Madison, Wis. – The Institute for Reforming Government’s Honorary Chairman Gov. Scott Walker appeared on WTAQ’s John Muir show this week to highlight IRG’s expansion efforts to implement bold conservative reforms in Wisconsin. Gov. Walker also announced the addition of new IRG president, C.J. Szafir, who was previously vice president of Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty.
Listen to the interview on WTAQ radio here. Excerpts of the interview are below:
John Muir: “John Muir show. It is 10:35 a.m. and we head to the phone lines and we’re glad to be joined by a guest who I have a feeling a lot of you know, and are going to be glad to hear from. He is the honorary chairman at the Institute for Reforming Government whose stated purpose is to advocate for tax reform and also oppose both government inefficiencies and burdensome regulations.
“You might know him better as being the former governor of the state of Wisconsin and a good friend of the John Muir show, Scott Walker. Governor Walker, thank you very much for your time today. Great to have you back. It’s been far too long. So, before we get into everything, I’m sure a lot of the folks are wondering, and I’m wondering, how you’ve been?”
Gov. Scott Walker: “Oh, we’re doing extremely well, obviously crazy times and that’s why it’s fun to get back to work. With IRG [if] folks want to learn about it, reforminggovernment.org, but, working there and getting ready to take on the role as the President of the YAF Young America’s Foundation, which was a group started by William F. Buckley and one of the early leaders with Reagan.
“Just more than anything, making sure our reforms, the things we collectively worked so hard on those of us who believe in free enterprise and individual liberties. We’ve worked so hard over the last decade, that they continue to stay true here in Wisconsin, around the country. So, we’re doing well…”
John Muir: “Well, very glad to hear it. What you just touched on about everything that, you know, you’d accomplish during your time as governor. I want to get to that in depth in just a minute, but before we do, because I’ve told folks you’re now the honorary chairman at the Institute for Reforming Government talk just briefly there in that open about what it is that the organization is advocating for, but if you could tell us a little bit more about the work that the group has going on and is planning to do going forward. Fill us in, please.”
Gov. Scott Walker: “Yeah and that’s why I encourage folks to go to reforminggovernment.org, because the Institute itself was started a couple of years ago. We were looking ahead in 2018 to pushing massive tax reform, things like my friend John Macco from the Green Bay area has been working on, massive tax reform.
“And of course, we didn’t get that chance after the 2018 election, but last year really looked at this and said, we’ve done so much in arguably, a blue state we temporarily turned purple. We did probably as much or more reform on the conservative side of things than even some of the reddest States in America. So, we didn’t want to see that slip away. Thankfully through the work of IRG, working with the great Republican leadership in the assembly and the Senate, Act 10, and all the positive reforms, the more than $12 billion of savings since 2011 is still intact. We have a rainy day fund we left that was 190 times bigger than when we got there. We provided tax relief.
“We’ve got all the things that were needed now, more than ever, but that’s precisely why we’ve taken the next step up. We knew over the last few months with the shutdown and everything involved there, that we need to step it up going into this next budget. There’s going to be huge holes in terms of revenue.
“And we want to make sure that the current governor and the left, left-wing folks in Madison don’t have their way. And instead we push real, true, common sense, innovative reforms. And so, we were pleased to bring CJ Szafir who’s been up until recently the Executive Vice President at WILL, The Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty, to become the new President of IRG. And we’re excited about it.”
