To the editor:
Wisconsin's Gov. Scott Walker has cut taxes considerably in our state. But at what cost? His tax cuts have not created economic growth. And now Wisconsin is in the midst of an economic budget crisis. It has been reported that the Walker administration will skip a debt payment of $108 million that is due in May. On the whole, Walker will need to make up a $283 million before June to comply with the state's balanced budget amendment.
Wisconsin spending has already been cut to controversially low levels to make ends meet.
In his presidential ambitions, he wants to say he cut taxes, but at what price to the citizens of Wisconsin? Our roads are disintegrating, state aid to school has been cut by the millions. Our school district has lost $1 million in state aid since Walker took office in 2011. We are a town of 11,000 people. His budget calls for a revenue freeze and if it passes, like so many budget items have, we will have a revenue loss of another $1 million and would have to go to a $2 million referendum next spring.
He cut funding for parks, funding to the Department of Natural Resources, cut $300 million from our University of Wisconsin system. The University of Wisconsin flagship campus in Madison is 10th in the nation for receiving research grants. What wonderful outcomes of this research will be lost by Walker's $300 million cut? Professors will leave our universities. The state universities in smaller towns like Whitewater and Platteville will suffer. Will already high tuitions have to go up?
Walker turned down Medicaid from the federal government for the pool. He's anti-education, anti-middle class, and anti-Wisconsin. He wants the big picture where the Koch brothers have already given the Republican Party $884 million. And lastly he doesn't know peanuts about foreign policies. He didn't know what ISIS was when questioned in England. I could go on with how much he doesn't know.
He is not presidential material.