The Fitzgeralds' Failure

No, actually, this is not about the boneheaded "leadership" failure in Hansen's district.

Schneider saw some of the same things I did in the budget, and he's not enthralled with the Madison-Boyzzz-Fitzgerald (whose Daddy now heads a redundant State agency.)

...I have kindred spirits among legislative Republicans in Wisconsin, who think the state budget looks just fine in neon spandex. The dairy state’s lawmakers continue to crow about the health of Wisconsin’s budget despite large spending increases, growing state structural imbalances, and rising taxes. They believe that holding spending to an acceptable rate of growth is enough to pacify a public who already believes their taxes are too high.

...Wisconsin’s taxpayer burden ranks sixth in the nation relative to income. In 2004, state and local expenditures claimed 21.9 percent of personal incomes, up from 20.2 percent in 1999. Total state and local taxes and fees have increased 47 percent in the past decade, despite a reduction in income tax revenue in 2002 due to the slumping economy. When an economic recession hits and tax revenue declines, the state still manages to spend more and more every year—even when Republicans control both houses of the Wisconsin Legislature.

So happens that a frequent commenter here mentioned a few figures which are germane:

WI
2 year budget = $66 B
Pop. ~ 5.5 million
Spending per resident = ~ $6000

NC
2 year budget = $39 B
Pop. ~ 9.5 millon
Spending per person = ~$2050

It's possible, of course, that North Carolina has NO roads, NO universities, NO Medicaid, NO State employees.....

The way Wisconsin budgets also fails to provide adequate funding oversight. During the budget process, legislators are presented with documents that merely detail changes in funding—they get papers analyzing the governor’s proposals to add three percent here, and four percent there. Rarely are base reviews conducted as to whether programs deserve new funding. Programs about which there are questions receive smaller increases as punishment; nothing is ever actually cut.

Yah. We noticed that the "Conservative" budget actually ADDS to State employment. Comfortable for Madistan types, of course--which group happens to include the Fitzgerald Boyzzzz. The culture of Madison is Government. That's not the culture of Conservatives, no matter how hard the Fitzgerald Boyzzzz try to convince us.