Ending Hunger and Poverty

By Steve Dzubay WASHINGTON D.C. -- House Budget Chairman Paul Ryan of Janesville says he wants to reform federal programs for the poor without a net reduction in spending, but at least one Wisconsin Democrat doesn't buy it. Milwaukee Representative Gwen Moore said the block grants Ryan's talking about are a "proxy for the chopping block." Moore said it would lead to cuts in programs that benefit the poor. Ryan said that at first, states would choose to test his idea of merging up to eleven anti... Read more

By Craig Gilbert Washington — While citing some areas of common ground, Democrats reacted with general skepticism to the anti-poverty agenda unveiled by House budget chairman Paul Ryan of Janesville on Thursday. One big reason: their deep disdain for the House budgets Ryan has crafted in recent years, which they view as punitive toward the poor. "It's a case of total cognitive dissonance between the (Ryan) proposals today and the Republican budgets" that Ryan has shepherded through the House, s... Read more

I urge my Wisconsin colleague to continue the dialogue on the most effective ways to eradicate poverty. However, if we are going to have a real impact in the lives of our constituents, we need to change the conversation. Our poverty programs are not broken. They should be strengthened, not diminished. Read more

Gun violence is a plague that steals the lives of far too many in our community. Each time we lose a life, our hearts break and the violence continues. We must all work together, on the local, state and federal levels, to thwart these crimes. Read more

We cannot allow the Supreme Court of the United States, congressional gridlock or state legislatures to undo what our civil rights leaders have built. Congress must come together and pass a strengthened Voting Rights Act. Read more

By Reilly Dowd It is the unemployment version of the national debt clock. On this “Witness Wednesday,” the number ticked up to 3,095,023 long-term unemployed Americans during an event Republicans consider a publicity stunt but Democrats see as central to their midterm message. The rising tally is of the number of those cut off from emergency unemployment compensation benefits since Congress refused additional relief to the long-term unemployed. This week’s “Witness Wednesday” took place outside... Read more

WASHINGTON, June 11 -- The Center for Effective Government (formerly OMB Watch) issued the following news release: Starting today and running until July 30, leaders and advocates from a wide range of backgrounds will gather weekly on the House Triangle in Washington, DC at 12:30 p.m. Eastern Time for "Witness Wednesdays." There, they will read the stories of some of the 3 million long-term unemployed Americans who have lost federal unemployment benefits and call for action to help their fellow ... Read more

Much like the early 1990s, when Minnesota took a leadership role in efforts to pass the Violence Against Women Act, the state’s work to combat sex trafficking is serving as a national model. Thanks to the bipartisan work of Democrat Amy Klobuchar in the U.S. Senate and Republican Erik Paulsen in the U.S. House, there may soon be federal legislation in place to provide incentives for states to pass “Safe Harbor” laws similar to those in Minnesota and a few other states. Such laws are critical in... Read more

By Congresswoman Gwen Moore As the school year winds down, millions of children across our nation are thinking about their summers and eagerly anticipating the last bell. Yet, for many low-income families, the end of the school year also means the end of access to school lunch and breakfast programs. In a nation where almost 16 million children live in households that are food-insecure, this is not inconsequential. We cannot consign these children to a summer of hunger and expect them to come b... Read more

By Jack Craver After sparking a flurry of controversy in March with remarks that suggested that poverty in America’s inner-cities was due in part to people who lacked an appreciation for work, U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Janesville, has made a point of conveying interest and compassion for the country’s poor, particularly in minority communities. As part of that effort, Ryan met recently with the Congressional Black Caucus to discuss possible areas of cooperation between Republicans and Democrats on... Read more