Message from Congressman Scott Fitzgerald

Good afternoon!

There’s a lot to recap from last week—so let’s get right into it.

On Saturday afternoon, Congress considered and ultimately passed a Continuing Resolution to fund the government that lacked the strong border security provisions the House had considered the day prior.  

In divided government, the appropriations process is one of the few avenues we have to make meaningful changes to the disastrous situation President Biden has created at our southern border. On Friday, the House considered government funding legislation that would have immediately restarted border wall construction and implemented some of the toughest border security policies in recent memory to deal with the ongoing crisis. However, not a single House Democrat joined us in that effort, and unfortunately, the vote came up short.  

The very next day, on Saturday afternoon and with few options left, the House considered legislation to fund the government without the border security provisions. Knowing that border security is one of the biggest issues we face as Americans, I could not support this funding legislation (called the “CR”) with those provisions missing, and so I voted against it.     

Despite my opposition, the CR passed the House and was later signed into law by the President. This effectively funds the government for 45 more days, during which time Congress will work to pass the remaining appropriations bills to fund the U.S. government past that point.

I’m back in Washington, DC today working on the remaining appropriations bills. I want to say thank you to everyone in the Fifth District who called my office throughout last week and on Saturday to give your support and voice your opinions around government funding. I’m here to represent your interests so I always appreciate the thoughtful input.

Keep reading on for important district updates and more details on the committee business I worked on last week. 

Have a great week!

- Scott 

Government Funding Update

Last week, House Republicans delivered big wins in passing three appropriations bills for the Department of Defense, the Department of Homeland Security, and State and Foreign Operations. The House has now passed four appropriations bills, while the Senate has not passed any. These bills set the stage for further funding negotiations with the Senate in the coming weeks.

These bills included a pay increase for service members, eliminated taxpayer funding for abortions, and secured additional funds for border patrol and wall construction, just to name a few. Notably, there was also no funding for Ukraine included in these bills—funding which I strongly oppose in the absence of legitimate oversight and defined end goals.

On September 29, I voted in favor of H.R. 5525, which would hold defense, veterans, and homeland security funding at current levels, while taking a 30% cut to other discretionary programs for 30 days. The bill also contained permanent changes to secure the border, such as requiring an immediate restart of border wall construction using previously unappropriated funds, providing retention bonuses and hiring 22,000 Border Patrol agents, and ending “catch and release” by ensuring that detention for the pendency of their immigration court proceedings.

Unfortunately, that continuing resolution failed. Democrats unanimously voted against this resolution to fund the government and secure our border.

This pushed the House into a difficult position and forced a continuing resolution proposal to the floor with no additional resources to secure our border—a proposal I simply could not support.

Reckless border policies continue to harm our communities with the flow of illicit drugs and fentanyl. The Saturday CR is full of the same policies that have led to the disastrous border crisis, spiked inflation, undercut domestic energy production, and weaponized federal agencies.

President Biden and Democrats in Congress must negotiate in good faith with House Republicans to fund our government at responsible levels and address the crisis at the border. I look forward to continuing to work with my colleagues to that end.

Update on Impeachment Inquiry

Since January, the House Republicans have…

• Uncovered how the Bidens and their associates created over 20 shell companies and raked in over $24 million dollars from China and other foreign countries
• Identified nine members of the Biden family who have participated or benefited from the business schemes
• Confirmed that Joe Biden interacted with his family’s business associates at least two dozen times.

We now know that at least ten times, Joe Biden told the American people that he never spoke to his family about their business dealings. The evidence, which includes witness testimony, says that’s a lie.

He also lied by telling the American people that there was an “absolute wall” between his official government duties and his personal life.

And the newest information released last week? House Republicans uncovered two additional wires sent to Hunter Biden that originated in Beijing from Chinese nationals. This happened when Joe Biden was running for President of the United States.

And the address listed as the beneficiary? Joe Biden’s home.

These are all facts. Although Democrats will try to distract you with false narratives, Republicans will stay focused on the indisputable black and white facts.

To that end, Chairman of the Oversight Committee, Rep. James Comer, announced last week that he is issuing subpoenas for Hunter and James Biden’s personal and business bank records. This is an important step in our fact-finding mission to uncover the full extent of President Biden’s involvement in his son’s business dealings.

You deserve the truth, and I intend to help uncover it here in Congress.

Judiciary Committee Field Hearing on Violent Crime

Communities across our country have seen a spike in violent crime over the past few years under Democrat leadership. To that end, the House Judiciary Committee held a field hearing in Chicago last week to address the issue on the ground.

In 2022, Chicago had 697 total homicides, making it the murder capital of the United States for eleven years in a row. While the 2022 total was down from 2021, it is still the fourth-most homicides that the city has seen since 1999, and overall violent crime was up 1.5 percent in 2022.

If you drive about 90 minutes north, you’ll reach our Congressional district on the outskirts of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Milwaukee, like Chicago, has seen a spike in violent crime since 2019.

In 2022, Milwaukee had a record 215 homicides, an 11 percent increase from 2021. Similarly, in 2021, violent felony offenses in Wisconsin reached record highs.

I spoke at the field hearing with Lt. John Garrido III, a retired Chicago police detective, and Carlos Yanez, Jr., a retired Chicago police officer, about the important relationship between police officers and communities. Despite the Democrats defund the police narrative, these communities want police present in their neighborhoods. You can watch our conversation here.

Financial Services Committee Hearing with SEC Chair Gary Gensler

Since taking over as SEC Chair under the Biden Administration, Gary Gensler has issued new rules and regulations at an alarming pace.

Many of these rulemakings are outside the regulator’s statutory authority, particularly following the Supreme Court’s recent ruling in West Virginia v. EPA. In that case, the Court held that under the major questions doctrine, a government agency must point to clear congressional authorization for its actions; it cannot simply create new interpretations of existing law to justify far-reaching policy changes that Congress never intended.

Last week, Mr. Gensler testified before the House Financial Services Committee, and I spoke to him about several of his agency's rule makings.

A recent study analyzing the SEC’s rule making agenda found 39 rule proposals—83%—were not required by congressional statute. Many of these proposals overlap and could have unintended consequences that risk undermining our capital markets. 

You can watch my Q&A with Chair Gensler here but let’s be clear, the SEC’s actions outside of their authority hurts our economy and families’ retirement savings.

Green & Gold Congressional Aide Program

ICYMI, my office is seeking a veteran for a position in WI-05’s Oconomowoc district office. If you or a person you know are interested, I encourage you to apply!

The person chosen for the special position will work with military and veteran constituents to handle veterans-related casework and act as a facilitator between constituents and federal, state, and local agencies.

The Green & Gold Congressional Aide Program was established by the House of Representatives to provide employment opportunities for veterans within member offices.

The program is limited to veterans who meet all of the following requirements:

1. Honorably discharged
2. Released from active duty within the last six years
3. Terminal pay grades at or below E-5, O-3, or W-2
4. Veterans promoted to the pay grades of E-6, O-4, and W-3 within 6-months of separation from active duty are eligible, granted they meet ALL other eligibility requirements.
5. Veterans who are in receipt of a 20-year or Temporary Early Retirement Authorization (TERA) retirement are not eligible for the program.

Click here to learn more about the job posting.

That’s a wrap for this week’s eNewsletter! Follow me on Twitter and Facebook to stay up to date on my work for the 5th District of Wisconsin.

Sincerely,

Scott Fitzgerald
Member of Congress