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Wed Jul 16, 2008 at 08:00:00 AM PDT
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David R. Obey (D-WI)
Dave is a 20th term Congressman from Wisconsin's 7th district (the NW quarter of the state, including the city of Wausau). In 2006, he was elected with 62% of the vote. Dave was born in Okmulgee, OK, on October 3, 1938. He is Catholic and his highest degree is an MA from the University of Wisconsin in 1962. Before he was elected, he was a realtor. His wife's name is Joan.
Dave Obey is important to us because he chairs the appropriations committee. He holds the ultimate power in the House over who gets money and who doesn't. He believes in food safety (a good thing) but lately he's been support of the National Animal ID System (a bad thing) as a means to achieve food safety.
Contact Information
Phone: 202-225-3365 (DC); 715-842-5606 (Wausau); 715-398-4426 (Superior)
Fax: 715-842-4488
Chief of Staff: Christina Hamilton
Appointment Secretary: Carly Burns
Legislative Director: Will Painter
Press Secretary: Ellis Brachman
Congrespedia Entry on Dave Obey
Obey's clearly not a bad guy, and he's very invested in helping out his district in Wisconsin. I get pangs of homesickness for my home state when I read through his positions on helping cranberry growers and dairy farmers. However, he's also not some tree-hugger hippie liberal who is dying to turn the U.S. food system into a utopia of local, organic, seasonal foods. Since he gets to control the "power of the purse" it would be wonderful to see him really give a significant amount of funding to the conversation programs he says he supports. |
| OrangeClouds115 :: Meet Your Leaders: David R. Obey |
Obey's website gives valuable insight on his position on food policy here. Among other things he supports:
- allowing state-inspected meats to be sold across state lines
- requiring dairy importers to contribute to dairy promotion programs (i.e. "Got Milk?") that all U.S. dairy farmers pay into.
- providing more money in nutrition assistance to low income Americans
- investing in better rural infrastructure like sewer and water programs
- reducing subsidies for corn ethanol (yay!)
- including more fresh fruits and veggies in school lunches
- strengthening COOL (country of origin labeling)
- expanding conservation programs
The following blurb on his website is VERY "Wisconsin" - advocating for family farmers and honoring the environmental record of Gaylord Nelson:
Dave also believes passionately that agriculture policy should help family dairy farmers, rather than large corporate farm operations. Dave has worked tirelessly to reform the outmoded milk marketing order policy and to provide supplemental payments to dairy farmers who have been hard hit by collapsing milk prices.
A protégé and disciple of Wisconsin's U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson, the founder of Earth Day, Dave also has a strong commitment to the environment. He has been at the forefront of efforts to prevent anti-environmental riders threatening our air, water, and resources from being attached to appropriations bills. Recently, a Midwestern environmental leader said of his efforts, "Without Dave Obey, the anti-environmental forces in Congress would be riding roughshod over our public lands, and clean air and water protections. He has been the guardian at the environmental gate."
According to on the issues, Obey is a "hard core liberal" with the following stances:
Rated 13% by the [U.S. Chamber of Commerce], indicating an anti-business voting record. (Dec 2003)
Rated 100% by the [Campaign for America's Future], indicating support for energy independence. (Dec 2006)
Rated 95% by the [League of Conservation], indicating pro-environment votes. (Dec 2003)
Voted NO on implementing CAFTA, Central America Free Trade. (Jul 2005)
Voted YES on withdrawing from the WTO. (Jun 2000)
Rated 33% by CATO, indicating a mixed record on trade issues. (Dec 2002)
Rated 88% by [the American Public Health Association], indicating a pro-public health record. (Dec 2003) |
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