Petri votes for four of six Democratic measures



The House finished voting on the Democrats' 100-hour agenda Thursday with Rep. Tom Petri joining many Republicans who crossed party lines to support several of the six popular measures. Petri voted in favor of four of the six — cutting in half the interest rate on student loans, an increase in the minimum wage, authorizing the federal government to negotiate directly with pharmaceutical companies for lower prescription drug prices and a rollback of tax breaks for the oil industry. "The Democrats made an effort to select things they thought would have broad support," said Petri, R-Fond du Lac. Congressman Tom Petri of Wisconsin served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Somalia in the 1960's.

Petri votes for four of six Democratic measures

Petri votes for four of six Democratic measures

Other state GOP House members follow party lines

By BRIAN TUMULTY
Press-Gazette Washington bureau

[Excerpt]

WASHINGTON — The House finished voting on the Democrats' 100-hour agenda Thursday with Rep. Tom Petri joining many Republicans who crossed party lines to support several of the six popular measures.

Petri voted in favor of four of the six — cutting in half the interest rate on student loans, an increase in the minimum wage, authorizing the federal government to negotiate directly with pharmaceutical companies for lower prescription drug prices and a rollback of tax breaks for the oil industry.

"The Democrats made an effort to select things they thought would have broad support," said Petri, R-Fond du Lac.

The other two Republicans in the Wisconsin delegation were much more loyal to their party.

Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner, R-Menomonee Falls, voted against all six measures.

"What you see is not what you get," said Sensenbrenner, pointing out Thursday's vote to eliminate the domestic manufacturing tax credit for oil producers would have the effect of helping OPEC. "We are actually going to give OPEC more money."

Sensenbrenner noted that Democrats campaigned last year with a promise to allow full and open debate on all proposed legislation but instead used "martial law rules" to pass their initial agenda.

"I predict none of this will pass in the same form in the Senate," he said.

Links to Related Topics (Tags):

Headlines: January, 2007; RPCV Tom Petri (Somalia) ; Figures; Peace Corps Somalia; Directory of Somalia RPCVs; Messages and Announcements for Somalia RPCVs; Politics; Congress; Wisconsin

When this story was posted in February 2007, this was on the front page of PCOL:




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