Giles Goat Boy

According to the latest figures from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Wisconsin lost 13,200 jobs in June, including 11,700 private sector jobs, while the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in Wisconsin went up in June, 2012 to 7.0% compared to 6.8% in May, 2012. Ouch. Poor Reggie Newson. He is the current Secretary of...
Read More »

There is “Real Wisconsin Cheese” and there is cheese in a can. In the same way, there are real labor statistics and there are fake labor statistics. On Wednesday, Reggie Newsen, the Secretary of the Department of Workforce Development (DWD), created a smokescreen with a set of job numbers that showed modest job growth...
Read More »

The following table from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics just might be the most telling example of what a disaster Scott Walker’s economic policies have been for Wisconsin. It also helps illustrate the methods used by Walker’s administration to confuse the public. The data are quite clear. There were 23,900 fewer employees on...
Read More »

After two months of job gains, I had a feeling the latest job numbers delivered by the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development (DWD) wouldn’t be good. The monthly figures are compiled by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) but Wisconsin’s numbers are often released ahead of time by DWD Secretary Reggie Newson. The...
Read More »

The Washington DC based newspaper Roll Call is reporting that Ron Johnson, the freshman U.S. Senator from Wisconsin, is ready to replace most of his staff with people who can help him refocus his energies on political messaging. I assume political messaging would include hanging out with Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan, spewing propaganda...
Read More »

The United States Department of Justice issued a press release Monday indicating they plan to monitor the April 3rd primary election in Wisconsin: WASHINGTON – The Justice Department announced today that the Civil Rights Division will monitor the election on April 3, 2012, in Milwaukee. The monitoring will ensure compliance with the Voting Rights...
Read More »

  Athletes and sports fans know what a ball hog is in basketball. It’s just like it sounds – a ball hog is a player who never gives up the ball. Ball hogs are convinced that there’s only one way to win, and that they’re the most talented players on their teams. They listen...
Read More »

(cross-posted from Daily Kos) The President of the Professional Fire Fighters of Wisconsin (PFFW), Mahlon Mitchell, announced this morning that he will run for the office of Lieutenant Governor in the upcoming recall election. Mitchell is running to replace the current Lieutenent Governor, Rebecca Kleefisch, the former television reporter best known politically for equating...
Read More »

The subtitle on a recent Mother Jones on-line article about Kathleen Falk described her as a “progressive populist”, right under the major headline that labeled her a “labor-backed liberal.” Kathleen Falk is a former Dane County Executive running to be the Democratic candidate against Scott Walker in the upcoming recall election. She’s a good...
Read More »

Department of Workforce Development(DWD) Secretary Reggie Newson today attempted to rebut an earlier press release from State Rep. Peter Barca. Barca’s statement is linked to data released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics showing definitively that Wisconsin lost more jobs last year (12,500) than any other state in the nation. It’s not really...
Read More »

Governor Scott Walker has frequently boasted about 13,500 private sector jobs created in Wisconsin in 2011. Newly revised and more reliable figures from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics(BLS) indicate that the state actually lost 9,700 private sector jobs last year. In the middle of a job losing streak that stretched to six consecutive...
Read More »

Daniel Bice of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel is reporting that a newly-formed political group has purchased air time in 5 Wisconsin markets to run TV ads promoting Kathleen Falk. Falk is campaigning to become the Democratic nominee against Governor Scott Walker in an almost certain upcoming recall election. The group calling itself “Wisconsin for...
Read More »

The blogosphere is having a little fun and expressing some real outrage at Governor Scott Walker over his latest propaganda email update. From prwatch.org: Even before a recall election prompted by some 1 million Wisconsin residents has been scheduled, Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker has given himself a new job. In an email to constituents...
Read More »

Closing arguments delivered by an attorney defending redistricting maps in a federal court last Friday implied that State Rep. JoCasta Zamarripa was not opposed to the maps. The new, disputed boundaries for Rep. Zamarripa’s district are at the center of the lawsuit seeking to have the maps thrown out. The attorney for the state...
Read More »

It was reported last week that an art exhibit planned for Madison at the end of March had been indefinitely postponed. The exhibit, entitled “Art in Protest”, was to have been organized with assistance from the Wisconsin School for Workers, which is part of the University of Wisconsin Extension. The school dropped the project...
Read More »

While I have often used the word “joy” to describe how it felt to be part of the big rallies in Madison last year, there were frustrations. For me, one of the biggest frustrations was the inaccuracy in the reporting of events. I only spent one night in the capitol, but I spent a...
Read More »

This past year, I have been a frequent participant in the Solidarity Sing Along protests held every weekday in or just outside the Wisconsin Capitol. One of the songs we sing is “Bring Back Wisconsin to Me”, sung to the tune of “My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean”, with new lyrics by Lou and...
Read More »

Last week, Governor Scott Walker announced the appointment of 5 members to his new Small Business Regulatory Review Board. Walker said this about the board: “The Small Business Regulatory Review Board has the authority to review every rule in all of our state agencies. They will work to remove antiquated and unnecessary regulations that...
Read More »

I have mixed feelings about the ease of my self-assigned task of reporting Wisconsin’s employment data in the worst light possible. Obviously it hurts to see so many Wisconsinites still looking for full-time, decent-paying jobs that just aren’t there, but it’s no surprise that Walker’s economic strategy has resulted in a 6th straight month...
Read More »

The Wisconsin Government Accountability Board (GAB) announced on their homepage that they have installed a webcam to allow online viewing of recall petition processing. Recall organizers in Wisconsin turned in close to 2 million signatures on Tuesday. The Governor, Lieutenant Governor, and 4 state senators will likely face recall elections as a result. Over...
Read More »

A tip of the hat to AnnieJo at DailyKos for finding video of the Pulaski High School marching band playing Woody Guthrie's song "Union Maid" during yesterday's Tournament of Roses Parade. Or did they? It could be argued that the band was not making a political statement, because Guthrie's lyrics for "Union Maid" were...
Read More »

The Institute for Wisconsin’s Future (IWF) issued a report recently that documents why it is that, according to the IWF’s accompanying press release, “Since the beginning of the fiscal year in July, Wisconsin ranks 50th – dead last — among the states in job performance, losing 27,600 jobs.” That date is important. July 1st...
Read More »

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released preliminary national employment numbers today for the month of November. Once again, Wisconsin leads the way in job losses – 14,600 jobs lost after adjusting for seasonal factors. From the BLS report: The largest over-the-month statistically significant declines in employment occurred in Wisconsin (-14,600) and Minnesota...
Read More »

Assembly Speaker Jeff Fitzgerald and Governor Scott Walker each yelled “squirrel” today, attempting to distract the hounds that are getting close to recalling Walker. Fitzgerald spewed some nonsense about restructuring the non-partisan Government Accountability Board (GAB), the agency that oversees elections in Wisconsin. He also introduced a bill to make signing a recall petition...
Read More »

The CEO of the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC), or as I like to refer to it, The Scott Walker Campaign Donation Reimbursement Center and Corporate Welfare Department, posted a column today explaining his desire to hand out taxpayer money to unproven start-up companies that are so ill-conceived they can’t get money from private...
Read More »