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Live coverage of Gov. Scott Walker’s address to the Illinois Chamber

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* Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker’s address to the Illinois Chamber begins at about 10 o’clock this morning. Via our good friends at BlueRoomStream.com, here’s the embed…

Live broadcast by Ustream

…ADDING… That stream conked out on us for a bit. It’s back up now, but here’s another one for backup…

* The coverage of the event has already started, so here’s a ScribbleLive feed for your enjoyment…

posted by Rich Miller
Tuesday, Apr 17, 12 @ 9:35 am

Comments

With all the protestors in Springfield, I guess this is a great economic opportunity for Springfield business.

Comment by frustrated GOP Tuesday, Apr 17, 12 @ 9:37 am
How nice for the non-partisan Chamber to have Mitt Romney delegate Todd Maisch introduce Scott Walker.

Comment by hisgirlfriday Tuesday, Apr 17, 12 @ 9:57 am
Scott Walker CUT Medicaid.

So why is he bashing Illinois for cutting Medicaid?
http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D9QU3CRO1.htm

Comment by hisgirlfriday Tuesday, Apr 17, 12 @ 10:15 am
I wonder how competition for businesses along the border (where it is easiest for businesses/factories to relocate since they don’t need to move their families) is going - Rockford vs. Beloit; Northernmost suburbs vs. Kenosha.

Comment by Robert Tuesday, Apr 17, 12 @ 10:16 am
How many times has he complained about the media not giving him favorable enough coverage in this speech?

Comment by hisgirlfriday Tuesday, Apr 17, 12 @ 10:22 am
As of last November, Walker cost #WI almost $300,000 to defend lawsuits against his anti-union laws.– Illinois Senate Democrats

I’m not a Walker fan at all, but is it the Governor’s fault that someone sues the State? If I sue over legislation passed by the Senate Democrats and it costs the State money to pay for the legal fee’s, is it fair to say that they cost the State money?

Also, thought it was funny that Walker was toughting education reforms that also passed in Illinois. I wonder if all those people clapping realized we passed the same thing.

Comment by Ahoy Tuesday, Apr 17, 12 @ 10:26 am
@Ahoy:

As a general matter, yes, if the governor passes stupid legislation, criticism can properly fall at the governor’s/legislators’ feet for the lawsuits that follow. Blagojevich got criticized for the lawsuits that his legislative stunts brought on all the time whether it was his violent video games bill or whatever.

Comment by hisgirlfriday Tuesday, Apr 17, 12 @ 10:30 am
So the Illinois chamber invited a Wisconsin governor to give a talk in Springfield to Illinois business owners touting that any Illinois business that relocates in Wisconsin will get 2 years off from paying corporate income taxes? Oh and to ask them to donate to his reelection campaign.

Once again, if the Illinois chamber was really interested in finding a way to get pension reforms and other pro-business reforms through a Democratic legislature in Illinois, wouldn’t it have made more sense to bring in someone like Andrew Cuomo?

Comment by hisgirlfriday Tuesday, Apr 17, 12 @ 10:44 am
–The day before federal income taxes are due, Wisconsin Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch helped rile up 300 Tea Party faithful in Daley Plaza, pledging to keep “poaching” businesses from Illinois.

“I’m the lieutenant governor who cold-calls your companies, and I’m happy to poach more if Gov. Quinn continues to march down the path he’s on right now — it’s all fair in economic development,” Kleefisch said after the rally.–

Yeah, she’s the captain of the Cheesehead A-Team, drawing in investors with her superior brain power. She should stick to her deep love for interior decorating and dogs that she revealed when asked about gay marriage:

–”This is a slippery slope,” she said in an interview. “In addition to that at what point are we going to okay marrying inanimate objects? Can I marry this table or this, you know, clock? Can we marry dogs? This is ridiculous. Biblically, again, I’m going to go right back to my fundamental Christian beliefs — marriage is between one man and one woman.”–

http://www.thedailypage.com/isthmus/article.php?article=31783

Comment by wordslinger Tuesday, Apr 17, 12 @ 10:56 am
I watched Walker with an open mind, but found him to be incredibly lackluster. If Walker is a rising Republican star, the political sky in Wisconsin must be pretty leak.

