Reading Between The Lines

By Jeff Simpson

"While some things are better left unsaid, some things should never be left unspoken." Anonymous

Agustin Ramirez has an op-ed telling us that Scott Walker is great on jobs(seriously).   Mr. Ramirez has a nice piece that the "Friends of Scott Walker" will no doubt use in their campaign, unfortunately, Mr. Ramirez has left a few major details out.

We at CogDis will play fill in the blank:

*  I have been chief executive and chairman of HUSCO International for 25 years. During this period, HUSCO has added 1,200 jobs. Since the end of 2009, we have added 320 jobs in Wisconsin. 

Thank God for Kim Hixson (D-Whitewater), Jim DOyle and Government(taxpayer) money:

A state grant is allowing Waukesha-based Husco International to expand its production capabilities and create about 165 jobs between its headquarters and Whitewater plant.

State Rep. Kim Hixson, D-Whitewater, announced Thursday the hydraulic and electrohydraulic controls manufacturer received a $606,000 Community Development Block Grant through the Economic Development Program.

Husco plans to invest about $30 million to expand its manufacturing capabilities at the two Wisconsin plants. The Whitewater location is getting a $22.3-million investment and adding about 90 jobs to the community, according to the news release.

  Under the administration of former Gov. Jim Doyle, with Democratic gubernatorial candidate Mary Burke as secretary of commerce, HUSCO significantly reduced jobs in Wisconsin and moved them to Iowa.

“I’m proud to have worked with state, local and company leaders to create new jobs here in our area,” Hixson said. “Husco is an important local employer and great manufacturer. As a result of this grant and the company’s investment in south central Wisconsin, hundreds of new jobs will be brought to the area for hard-working local families.” 

 *   Under the administration of former Gov. Jim Doyle, with Democratic gubernatorial candidate Mary Burke as secretary of commerce, HUSCO significantly reduced jobs in Wisconsin and moved them to Iowa.

Mr. Ramirez, I know it was a while ago, but when you opened up the plant in Iowa you said that not many jobs would move to Iowa, but you also blamed the older unionized workforce(the gall of people who spend their lives working for you wanting raises).   Also to spark your memory guess who trained the workers you left behind?   Answer starts with WI and ends with TAXPAYERS.   You left them behind but luckily for them, Governor Jim Doyle did not. 

 While I get you did not want to pay your long time workers the salary they had worked their way up to, perhaps the real reason you decided to move the plant was that you were upset that Mary Burke was no longer Commerce Secretary and you did not have anyone you could trust(who in their right mind would hire a republican to create jobs anyway?  Make beer yes but not create jobs!).   

*  There were both national and state issues that concerned us during the 2006-2009 time period.

Yes, like the Great Recession! Thanks Dubya.

* More recently, the recall election of 2012 created uncertainty for those running businesses in the state. Uncertainty and job growth run counter to one another.

 Of course, certainty and a free market economy run counter to one another also.  

*  even with the uncertainty created by the vitriolic recall politics during Walker's first couple of years...

 If uncertainty and vitriol is not your cup of tea, maybe you should not have supported this guy:

A state grant is allowing Waukesha-based Husco International to expand its production capabilities and create about 165 jobs between its headquarters and Whitewater plant.
State Rep. Kim Hixson, D-Whitewater, announced Thursday the hydraulic and electrohydraulic controls manufacturer received a $606,000 Community Development Block Grant through the Economic Development Program.

Husco plans to invest about $30 million to expand its manufacturing capabilities at the two Wisconsin plants. The Whitewater location is getting a $22.3-million investment and adding about 90 jobs to the community, according to the news release.

“I’m proud to have worked with state, local and company leaders to create new jobs here in our area,” Hixson said. “Husco is an important local employer and great manufacturer. As a result of this grant and the company’s investment in southcentral Wisconsin, hundreds of new jobs will be brought to the area for hard-working local families.”
- See more at: http://www.gazettextra.com/news/2010/oct/23/whitewater-company-creating-90-jobs-plans-expansio/?print#sthash.nEiFJ196.dpuf

A state grant is allowing Waukesha-based Husco International to expand its production capabilities and create about 165 jobs between its headquarters and Whitewater plant.
State Rep. Kim Hixson, D-Whitewater, announced Thursday the hydraulic and electrohydraulic controls manufacturer received a $606,000 Community Development Block Grant through the Economic Development Program.

