Unintimidated, by Scott Walker: on Government Reform


Bobby Jindal: Enacted comprehensive ethics reforms in state government

In Washington, politicians fight over "fiscal cliffs," "debt limits," and "sequesters." In the states, we are focused on improving education, caring for the poor, reforming government, lowering taxes, fixing entitlements, reducing dependency, and creating jobs and opportunities for the unemployed.

Just look at what some of our nation's Republican reformers have accomplished at the state level. In Louisiana, Governor Bobby Jindal took on his state's long history of corruption and enacted comprehensive ethics reform that restored integrity to state government--while at the same time closing a $341 million budget shortfall and giving $1.1 billion back to the hardworking taxpayers across his state over 5 years.

In Indiana, Governor Mitch Daniels inherited a 2-year deficit of $800 million, and left Indiana with a $500 million annual surplus and $2 billion in reserves, without raising taxes.

Source: Unintimidated, by Scott Walker, p. 3-4 Nov 18, 2013

Milton Friedman: County level better than state; state better than federal

As conservatives, we believe that as many decisions as possible should be pushed down to the local level. This is not only a matter of efficiency, it is fundamental to our freedoms. As Milton Friedman explains in "Capitalism and Freedom," "If government is to exercise power, better in the county than in the state, better in the state than in Washington. If I do not like what my local community does, be it in sewage disposal, or zoning, or schools, I can move to another local community. If I do not like that my state does, I can move to another. If I do not like what Washington imposes, I have few alternatives in this world of jealous nations."

If we believe in local government, then the last thing we want to do is decimate the ability of local officials to effectively serve their citizens. We want local communities to keep our streets clean, keep our citizens safe, and give our children the best possible education.

Source: Unintimidated, by Scott Walker, p. 23-4 Nov 18, 2013

Scott Walker: Wisconsin "citizen filibuster" gave birth to Occupy movement

On Feb. 15, the longest budget hearing in the history of the State Legislature would soon claim a more ignominious place in history--as the moment that gave birth to the "Occupy" movement.

Taking testimony from the public, opponents of Act 10 called a "citizen's filibuster." Using social media, the unions put out a call for people to come to the capitol and testify. They turned out more people than had ever been seen at a bill hearing.

The Democrats moved to a new hearing room and continued to hear "testimony" throughout the night and into the morning. And once the protesters had spent one night in the capitol, they figured they could do it again the next night, and the next. They never left. The occupation had begun.

On Feb. 16, more people showed up and joined the camp that was forming in the rotunda. The ranks of the occupiers grew with each passing day. While protesters chanted "Kill the bill!" outside my office, I remarked to reporters gathered inside, "Everyone has a right to be heard.

Source: Unintimidated, by Scott Walker, p. 65-6 Nov 18, 2013

Scott Walker: Prevent voter fraud: require voter ID at polls

We passed legislation to prevent voter fraud by requiring voters to show photo identifications at the polls--a bill Republicans had worked to pass since 2003. As I signed the bill into law, the protesters chanted "Shame!" and "Recall Walker!" outside my office. They weren't there for the voter ID bill; they were the same union protesters who followed me everywhere to protest Act 10.
Source: Unintimidated(Walker) p.215: Wisconsin Voting Records Act 23 Nov 18, 2013

  • The above quotations are from Unintimidated:
    A Governor's Story and a Nation's Challenge

    by Scott Walker and Marc Thiessen.
  • Click here for definitions & background information on Government Reform.
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  • Click here for more quotes by Scott Walker on Government Reform.
Candidates and political leaders on Government Reform:

Retired Senate as of Jan. 2015:
GA:Chambliss(R)
IA:Harkin(D)
MI:Levin(D)
MT:Baucus(D)
NE:Johanns(R)
OK:Coburn(R)
SD:Johnson(D)
WV:Rockefeller(D)

Resigned from 113th House:
AL-1:Jo Bonner(R)
FL-19:Trey Radel(R)
LA-5:Rod Alexander(R)
MA-5:Ed Markey(D)
MO-9:Jo Ann Emerson(R)
NC-12:Melvin Watt(D)
SC-1:Tim Scott(R)
Retired House to run for Senate or Governor:
AR-4:Tom Cotton(R)
GA-1:Jack Kingston(R)
GA-10:Paul Broun(R)
GA-11:Phil Gingrey(R)
HI-1:Colleen Hanabusa(D)
IA-1:Bruce Braley(D)
LA-6:Bill Cassidy(R)
ME-2:Mike Michaud(D)
MI-14:Gary Peters(D)
MT-0:Steve Daines(R)
OK-5:James Lankford(R)
PA-13:Allyson Schwartz(D)
TX-36:Steve Stockman(R)
WV-2:Shelley Capito(R)
Retired House as of Jan. 2015:
AL-6:Spencer Bachus(R)
AR-2:Tim Griffin(R)
CA-11:George Miller(D)
CA-25:Howard McKeon(R)
CA-33:Henry Waxman(D)
CA-45:John Campbell(R)
IA-3:Tom Latham(R)
MN-6:Michele Bachmann(R)
NC-6:Howard Coble(R)
NC-7:Mike McIntyre(D)
NJ-3:Jon Runyan(R)
NY-4:Carolyn McCarthy(D)
NY-21:Bill Owens(D)
PA-6:Jim Gerlach(R)
UT-4:Jim Matheson(D)
VA-8:Jim Moran(D)
VA-10:Frank Wolf(R)
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Page last updated: Feb 26, 2019