And the plot thickens. In the midst of a boiling recall frenzy breaching its halfway point, Gov. Scott Walker approved $3.67 million in federal, state and local grant money for the "Transportation to Jobs" program. Designed to get, as Walker puts it, "Wisconsinites back on their feet by helping them get back to work," the program improves local transit services for low-income workers by increasing their travel options, thus providing more accessible transportation to work.
While the service is good in theory, this editorial board isn't buying it. And before we rip this obvious political ploy apart, we would like to remind Walker, his administration and loyal supporters of the $810 million in federal funds he rejected for Wisconsin's high-speed rail project-infrastructure that the Democratic Party of Wisconsin projected would create over 13,000 jobs. And with Wisconsin currently leading the nation in recent job losses, that 13,000 could have prevented Walker's foot from being permanently lodged in his mouth.
Nevertheless, $3.67 million is a miserable amount to allocate toward transit services if Walker seriously expects to create any substantial transportation overhaul. While his heart appears to be in the right place, this board continues to roll its eyes and see otherwise. Due to the laughably low amount of grant funds combined with Walker's devastatingly disappointing "jobs session"-a convention that focused on passing abstinence-only sex education in lieu of real employment policies-it's obvious Walker is compensating for something: His failure to instigate true job creation, along with his tarnished reputation in the recall campaign.
After all, the name "Transportation to Jobs" says it all. It's clear Walker is attempting to strategically salvage his reputation as Wisconsin's job creator. Unfortunately for him, this editorial board is left to wonder: What "jobs" is he transporting these workers to? According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Wisconsin waved goodbye to 9,700 jobs in October alone, bringing the state unemployment rate up from 7.3 percent in May to 7.7 percent today.
Evidently, Walker's budget and policies failed to positively impact most Wisconsinites, except the conservative interest groups and large donors pining for a piece of the budget pie-leaving the average citizen with leftover crumbs from the deficit.
That said, approving the "Transportation to Jobs" program is just a drop in the bucket when it comes to investing in local transportation and public works projects and the Walker administration knows it. Saying this $3.67 million fulfills Walker's promise to increase employment rates completely undermines Wisconsin's understanding of successful job creating initiatives. All in all, this purely political move builds nothing but a bus to nowhere. And judging by Wisconsin's enthusiastic response to the recall petition, Walker might as well reserve a seat.
