MORNING EDITION

So if business gets the property tax cuts the GOP Senate wants to give it, we’ll be swimming in “jobs, jobs, jobs,” right? The AP story by Patrick Condon on Tuesday’s latest pro-business legislation says: “Approved on a party-line vote of 37-26, the bill cuts spending by $580 million toward eliminating the state's $5 billion budget shortfall and eliminates the statewide property tax on businesses entirely over the next dozen years. It also reduces aid to local governments and trims a property tax refund for renters. ‘There are legislatures and governors around this country lowering taxes, making their states more competitive for their employers,’ said Sen. Geoff Michel, R-Edina. ‘We need to engage in that competition.' "

For Forum Communications, Don Davis writes: “The bill would phase out a statewide business property tax, encourage local governments to work together, maintain local aids at 2010 levels and keep state income and sales taxes static. Democrats claim the measure would force local governments to raise property taxes $605 million.”

With Wisconsin's Supreme Court race too close to call this morning, let's look at the interest group spending that got pretty out of hand. Larry Sandler of The Journal-Sentinel writes: “The liberal Greater Wisconsin Committee was still the group spending the most on ads, mainly attacking [incumbent David] Prosser, at $1.36 million. But it was outspent by $2.18 million from conservatives backing Prosser and attacking [JoAnne] Kloppenburg: Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce, $893,990; Citizens for a Strong America, $813,660; Wisconsin Club for Growth, $415,860; and Tea Party of Wisconsin, $53,710.”

There are more rules to huntin’ and fishin’, as T-Paw would say, than to most cell phone contracts. Brian Peterson of the Strib reports: “Antler-point restrictions and party hunting for bucks in southeastern Minnesota — controversial special regulations launched just last fall — would be lifted under a bill approved Tuesday by a key Minnesota House committee. The bill also would allow anglers to use two fishing lines year-round — a move the Department of Natural Resources says could force it to lower the statewide walleye limit. But anglers couldn't troll with two lines, under a change in the bill's language.” Come on, “party hunting for bucks”? That’s a gag, right?

That 27-year-old son of the big contributor? The one with no previous experience, who dropped out of college, has two DUIs and the $81.5K state job in Wisconsin? Well, after word got out and all hell broke loose, cost-cutting Gov. Scott Walker demoted the kid ... back to his old job ... that only pays $62,728 ... or roughly $19,000 more than the average Wisconsin public school teacher. The Milwaukee Journal’s Patrick Marley reports: “His father is Jerry Deschane, executive vice president and longtime lobbyist for the Madison-based Wisconsin Builders Association. The group's political action committee gave $29,000 to Walker and his running mate, Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch, last year, making it one of the top five PAC donors to the governor's successful campaign. Members of the trade group also funneled more than $92,000 through its conduit to Walker's campaign over the past two years. The younger Deschane has no college degree, little management experience and two drunken driving convictions. ... ‘Brian was moved to (the Department of) Commerce at the request of (Regulation and Licensing) Deputy Secretary John Scocos to head up a division that was eventually going to be moved to DRL,’ the statement said. ‘Deputy Secretary Scocos worked with Brian at DRL earlier this year and thought he could help with the transition of the Commerce division to DRL. When Governor Walker learned of the details of this agency staffing decision, he directed his administration to move in another direction." Gov. Walker then backed the bus up and ran over Deputy Secretary Scocos one more time.

Want to see the mug shot of young Mr. Deschane? Here you go.

Predictably, Tim Pawlenty is down with Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan’s “big picture” budget plan. The one that drops tax rates on the wealthiest by one-third, “reforms” Medicaid and Medicare and puts in place a federal pay freeze. Says Jordan Fabian, writing for The Hill, “Pawlenty (R) on Tuesday praised House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) for proposing his tough budget. ‘Thanks to Paul Ryan in Congress, the American people finally have someone offering real leadership in Washington’, the former Minnesota governor said in a statement. ‘President Obama has failed to lead and make tough choices his entire time in the White House.’ ”

T-Paw has also gone a-courting in New Jersey. Jonathan Martin of Politico reports: “Pawlenty, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour have all dined with the first-term governor — each in the hope that Christie will eventually bestow his support, a sort of good housekeeping seal for fiscal conservatives, on him. ... Pawlenty, who brought along his wife, Mary, got good reviews last week from attendees, who described him as more effective in such a small setting than from behind a podium. Romney’s performance was only bolstered by a subsequent $25,000 check his PAC cut to the New Jersey GOP for this fall’s legislative races.”

Today in Bachmannia: Our favorite congresswoman made a rare TV appearance on FoxNews. Maggie Haberman of Politico writes: “Bachmann offered up the ‘wide, extensive life’ she's lived as preparation for the presidency during a grilling by Bill O'Reilly Tuesday night, as the Fox News host asked whether she has the ‘frame of reference’ to deal with tough global issues. ‘The frame of reference required in this world is so extensive’ O'Reilly told Bachmann, adding that that was where Obama had fumbled, and pointing to issues like trade with China and Iran's drive for a nuclear weapon. ‘Do you have the frame of reference to do that?’ he asked the Minnesota congresswoman, who is expected to announce a presidential exploratory committee in about two months. ‘Again, I haven't made the decision [to run], but I do have a very broad extensive background,’ she said. ‘I'm a student of many years, I've studied a number, a wide berth of topics. I sit currently on the Intelligence Committee, we deal with the classified secrets and with the unrest that's occurring around the world. I also sit on the financial services committee. But again, I've lived life. Tomorrow I'll be celebrating my 55th birthday.' "