STANDING UP FOR THE STATES

The White House was a sea of green yesterday. Literally - they dyed the fountain out front green. And inside, the State Room was packed with people in every shade of emerald, joining the President and Vice President as they welcomed the Prime Minister of Ireland to our own friendly shores. I was already spending the day in the nation's capital for the annual spring meeting of the National Lieutenant Governors Association, and the intergovernmental affairs folks at the White House invited me and a few of my colleagues to swing by the party.

The nation's seconds-in-command are a fun bunch - for instance my colleague Billy Nungusser of Louisiana on the left side of the picture recently sent me a King Cake to celebrate Mardi Gras in true New Orleans style. (He also pardoned a crawfish...) But we also work really hard; in just two days we had meetings with top officials from the new administration, including the Secretaries of Education and Energy and the Medicaid director. Though I loathe to spend any more time in Washington than necessary, it's important that states regularly band together to push for our constitutional guarantees from a federal government all too happy to ignore the Tenth Amendment.

SMALL BUSINESSES COME IN ALL SHAPES AND PLACES

Because I was in D.C. for the balance of the week, I packed a whole lot of activity into Monday. I did a roundtable with the Wisconsin Restaurant Association, hearing from small mom-and-pop shops, large restaurants and franchise conglomerates. Much of the conversation focused on a familiar refrain - "we'd serve more customers and contribute more to the economy if we only had more workers!" I also walked the Midwest Foodservice Expo, taking in the scores of booths catering to the restaurant industry. I applaud these company owners for tackling their workforce challenges head-on by helping develop curriculum for college culinary programs, tech college classes, and even partner high schools.

At the Expo, I confess to spending an outsize amount of time marveling at the cakes in the cake competition. This awesome video game cake did not place, but Kimberly's other cake placed 3rd overall!  Look out for her on the Food Network, as she is going through casting to appear on her 5th Food Network show. Congratulations!

WHY WISCONSIN?

The Governor's conference on tourism was another Monday stop.  Did you know tourism contributes more than $19 billion dollars to our state's economy?!  The conference served as the platform for unveiling our new Wisconsin tourism ad campaign. I like to think tourism is one of our best investments. For every $1 we spend on advertising Wisconsin tourism, we see $8 added to Wisconsin's economy! 

We also made our way to the Milwaukee Business Journal's Central City Awards, which honor companies and leaders making a positive impact in our most urban neighborhoods. For Milwaukee to be safe, healthy, and prosperous, we need more businesses like these award winners, which are employing friends and neighbors, creating wealth, and serving as pillars of their communities. If my day had a theme, it would be the importance of small businesses to our economy. Whether a northwoods mini putt course, a central Wisconsin supper club, or a central city entrepreneur, all of these people are taking risks and driving job growth. Small businesses come in all shapes and places, but they share in common a deep commitment to community and the American dream, and I love them for it.

Forward,

Rebecca Kleefisch
Lt. Governor