Here & Now

Bob Harlow On His Gubernatorial Run, Healthcare, Foxconn

Frederica Freyberg:

We'll be in Waukesha on Sunday, when Governor Scott Walker makes his re-election announcement. Meanwhile, the field of Democrats running in the primary race is growing. That field includes our next guest, who grew up near Barneveld. Bob Harlow once worked for Republican State Senator Dale Schultz and is now a software engineer. Thanks very much for being here.

Bob Harlow:

Thank you for having me.

Frederica Freyberg:

We wanted to start by asking you what do you think sets you apart from the other Democrats in the field?

Bob Harlow:

Certainly background and I think also vision in the way we’re going about this campaign. This campaign is about bringing Wisconsin together. We’ve seen almost a decade of a divisive governor trying to tear us apart as a state and it has really set us back. We need to come together as Wisconsinites because I know we share a lot more in common than divides us. We all have a vision for a prosperous Wisconsin. And as governor, I will lead our state forward toward that vision.

Frederica Freyberg:

On the issues, what do you think would be the most important thing to make our education system the best it could be?

Bob Harlow:

What we need to do is the technology coming out of our universities is already driving our national economy, but the problem is, you know, that that technology is being licensed to out-of-state companies. We need to find a way to make sure that we can transform that technology into world-class businesses in the state of Wisconsin. And those businesses will bring prosperity to our state. They will give a place for the world-class graduates coming out of our universities to work instead of going out of state. So I would like to see that integrated with our education system. And furthermore, I want to see every Wisconsinite have the opportunity to get the training to do a really good-paying job. There are great-paying jobs being created every day all across the United States, all over the world. I want to see those happen in Wisconsin. And as governor, I will fight to make sure that these good-paying jobs are being created in Wisconsin and that Wisconsinites have the opportunities to get the training and the education to be able to secure those jobs.

Frederica Freyberg:

On health care, would you be in favor of expanded Medicaid in the state of Wisconsin or as some have been talking about BadgerCare for all?

Bob Harlow:

Yes. Certainly every Wisconsinite should have the option to decide if they want to purchase BadgerCare or some other plan. I know BadgerCare will be much more bang for the buck. You’re going to get more care for the buck because in BadgerCare, they’re not spending on these big advertising bills. They don’t have an army of people trying to deny claims. So as governor, one of my priorities will be opening up BadgerCare enrollment for every Wisconsinite who wants to get it in the marketplace.

Frederica Freyberg:

Now, next week the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation is expected to vote on this Foxconn deal. What is your position on that deal? Are you in favor of it or opposed to it?

Bob Harlow:

Opposed in the strongest terms. You know, there are good-paying jobs in the world and there are jobs that don’t pay so well. And an example of a really bad job, someplace you would not want to work, is for Foxconn. The jobs that Foxconn will make in Wisconsin will be $10.80 per hour jobs. Because if they create merely 1,500 of those, they will get over a million dollars of Wisconsin's money for every single one. And that’s what they’re going to do. So it’s going to be very bad jobs, where if Walker gets elected again, he’ll continue to bash and try to dismantle unions and people doing those jobs will have no protections to stand up to Foxconn, who will be able to skirt environmental regulations and public health concerns. And you will see workers who are working jobs that are setting them back economically and where they’re exposed to all kinds of really bad chemicals. So it’s a very bad deal for Wisconsin. As governor, I'm going to fight to bring good-paying jobs to our state, jobs that you can actually raise a family on and get ahead.

Frederica Freyberg:

As for an issue that was vexing during the state budget process, transportation funding. What would you do to have a kind of consistent source of funding for our roads and highways?

Bob Harlow:

We just need to pay for roads and highways. You see a failure of leadership from the Republicans, because they could not figure out — you know, basically they decided they need to give a lot of tax cuts to their rich friends. And so they were incompetent enough that they even figure out how to pay for our roads. It shows they are so beholden to their wealthy donors that they cannot even accomplish basic things for the people of Wisconsin, like maintaining good roads. As governor, I will not have that problem. I will lead our state and make sure that we are doing the things that our citizens need.

Frederica Freyberg:

All right. We need to leave it there. Bob Harlow, thanks very much.

Bob Harlow:

Well, thank you, Frederica.