Note: Frugal Ron is adding a new section to his website! While liberals are continually doing really stupid things, Frugal Ron misses out on the fun of pointing out their foibles in the long article format used so far on this website. This new section will aim for shorter posts on current news. Hope you enjoy them!

Capital Times editorialist Dave Zweifel’s April 13, 2014 column , Gophers find a way that eludes Walker, focused on the differences between Minnesota’s fifth place tie in job creation compared to Wisconsin’s bottom third in the US placing.  Zweifel brought up the large difference in health insurance costs that Frugal Ron documented months ago in Competitiveness and Health Care Costs.

While Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker and his legislative allies focused on their goal of “keeping low-income citizens from becoming more dependent on government” by refusing the expansion of Medicaid in Wisconsin, they did nothing to keep these folks from getting free medical care at the Emergency Room. About  70 percent of the costs they don’t pay are passed on to those of us who buy health insurance and 30 percent to state government.

So, while Walker campaigns on the $1.25 extra per two-week pay period the average taxpayer gets due to his tax cut, potential employers look at the extra hundreds of dollars per month they will pay in health insurance if they make the mistake of locating in Wisconsin and not Minnesota.  Yet, that isn’t the biggest long-term problem Walker will leave us with.

Walker focused on bringing manufacturing to the state with reduced environmental regulations, an anti union atmosphere, subsidies through his Economic Development Commission and lower taxes. Unfortunately, Wisconsin cannot compete with China and other developing countries for these jobs and Walker’s job creation record attests to his failure.

While Macy’s may charge $80 for a pair of slacks imported from Bangladesh that have about $5 of cost  in them when they arrive in the US, the other $75 of value is added here. Walker focuses on getting manufacturing jobs, Minnesota’s Governor Mark Dayton wisely goes after employers that add the big value to products.

Walker’s white, over 50 , non college graduate core supporters are cheering when he cuts teacher salaries, tries to restrict stem cell research in the state and makes no effort to give Gays equality. However, the college educated upwardly mobile “Idea People” who are the real job creators and value adders in our information age economy migrate to states committed to great schools, supportive of disease fighting research and accepting of Gays having the same rights as everyone else.

Unfortunately for Wisconsin, we have a governor who says he is pro-business. In contrast, Minnesota has one that walks the walk for today’s entrepreneurs. Their job creation records leave no doubt who is most effective.