Make the (Disfavored) Economies Scream

The 9/11, 1973 CIA-engineered coup (killing 1,000s) of Chilean President Salvador Allende rivals the vile attack of our 9/11.

One mentions the date because preceding Allende is the infamous determination of Pres. Richard Nixon to "make the [Chilean] economy scream," after Allende's 1970 election. (Goodman, Democracy Now) (Parry, ConsortiumNews)

Nixon's determination that countries are enemies is hardly unique in American international relations, millions were killed in the Southeast Asia invasions in the decade before the 1973 coup.

Nor is Nixon's decision to injure and brand domestically the popular Civil Rights and Peace Movements as terrorists and enemies unique. (Chomsky, Domestic Terrorism: Notes on the State System of Oppression)

COINTELPRO, McCarthyism, Jim Crow laws, Attorney General Mitchell Palmer's Raids, and the many massacres of pioneering American labor activists, for example, demonstrate the 20th century as often rivaling a third-world dictator in U.S. governmental regard for civil and human rights.

The Supreme Court protected many citizens groups in the 1960s and 70s, though many were terrorized.

See, for example, this opinion of the 1972 Supreme Court case that turned back Nixon and Rehnquist's attempt to unilaterally authorize electronic surveillance in internal security matters without prior judicial approval—United States v. United States District Court (No. 70-153).

Scott Walker

I mention this fleeting history of oppression in light of Scott Walker who has made public his disdain for those who don't vote or support him, and his equally fervent contempt for democracy.

Walker has demonstrated no understanding of the precepts of classical liberalism or social contract theory underpinning modern western democracies, and no will to learn.

Walker regards whole regions of the state as enemy territory, even infamously comparing the 100,000s of families assembling at the state capitol to register opposition to Walker's surprise policy "bomb" dropped by Walker as ISIS, revealing a mindset that ought disqualify this small-minded, incurious little man from any consideration for the presidency.

Said Walker, "We need a leader with that kind of confidence.  If I can take on 100,000 protesters, I can do the same across the world." (Strauss, Washington Post)

A governor, and certainly not a president, does not "take on" those citizens who disagree with secretly-made policy by economic royalists feeding dark money into the polity; and disagreeing with civil rights and working family activists does not qualify one as commander-in-chief.

I mention this because decent people should consider what the power of all three branches of government in Wisconsin in GOP hands has brought to Wisconsin: Disaster and lies.

An effort to displace the world-class University System (pursued for years) is but one of many billionaire-ordered, radical injury by policy in Wisconsin.

Wisconsin ought to keep an eye on an apparent strike at the state capital city, proposed by Walker and Republicans in retaliation for voting against Walker. (DeFour, Wisconsin State Journal)

Dane County and Madison lead the state in private sector job creation and this makes Walker look foolish.

Walker is ignorant, and he is dangerous. He ought not try to make Madison and Dane County's economies scream, he should consider learning from these wonderful places that 100,000s call home.

Being a public servant means you serve. It does not mean you harm those with whom you may disagree. This is because in America being a citizen confers onto you the status of powerful rights.

At the least an elected representative begins by protecting these rights, not violating them.

Scott Walker Seeks to Degrade Madison, Milwaukee; Grab More Power

Madison, Wisconsin has been regarded through the lifetimes of Wisconsinites as the Athens of the Midwest. (Rich, New York Times)

Stem Cells, the premier influenza virus surveillance public health system (mal contends), Epic Systems Corporation, the Arts, the social sciences, social justice movements, an innovative and skilled population, civil rights movements, strong public schools, leaders in sustainable ecological initiatives, a flagship University pioneering work in too many fields to list, the Wisconsin Idea, Madison—now Dane County—brings the world a region that works and leads, serving the people in the manner of a model of a western liberal democracy.

Today, it's reported Republicans (and Scott Walker as nothing goes ahead in GOP-Land without Walker or a proxy's consultation) have proposed installing chaos into the 2015-17 budget that would inflict economic dislocation, unpredictable property valuations and the uprooting of 1,000s of families to the detriment of Madison, Dane County and Milwaukee, while costing Wisconsin taxpayers untold $ millions, not to mention disrupting the lives of 1,000s of families including children. (DeFour, Wisconsin State Journal)

No one is calling for this typically crazy and manifestly irresponsible Walker idea outside of insiders in GOP circles run by billionaires; and Walker and Republicans did not campaign on this radical scheme.

Writes DeFour:

The state would have to consider relocating its agencies to buildings outside of Dane and Milwaukee counties before renewing current leases under a Republican budget proposal unveiled Wednesday.

The move could have a dramatic effect on Madison’s commercial office market, workforce and retail economy. ...

Walker’s 2015-17 budget proposal requires the Department of Administration to solicit lease options outside Dane and Milwaukee counties 'before signing or renewing any lease for space.'

DOA would have to prepare a cost-benefit analysis to determine whether the state could save money from moving a state agency, department, division, bureau or office to a new location outside of the state’s two largest counties.

Sen. Fred Risser, D-Madison, a former long-time member of the state Building Commission, which oversees the planning, maintenance and improvement of state facilities, said the proposal could cost Madison millions of dollars in lost leases and economic impact from thousands of state employees who live and work here. It could also cost state taxpayers millions of dollars to relocate state agencies outside of Dane County, he said.

Risser noted one of the commission’s policies is that state leases 'shall give first consideration to central city locations, including areas recommended by local officials.'

'This is beyond comprehension that you would turn around and ask that all leases be located out of this area,' Risser said. 'It would cost millions, too, to the area and the state.'