Husco plans to invest about $30 million to expand its manufacturing capabilities at the two Wisconsin plants. The Whitewater location is getting a $22.3-million investment and adding about 90 jobs to the community, according to the news release.

“I’m proud to have worked with state, local and company leaders to create new jobs here in our area,” Hixson said. “Husco is an important local employer and great manufacturer. As a result of this grant and the company’s investment in southcentral Wisconsin, hundreds of new jobs will be brought to the area for hard-working local families.”
- See more at: http://www.gazettextra.com/news/2010/oct/23/whitewater-company-creating-90-jobs-plans-expansio/?print#sthash.nEiFJ196.dpuf

A state grant is allowing Waukesha-based Husco International to expand its production capabilities and create about 165 jobs between its headquarters and Whitewater plant.
State Rep. Kim Hixson, D-Whitewater, announced Thursday the hydraulic and electrohydraulic controls manufacturer received a $606,000 Community Development Block Grant through the Economic Development Program.

Husco plans to invest about $30 million to expand its manufacturing capabilities at the two Wisconsin plants. The Whitewater location is getting a $22.3-million investment and adding about 90 jobs to the community, according to the news release.

“I’m proud to have worked with state, local and company leaders to create new jobs here in our area,” Hixson said. “Husco is an important local employer and great manufacturer. As a result of this grant and the company’s investment in southcentral Wisconsin, hundreds of new jobs will be brought to the area for hard-working local families.”
- See more at: http://www.gazettextra.com/news/2010/oct/23/whitewater-company-creating-90-jobs-plans-expansio/?print#sthash.nEiFJ196.dpuf

A state grant is allowing Waukesha-based Husco International to expand its production capabilities and create about 165 jobs between its headquarters and Whitewater plant.
State Rep. Kim Hixson, D-Whitewater, announced Thursday the hydraulic and electrohydraulic controls manufacturer received a $606,000 Community Development Block Grant through the Economic Development Program.

Husco plans to invest about $30 million to expand its manufacturing capabilities at the two Wisconsin plants. The Whitewater location is getting a $22.3-million investment and adding about 90 jobs to the community, according to the news release.

“I’m proud to have worked with state, local and company leaders to create new jobs here in our area,” Hixson said. “Husco is an important local employer and great manufacturer. As a result of this grant and the company’s investment in southcentral Wisconsin, hundreds of new jobs will be brought to the area for hard-working local families.”
- See more at: http://www.gazettextra.com/news/2010/oct/23/whitewater-company-creating-90-jobs-plans-expansio/?print#sthash.nEiFJ196.dpuf

How else would you expect a divide and conquer strategy to play out?

*  Virtually 100% of business executives I know would say that there have been consequential improvements for business under the Walker administration.

All I can say there is you need to expand your circle of friends.   

* Second, and probably more important, is the lack of available skilled talent especially for those positions requiring a high school degree and technical training.

Milwaukee is by far the largest city in Wisconsin, and the dismal public education being provided to most Milwaukee children, particularly the economically disadvantaged, results in a labor pool possessing minimal academic and technical skills

 Since Public Schools are outperforming voucher schools in Wisconsin, glad to have you join me in calling to stop the ridiculous pillaging of our public education money for unaccountable vouchers.   Let's put the money where it will do the most good, and we all will benefit! 

Now you know the rest of the story!  

PS:   On their "About us" section of their website, Husco proudly displays:

 To maintain HUSCO’s leadership in next generation technology, we aggressively protect our core technologies through patents while continuously monitoring the competitive patent landscape to insure that we stay focused on the leading edge technology in the industry.

Thanks goodness for the taxpayer supplied socialist court system, and government regulations on patents, that we have in America which has allowed Husco to flourish!

PSS:   My question to Mr. Ramirez:  If you brought in an executive with a clearly defined goal and after four years he was not even half way towards that specific goal, would you renew his contract?