Because politics remains local, Wisconsin Democrats should remind each voter that:
* Their streets' potholes ("Scottholes")
will remain unrepaired, and problems with larger roads and bridges will go unaddressed as long as Foxconn drains away the dollars by the tens of millions.
$90 million in state funds were shifted in February statewide by Walker to Foxconn-related road work, and the state received another $160 million in federal funds this summer which it immediately allocated to I-94 expansion near Foxconn.
Where is your communities' share of those 250 million transportation dollars - - and of the $3+ billion in state taxpayer subsidies earmarked for Foxconn?
In what local road, transit, school, park, health care facility or business development would you have wanted your local share of these earmarks be invested other than in Foxconn's sprawling dream?
And did you know that the statewide transportation imbalance towards spending billions on Interstate highway expansion in Southeastern Wisconsin is traceable to a plan to add even more lanes than local officials, regional planners and the department of transportation had endorsed - - but which Walker led the fight to fully build, without the money in hand?
* Their drinking water and waterways statewide will remain contaminated as long as Walker and the Legislature give large-scale animal feeding operations a regulatory and enforcement pass and enable other big businesses to dump fertilizer and phosphorous
The number of so-called 'impaired waterways' has doubled during Walker's tenure. There is a searchable data base listing these waters.
Do you have one or more of these polluted waterways in your area? Is your favorite trout stream among them?
Do you think that when big dairy interests met privately with Walker to pitch moving CAFO inspections and enforcement of pollution rules to the more promotional state ag department that their goal was to make your drinking water cleaner or your boating experiences more pleasurable?
Who represented you in that meeting? And in the many other meetings where these agendas were tilted to industry or donors, not to your interests or those of your neighbors.
* Flooding and water quality in their community or back yard will worsen as more wetlands are filled. Walker has been authorizing wetland-filling since his first day in office.
Do you have a flooded basement? Has your car floated away? Are your property taxes going to go up as municipalities face unprecedented infrastructure repair bills?
Is your legislator a climate change denier? Has he or she backed Walker's removal of climate change information from the DNR's website, and scientists from the DNR staff?
Do you have more respect for science than Walker does?
* Health care in Wisconsin will remain unreliable or unaffordable as long as Walker supports a lawsuit aimed at overturning the Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare.
Do you want more than Walker's promise that he will somehow pay for your pre-existing medical coverage while he's also backing the lawsuit he had our Attorney General join to overturn Obamacare?
Do you want a Governor who won't talk out of both sides of his mouth about it?
Are you going to vote with these types of questions in mind?
Are Democrats going to ask and answer them in a way that make sense to you?
* Their streets' potholes ("Scottholes")
will remain unrepaired, and problems with larger roads and bridges will go unaddressed as long as Foxconn drains away the dollars by the tens of millions.
$90 million in state funds were shifted in February statewide by Walker to Foxconn-related road work, and the state received another $160 million in federal funds this summer which it immediately allocated to I-94 expansion near Foxconn.
Where is your communities' share of those 250 million transportation dollars - - and of the $3+ billion in state taxpayer subsidies earmarked for Foxconn?
In what local road, transit, school, park, health care facility or business development would you have wanted your local share of these earmarks be invested other than in Foxconn's sprawling dream?
And did you know that the statewide transportation imbalance towards spending billions on Interstate highway expansion in Southeastern Wisconsin is traceable to a plan to add even more lanes than local officials, regional planners and the department of transportation had endorsed - - but which Walker led the fight to fully build, without the money in hand?
* Their drinking water and waterways statewide will remain contaminated as long as Walker and the Legislature give large-scale animal feeding operations a regulatory and enforcement pass and enable other big businesses to dump fertilizer and phosphorous
The number of so-called 'impaired waterways' has doubled during Walker's tenure. There is a searchable data base listing these waters.
Do you have one or more of these polluted waterways in your area? Is your favorite trout stream among them?
Do you think that when big dairy interests met privately with Walker to pitch moving CAFO inspections and enforcement of pollution rules to the more promotional state ag department that their goal was to make your drinking water cleaner or your boating experiences more pleasurable?
Who represented you in that meeting? And in the many other meetings where these agendas were tilted to industry or donors, not to your interests or those of your neighbors.
* Flooding and water quality in their community or back yard will worsen as more wetlands are filled. Walker has been authorizing wetland-filling since his first day in office.
Do you have a flooded basement? Has your car floated away? Are your property taxes going to go up as municipalities face unprecedented infrastructure repair bills?
Is your legislator a climate change denier? Has he or she backed Walker's removal of climate change information from the DNR's website, and scientists from the DNR staff?
Do you have more respect for science than Walker does?
* Health care in Wisconsin will remain unreliable or unaffordable as long as Walker supports a lawsuit aimed at overturning the Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare.
Do you want more than Walker's promise that he will somehow pay for your pre-existing medical coverage while he's also backing the lawsuit he had our Attorney General join to overturn Obamacare?
Do you want a Governor who won't talk out of both sides of his mouth about it?
Are you going to vote with these types of questions in mind?
Are Democrats going to ask and answer them in a way that make sense to you?
Forget my earlier comment. I thought you were writing 18 WI Dems' campaigns. I wondered why 18 when there were 17 State Senate seats up. But you meant 2018! Great article.
ReplyDeleteNo problem. Keeping headlines short is an art, and I am no artist.
ReplyDeleteGood post - factual and clearly states why people should get out and vote for change. Beating Walker in 2018 will be something to celebrate. The polls show it can happen, but its not a done deal and there's work to do.
ReplyDeleteAnd it begins by taking nothing for granted and telling stories like this. Hopefully, we will continue to see Walker's support decline, but moving people to take action means much more than what anyone tells pollsters.