Speeches from the 2012 Republican National Convention

Scott Walker
Remarks to the 2012 Republican National Convention
Tampa Bay, Florida
August 28, 2012

Thank you and good evening.

On June 5th, voters in Wisconsin were asked to choose between going backwards to the days of double-digit tax increases, billion dollar budget deficits and record job losses

Or moving forward with reforms that lowered the tax burden, balanced the budget and helped small businesses create more jobs.

On June 5th, voters in my swing state were asked to decide if they wanted elected officials who measure success by how many people are dependent on the government.

Or if they wanted leaders who believe success is measured by how many people are not dependent on the government, because they control their own destiny in the private sector.

On June 5th, voters in Wisconsin got to determine who was in charge – was it the big government special interests in Washington… or the hard-working tax payers of our state.

The good news is that – on June 5th – the hard-working taxpayers won.

Just ask Sandy Breth why that's important.

When the economy took a dive a few years ago, she took a pay cut. Not long after that, she lost her job. Today, however, she's working at G3 Industries in Mosinee, Wisconsin. In fact, she just received a promotion.

G3 is one of those companies that added jobs during the past year, and now has plans to add even more. The owner told me that he's creating additional jobs in Wisconsin because he likes the way we are moving our state forward – and he's even more committed since the election.

Without our positive changes, he told me he would not have had the confidence to grow his business in Wisconsin.

Improving the business climate is not only good for small business owners; it's good for people like Sandy and her family.

We need more stories like hers in America because the past couple of years have been well, pretty tough.

Like many places across the country, Wisconsin lost more than 100,000 jobs from 2008 to 2010. Unemployment during that time topped out at over 9%.

But because of our reforms, Wisconsin has added thousands of new jobs and our unemployment rate is down from when I first took office.

Equally as important, we improved the economic climate for job creators.

Today, 94 percent of our employers believe Wisconsin is headed in the right direction. That compares to just 10% who thought the same thing two years ago.

Elections have consequences!

As was the case in Wisconsin two years ago, too many Americans think our country is headed in the wrong direction.

But Mitt Romney understands, like I understand, that people – not governments – create jobs.

With that in mind, my Administration is making it easier for people to create jobs in Wisconsin.

Our reforms put the hard working taxpayers back in charge – people like Sandy Breth.

Sadly, the federal government seems to be going in the opposite direction.

Nationally, we've experienced 42 consecutive months of unemployment above 8%. Last month, 44 of the 50 states saw an increase in the unemployment rate. And more than 12 million of our fellow citizens are unemployed.

We need someone to turn things around in America.

That leader is Governor Mitt Romney.

Mitt Romney turned businesses around in the private sector. He saved the Winter Olympics.

And he balanced state budgets without raising taxes, and in a way that helped the private sector create more jobs.

Then, with the announcement of Paul Ryan as his running mate, Governor Romney not only showed that he has the experience and the skill needed to become president, he showed he has the courage and the passion to be an exceptional president.

With this pick he showed us that the "R" next to his name doesn't just stand for Republican, it stands for Reformer.

Now, more than ever, we need reformers: leaders who think more about the next generation than just the next election.

That's what you get from Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan.

In a few weeks, we will celebrate the 225th anniversary of our federal Constitution. Moments like that remind us that what makes America so great, what makes us exceptional, is that throughout our history, in moments of crisis, be they economic or fiscal, military or spiritual.

What makes America amazing is that there have always been men and women of courage who were willing to think more about the future of their children and grandchildren than they did about their own political careers.

Let this be one of those moments. Let this be our time in history so that someday we can tell our children and grandchildren that we were there, that we changed the course of history for the better.

Let us tell them that we helped elect Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan to save America.

Thank you.

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