Standing Up for the Taxpayer
Sen. Johnson
Federal employees already are given 10 paid holidays a year, and the Senate was on track to approve, without discussion, debate or even a recorded vote, the addition of Juneteenth Day as an 11th paid holiday. The cost to taxpayers of an added federal holiday has been estimated at approximately $600 million.
I laud the value of commemorating the emancipation of slaves, but object to the carelessness of adding hundreds of millions of dollars a year to the existing $26.2 trillion federal debt even as 17.8 million Americans remain unemployed, due to COVID-related lockdowns. Although the substitute amendment I offered to the Juneteenth holiday bill had the desired effect of slowing down the passage of a new paid day off for federal workers, many were not happy with the proposal to swap a holiday celebrating emancipation with Columbus Day.
Let me reiterate: I suggested Columbus Day for the swap because few Americans in the private sector get it as a paid holiday, and as a result, it is lightly celebrated, and would not be disruptive to most Americansâ schedules. I was in no way deprecating Christopher Columbusâ achievements or expressing any value judgment regarding his place in history. I do not support efforts to erase Americaâs rich history â not the good, the bad or the ugly.
Instead of eliminating a current holiday to make room for Juneteenth Day, I will be proposing to reduce the number of paid leave days federal employees receive, to offset the cost of the new holiday celebrating emancipation. This modification both preserves Columbus Day and the dollars of hard-working taxpayers.
Listen to my interview with Jay Weber for more on this issue.
Honoring a Port Washington WWII Hero
Sen. Johnson and Joe Demler
Proud to announce I'm introducing legislation to rename the post office in Port Washington after World War II veteran Joe Demler. He worked there nearly four decades after surviving a Nazi POW camp.
Joe Demler served courageously in the Battle of the Bulge where he was captured and then survived the horrors of a Nazi prisoner of war camp. Throughout his life he truly lived by his motto "every day is a bonus" and proudly shared his story of service through the Honor Flight organization he helped start. Joe is an American hero and I am proud to introduce this bill in his honor.
Read more about the effort in the Ozaukee News Graphic.
New HCQ Study Shows Death Rate Cut Significantly
HCQ pill
The evidence for the effectiveness of hydroxychloroquine in treating COVID-19 is beginning to mount. Why is HCQ so politicized? I encourage you to read the peer-reviewed study by the Henry Ford Health System. They studied 2,541 hospitalized patients between March and May and found 13% of those treated with HCQ died compared to 26.4% not treated with HCQ.
Read more about the study here.
Axios Virtual Event
Mike Allen and Sen. Johnson
I joined Axios for a virtual event on small business recovery during the pandemic.
While not being critical of leaders making tough decisions with imperfect information, I've always been concerned with the approach we've taken on this. We should've focused on the nonessential businesses that really represented a significant risk for out of control spread of the virus and shut down those businesses while providing them with economic support. That may have been more effective than the generalized shutdowns.
Watch the entire interview here. As a bonus, hear the business advice I gave my daughters.
Social Media Highlights
Joseph Project tweet
4th of July tweet
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Senator Ron Johnson
328 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
Phone: (202) 224-5323
Fax: (202) 228-6965
