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Reps in the News: Frostman Announces District Listening Sessions

Senator Caleb Frostman

Sen. Frostman has announced evening sessions as part of his continuing Legislative Library Listening Session series. These listening sessions, which have been held regularly in communities across the 1st Senate District, provide constituents with an opportunity to meet with

their Senator and share any thoughts and concerns they may have about state government. On Oct. 22, from 5 to 6 pm, he’ll be at the Brown County Library-Kress Family Branch in De Pere.

Source:  Frostman press release

 

Senator Tammy Baldwin

Sen. Baldwin joined Senators Sherrod Brown and Chris Murphy in urging the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to fully enforce its “Made in the USA” labeling standards. In their letter, the Senators referenced instances where companies fraudulently affixed “Made in America” labels to foreign-made products. The Senators said mislabeling products not only misleads consumers, but also disadvantages American businesses.

“If the consequences of misusing the ‘Made in the USA’ label do not include paying fines or admitting wrongdoing, it is unlikely that these and other companies will be deterred from using the same deceptive tactics to sell their products in the future,” the Senators wrote. “The value of the ‘Made in the USA’ label is dependent on its integrity. The commission plays a critical role in ensuring that American-made products are truly made in America. We urge you to require the companies in these cases to pay fines and admit they lied. Failure to take decisive action risks weakening the significance of the ‘Made in the USA’ label and undermining American manufacturers.”

The Senators are urging the FTC to consider monetary penalties as well as admission of guilt settlements for companies that import products from countries like China, and then commit these label violations.

Source:  Baldwin press release

 

Senator Ron Johnson

Sen. Johnson said this after the defeat of a vote, forced by Democrats, to overrule a Trump administration rule that restored consumer choice in the short-term limited duration (STLD) insurance market.

“A recent study from eHealth found coverage for a family of three in Milwaukee could cost as little as $1,211 for an STLD plan, compared to $16,374 for an Obamacare plan. STLD plans coexisted with Obamacare for years. Senator Baldwin’s claim that the new rule ‘rewrite[s] the rules on guaranteed health care protections’ is simply false.

“The rule expands affordable options and leaves Obamacare plans’ pre-existing conditions provisions untouched. The reality is that for the forgotten men and women, Obamacare premiums are unaffordable. According to estimates from the Urban Institute, of the 4.3 million who will buy STLD plans, 1.7 million will be those who would otherwise be uninsured. A vote to overturn this rule is a vote against affordable health insurance, and a vote against personal freedom and choice.”

Under Obamacare, premiums in the individual market have doubled and tripled in Wisconsin in some cases, and have more than doubled nationally. For years leading up to the issuance of the Trump administration’s final rule, Sen. Johnson was an outspoken advocate of increasing access to short-term limited duration plans to improve consumer choice and help reduce health care costs.

Source:  Johnson press release

 

President Donald Trump

President Trump slammed climate scientists who have warned about the catastrophic impacts of climate change if forceful action is not taken immediately as “having a political agenda.”

In an interview with 60 Minutes correspondent Lesley Stahl, Trump said Stahl would have to show him the scientists who believe in human-caused climate change “because they have a very big political agenda.”

“I can’t bring them in,” Stahl responded.

Trump refused to retract his comments about climate scientists. “Look, scientists also have a political agenda,” the president repeated.

In the 60 Minutes interview, Trump claimed that taking action against climate change could reduce the number of jobs. He said, “I don’t wanna lose millions and millions of dollars. I don’t wanna be put at a disadvantage.”

In 2017, though, an analysis by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development concluded that the world’s major economies could boost their long-term economic growth by 2.8 percent to 5 percent with policies that lower greenhouse gas emissions and improve resilience to climate change. Failure to act, on the other hand, will result in a loss of jobs and economic output in the long run, the study said.

Last month, for instance, another study found the United States would be the second most impacted economically by climate change, behind India. Meaning the U.S. stands to gain a lot economically by tackling greenhouse gas emissions.

Source:  thinkprogress.com

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