Minnesota

Investing in Higher Education Reaps Rewards for All

September 26, 2011 by Uppity Wisconsin

“Tuition is SO expensive,” a local business owner told me. She shared the sacrifices her family makes to keep their oldest son in college.

“My husband has been away for three weeks,” she continued. The time-and-a-half her husband earned working out-of-state made the difference between sending and not sending their son to college.

At a time when most agree the road to prosperity leads through college, the state is paying less and struggling families are paying more for college. Deep budget cuts this year forced most colleges into a 5.5% tuition increase. Many families tell me it’s harder to pay college bills.

 

Parents know a child’s future is improved with a college education. Average earning for a college graduate more than doubles the average earning of a student without a high school diploma. Future jobs increasingly require post-high school education.

Helping our best and brightest obtain a college education helps raise the earnings of the entire state. According to UW officials raising the education level of Wisconsin residents to that of Minnesota means $29 million more in the pockets of folks in our state.

Quote, unquote

September 6, 2011 by Uppity Wisconsin

"Came in third place behind Michele Bachmann and Ron Paul. I think that's enough for any one person to endure.” — former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, telling Stephen Colbert why he dropped out after Ames, following a campaign that “went all the way from 1 percent to 1 percent."

PolitiFact Acknowledges Walker Has Most "False" Ratings

September 5, 2011 by The Political E...

I was pleased to see that the Journal Sentinel's truthiness rating service PolitiFact finds that Scott Walker has the most negative ratings among Wisconsin officials, leaving Democrats like Tom Barrett in the dust.

I'd done the tally myself more than once - - a recent example is here - - and am glad to see Walker with the first-year PolitiFact First-place Falsehoods' Finish.

Turns out our Governor is more transparent than he intended.

Both PolitiFact and this blog show Walker with the most false ratings, though my total is larger (I credit Walker with 31, opposed to PolitiFact's 13) because I fully credit Walker with "false" if the rating begins with the category "mostly false" all the way through "false" and "pants on fire."

PolitiFact balances its findings by also saying Walker has the most "true" ratings - - four - - and explains that as a lightning rod, he has had the most statements rated.

Faint praise: Walker's habitual unfamiliarity with facts has helped vault him into first place.

Take this example from just a few days ago that I posted, using PolitiFact:

Again, Walker Speaks, And The Ruling is False+

September 4, 2011 by The Political E...

You wonder when Gov. Walker's penchant for earning false or "Pants on Fire" ratings from PolitiFact will hit the tipping point and there will be a consequence for governing by lying?

The latest - - and Walker has had plenty - - is Walker's claim that an amended college tuition reciprocity agreement with neighboring Minnesota saves Wisconsin students money, when the complete opposite is true.

"Lying" too strong a word? The word is thrown around the Internet with too much ease, but in this case it's accurate and merited.

Look at the evidence Walker's spokesman Cullen Werwie offers for his boss's money-saving claim, when simple math shows that the new arrangement adds significant costs to the Wisconsin students' bills: