Dear Friend,
 
It’s been over three years since the Covid pandemic began, and we’ve come a long way since the beginning of those uncertain times.
 
Even Joe Biden admitted that the pandemic is over this fall. However, five months later his administration has still refused to let go of the emergency declaration and the emergency powers that come along with it.
 
We cannot continue to live in a perpetual state of emergency, which is why this week the House of Representatives passed a resolution to finally end the emergency declaration and the Freedom for Health Care Workers Act, which would end the vaccine mandate for federal healthcare workers.
 
And we didn’t stop there.
 
We also passed a bill that requires federal workers to finally return to work – just like the rest of the country.

As Telegram readers know, the widespread “telework” policy over the past three years has severely impacted government services and created massive backlogs at federal agencies.
 
Ever since federal agencies went remote, Americans have had to deal with months-long delays on their tax returns, senior citizens have been left without answers about their social security benefits, and veterans have been unable to access their medical records for months at a time. 
 
It turned government for the people into government by voicemail.
 
That is unacceptable. It’s time for the United States government to get back to work.
 
Speaking of federal agencies, if you ever find yourself in a situation where you need assistance with a federal agency, please reach out to my office, where caseworkers are ready and willing to help you get the answers you need.
 
It’s been a busy week out in Washington, so stay tuned we have a lot more to tell you about in this week’s edition of the Tiffany Telegram. Thanks again for starting off your weekend with us!

Sincerely,





Tom Tiffany
Member of Congress

Lac du Flambeau Tribe blocks roads
While some residents may have heard about the Lac Du Flambeau road closures, I want to give you a personal update. On Tuesday, the Lac Du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa begin barricading four roads – Annie Sunn Lane, Center Sugarbush Lane, East Ross Allen Lake Lane, and Elsie Lake Lane – in Lac Du Flambeau due to negotiations between the Tribe and Chicago Title Insurance Company. By choosing to barricade taxpayer-funded roads, the Tribe is creating a public safety hazard for people who might need an ambulance to arrive as quickly as possible, firefighters who might need to put out a fire, propane trucks who may need to fill up tanks, and restaurant owners whose livelihoods are at stake due to the road closures. This is no way to treat your neighbors, and I have spoken directly with the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary Wizipan Garriott Bureau of Indian Affairs to resolve this issue as quickly as possible. Neighbors work together to find solutions; they do not hold each other hostage and limit access to people’s homes and businesses.

There’s no place for anti-Semitism
This week the House voted to remove Rep. Ilhan Omar (MN-05) from the House Foreign Affairs Committee. As a Member of Congress, she is notorious for making multiple anti-Semitic remarks, for comparing the U.S. and Israel to Hamas and the Taliban, and for dismissing the horrific attack on 9/11 as just 'some people [who] did something.’ She remains unapologetic for these outbursts of extremism, and therefore does not belong anywhere near the Foreign Affairs Committee. Anti-Semitism should never take root in America, and she is not fit to serve on the committee that handles our relationship with our most trusted ally in the Middle East, Israel.
 
Biden kowtows to China, snubs Taiwan amid “BalloonGate”
By now, all of you have seen the mind-boggling reports of a Chinese spy balloon that floated all the way across the Pacific Ocean and into Montana. This embarrassing lapse in national security (which the Biden administration finally acknowledged Thursday night) came on the eve of a trip to Communist China by Secretary of State Antony Blinken. When news of Blinken’s planned visit became public, I was shocked to see that it did not include a stop in Taiwan. After all, why would President Biden send his top diplomat to Beijing hat-in-hand to talk about climate change – while snubbing our democratic allies in Taiwan who face almost daily threats from China? It doesn’t make any sense. That’s why this week I led a group of lawmakers in asking Mr. Blinken to add a stop in Taiwan to his itinerary and meet with his counterparts there to strengthen this important partnership. We haven’t received a response from Secretary Blinken just yet – but as of this morning, it appears he has “postponed” his China trip until further notice. I hope when he gets around to rescheduling it, he will take our advice and make an official visit to Taiwan – instead of just blowing hot air with the communists behind the Great Wall. You can read more about our efforts here.
 
Three budget strikes in three years…
On Monday, I joined my fellow Republican Study Committee colleagues on the Budget and Spending Task Force to urge President Biden to submit his Presidential Budget on time to Congress. Unfortunately, it seems like that ship has sailed as it was reported that the Biden administration is going to skip the statutory deadline of the first Monday in February, and not submit his administration’s budget until March. This will mark the third time in a row that President Biden has not submitted his budget on time to Congress. Not only is President Biden abdicating his duty to submit a budget, but he is also hindering Congress from being able to do its job. The longer he waits to release a budget, the less time Congress has to pass appropriations bills at responsible spending levels. You can read more on the letter here.
 
Visit with the Mayor of River Falls
I had a great time meeting with the City of River Falls Mayor Dan Toland earlier this week. As a UW-River Falls graduate, I enjoyed discussing the ongoing and future projects in the community, and the different ways they are planning to advance the city’s economic development. It’s important to hear what I can do to help with these advancements, and I thank you for coming all the way out to Washington, DC to discuss these important issues.

Met with River Falls Mayor Dan Toland to discuss the city’s economic development.

Committee Update

Natural Resources
New leadership role
On Wednesday, I was officially appointed as the Chairman of the Natural Resources Subcommittee on Federal Lands. I am honored to be selected to lead such an important subcommittee, and I will work hard to deliver results to the American people. This Subcommittee is a great fit for representing the interests of the Seventh district because we have a large National Forest and a National Lakeshore overseen by the National Park Service. We also face a lot of challenges when it comes to timber harvesting, multiple use, access, and permitting – all of which can be addressed on the Federal Lands subcommittee. I look forward to protecting Wisconsin’s legacy of responsible enjoyment of our public lands, prioritizing better management of those lands, modernizing antiquated and cumbersome laws, and holding the Biden administration accountable for their mismanagement of our shared natural resources. Republicans on the Federal Lands Subcommittee are working to expand and protect opportunities for all Americans to enjoy our beautiful public lands, ensuring they are available for recreational opportunities and economic development.
 
Judiciary
Is America’s immigration system “broken”?
It’s a familiar Beltway “talking point” we’ve all heard. It is also incredibly dishonest. That’s why I took aim at this Washington Whopper this week in an op-ed. The real problem isn’t that our “system” is broken. It’s that those in charge of enforcing our laws – President Biden and Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas – simply refuse to do their jobs. And that’s hardly a secret. Over the last two years, the Biden administration has converted America’s immigration laws into little more than suggestions. They have also created a dangerous buffet of perverse incentives that are pouring fuel on an already raging border crisis by rewarding millions of illegal immigrants who have broken our laws. These policies aren’t just unwise, they are also incredibly unfair – and frankly insulting – to millions of legalimmigrants who have followed our laws and become American citizens the right way. Rather than ignoring our laws and then complaining that those laws don’t work, Secretary Mayorkas and his boss should maybe try enforcing them for a change. We might all be pleasantly surprised with the results.

Click here or on the photo above to watch my remarks in this week’s Judiciary Committee hearing.

Recent Legislation

Getting justice for murder victims
Neighborhoods across the Nation have been experiencing a spike in violent crime in recent years. In 2020 murder rates increased by 30% and continued climbing in 2021, which is why it is important to update our laws to ensure that criminals are held accountable. That’s why I reintroduced H.R. 349 the Justice for Murder Victims Act, which is a bipartisan-bicameral proposal, along with my House Judiciary colleague Rep. Hank Johnson (GA-04), Sen. Chuck Grassley (IA), and Sen. Jon Ossoff (GA). Our bill will eliminate the antiquated “year-and-a-day” rule that prohibits homicide prosecutions if a victim succumbs to their injuries more than a year and a day from the assault. Allowing murderers to evade punishment thanks to the power of modern medicine is a disgrace to murder victims and their loved ones. It is long past time to close this 13th-century loophole that allows murderers to walk on a technicality while denying murder victims the justice they deserve.
 
Making trade fair again
This week, Rep. Chris Smith (NJ-04) and I introduced legislation to reverse course on America’s failed trade relationship with China. Our bill would strip Beijing’s automatic “Most Favored Nation” trade privileges and restore checks and balances that existed before China was granted so-called “Permanent Normal Trade Relations” (PNTR). One of those safeguards used to be an annual vote in Congress. However, when lawmakers approved PNTR for China two decades ago, they stopped holding that annual vote. Back then, supporters of so-called “free trade” with China told us that this policy would usher in a new era of prosperity here at home while promoting political freedom – and fair labor practices – in China. We all know that didn't happen. In the years since, we've watched as China hollowed out America's manufacturing sector while Communist Party elites became more ruthless, more powerful, and more dangerous than ever – all bankrolled by their massive trade surpluses with America. Today, Beijing's dictatorship openly engages in systematic human rights violations and even genocide. America should never let genocide and slave labor become a “permanent” or “normal” part of U.S. trade. It’s time we stopped accepting China’s widespread human rights abuses as just the “cost of doing business,” and restored the annual congressional review of China’s trade status. You can read more about our bill here.
 