What a clown this guy proved himself to be!

Comment by BuckStar Tuesday, Apr 17, 12 @ 10:56 am
—found him to be incredibly lackluster—

That from someone who voted for Quinn. Or are you an out-of-state union person? Nice try, BS.

Comment by Joe from Joliet Tuesday, Apr 17, 12 @ 11:28 am
Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch is doing such a fine job with that cold-calling that LaFarge is moving to Illinois.

Comment by Cheryl44 Tuesday, Apr 17, 12 @ 11:50 am
I find Walker to be a sincere and rather open person. I think he should be appreciated for his willingness to talk about the issues not only facing his state but also Illinois.

We may not agree with all of his solutions but give him credit for dealing with the problems Wisconsin faces.

Comment by MOON Tuesday, Apr 17, 12 @ 12:50 pm
=As a general matter, yes, if the governor passes stupid legislation, criticism can properly fall at the governor’s/legislators’ feet for the lawsuits that follow. Blagojevich got criticized for the lawsuits that his legislative stunts brought on all the time whether it was his violent video games bill or whatever.==

Walker won his case, Blago lost all of his, including the video games, freedom of information and improper firing. Huge difference. Of course, Quinn won the regional superintendent salaries case, so I guess we’ve got a streak going now.

Comment by anonymice Tuesday, Apr 17, 12 @ 1:06 pm
It was a decent speech, if you ignore the fact that most of it was fantasy. I guess if you like him, you probably bought into what he said. If you don’t, you’re probably scratching your head wondering how intelligent people could believe that crap.

Comment by TwoFeetThick Tuesday, Apr 17, 12 @ 1:43 pm
From John Cullerton:

“Unlike Illinois, which has a flat, 5 percent personal income tax that treats all taxpayers the same, Wisconsin has a variety of tax rates ranging from 4.6 percent up to 7.75 percent.

For instance, a Wisconsin couple making between $26,850 and $201,340 falls into the 6.5 percent tax bracket. The only way a Wisconsin couple would be taxed at a rate lower than Illinois’ 5 percent rate is if they collectively make less than $13,420.”

The above is Cullerton disinformation, like when he said that 100% funding of pensions is the funding needed if everyone retired today, which is laughably incorrect.

Wisconsin has a higher personal exemption than Illinois, which means that the break-even point is much higher than Cullerton says. The poor pay higher income tax in Illinois than in Wisconsin.

Comment by Anonymous Tuesday, Apr 17, 12 @ 3:14 pm
“I find Walker to be a sincere and rather open person.”

He wasn’t sincere and open when he ran for governor and didn’t say he would take away most of collective bargaining, nor was he sincere when he said or implied at an interview that he would negotiate with unions like he did as Milwaukee County Executive.

Comment by Anonymous Tuesday, Apr 17, 12 @ 3:52 pm
Illinois state government is so horrible that Wisconsin is a shining star by contrast. If Illinois was absolutely forced to balance its budget, pay off its debts, and responsibly fund its pension obligations without raising taxes, then maybe we would finally see the state govt act to eliminate waste, corruption, and stupid policies that hurt our economy.

Comment by Anon Tuesday, Apr 17, 12 @ 7:42 pm
SHAME, SHAME, SHAME ON CULLERTON FOR LOVING SCOTT WALKER. SHAME, SHAME, SHAME.

Comment by ME Tuesday, Apr 17, 12 @ 10:47 pm
–Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch is doing such a fine job with that cold-calling that LaFarge is moving to Illinois.–

“Hello? Is this Aaron Aaronson’s Aardvark Association in Amboy? Your aardvarks aren’t married, are they? Because aardvarks aren’t married in the Bible…”

Comment by wordslinger Wednesday, Apr 18, 12 @ 7:44 am