Today Is An Historic Day In Wisconsin

Today is an historic day in Wisconsin, but you wouldn’t know by the lack of protestors in Madison.  As if all but forgotten, Act 10 (the famous Budget Repair Bill) is officially the law of the land here in the Dairy State.  I find it strangely odd that I am back in Madison on the day it is official, just as I was in Madison the day it was first introduced. Back then, it was cold and snowy, today it is sunny and warm. 

There also seemed to be swarms of protestors back in February, but you won’t find many here today.  A straggler here and there, but not the hundreds and thousands who descended on Madison as if the end of the world was near.  I entered the Capitol without the throngs of people in the rotunda and without people screaming in my ear and have had a peaceful day in this great city. 

So what happened, did people just give up on the protests?  Perhaps not.  Maybe people are realizing Act 10 will help school districts and municipalities.  Kaukauna School District is going to hire teachers.  How is that possible?  The school district finally has the tools they need to make sound fiscal changes.

It doesn’t stop at schools being able to make changes.  In fact, Racine County will now be able to use inmates, at no cost to the taxpayer, to perform maintenance such as mowing the grass along county highways.  Prior to Act 10, the unions had said this was against their county collective bargaining agreements. 

These examples are only the beginning.  School districts, county and city governments are just realizing the benefits they will have in saving money and changing services.  Sure, some folks in the public sector have had to put a little bit more of their paychecks towards funding their own retirement and healthcare as those in the private sector do.  On Sunday, Governor Walker signed into law the budget which cut $3.6 Billion in deficit and will see a $300 million surplus, something the state has not seen in decades.

It’s noon at the Wisconsin State Capitol and there is singing once again.  Only small numbers of folks are here singing and cheering, but large numbers of Wisconsinites will be able to know Wisconsin is back on the right track.

In order to keep the state heading in the right direction, and to help other states who need to go in this direction, we need to find people at all levels of government who are willing to make the tough decisions on keeping taxes down, reducing programs we can’t afford and holding the line on spending.  Keep your eyes and ears open, if you know someone who wants to run for office send them to one of American Majority trainings.