It is fair to say the New Badger Partnership has ruffled some feathers across the state. Members of other Wisconsin state universities have said the plan to break UW-Madison from the UW System will hinder its ability to properly function. The campus far left has called the plan an attempt to privatize the university. State Rep. Steve Nass, R-Whitewater, has made it his mission to stop the initiative, announcing Tuesday his quest to remove the New Badger Partnership from the upcoming budget proceedings.
None of these complaints have proven particularly credible—especially those from Nass, considering he would likely oppose a cure for the common cold if he knew it came from UW-Madison. What bothered us the most was Joint Finance Committee Co-Chair State Rep. Robin Vos' statement earlier this week that the New Badger Partnership was ""a lot for [the legislature] to think about,"" and that it might be too large a task to tackle in the current budget cycle.
It must be difficult for Vos to keep up with the ongoing budget crisis after he and the rest of the state government exhausted themselves stripping the state's spoiled teachers and prison guards of their collective bargaining rights. But it's hard to feel sympathy for an elected official whose reason for possibly stalling worthwhile and necessary restructuring of the Wisconsin university infrastructure is, ""Government is hard.""
But more important than Vos' patently ridiculous excuse is the lie beneath it. This is not about a lack of time. This is about UW System schools putting pressure on their local representatives. And that pressure is about money, plain and simple.
If you want to throw the brakes on the New Badger Partnership, fine. Nass and Vos can proceed with their shortsighted pandering, but if that's the path they choose to take they better be prepared to show us some cash.
Mike Mikalsen, spokesman for Nass' office, told The Daily Cardinal the budget cuts and the New Badger Partnership are separate matters that don't necessarily go together. But considering that the UW administration's entire plan to deal with these budget cuts revolves around the New Badger Partnership and the cost-saving measures contained therein, this is simply not true.
In Gov. Scott Walker's proposed budget, UW-Madison is slotted to take half of the $250 million in cuts to the whole UW system, despite the fact that it only accounts for 38 percent of the funding. You don't need to be a math major to realize this isn't a fair split—that's why the New Badger Partnership was put forth: To give Chancellor Biddy Martin and UW-Madison administration the necessary tools to deal with a greater share of the burden.
Oh, and by the way: You're welcome, other UW System campuses, for taking that load off your backs. We await your thank you card in the mail with baited breath.
As much as we love our fellow UW System schools, it does Wisconsin no good to keep the state's local campuses at the status quo while the crown jewel gets crippled. Either let UW-Madison handle its unduly large share of cuts in its own way or spread the pain equally.
It's really that simple, legislators. Give UW-Madison the autonomy it desires or give us $25 million. The third option is to turn UW-Madison into the Midwest's pre-eminent safety school. It's obvious to us that last option is one to avoid. Trust us, we get a pretty good education here—at least, for now.
