The Milwaukee Post

September 6, 2013 • Milwaukee Post • 9 OPINION Kenosha casino facing long odds Republicans breaking ranks with Walker over Menominee plan In an economy as listless as this one, it isn't just stupid to reject a project that would create 3,000 permanent and another 1,500 construction jobs. It's a betrayal of Wisconsin's best interests. It's the sort of thing Democrats do all the time (like the northern Wisconsin mine). That's why it's appalling Governor Scott Walker, a pro-jobs Republican, isn't backing the proposed Menominee Indian casino in Kenosha. States don't get to pick their industries. Not everybody can get an Apple tech center or another Northwestern Mutual. You sometimes have to take on employers with issues, like the G-Tac mine. In this case, the huge job producer is an Indian casino. True, only tribes get to have casinos in this state and much of their success comes from competing with existing businesses. Gambling creates societal problems because some people get addicted. But, in the end, so what? Barack Obama's miserable economy isn't producing new jobs or any economic growth. We can't afford to stick our elitist noses in the air and accept only "perfect" jobs created by saintly companies. Walker is going to be hard-pressed to make good on his pledge to create 250,000 new jobs in the state by the end of his first term. It's not his fault. It's hard for any state to produce new jobs in a stagnant national economy particularly one with , new job-killing laws like Obamacare. But that's precisely why he shouldn't be snubbing the casino. This project has enormous potential. The site – the old dog track on I-94 at Highway 158 – is huge and can accommodate all sorts of future growth. Its location is within 70 miles of almost all of southeast Wisconsin and affluent northern Illinois. The casino would dwarf the small ones in suburban Chicago. The site is as good as the Milwaukee Potawatomi site is bad. The Milwaukee casino has done virtually nothing for the region because its location in the Menomonee Valley is too far away from downtown and not suitable for adjacent development. The Kenosha casino, by contrast, could spur even more development in the already booming corridor that runs from the outlet malls to the south and the booming Highway 50 interchange in the center. Walker must surely know this. He's been obsessed with job creation. Every time a machine shop hires 11 new workers, Walker shows up to celebrate. He's cut more ribbons than most scissors in department store gift wrap departments. That's why his stance on Kenosha is so aberrant and so disappointing. The governor says he wants a "consensus" of the other state tribes. But that will never happen. The other tribes don't want competition. It'd be like asking McDonald's if it wanted a Burger King next door. Walker's criteria are impossible to achieve. He's setting a bar so high that it can't be crossed. The only explanation for this is that the governor is kissing up to the tribes that have traditionally donated fortunes to Democrats. By opposing the Kenosha casino, Walker is likely to get the Ho-Chunk, Potawatomi and Oneida to stay out of the 2014 elections. What an absolutely terrible reason for throwing away thousands of good-paying, family-sustaining jobs. Expect the airwaves to soon be flooded with anti-casino ads to give Walker cover. A group calling itself "Enough Already , Wisconsin" has formed to oppose the Kenosha plan. Spokesman Brian Nemoir won't say where he's getting the money from. But a good bet is that it is coming from the Potawatomi and other tribes that already have their casinos. It is hard to imagine anything more sanctimoniously hypocritical than demanding "enough already" right after you've gotten your own casino. A handful of state Republicans are starting to buck Walker, including a couple from the Kenosha area and maverick Fox Valley state Senator Mike Ellis. He mocked Walker's position by rightly saying Hunting season is underway By REP JOEL KLEEFISCH . Despite the popular notion that construction is Wisconsin's fifth season, for thousands throughout the great state, the hunting season is a much more anticipated time. Well, it's literally around the calendar's corner. Sunday marked the official start of hunting season with the early Canada goose harvest. Once that's underway, it takes a Philadelphia lawyer to keep up with the barrage of opportunities for Wisconsinites to enjoy our state's fantastic outdoor heritage and even put food on the table. While the Department of Natural Resources is a curse word around many family dinner tables, I'd be remiss not to mention Secretary Cathy Stepp is trying to simplify the way the department operates and the ease with which hunters and anglers can get into the outdoors. Nearly all hunting and fishing licenses, tags, applications and hunting lottery drawings can easily be accessed on the DNR website at www.widnr.gov. Many bag limits have loosened as well. Be sure to keep updated on the latest changes so if you encounter a warden in the field, they have no excuse to give you a ticket. That said, the website is no Facebook for user friendliness, however, it's actually pretty easy to call the DNR at 1-888-9367463. Believe it or not, you won't usually get stuck in voice jail. There's also a chunk of legislation pending that could change things this year. It seems a compromise on the crossbow hunting bill will make it to the governor's desk during the bow season. There's also a bill to loosen regulations while hunting with a bow. In addition, changes to the concealed-carry law allow for transportation of uncased and unloaded long guns in vehicles. If you hold a concealed-carry permit, you will also have an increased ability to carry in state parks, wildlife refuges, and while hunting. Ten new lakes are also available for open water duck hunting. If you don't yet have your hunters' safety certification you can, yes can, still hunt through the state's Mentored STANDING UP Hunting Program as young as 10 years old. There are specific rules for that so check them out. My wife, Becky, is taking the online hunters' safety course and has her field test soon. Let me tell you, the course on the Web is fantastic. I have been watching it with her and it is thorough and a great refresher for the seasoned hunter. Finally, don't forget to take advantage of reduced license fees. These are available to first-time hunters or those who recruit three first-time hunters, trappers, or anglers. So, if you're as serious as camouflage face paint and sleeping in a hermetically sealed, scent-free capsule before the hunt, or just want an excuse to get out and smell the freedom of gunpowder in the morning, be sure to be safe and have a great hunting season. (State Rep. Joel Kleefisch represents the 38th Assembly District, covering the Town of Oconomowoc and parts of Dodge and Jefferson counties. He can be reached at Rep.Kleefisch@legis.wisconsin.gov.) for MILWAUKEE MARK BELLING Republicans are supposed to support competition, not stifle it. But Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, whose district is very close to the Kenosha site and whose constituents would greatly benefit, has been mum. State Democrats have made fools of themselves fighting the Iron County mine that will produce an economic windfall and help the struggling Milwaukee-area mining equipment industry The party that claims . to stand for the middle class is fighting a mine project that will create a treasure trove of unionized, high-paying jobs and bring prosperity to a part of the state that needs it. Its environmental objections are red herrings from a party that can't stand to see a major jobs success happen under Walker's watch. But Walker and the GOP look just as terrible bucking the Kenosha casino. Every now and then an issue comes around that forces people to be true to their stated ideologies and principles. Any supposed economic conservative who doesn't back the Kenosha casino looks like a phony . That includes Governor Walker. (Mark Belling is the host of a daily WISN radio talk show. His column appears weekly in the Milwaukee Post. Bankruptcy judge OKs Anchor BanCorp's reorganization plan Post Staff MILWAUKEE – Anchor BanCorp Wisconsin Inc.'s reorganization plan was approved by a judge in Madison on Aug. 30. The Chapter 11 plan was approved by U.S. Bankruptcy Court Chief Judge Robert Martin. And under the plan, a group of lenders led by U.S. Bank will cancel $183 million that Anchor BanCorp owes them in exchange for $49 million in cash. The U.S. Treasury also agreed to wipe out the $139 million Anchor owes on its Troubled Assets Relief Program investment in exchange for about $6 million in new common stock that would be issued under a restructuring plan. Anchor BanCorp is the parent company of Anchor Bank. Now that the bank's reorganization plan has been approved, Anchor BanCorp only needs the Federal Reserve's OK to implement a $175 million recapitalization plan.

• Cover