Welcome to our weekly DC Wrap, where we write about Wisconsin’s congressional delegation. Sign up here to receive the newsletter directly.
Quotes of the week
All I can say is, you know, from my standpoint, I won’t support the nominee. And it would’ve been better to have pulled this quietly quite a while ago. Better to do it now than hold a hearing.
– U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Oshkosh, on Paul Ingrassia’s nomination to lead the Office of Special Counsel after Ingrassia’s racist and antisemitic texts came to light. The nomination has since been withdrawn.
MAGA: Stop calling us Nazis!! Trump’s literal pick to lead the Office of Special Counsel: ‘I do have a Nazi streak in me from time to time, I will admit it’
– U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore, D-Milwaukee, pointing to Ingrassia’s text saying he has “a Nazi streak.”
This week’s news
— House Republicans this week argued U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin and Senate Dems are to blame for the government shutdown as Gov. Tony Evers said nearly 700,000 Wisconsinites could lose access to FoodShare benefits at the end of the month.
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The federal government has been shut down since Oct. 1 as lawmakers in Washington have failed to reach an agreement to extend funding amid a fight over enhanced Affordable Care Act subsidies.
Evers in a statement said Wisconsin families are already struggling, pointing to rising costs and President Donald Trump’s “chaotic trade wars.” He criticized Republicans for the shutdown, which he called “reckless and harmful.”
“There’s no excuse for it. None. No person should ever go hungry—most especially not in the United States of America,” the guv said. “President Trump and Republicans in Congress must work across the aisle and end this shutdown now so Wisconsinites and Americans across our country have access to basic necessities like food and groceries that they need to survive.”
The guv has urged Trump to use federal funding to extend food assistance into November.
U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany, who is running for governor, criticized Evers’ comments as misleading.
“Hey Tony, do you need a civics lesson on the Senate’s 60-vote rule, or are you just trying to mislead Wisconsinites? Democrats have voted 11 times to shut these programs down. Maybe you should ask Senator Baldwin why she is blocking the bipartisan bill and holding them hostage,” Tiffany, R-Minocqua, said.
FoodShare is currently funded through the end of the month. But the Trump administration recently notified states that if the shutdown continues, there will be insufficient funding to cover full November benefits for approximately 42 million people nationally. The administration has directed states to delay issuing benefits to vendors for November until further notice.
Department of Health Services Secretary Kirsten Johnson said FoodShare recipients should know benefits may not be available on their QUEST cards in November.
“This may include any funds remaining on your card at the end of October,” Johnson said. “Members who have benefits on their cards may want to stock up on food items that don’t go bad—canned goods, boxed items, with their benefits before the end of October.”
DHS is notifying FoodShare members this week of the potential delay. Wisconsin WIC, which provides special supplemental nutrition assistance to women, infants and children, remains available.
U.S. Rep. Tony Wied, R-De Pere, told WisPolitics House Republicans voted for a clean continuing resolution to keep the government open and ensure programs like FoodShare continue without interruption.
“Unfortunately, Senate Democrats, including our Senator Tammy Baldwin, have chosen to hold Wisconsinites’ access to food hostage by voting to shut down the government a dozen times,” Wied said. “It is unconscionable that they would continue to play political games while the American people suffer.”
Meanwhile, U.S. Rep. Derrick Van Orden, R-Prairie du Chien, said “the so-called ‘Education Governor’ needs a math lesson if he thinks Republicans caused the Schumer Shutdown.”
“There are 53 Senate Republicans, 45 Democrats, and 2 Independents. It takes 60 votes to pass the CR, you do the math,” Van Orden said.
Baldwin has repeatedly voted for Dems’ proposal to reopen the government. She and other Dems have pushed for enhanced tax credits under the ACA to be extended to avoid price hikes.
“We need to open our government, ensure Wisconsin families are fed, and stop 270,000 Wisconsinites from seeing their health care premiums double. I’ve voted to do just that,” Baldwin said. “Wisconsin’s House Republicans – who all voted for the largest cut to SNAP in history – have been on vacation for weeks instead of joining me in Washington so we can reopen the government, ensure families can put food on the table, and save Wisconsinites’ health care.”
— U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore criticized President Trump after a man Trump pardoned for his involvement in violent protests at the U.S. Capitol in 2021 threatened to kill House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y.
“Trump’s blanket pardons for January 6th rioters put violent criminals back on the streets and emboldened extremists,” the Milwaukee Dem said in a post on X. “For too long, Republicans have excused even Trump’s most grotesque & corrupt behavior. Every Republican should be condemning these pardons that directly led to threats to kill @RepJeffries.”
Jeffries in a statement noted Trump pardoned Christopher Moynihan, who was arrested for the threat, on his first day in office.
“Since the blanket pardon that occurred earlier this year, many of the criminals released have committed additional crimes throughout the country,” Jeffries said. “Unfortunately, our brave men and women in law enforcement are being forced to spend their time keeping our communities safe from these violent individuals who should never have been pardoned.”
— GOP U.S. Rep. Bryan Steil says “the administration is in a very difficult position” when asked if he backs efforts to potentially fire up to 10,000 federal employees during the government shutdown.
“I don’t know that there’s anything unusual in a shutdown; there’s been very few of them over the years,” the Janesville Republican told WISN 12’s “UpFront,” produced in partnership with WisPolitics-State Affairs. “It’s frustrating that we’re in this position to begin with. Of course, there’s well over a million federal employees outside of the military. I think there’s opportunities for efficiencies to be created inside our federal government workforce. That said, the best way to do this is through a thoughtful, structured process while the government is open.”
Democrats have demanded that subsidies for the Affordable Care Act be preserved as part of an overall deal to reopen the government. Senate Majority Leader John Thune said last week he would guarantee Democrats a vote on subsidies if they first voted for the continuing resolution that passed the U.S. House.
U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore, D-Milwaukee, on the show scoffed at Republicans’ proposal to pass a clean funding resolution followed by a vote on ACA subsidies.
“Oh, excuse me,” Moore said. “I just had to take a sip of water to keep from choking on their word. Rep. Johnson, the Speaker of the House, has already said that he is going to do another rescissions package. They have cut money for health care funding, research, NIH funding, for ‘Sesame Street,’ public broadcasting. They’ve destroyed the State Department, and they have promised that it’s just as soon as we pass this continuing resolution, they’re going to put through yet another rescissions package. And so this is, what do you call it, a three-card monte game with their word? We need it on paper.”
— The Senate is set to vote today on U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson’s bill that would ensure troops and certain federal workers are paid amid the government shutdown.
“If Democrats vote for a 12th time to keep the government shut down, they should at least vote to pay those who are still working. It’s common sense and common courtesy — there’s no excuse to oppose the Shutdown Fairness Act,” Johnson, R-Oshkosh, said of the bill.
Posts of the week
ICYMI
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Wisconsin congressman floats bill that could cut Milwaukee County’s federal transit funds, due to fare evasion policy
WORT: Representative Mark Pocan on Free Speech and the Government Shutdown
Daily Dodge: Tammy Baldwin demands rail safety action after second Reeseville train derailment
WPR: Van Orden has slight fundraising edge over Cooke in 3rd District race
