Petri may have spent nearly 30 years in Washington, but he hasn't lost touch with the people of his congressional district and we feel he deserves to continue as their representative. Congressman Tom Petri of Wisconsin served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Somalia in the 1960's.
Tom Petri deserves 16th term in Congress
Editorial: Petri deserves 16th term in Congress
October 31, 2008
Tom Petri has represented the 6th Congressional District since 1979 and is seeking his 16th two-year term.
While the theme of the presidential election has been "change," we see no reason for that in the 6th District, which includes all of Sheboygan County.
Petri, a Republican from Fond du Lac, faces opposition from Democrat Roger Kittelson of Lomira, an international dairy sales representative.
Contrary to the charge by the Kittelson campaign that Petri "doesn't represent the interests of the constituency anymore," Petri has been an able and strong representative during his time in Washington.
He has been a leader in Congress in helping young people get affordable loans to further their education.
Since the federal government guarantees student loans made through banks, Petri reasoned that it would be better to cut out that middle man and the fees banks charge, and loan federally guaranteed money directly to students.
Naturally, the direct loan program that Petri supports isn't a favorite of bankers, but it is better for the student seeking to pay for his or her education and is better for the federal government in the long run.
Petri has also worked during in his years in Congress to see that Wisconsin taxpayers see more of their federal taxes come back to them. Once, Wisconsin was considered a "donor" state, meaning that its taxpayers got back less than they sent to Washington in taxes. That trend has changed and now Wisconsin gets more back than it sends to Washington.
Petri also supports tax incentives for the development of alternative and renewable fuels to achieve energy independence. Development of more wind power and use of biofuels has the potential to boost Wisconsin's economy.
Petri has also bucked his own party at times, including support for the McCain-Feingold campaign-finance reform law in 2002 and he supports full disclosure by groups who use "soft" money to influence elections.
Petri, who had no opposition two years ago, is getting a strong challenge from Kittelson, who differs with Petri in a number of areas.
Kittelson says Iraq is the No. 1 issue and supports and immediate withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq. Petri puts the economy as his top issue and supports troops in Iraq to stabilize the region.
Kittelson favors a single-payer health-care system similar to Medicare, while Petri says health-care reform is needed, but not through a government-run system.
Kittelson opposes a trade agreement with China, saying at a candidate forum last week, "It is a bad deal doing business with China." Petri favors trade with China, but under agreements that are fair to U.S. manufacturers and businesses.
On these issues and others, we think Petri exhibits a more reasoned approach than Kittelson.
Petri may have spent nearly 30 years in Washington, but he hasn't lost touch with the people of his congressional district and we feel he deserves to continue as their representative.
