Message from Congressman Scott Fitzgerald

Good morning, and happy Monday!

I hope everyone switched their clocks over the weekend and is adjusting well to the time change. I know I’m looking forward to spring and the warmer months ahead in Wisconsin!

I’m headed back to Washington, DC today for another busy week of legislative work.

In this week’s newsletter edition, you’ll get to read more about my impression of President Biden’s State of the Union address. Spoiler alert: it was a wakeup call that our country needs America-first leadership in the White House. This edition also dives into a comprehensive capital expansion bill from the Financial Services Committee that passed on the House floor. It’s a huge win for our economic landscape.

Oh, and read until the end to see a special guest I got to meet on Capitol Hill…

Have a great week!

- Scott

House Passed Capital Expansion Legislation

American public markets remain the go-to place for innovative companies to grow and build capital, but we cannot take our strength for granted.

Under President Biden’s leadership, and with the help of his federal bureaucrats, the regulatory environment has steadily become more burdensome and costly. Take the SEC for example. SEC Chairman Gary Gensler has proposed over 50 rules in his tenure. However, none of the rules are aimed to facilitate capital formation, choosing instead to increase costly regulatory and disclosure obligations, making U.S. capital markets less attractive.

Other regulators, such as President Biden’s Federal Trade Commission, have also blocked avenues to growth by chilling M&A activity across the board.

I was proud to help pass the Expanding Access to Capital Act last week to counter harmful proposals from the administration. Simply put, this bill strengthens our public markets, helps small businesses, and increases opportunities for ALL investors.

I spoke in support of this bill on the House floor, which you can watch here.

Staff Mobile Office Hours This Week

For any folks who haven’t had an opportunity to attend my office hours yet this year, I have good news!

This week, March 14, my staff will be hosting more office hours in three locations to meet with constituents who may be experiencing problems with a federal agency. Here is some more information if you’d like to attend:

Location:

12:00 PM – 1:00 PM
Village of Germantown
Conference Room A
N112 W17001 Mequon Road
Germantown, WI 53022

1:30 PM – 2:30 PM
Village of Jackson
Village Board Room
N168W19851 Main St
Jackson, WI 53037

3:00 PM – 4:00 PM
West Bend Community Library
1st Floor Conference Room
630 Poplar St.
West Bend, WI 53095

President Biden’s State of the Union Address

Last week, President Biden delivered his fourth State of the Union Address. Right out of the gate, President Biden began his speech by talking about Ukraine and its borders. A telling choice for a speech that is supposed to be about the state of OUR union.

The irony is not lost upon me either that President Biden talked about another country’s border before our very own borders here in the U.S. In fact, President Biden did not even mention our southern border until he was well over halfway through his speech. He even talked about junk fees before addressing the crisis at our border. 

When he did finally address the southern border, he touted his “border bill” as the solution and put the onus on Congress to solve the problem. But what President Biden forgets is House Republicans already passed H.R. 2—the strongest border security bill we’ve seen in recent history.

President Biden also touted what he believed was an “America first” infrastructure agenda. What President Biden failed to admit was his America-last approach to the cars he wants all of us to drive on these “American roads.” The reality is, President Biden's efforts to implement a de facto electric vehicle mandate would embolden our adversaries like China who are a primary supplier for many of the integral parts needed to build electric vehicles.

All in all, there was nothing inspiring about the evening. On the contrary, President Biden’s speech was an urgent reminder that we need decisive, America-first leadership in the White House.

Federal Reserve Chair Powell on Capitol Hill

Mr. Powell came to Capitol Hill last week to testify at a Financial Services Committee hearing.

By now, it is crystal clear that the Basel III Endgame proposal from the Fed needs to be withdrawn due to the lack of consideration of how it would reduce lending to families, small businesses, manufacturers, and farmers.

To that end, ahead of the hearing, I joined my Financial Services Committee colleagues in a letter to Chair Powell urging him to withdraw the politicized Basel proposal—which has actually generated bipartisan opposition.

Banking policy must be based on data and sound economic analysis, end of story. You can read more about the letter here.

Thank you, Tim Tebow!

It was great to have Tim Tebow join us on Capitol Hill last week. Tim testified at a Judiciary Committee hearing about combatting child sexual exploitation. His advocacy is admirable, and I thank him for his valuable insight to Congress on this important issue!

Naval Academy Summer Seminar and Summer STEM Applications

The Naval Academy Summer Seminar and Summer STEM Applications are open and will remain open until April 15. 

Naval Academy Summer Seminar offers an opportunity for rising high school seniors to experience USNA for one week. Participants learn about life at the Naval Academy, where academics, athletics, and professional training play equally important roles in developing our nation's future leaders.

The Summer STEM Program is a great catalyst to initiate the pursuit of a future in science and engineering. Summer STEM is an opportunity for participants to create, build, and explore in world-class lab facilities, working alongside USNA’s distinguished faculty and Midshipmen. 

For more information, visit: Naval Academy Summer Seminar and Summer STEM.   Click here to see the Naval Academy Summer Seminar and Summer STEM Program in action. 

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