.
Wait until Glen Grothmann uncovers how much we overpay in social programs compared to our neighboring states. Reduce those benefits and we're sunk.