WMC poll will be ignored by WMC's greedheads

As part of Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce’s recent “Future Wisconsin” economic summit event, WMC released the results of a poll it got the Wisconsin Technology Council and UW-Madison to do for it. This poll consisted of over 2,000 people from inside and outside the state, and asked the respondents what they thought about Wisconsin and its economy.

A WMC official said that the state was having problems attracting talent, but had some good things to offer those who would come here.

Given that most people decide to move from one place to another (migration/immigration) in search of economic opportunity and they rate Wisconsin low as a place to find that opportunity, then the state has a big problem," says Jim Morgan, president of the WMC Foundation, the research arm of the State Chamber of Commerce. "Wisconsin is actually well-positioned with a diverse economy and jobs available in all industries, but out-of-staters don't know that." ….

On the bright side, survey respondents rated Wisconsin positively in education, crime/public safety, cost of living and commute times when asked where Wisconsin ranks as a place to live.

"There are positives to build on," said Morgan. "We rate highly in important areas like quality of life and cost of living. We are also known for good schools and natural beauty. But, we don't just want to be a place to visit on vacation. We want people to know that Wisconsin is a great place to live, work and to raise your family.

The slides WMC handed out in relation to this poll’s results went into more detail, and it seems very telling what people with real jobs and lives are saying about Wisconsin outside of the oligarchical Bubble of WMC and WisGOP World.

WI is a Leader in...
•Parks and Recreation/Natural Resources
•Quality of Life
•Sense of Community

The problem is that the WMC-supported Scott Walker regime has worked hard to diminish all 3 of these leadership qualities in the nearly 5 years they have been in charge here. Whether it’s through weakening environmental protections and increasing fees to enjoy state parks, to a “divide and conquer” mentality and defunding of education that has broken this state’s sense of community, this Administration has removed the advantages that the respondents to the WMC poll said the state had.

On the other side, check out what the poll respondents said was hurting Wisconsin’s economy and way of life these days.

Negative Perceptions
All Responses
•Job opportunities (52%)
•Climate (48%)
•Social Tolerance/Diversity (46%)
•Wage Expectations (46%)

So why are WMC and their GOP lackeys at the Capitol continually promoting policies that double down on these negative perceptions? This crew has promoted a low-wage, low-skill economy for workers in Wisconsin, discouraged entrepreneurship and innovation, and the WisGOPs have backed a slew of socially regressive bills. And while weather and climate isn’t something one can change too much short-term, WMC is certainly trying to warm things up, as they’ve gotten lapdog AG Brad Schimel to file lawsuit after lawsuit against President Obama and the Environmental Protection Agency’s tougher rules against greenhouse gas emissions.

(Interestingly, Schimel hasn’t lifted a finger to go after the corporate slush fund known as WEDC, whose rent-seeking and waste of taxpayer resources seems to be limiting whatever growth we can get in the Age of Fitzwalkerstan. Funny that).

And notice this answer in the WMC poll from where Wisconsinites would move to.

Where would you relocate?
Minnesota
Colorado
Oregon
Washington
California

All states with Democratic governors, all with a high emphasis on natural beauty and quality of life. You don't see those places propped up by the WMCs of the world for their tax structure, nor do those states bank on “business-friendly” deregulation. But yet, those are the places seen as having economic opportunities and a life worth leaving Wisconsin for. That doesn’t happen in a vacuum, folks.

My guess is that WMC will give a lot of lip service in the coming months about “trying to attract talent,” because they know that people outside of the Bubble aren’t buying the low-tax, low-cost, trickle-down model these days. But then as the elections approach, these “job creators” will go back to being the regressive greedheads that they have always been, throwing money at politicians and judges who will try to keep us going in the same, downward direction that we’ve been going since the Republicans took power in this state in 2010.

So if WMC is going to ignore their own data in favor sticking with their selfish ideology, why should anyone who cares about results listen to what they say?