This article is an absolutely stunning, thorough takedown by Mary Bottari in The Progressive on the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC). WEDC was created by Governor Scott Walker and the Wisconsin GOP-led Legislature in their first month in power in January 2011. And the idea behind it was that it would be a public-private partnership that would be more "flexible" and able to drum up more business in the state.
Well, those of you in Ohio and Indiana have a good idea where this is going, but the jobs have yet to develop here in Wisconsin, and the first priority of WEDC seems to be far from improving the climate to encourage businesses to come and expand here. The article describes how a public servant was told not to do her job and make WEDC run above-board.
One insider talked to The Progressive about her experience at WEDC. Molly Regan was WEDC’s chief compliance officer from June 2012 to February 2013. Previously she had worked for the nonpartisan and highly respected Wisconsin Legislative Audit Bureau.
Regan gave new insight into how WEDC had "lost track" of so many millions of taxpayer dollars. "My understanding is that staff was directed to stop sending reminder letters," said Regan, after one letter had mistakenly been sent to a firm that was not past due and WEDC did not want to risk offending any other CEOs.
From the get-go, Regan said she ran into problems simply doing her job ensuring that all rules and regulations were followed.
For instance, in February 2013, WEDC spent $11,000 on Apple iPad Minis for site selectors. (Site selectors are private parties that help firms search for good places to locate their businesses.) To pay for these gifts, WEDC solicited corporate contributions from registered lobbyists and firms represented by lobbyists.
When Regan questioned the legality and propriety of this solicitation of corporate funds, she was told by WEDC legal counsel it was a "done deal." And the CEO told her it was not an issue for compliance to worry about, she reports.
Regan also questioned a "wine-tasting social" at the Milwaukee Athletic Club that cost taxpayers $1,150 and a day of golf at the Ironwood Golf Course that cost taxpayers $5,476. The golf outing included raffle prizes, "fantasy" golf cards, and a "Grand Daddy Buffet" consisting of New York strip steak, garlic butter chicken breast, au gratin potatoes, green bean almondine, tossed salad, fresh rolls, creamy butter, assorted desserts, and "upscale dinner plates."
When she approached the WEDC vice president who approved the expenditures, she says the list of receipts was plucked from her hands: "I don’t know how you got this," the official said. "I am just going to take it and shred it." When she complained about this incident to WEDC legal counsel, she was chastised for not "trusting" her co-workers. Regan submitted her resignation that day.
Hmmm, that sounds like WEDC is a giant Walker PR firm that allows corporately-connected CEOs and other Walker donors to use taxpayer dollars to conduct business. And this Texass-style crony capitalism isn't yielding Texass-like job growth- Wisconsin is dead last in job growth and dead last in income growth in the Midwest during Walker's 3 1/2 years in office.
Then again, maybe it's also a function of who's running the store at WEDC. Walker is the Chairman of the WEDC Board, despite having zero significant private sector job experience. There's also the matter of WEDC's Number Two executive, a fellow named Ryan Murray.
That's the now 32-year-old Murray on the right next to Walker, when both were at a taxpayer-funded trade mission to China last year. Murray was Scotty's former deputy Chief of Staff, and was put in as Chief Operating Officer at WEDC a couple of years ago as part of a revolving door of execs that was the fallout of the first reports of missing loans and lavish giveaways at taxpayer expense. And like Walker, Murray is a college dropout with no real private sector experience- just several years as GOP hack - that also is pulling in a six-figure salary at taxpayer expense.
Well it looks like not-so ol' Ry's not going over very well with people at WEDC that actually do have a background in business.
Lee Swindall, WEDC's vice president of business and industry development, revoked his resignation within three days, after chief executive officer Reed Hall persuaded him to stay. Documents released Monday under the state's open records law laid bare a rift between Swindall and Ryan Murray, the agency's chief operating officer and a former deputy chief of staff to the governor.
If Swindall had resigned, he would have been the third vice president this year to depart from WEDC, an agency that has faced past criticism for turnover among its executive ranks.
In his Aug. 25 resignation letter, Swindall wrote: "As a leader of the organization and its mission, I can no longer align with the management methods employed in policy development or deployment. I believe Ryan Murray, lacking either the talent or experience to function as the Chief Operations Officer of the WEDC, is causing deep and lasting harm through the application of control-style management rather than consultative management.
"Murray confuses rigid control with stability and sound management. What he is producing instead is instability, opposition and resentment in WEDC. This state of growing unrest will corrode the ability of the agency to perform and reach goals, not secure it. Ryan Murray is too committed to his own consolidated power to either notice or care about the swelling discontent in WEDC."
Hmmm, wonder where Ryan Murray got that attitude from? Maybe this quote from the former WEDC employee we met earlier sheds a bit of light on the subject. This is again from Mary Bottari's article in the Progressive
Reflecting on what went wrong at WEDC, Regan points to the prevalent attitude there of serving Walker’s needs and the needs of his top lieutenant, Mike Huebsch.
As she explains.
I was once told by an administration higher up, ‘We have one customer, and our job is to make him look good. . . . Huebsch is the prince, Walker is the king...."
This corruption at WEDC is yet another example as to why ALL WISGOPs MUST BE REMOVED ON NOVEMBER 4. This state will never be put in the right direction with these crooks and hacks in charge. Let's get an adult back in charge of this state in Mary Burke, and end this stain on what was once a great state.