Op-Eds

Op-eds 01/25/2012
Chippewa Herald: New Stillwater bridge a bipartisan success story
<b>Originally printed in the Chippewa Herald, January 25th, 2012.</b> If you pay attention to the news from Washington, D.C., you might believe that Republicans and Democrats can’t agree on anything. But I went to Washington willing to work with anyone who will acknowledge a problem and help develop real solutions. A case in point is the bipartisan agreement that has now been reached on replacing the Stillwater Lift Bridge.
Op-eds 01/11/2012
Wall Street Journal: A 2012 Republican Strategy for Congress
<b>Printed in the Wall Street Journal, January 11th, 2012</b> Americans are frustrated over Washington's inability to address our nation's economic and fiscal problems. That's why I have been working with a growing group of senators and House members to develop a plan that can build public support for solutions. It's called "America's Choice." America's Choice seeks to highlight the differences between the Republican Party and the Democratic Party led by President Obama. It could do so over the coming months by presenting to the country, through a series of votes in the House of Representatives, the battle between those who believe in broadest terms in limited government and freedom and those who promote government control and dependency.
Op-eds 12/19/2011
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: PolitiFact Ruling Fails a Logic Test
<b>Originally printed in the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, December 19th, 2011</b> I was surprised to read PolitiFact's assessment of the accuracy of a recent statement of mine. I pointed out that "President Obama has increased the federal workforce 192,000 individuals - about 10% since he's taken office - while we've lost 2 million jobs." PolitiFact acknowledges that "Johnson is on target on the 2 million jobs lost overall, and accurate or very close on the federal workforce trend - at least using FedScope," but rates my assertion "half true." But Politifact's justifications for not acknowledging that this is true do not hold up to scrutiny.
Op-eds 11/15/2011
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Reduce spending to rein in debt
<b>Originally printed in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, November 15th, 2011</b> The Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction faces a reporting deadline of Nov. 23. However, the United States will reach a dubious financial milestone before the "supercommittee" finishes its work. Within the next few days, our total federal debt will surpass $15 trillion. This amount of debt would not be a problem if our economy were $100 trillion - but it's not; it's about $15 trillion. As a result, our debt to Gross Domestic Product ratio has reached 100%, a very dangerous metric.
Op-eds 10/24/2011
The Washington Post: A Simple Majority is Not Enough
<b>Originally printed in the Washington Post, October 24th, 2011 </b> Our Founding Fathers recognized how the unchecked power of a majority would be a constant threat to individual liberty. They acknowledged that government was necessary, but they also knew that a government elected by a majority could easily trample the freedoms of the minority. They and their ancestors had come from dictatorial monarchies, and they fully understood that, more often than not, government was something to fear and should therefore be limited.
Op-eds 10/5/2011
Politico: Regulations Stifle Economic Growth
<b>Originally printed in Politico, October 5th, 2011</b> Most people go into business because they want to make the world better by building something; and, of course, to make money for themselves and the people working with them. Yet business leaders today are routinely treated as guilty until proven innocent by the bureaucrats in our regulatory agencies. Our regulatory state strangles economic growth. Regulations bar many voluntary agreements and subject businessmen to constant micromanagement.
Op-eds 08/29/2011
Washington Times: Obama at a loss
<b>Originally printed in the Washington Times, August 29th, 2011 </b> When stock prices were plunging earlier this month, President Obama strode to the teleprompter and utterly failed to calm the markets or the American people. Sadly, they saw what I saw - and have come to exactly the same conclusion: Mr. Obama does not know what to do. He never did.
Op-eds 07/27/2011
Investor's Business Daily: A Freeze On New Regulations Would Help Boost Job Growth
<b>Printed in Investor's Business Daily, July 27th, 2011</b> It's easy to have missed it, but the U.S. is now entering the third year of the Obama "recovery." The economy stopped shrinking in 2009, and White House economists tell us that it has been growing ever since. But while some corporate balance sheets have improved, job growth remains anemic. And analysts have even begun to ask whether we're heading into another stretch of mass layoffs. You would think that Washington would be focused on job creation. Instead — all too often — Washington seems intent on adding new layers of job-killing regulation.
Op-eds 06/20/2011
The Daily Caller: Congress Can't Keep Raising the Debt Limit
<b>Originally printed in the Daily Caller, June 20th, 2011 </b> Prior to being elected to the United States Senate last November, I spent 31 years building a plastics manufacturing business in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. My educational background is in accounting and finance, but when you help start a business from scratch, you wind up doing just about everything. I operated machinery, loaded trucks and railcars, hired and trained the staff, kept the books, paid taxes, purchased raw materials, sold our finished products, did payroll, opened mail, emptied trash, and made coffee. Why am I telling you this? Because I’m not in the least bit unusual. Every day, millions of hard-working business owners, and the good people that work with them, struggle to build a good life for themselves and their families. They are the backbone of America. They work hard and play by the rules. And they live within their means. Why can’t Washington?
Op-eds 06/16/2011
The Washington Post: Coming Soon: A Bigger, Costlier Obamacare
<b>Printed in the Washington Post, June 16th, 2011</b> Obamacare poses two great dangers to our nation: lower quality of care and runaway costs. It will stifle innovation and lead to rationing. But the overwhelming cost and the damage it will do to our nation’s finances at a pivotal moment in our history deserve greater scrutiny. The promises Obamacare supporters have made about the ultimate cost of the program are based on highly unlikely premises. Those who support the 2010 health-care law are betting that costs will remain under control largely because its central feature — health insurance exchanges, which amount to a centralized, government-run market of subsidized insurance policies — will not be all that popular. They are counting on the notion that when the government offers “free” money, there will be few takers. This is not realistic.