Dear Friend,

Over the past few years, we have seen countless examples of the Biden administration targeting Americans with conservative beliefs.

From tracking anyone who traveled to the D.C. area on January 6, 2021, to labeling concerned parents as domestic terrorists, and even flagging anyone who purchased a bible or shopped at Cabela’s as a potential “Homegrown Violent Extremist” (more on that later).

Given the recent controversies that launched our federal law enforcement agencies into the limelight, you would think they would want to follow the lead of the 27 states that require interviews to be recorded.

Unfortunately, you would be wrong.

While courts have stenographers and police cars have dashcams, the Department of Justice has no official requirement to record its interviews.

They simply take notes and summarize what is said during an interview on something called a 302 form, which gives them free rein to characterize or mischaracterize what was said.

The FBI’s honor system style of taking notes, to sum up an interview instead of a recording came under fire when it was revealed that during the FBI’s 2016 interview of President Trump’s National Security Advisor, Lieutenant General Michael Flynn, after the agent boasted his goal was to, “get him to lie, so we can prosecute him or get him fired.” 

The agents who interviewed General Flynn failed to submit their 302 forms within the 5-day requirement because they were busy revising and altering what was said – even having agents who weren’t even there for the interview weigh in on the editing process.

Earlier this Congress, I introduced H.R. 5736, the Federal Accountability in Interviews Reform Act (FAIR) to ensure fairness and promote accountability in the DOJ and FBI by requiring interviews to be electronically recorded.

This commonsense measure will help convict the guilty, protect the innocent, expose bad actors, and shield law enforcement from false claims. This week the FAIR Act passed out of the House Judiciary Committee on a bipartisan vote of 22-1, and I look forward to it coming to the House floor for further consideration.

Thanks again for starting off your weekend with us! We hope you enjoy this week’s edition of the Tiffany Telegram.

Sincerely,





Tom Tiffany
Member of Congress

Click here or on the photo above to watch my statement on the FAIR Act.

Listening sessions this week

Mark your calendars – on Wednesday and Thursday, I will be hosting six listening sessions in Oneida, Wood, Marathon, Barron, Polk, and St. Croix Counties. This round of listening sessions will be focused on providing an update on the impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden and answering any questions you may have regarding the process. For more information on dates, times, and locations of these listening sessions, click here. I hope to see you there!

Biden border disorder earns bipartisan rebuke

For three long years, Americans have watched as the Biden administration has systematically erased our border and ignored our laws. From record-setting levels of illegal immigration and suspected terrorist encounters, to the botched Afghan evacuation and plans to "resettle" foreigners in Wisconsin without meaningful local input or approval, the situation seems to be getting worse every day. Despite this, most Democrats in Washington seem more focused on obstructing strong border security legislation than obstructing the tidal wave of illegal aliens flooding into our communities. But that may be changing. This week, more than a dozen House Democrats joined Republicans in voting to condemn Joe Biden’s destructive border policies. Among other things, the measure we passed calls out White House moves to halt border fence construction, release millions of illegal migrants into the country, abuse so-called “parole” authority, and shut down the highly successful Trump-era “Remain in Mexico” policy. You can see how House lawmakers voted on the resolution here.

Protecting access to rural health care

The United States is currently in the midst of a healthcare worker shortage. This spring the Wisconsin Hospital Association even started sounding the alarm that a looming shortage of nurses has reached its tipping point. To make matters worse, the Biden administration decided now would be a good time to propose a rule requiring expanded staffing requirements. This one-size-fits-all mandate could force many rural facilities to close and deprive thousands of Americans of care. That’s why I cosponsored the Protecting Rural Seniors Access to Care Act, introduced by my colleague, Rep. Michelle Fischbach (MN-7). This bill protects rural access to nursing homes by heading off this irresponsible rule.

Valentines for Veterans

The Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs (WDVA) is asking for your help in sending Valentine’s Day cards to those living at the three Wisconsin Veterans Homes in Chippewa Falls, King, and Union Grove. This is a great chance to put a smile on the face of those who risked their lives to protect our great nation. You can click here to see examples of cards from 2023. Please be sure to refrain from sending any candy, food, or snacks with the cards due to allergies and dietary restrictions. For more information on where to send the cards, click here. The deadline to mail them is January 31. 

