Your Representatives in the News

Your Reps in the News

State Assembly Representative Garey Bies

Bies and 16 other legislators introduced a bill that would put first-time 17-year-old offenders charged with nonviolent crimes in the juvenile courts system instead of automatically sending them to adult court.

“There is overwhelming research demonstrating that a 17-year-old in the adult system has a much higher rate of recidivism than their peers in the juvenile system,” Bies said. “These kids should have a second chance to change the trajectory of their lives and become responsible adults.”

Source:  Reedsburg Times-Press

Governor Scott Walker

Walker canceled a $500,000 grant to the United Sportsmen of Wisconsin Foundation Inc. because of the group’s ties to Republican politicians, limited experience in teaching fish and game laws and the group’s president’s past citation for hunting with the wrong license.

The grant was meant to promote Wisconsin’s sporting heritage. The United Sportsmen of Wisconsin Foundation was the only bidder, and misrepresented itself as a federal nonprofit in the application.

Source:  The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

U.S. Representative Reid Ribble

Ribble said he’s fully opposed to military action in Syria after attending a briefing by the Obama administration on Monday, Sept. 9.

“I do not believe it is in America’s national security interest to take military measures against Syria even given the atrocities committed by the Assad regime against the Syrian people,” Ribble said. “Until or unless the situation changes, or America’s security interests are truly at risk, I believe we should continue to pursue alternative methods of holding the Assad regime accountable and I would vote ‘no’ on any authorization of military force if it were presented in the House of Representatives.”

Senators Ron Johnson and Tammy Baldwin have also said they oppose military action.

Source:  Fond du Lac Reporter, Baldwin press release

U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin

Baldwin and Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett spoke at a news conference at Great Lakes Week in Milwaukee, where the Great Lakes Commission is holding its annual meeting. They spoke against proposed cuts to the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative program that funds regional environmental cleanup projects.

The current budget cuts would reduce funding from $285 million to $210 million. Baldwin said she wants to maintain the funding at $285 million.

Source:  Green Bay Press Gazette

U.S. Senator Ron Johnson

Johnson responded favorably to Russia’s proposal to put Syrian chemical weapons under international watch in exchange for a promise that the U.S. won’t strike the country.

“If we can avoid military action, that’d be a good thing,” Johnson said. “So let’s really push this hard and put a lot of pressure on Russia to follow through on this. We’re going to have to have verification but this is one [time] that the United Nations [could] come in… utilize UN inspectors.”

Source:  Newsmax

President Barack Obama

Obama went to the G-20 Summit in St. Petersburg, Russia, where leaders from 19 countries met to discuss policy coordination, global economic stability and sustainable growth.

Source:  g20.org