Your Representatives in the News

State Representative Garey Bies

Bies is author of a bill that would include all inhaled substances in Wisconsin’s Operating While Intoxicated (OWI) law.

Currently, a person who huffs a chemical and drives may be protected from an OWI penalty because the law doesn’t cover every intoxicating chemical.

The bill was heard by the Senate Transportation, Public Safety, Veterans and Military Affairs Committee.

Source:  Wisconsin Radio Network

Governor Scott Walker

Walker defended Act 10, which repealed most collective bargaining for public employees, at a gathering of government research group representatives on July 29. He said Act 10 helped turn the state’s budget deficit into a surplus.

Walker also said that if other states had followed Wisconsin’s lead, they would have better economies.

“If Detroit were in Wisconsin, Detroit wouldn’t be claiming bankruptcy right now,” Walker said. “If [Chicago Mayor] Rahm Emmanuel were in Wisconsin, he would be able to do what he wants with school reform.”

Two protestors were forced to leave the event.

Source:  Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

U.S. Senator Ron Johnson

After the city of Detroit declared bankruptcy, Johnson wrote a column urging Congress to deny the city any federal funds.

“Detroit’s failure is rooted in an unholy alliance between politicians and public sector unions,” Johnson wrote. “Its 47 municipal unions spent their members’ dues to elect public officials who then ‘negotiated’ with those same unions for overly generous contracts that resulted in bankruptcy.”

Johnson likened the city’s bankruptcy to the federal debt crisis.

Source:  Johnson’s column published on USA Today

U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin

Baldwin voiced support for the U.S. Senate’s immigration reform bill, which passed with votes from both parties. The bill provides a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants, increases border control, raises the cap on high-skilled visas, allows up to 200,000 guest workers a year, changes the Family Visa Program and requires employers to verify workers’ status.

“We’ve got to see action, and, frankly, citizens play a big role when they speak out and insist on Congress getting its act together and facing the real challenges that they face on a day-to-day basis,” Baldwin said.

At press time, the U.S. House of Representatives hadn’t voted on the bill.

Source:  Fox6now

U.S. Representative Reid Ribble

On July 11, Ribble sent a letter to the chair of the Surface Transportation Board asking him to review the board’s policies that cause some areas of the country to pay more for shipping goods such as coal and timber. Some rail stations are only allowed to be serviced by Class 1 railroad companies, which cuts down on competition and can raise prices.

“Northeastern Wisconsin’s economy relies primarily on heavy manufacturing and agriculture, including the timber, pulp and paper, and energy sectors,” Ribble said. “These industries often rely on rail service to ship their raw materials and finished products. Unfortunately, 88 percent of Wisconsin and 97 percent of the 8th District is captive and only served by one company.”

Source:  Ribble press release

President Barack Obama

At press time, Obama was scheduled to host Yemeni President Abdo Rabby Mansour Hadi on Thursday, Aug. 1. The presidents will discuss counterterrorism efforts, Yemen’s political transition and returning Yemeni detainees held at Guantanamo Bay.

Source:  Huffington Post