The Walker Budget Keeps Working! Part CXLIV

In May 2012, Scott Walker announced his secret, year-old plan to "Transform Milwaukee." He said at the time that he was going to turn his laser-sharp focus on job creation on Milwaukee and rebuild it as the manufacturing capitol of the world.

Well, his budget and polices are taking stronger root and he can honestly claim that he did transform Milwaukee. But just not in the way he said he would:

The brisk pace of manufacturing activity in the Milwaukee area has slowed considerably in the past two months, according to a report today by the Institute for Supply Management-Milwaukee.

August’s seasonally adjusted Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) was 42.9, a big drop from 46.7 in July. A PMI above 50 indicates growth, while a reading below 50 means the industry is generally declining.

The index had been above 50 for three years, until July’s index showed the sector is declining. The PMI was at 60.2 in June.

Sad to say, it's not just Milwaukee that is feeling the Walker effect either. His policies are so bad that it has spread throughout Southeastern Wisconsin and northern Illinois:

Manufacturing in southeastern Wisconsin and northern Illinois shrank in August for only the second time in three years, with new orders declining and production slowing.

That's according to data from a monthly survey of manufacturers released Friday by Marquette University and the local chapter of the Institute for Supply Management.

The survey's index measuring industrial health was 42.9, down from 46.7 in July and much lower than a 60.2 reading in June.

An index score above 50 indicates growth, while below 50 indicates declining conditions. It was the second time the area's seasonally adjusted index fell below 50 since July 2009.

At this pace, it'll be a wonder if any of us has jobs by the time Walker is up for reelection.