Don’t forget to mail your Valentine’s Day cards to the Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs by January 31.

Committee Update

Judiciary

What do conservatives, Christians, and sportsmen all have in common?

This week, the House Judiciary Committee revealed that the Biden administration instructed U.S. banks to flag customer transactions for key terms like “MAGA” and “Trump” as well as purchases of religious texts, like the Bible, to identify “extremism” after January 6. The Treasury Department also ordered banks to review transactions that Americans made at sporting goods stores like Cabela’s, Bass Pro Shop, and Dick’s Sporting Goods in order to detect customers whose transactions may reflect “potential active shooters.'' This gross overreach of surveillance is wholly unacceptable, and the Biden administration must be held accountable for their trampling of Americans’ civil liberties. The House Judiciary Committee will continue to get to the bottom of just how far this monitoring goes, but if you are a conservative, Christian, or sportsman, there’s a chance the federal government has been keeping tabs on you. You can read more about this shocking development here.

Natural Resources

Ensuring all Americans can “explore” public lands

On Wednesday we held our first Natural Resources Committee Markup of 2024. We considered eight bills. One of those bills was the EXPLORE Act, which you may remember from one of our earlier Telegrams. This bill is a bipartisan recreation package that will improve access to our public lands and increase recreation opportunities for all Americans. It also reduces red tape and cuts bureaucracy for guides and outfitters seeking recreation permits to use our federal lands, as well as making trails more accessible and improving visitor experiences. Many local small businesses and rural economies will see an economic boost from this streamlined permitting process. The American people are the rightful owners of our public lands and national parks, and whether it’s a National Park out West, the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore or the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest in our district, everyone has a right to enjoy our federal lands. I look forward to building on last year and getting more things accomplished as the year continues.

Recent Legislation

Keeping American hardwood jobs at home

I recently introduced a piece of bipartisan legislation, the Hardwood Products Access and Development Program Act, alongside Rep. Kuster (NH-02). This bill allows USDA to provide grants that bolster domestic industry efforts and research that directly supports information on the benefits of hardwood products. Specifically, non-profits, universities, and other eligible applicants will use these grants to research the advantages of domestically produced hardwood products. Wisconsin and America benefit greatly from our domestic hardwood industry, but so does our environment. Hardwood products are sustainably produced and are part of healthy forest management practices – and I will continue to promote Made in America wood products that benefit our environment, economy, and American jobs. You can learn more about the bill here.

District Update

Free Fishing Weekend

If you’ve always wanted to try fishing, but never wanted to buy a license in case you didn’t like it, Wisconsin’s Free Fishing Weekend is a great opportunity for you. This weekend, January 20 and 21, residents can fish throughout Wisconsin without a fishing license or trout and salmon stamp. Remember that the ice may not be thick enough in some parts of the state, so take precautions before you go out and always be careful when walking or driving on the ice. After this weekend if you decide to keep fishing, know that you will need to purchase a license. That can be done online here, or at various DNR-licensed sales locations across the state. Click here for a map of those locations. Get outside, have fun, and bundle up! 

Photo of the week

This week’s photo of the week is a little different than others, but I wanted to take a moment to honor the memory of K9 Rocky. K9 Rocky served the Bloomer Police Department and helped start their K9 program in 2017. Earlier this month, he passed away due to lymphoma, and to help pay tribute to Rocky and his incredible work, the community of Bloomer wore blue on Thursday. I was able to wear my blue shirt in Congress on Thursday, and I hope you will join me in remembering this loyal companion who helped keep our community safe. If you have a photo you would like to submit for the Telegram, please submit it to [email protected] with your name and location.

Wearing blue to honor the memory of K9 Rocky from the Bloomer Police Department.

Resources

Vacation is meant to be relaxing, so don’t let renewing or applying for your passport stress you out. The current processing time is 10 to 13 weeks, so we recommend getting this done as soon as possible. For more information, click here.

The USDA continues to make resources and assistance available to agricultural producers and working families to ensure access, safety and stability for food markets and supplies. 

If a friend forwarded you this newsletter, and you would like to receive it in the future, you can subscribe here for weekly updates and connect with me on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. 

As always, you are welcome to visit my website or to contact my offices in Washington, DC or Wisconsin, which remain open for service, if you have any questions or need assistance. 

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