Wisconsin Policy Research Institute

But is time really on Wisconsin’s side? Will LCD display technology still be relevant in 2020? Or will the plant be obsolete the day it opens?

There is mixed evidence on the impact of business incentives, with many studies finding them ineffective and costly. However, recent research has shown that large plant openings can have important spillover effects.

Governments aren’t very good at figuring out which businesses are likely to grow and expand and which are likely to fail.

The Foxconn deal has some appealing qualities — production of a well-known, high-tech product, the promise of thousands of jobs — but, ultimately, it is filled with too much uncertainty to be good for residents of Wisconsin.