The measure, part of an omnibus motion that included several other provisions, passed on a party-line 12-4 vote with Republican lawmakers making no statements.

Scott Walker has been a disaster for Wisconsin.

The callow Walker now wishes to inflict political opponents and success stories with the same bad intentions Walker has for working people who organize and sell their work products in private contracts, and then work against Walker and his billionaires politically.

Walker remains a policy lightweight, but he takes orders from billionaires like the Koch brothers who could not care less about Wisconsin families as they cast their eyes upon the presidency.

Gov. Scott Walker since taking office in 2010 has worked to acquire power, using public policy and a re-engineering of government as vehicles to diminish and harm families and institutions opposed to Walker [young, educated, women, consumers, minorities and citizen-community control of cities and municipalities], and of course to reward Walker donors and other political allies.

Madison, Milwaukee and southeastern Wisconsin which vote heavily against the Republican Party have been targeted since Walker rejected $ 700 million in federal funds for a labor-intensive rail initiative that would have connected the two cities, among other outrageous acts in clear contradiction to the public good.

Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC)

Walker installed himself as Chair of the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC), until Walker's legislative allies called for Walker's removal as WEDC Chair amid scandal, corruption and possible state and federal criminal investigations. (DeFour, Wisconsin State Journal). (Rappeport, New York Times)

Wisconsin State Building Commission

Scott Walker, Chair of GOP-Dominated
Wisconsin State Building Commission

Scott Walker occupies, by statute, the Chair of the state Building Commission, from which Walker launched another power grab for Walker and the Department of Everything (aka the Department of Administration (DoA)) to which myriad governmental functions have been acquired in a quiet coup.

The Building Commission's reorganization in Walker's first term gave Walker wide latitude to sell state properties, some 6,000 structures.

In February 2015, it is reported Walker proposed blocking transparency of the Commission's work—as Walker continues his fundraising tour of rightwing political events and visits to GOP caucus and primary states—by shifting key borrowing decisions to the Department of Administration (Everything) led by Walker political loyalists:

Under the Walker budget, the Building Commission would no longer meet in order to approve projects or the borrowing to make them happen. The commission which by statute includes members of both political parties and is chaired by the governor has traditionally met monthly.

Instead, the commission would operate under what the budget proposal calls a 'passive review process' where items are considered approved unless a majority of Building Commission members [Republicans] request a meeting. (Ivey, The Capital Times)

Few have ever heard in recent US history—outside of the segregationist policies of the deep south—of the concerted and comprehensive plan of officeholders to use pubic policy and government to decimate disfavored communities of interests whom Scott Walker once infamously compared to ISIS/ISIL. (Strauss, Washington Post)

If the nation does not believe that Scott Walker is qualitatively different than the typical run-of-the-mill corrupt politicians, folks are not paying close enough attention.

Fraidy-Cat Wisconsin Dems

Update: It's 5:54 PM and State Rep Jeff Fitzgerald (R-Horicon) is babbling about the lack of "olive branches." C'mon all Democrats, the GOP is just trying to make you look bad. Wake up.

Pick your favorite metaphor: Herding cats, convincing your girlfriend that falling asleep on the couch is healthy, or unifying quantum mechanics and general relativity.

Not easy.

The task of closing the deal with a simple majority of Democrats seeing the big picture and voting for the budget—while telling Milwaukee talk radio and assorted GOP critics to crawl back under their undisclosed rocks—seems impossible at times today, talk around the Capital campfire reveals.

You can bet the Republicans would not have too much trouble lining up their people were the legislative roles reversed.

Glenn Greenwald recently observed that eight years of fear mongering has traumatized "the American national character, turning much of the citizenry into a weak and easily frightened herd, where the mere mention of the word Terrorist -- or Muslim -- sends people into spasms of fear and blind submission."

The same can be said of a handful of Democrats in the legislature who recoil in fear at every angry grunt from the Wisconsin White Party and their shills.

Man-up dudes, there's a party this weekend. You don't pass a budget by 6:00 tonight, you don't even deserve a beer.

Rational Budget Talk from Jonathan Chait

Jonathan Chait injects some reality into the national budget debate—applicable to the Wisconsin budget debate.

Chait, one should note, famously wrote of the early Bush-Cheney budgetary statements: "He's [Bush] lying," and that deficits and mounting debt were sure to follow. Chait was right. And he's right again.

From The New Republic:

A few weeks ago, I wrote a column pointing out how strange it is that President Obama is being blamed for huge budget deficits, when the projected deficits we face are entirely due to policies he inherited. In my column, I cited this paper by the Center on Budget and Policy priorities, which found that Obama's budget would reduce the budget by $900 billion over ten years compared with keeping current policies in place.

Yesterday David Leonhardt of the New York Times took up a similar question. Leonhardt looked at the budget from 2009 through 2012, and tried to figure out what had changed in those years since 2001. He found that the business cycle accounted for 37% of the higher red ink. More than half came from legislation signed by President Bush. Seven percent came from Obama's stimulus bill, and only three percent from his regular budget.

It was an admirable and serious article. A good sense of how serious can be seen in the contrast to a Politico story that ran the same day. Politico concerned itself entirely with the perception that Obama is responsible for the new debt without bothering to explore the merits of the perception. It ran quotes alleging as much (GOP Sen. John Cornyn: 'This was not an inherited situation. This was a matter entirely of this administration’s and this Democratic leadership’s making') without pointing out that the allegation is demonstrably false.

This debate such as it is sounds familiar in Wisconsin political circles with the same malarkey emitting from the GOP and its shills.