Representatives in the News

Governor Scott Walker

The nation’s largest public sector union is mounting an intense effort to eject Walker from office this fall. “We have a score to settle with Scott Walker,” Lee Saunders, president of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, said in his first interview about the union’s midterm strategy. “He took collective bargaining away from us,” Saunders added, noting that the union was first started in the 1930s by state employees in Madison. “He stole our voices, in a state where we were born.” A spokeswoman for Walker, who is in a tough re-election fight, did not respond to requests for comment.

Source:  The Washington Post

Congressman Reid Ribble

Ribble, along with both Wisconsin U.S. Senators and several members of the Wisconsin congressional delegation, will sponsor the annual Academy Day in Oshkosh, and they invite any young women and men, as well as teachers and parents, to attend in order to learn more about opportunities available at our nation’s distinguished service academies.
 Representatives from four of the nation’s service academies will be available from 9:30 am to 12:30 pm on Saturday, Sept. 20, at the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) Education Center in Oshkosh. The academies include the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo.; the United States Merchant Marine Academy in Kings Point, N.Y.; the United States Military Academy at West Point, N.Y.; and the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis, Md. Representatives from the United States Coast Guard Academy will also attend to answer questions about their application process, which does not include a congressional nomination.

 Representatives of the academies will answer questions from students or parents about the schools or about procedures for seeking a congressional nomination to the academies. Students, families and educators will have the opportunity to talk one-on-one with Wisconsin cadets or midshipmen now attending the academies.

 Advanced registration is not required. To learn more, visit Ribble’s military nominations webpage.

Source:  Ribble press release

Senator Tammy Baldwin

Baldwin has introduced two bills to address the larger issue of student debt and college affordability. The legislation targets students who work their way through school and students enrolled in Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs. Baldwin recently traveled across Wisconsin, meeting with students and recent graduates who are struggling with the cost of a higher education. “Student loan debt is holding back an entire generation and creating a drag on economic growth for our country,” said Baldwin. “I’m proud to introduce legislation to help ensure that more students, in particular those who work while in school, have the opportunity to earn an affordable higher education, attain important in-demand skills, and succeed in the work force.” Currently, students who work while attending school often are eligible for less financial aid due to their work income. Baldwin’s Working Student Act will allow students who must work while in college to complete their degrees more quickly and with less debt. The new legislation increases the amount working students can earn without that income counting against them in accessing need-based federal financial aid, including Pell Grants. In addition, Baldwin’s CTE Opportunity Act extends eligibility for federal student loans to short-term Career and Technical Education programs which do not meet the current program length requirements under Title IV of the Higher Education Act. This extended eligibility for federal aid provides increased access to courses that provide students with the industry-recognized credentials that employers are looking for.

Source:  Baldwin press release

Senator Ron Johnson

Johnson made these remarks after President Obama’s Sept. 10 speech on military action against ISIS:  “I will support strong and resolute action to destroy the growing threat that ISIS and global terrorism represent to America. Tonight’s speech was a necessary step in describing those threats and stating that America’s goal is the destruction of ISIS. It is crucial that President Obama and the American public remain totally committed to achieving that goal. I will review the president’s plan carefully in the coming days.”

Source:  Johnson press release

President Barack Obama

The Barack Obama Foundation announced the finalists for Obama’s presidential library and museum:  the University of Chicago; the University of Illinois at Chicago; Columbia University and the University of Hawaii. The University of Chicago and the University of Illinois at Chicago offered the foundation a choice of several sites in their proposals. The Chicago-based foundation also released a “request for proposal,” providing for the first time much more detail about what President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle have in mind for the institution to hold the documents from the Obamas’ White House tenure; present exhibits and programs about the Obama administration and provide a home for their future activities. One significant item in the proposal: bidders must provide a “vision” for an “academic collaboration that will enhance the pursuit of the President’s initiatives beyond 2017. The academic collaboration will include an Institute and possibly a degree-seeking program. An Institute may include academic research, undergraduate coursework offered in collaboration with existing academic departments, infrastructure to achieve real world impact and/or collaboration with partner universities.” The proposal is due on Dec. 11 and includes a request to detail financial commitments. The board will present recommendations to the First Couple in early 2015.

Source:  Chicago Sun-Times