General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsAs Wisconsin's and Minnesota's lawmakers took divergent paths, so did their economies
Since the 2010 election of Governor Scott Walker in Wisconsin and Governor Mark Dayton in Minnesota, lawmakers in these two neighboring states have enacted vastly different policy agendas. Governor Walker and the Wisconsin state legislature have pursued a highly conservative agenda centered on cutting taxes, shrinking government, and weakening unions. In contrast, Minnesota under Governor Dayton has enacted a slate of progressive priorities: raising the minimum wage, strengthening safety net programs and labor standards, and boosting public investments in infrastructure and education, financed through higher taxes (largely on the wealthy).
Because of the proximity and many similarities of these two states, comparing economic performance in the Badger State (WI) versus the Gopher State (MN) provides a compelling case study for assessing which agenda leads to better outcomes for working people and their families. Now, seven years removed from when each governor took office, there is ample data to assess which states economyand by extension, which set of policiesdelivered more for the welfare of its residents. The results could not be more clear: by virtually every available measure, Minnesotas recovery has outperformed Wisconsins.
The following report describes how Minnesotas and Wisconsins economies have performed since 2010 on a host of key dimensions, and discusses the policy decisions that influenced or drove those outcomes.
Key findings include:
Job growth since December 2010 has been markedly stronger in Minnesota than Wisconsin, with Minnesota experiencing 11.0 percent growth in total nonfarm employment, compared with only 7.9 percent growth in Wisconsin. Minnesotas job growth was better than Wisconsins in the overall private sector (12.5 percent vs. 9.7 percent) and in higher-wage industries, such as construction (38.6 percent vs. 26.0 percent) and education and health care (17.3 percent vs. 11.0 percent).
From 2010 to 2017, wages grew faster in Minnesota than in Wisconsin at every decile in the wage distribution. Low-wage workers experienced much stronger growth in Minnesota than Wisconsin, with inflation-adjusted wages at the 10th and 20th percentile rising by 8.6 percent and 9.7 percent, respectively, in Minnesota vs. 6.3 percent and 6.4 percent in Wisconsin.
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https://www.epi.org/publication/as-wisconsins-and-minnesotas-lawmakers-took-divergent-paths-so-did-their-economies-since-2010-minnesotas-economy-has-performed-far-better-for-working-families-than-wisconsin/?utm_source=Economic+Policy+Institute&utm_campaign=4e8242021f-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_05_09&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_e7c5826c50-4e8242021f-59078569&mc_cid=4e8242021f&mc_eid=56485f06ea
Wellstone ruled
(34,661 posts)telling folks that this is the real story. When Walker was elected,the Koch Brothers Knee Capped Wisconsin right out of the box.
GusBob
(7,286 posts)The Wisconsin GOP is wrecking the environment. Mining, cooperate farm waste, global climate changedenial you name it
It's funny to see all these "Sportsman for Walker" types in the hunting and fishing publications struggling to reconcile their support for Walker with what is going on with their precious, and fragile, outdoors.
The GOPers who are in charge of dismantling the DNR and the environment are these guys who believe the Earth is 6,000 years old. The outdoorsman who voted these guys in are embarrassed and openly mocked n LTE's
barbtries
(28,787 posts)i'm starting to think that republicans really don't care about the people. jk, i've known that for years
TheRealNorth
(9,478 posts)[link:|