September has brought about a remarkable change in the Republican chant of “my way or the highway” to a more conciliatory tone.
Could this be genuine? Not exactly. There is an election coming up in a few weeks and it’s time to charm potential voters.
Millions of dollars are flowing in to buy media space so they can embellish their sorry records with promises of how good everything will be if they are only re-elected. Should that happen, here is a list of probable activities:
Expect the world’s largest open-pit iron mine to open in northern Wisconsin. The Legislature gutted environmental protections so this mine could open after Gov. Scott Walker’s campaign was boosted with a $700,000 gift from the out-of-state mining company who applied for mining rights. However, the mining company and Republican Party wouldn’t stoop to shady tactics like that, would they?
You can also expect expanded frac sand mining throughout the state, while public education will continue to be underfunded, the minimum wage will remain repressed, and the drive to end the benefits of the Affordable Care Act will continue.
There are many more reasons not to vote for Republicans, These are only a few.
Republican fiscal policies have come up short, and now Wisconsin faces an $1.8 billion structural deficit going into the 2015-17 biennial budget.
We must put an end to changing state regulations that might lead to pollution of our rivers and lakes and to our ground water. We need to fund education better and not spend money on privatizing our educational system with charter schools. We need an administration and Legislature that will protect our health and quality of life by promoting policies that are beneficial to citizens of our great state, not to improve the bottom line of out-of-state corporations.
Erling Landsverk
King