Why I'm voting for Mary Burke: One Republican's take on the 2014 Election

My entire life I have voted with the Republican Party. I was an adamant defender of the Bush tax cuts, the War in Iraq, Sarah Palin, the Tea Party and I knew that Nate Silver was just another liberal pundit with a bias. For the better part of my adult life I knew which party had the most effective policies and I knew who I was as a voter.

This election season started around mid November 2012. I knew absolutely that I was voting for Scott Walker and I couldn’t wait to see the State pass 250,000 new jobs created to rub it in my liberal friends’ faces. However the number never materialized. Not only that but the State lagged other sister States in the Great Lakes region. Now most of this is not Walker’s fault, Governors have very few things that they can actually do to impact jobs when the rest of the country is in an economic depression; but they can certainly be a detriment if promoting contractionary policies.

Speaking of economic depressions, over the last 6 years our great country has been mired in one of the worst economic slumps since the 1930s with no end in sight. We have seen time and time again what austerity has done for economies when faced with sharp recessions and liquidity traps. The exact wrong prescription during these times is to cut government spending when the private sector and general populace are also cutting their spending. Governors have very little impact in these situations but they can make somewhat of a difference.

They can focus on policies that keep people from going on government assistance and decreasing their purchasing power. The minimum wage has decreased in real dollars for the last 30+ years. We have seen evidence in this economic depression of states increasing their minimum wage achieving faster job growth than in states that have not increased their wages. When people make more money they become more enthusiastic employees and more productive; thus increasing overall company production and their extra wages turns into more consumption in the local economy. I don’t think any reasonable person would suggest a minimum wage hike overnight, but raising the wage to $10.10 over the course of a few years and then permanently chaining it to CPI is more than reasonable. Wisconsin has a living wage law that requires all workers in the State to be paid a “living wage”. When someone works full time for $7.25/hr and is on government assistance, they are not paid a living wage.

We should also as a State be more concerned with job growth in the short term rather than long term budget deficits or debt. Scott Walker appears to agree with that statement as he has not spent much time fixing the eternal deficit in the transportation fund and borrowed money to previously meet needs. Thus increasing the State’s leverage and lessening it’s long term budget surplus. By not having any kind of a plan to fill the State’s transportation budget shortfall (6.8 Billion over next 10 yrs) it appears as if the long term budget position of the State is not much of a concern. So far we have only heard that we will get rid of the Gas tax on the business side and create a revenue neutral sales tax; therefore remaining revenue neutral and not increasing revenue to fix the gap.

One of the most important things that a government can concern itself during a depression is the jobs picture (even though Scott Walker said there is not jobs problem in Wisconsin). Therefore it is more important to reach full employment today than it is to have a projected structural budget in balance in a decade. In that respect the state should have taken the money from the Federal government for infrastructure projects that could begin within a singular budgets’ term (2 years) or fix a Medicaid shortfall that has cost the taxpayers an estimated 9 figures over the next few years. Unfortunately it appears that due to nothing more than politics, Mr. Walker will not be accepting the infrastructure monies or the Medicaid / Badgercare program subsidies.

We recently were told of a several hundred million dollar surplus in our State budget and Mr. Walker elected to pass a tax cut that will typically net taxpayers tens of dollars (a hundred or so in the best case scenarios). This is not a wise use of our monies at this time and has resulted in a newly projected shortfall (baring higher than average growth in state tax receipts). This money could have gone to closing the transportation gap, hiring people who have lost their jobs in municipalities, or a number of other stimulative programs.

Ms. Burke however has shown a willingness to delve into the Keynesian economic prescriptions that have been proven most effective; time and time again. Her additional support of increasing the minimum wage; accepting federal money for infrastructure and health care services, her adoption of the Porter industry cluster theory; her career in the private sector all add up to a resume of someone who can get the job done and take the State on a different path.

She is not a far left liberal as some on the right try to paint her. Even if she was she will not be able to issue incredibly far left policy on her own as the State GOP will control both legislative houses and will be forced to work together to pass basic legislation and balanced budgets. We need someone who will take other approaches to fixing the State’s problems and to work together to do so. In addition to Ms. Burke’s basic economic advantage are her stances on social issues is by and large in step with mine. Abortion should be rare and legal for health and safety reasons, gay marriage opposition is a thing of the past; we are a representative government not a theocracy.

In the campaign so far the Walker team has criticized Ms. Burke’s experience because her company outsourced jobs overseas and files its taxes as a S corp. Wisconsin must only be open for business if you are a political ally of the Administration because there are numerous cases of Mr. Walker supporting businesses that do the same things as Trek Bike. Partisan politics over policy is not what we should be concerning ourselves with.

Mary Burke’s past is incredibly accomplished. Starting with her stellar academic record as the top of her class at Georgetown and receiving her MBA from Harvard School of Business. After graduation she worked for a top tier consultant firm assisting businesses and then went into business for herself. She then spent several years at her family company including a stint as the head of European operations and strategic growth. Anyone trying to trivialize these facts shows how little they understand about the complexities of international business. She then followed her calling into the philanthropic field, working with the Boys and Girls club, the Road Home helping countless youth get a better life. Her recent time as Commerce secretary and on the Madison School board prepared her for understanding the Public sector as well.

The bottom line is that Mr. Walker’s plan that he has released for next term includes more tax cuts which have minimum economic impact in that people in a position to spend will not receive enough of a tax break to increase the aggregate demand shortfall that has affected the State and nation. Instead of investing this same money on infrastructure and hiring policies we are told that we will be spending more State money to issues drug tests to those on public assistance. When questioned with legalities (this similar program has been struck down as unconstitutional in other States) he has vowed to fight the courts to enforce this law.

We don’t need more bad laws being struck down by Federal courts and more tax money spent defending them. We need policies aimed at short term stimulus to demand and hiring. We need someone who clearly understands this. So even though I have great respect for Governor Walker and what he has accomplished through ACT 10 and other reforms. He has appeared to be another partisan that refuses basic economic fact and has further moved to the right as his inevitable 2016 presidential run comes closer. I am worried that the more pragmatic Scott Walker we saw in the first term will be long gone as he needs to position himself further to the right. Mary Burke understands what is needed at this time for this State. She understands what has been done incorrectly and what to do in the next term to fix these errors and get people working again. She has no higher political ambition in the near future and need not posture to the base of her party. She can help move Wisconsin forward and has earned this former lifelong Republican’s vote.