Men should not compete in women’s sports
Nearly fifty years ago, when President Nixon signed Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 into law, it was a promise to women across the nation that they would no longer be denied or deprived of the right to fair competition in athletics and the classroom. Sadly, those opportunities are once again at risk. In January 2021, President Biden went as far as signing an executive order stating that student athletes should play on sports teams and use locker rooms that align with their “gender identity” rather than their biological sex. It shouldn’t need to be said but I’ll say it: Women should be competing against women and using the women’s locker room; men have no place in that equation. Earlier this week, I co-sponsored legislation to level the playing field for women in competitive sports. The Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act, introduced by my colleague Rep. Greg Steube (FL-17), would require school athletics that are funded through Title IX to recognize a person’s biological sex when competing in sports rather than their “gender identity.” Our country cannot continue to allow men to infiltrate women's sports; if we do, we are only moving backward.
 
Putting wolf management back where it belongs
This week, I introduced a bill with my colleague, Rep. Boebert (CO-3), to permanently delist the gray wolf from the Endangered Species Act in the lower 48 states. Period. Rep. Boebert and I were joined by 22 of our fellow representatives, and I am pleased to report that the list includes the entire Republican delegation from Wisconsin. This bill truly follows the science as many scientists have advocated for the wolf to be removed from the ESA list. In fact, the wolf’s recovery is a success story – one we should recognize, not deny. Now that the wolf has bounced back, it is time to hand management decisions back to those who know best: State and local policymakers.
 
Keeping our promises to veterans
This week I signed on once again to the Major Richard Star Act. This is an important piece of legislation that will support over 50,000 of our combat-injured warriors, with concurrent receipt of vested retirement pay and Veterans Administration (VA) disability. Our current system offsets retirement pay for our combat injured, based on the disability percentage rating assigned by the VA. This legislation aims to end this practice and ensure that retired pay is distinguished from service-connected disability compensation. Two payments for two different purposes. Our combat-injured warriors who earned their vested retirement benefits for their selfless and dedicated years of service to our country, should not be penalized because of an arbitrary percentage of disability allocation assigned by the VA. Reducing retirement pay as a result of combat injuries causes an unnecessary burden on families, who often have to give up their jobs to become caregivers for our veterans. This legislation will assist in lessening that burden. Our communities are stronger when we take care of those who have sacrificed so much to ensure our way of life. I will continue to fight for our veterans.

District Update

February listening sessions
On Wednesday, February 15th, I will be holding four in-person listening sessions in Clark, Jackson, Monroe, and Juneau County. Stay tuned next week for more details.
 
Photo of the week
If you would like to submit a picture to be featured in our photo of the week section, please email it to [email protected] with your name and location. We have a beautiful state. Let’s continue to show the Badger State off.

“Old Glory Flying High” – submitted by U.S. Veteran Maurice in Baldwin

Upcoming Events

DNR listening sessions on proposed Wolf Management Plan
On Tuesday, February 7th, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is holding a virtual listening session on their proposed Wolf Management Plan. As you may know, the DNR is continuing to move goalposts for the gray wolf recovery by eliminating the statewide gray wolf population goal in their proposed plan. You can register to speak at the listening session here (registration is required by noon CST on Feb. 6), or you can also leave an online comment here. Additionally, there will also be a Wisconsin Wildlife Federation listening session on Saturday, February 18th, in Solon Springs. More details can be found here.

Resources  

This week, the Small Business Administration (SBA) announced that small businesses, small agricultural cooperatives, small businesses engaged in aquaculture, and most private nonprofit organizations in Florence, Forest, Marinette, and Vilas County are eligible to apply for Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDLs) due to losses from drought from April 28 through October 15, 2022. More information can be found here. 

While many begin to travel internationally again, the Department of State is available to assist with passport services. We recommend to apply at least six months before planned travel as routine service may take up to about 18 weeks. For more information, please visit travel.state.gov.

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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