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House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) will meet next week with members of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) to discuss strategies for alleviating poverty.

The closed-door meeting has been in the works since last month, when Ryan stirred controversy by saying poverty is caused largely by a “tailspin of culture,” particularly in inner cities, where “generations of men [are] not even thinking about working or learning to value the culture of work.”

CBC leaders denounced the remarks and later invited Ryan to meet the group to discuss ways Congress could help the poor become more prosperous. Ryan was quick to accept, and the much-anticipated gathering is slated for Wednesday of next week, just a few hours after Ryan is scheduled to hold a Budget Committee hearing on the same topic.

This Friday marks the one-year anniversary of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) reauthorization being signed into law. As the House sponsor of the strong, bipartisan Senate VAWA update, I can tell you that this was a victory hard-fought and one that women should be proud of. I witnessed the tireless grassroots work of our advocates, the bravery of victims coming forward to share their stories, and the fellowship of women all across our country. The battle cry was clear: strengthening protections for women, rather than rolling them back, is a non-negotiable path forward for our country.

Today, the fight to move that mission forward continues. We owe it to the faceless victims of our past and present to continue expanding our protections to all women across our country. As demonstrated by this past VAWA reauthorization – it is the unwavering policy of the United States that we do not tolerate domestic violence against any woman – regardless of who she is or where she comes from. Our work is not done until all women are protected against violence and abusers face the full penalties of the law when they are brought to justice.

As a young girl, Gwen Moore spent her time at the Boys and Girls Clubs of Milwaukee watching the boys play, recounted Denisha Tate, the clubs’ COO, at a recent gathering. The youth club, originally called the Busy Boys Life Club and open only to boys, extended membership to girls in 1984.

That was too late for Moore, but the experience likely influenced her interests as a member of Congress. Moore is a past co-chair of the Congressional Women’s Caucus and was the first African American congressman from Wisconsin when she was elected in 2004.
Today, the Boys & Girls Clubs offer programming geared specifically to girls, and the organization encourages them to participate, not observe. To commemorate the 30th anniversary of including girls, the Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Milwaukee is sponsoring a “Year of the GIRL (Growing Inspirational and Responsible Leaders)” program.

MILWAUKEE (WITI) — President Barack Obama arrived on Air Force One at the Wisconsin Air National Guard’s 128th Air Refueling Wing in Milwaukee just before 10 a.m. on Thursday, January 30th. When Pres. Obama got off the plane with U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore (D) and was greeted by Gov. Scott Walker, Milwaukee Co. Executive Chris

President Barack Obama today signed an executive order for a federal jobs training program at an appearance in Waukesha.

The president spoke at General Electric’s Waukesha Gas Engines plant Thursday morning as part of his tour following the State of the Union address Tuesday.

Obama said household incomes have not risen on pace with the stock market and corporate profits.

WAUKESHA (WITI) — Below is a transcript of President Barack Obama’s speech delivered Thursday, January 30th at GE Energy Waukesha Gas Engines Facility in Waukesha.

THE PRESIDENT: “Thank you!  (Applause.)  Hello, hello, hello!  (Applause.)  Well, it’s good to be in Wisconsin!  (Applause.)  It’s good to be in Waukesha.  (Applause.)  Now, I’ve always appreciated the hospitality that Packer Country gives a Bears fan.  (Laughter.)  I remember when I was up here campaigning the first time and there were some “Cheeseheads for Obama” — (laughter) — and I felt pretty good about that.  Neither of us feel that good about our seasons, but that’s okay. There’s always next year.

We have three of your outstanding elected officials with us here today.  We’ve got Congresswoman Gwen Moore.  (Applause.)  We’ve got the Mayor of Milwaukee, Tom Barrett.  (Applause.)  And we have Milwaukee County Executive, Chris Abele.  (Applause.)  And we’ve got your former Governor, Jim Doyle.  (Applause.)  And it’s also good to see — I had a chance to see backstage somebody who was a huge part of my economic team before she became Chancellor of the University of Wisconsin-Madison — Dr. Becky Blank is here.  And we just want to give Becky a big round of applause.  (Applause.)  She said she missed Washington, but she doesn’t really.  (Laughter.)  She was just saying that to be nice.

MILWAUKEE (WITI) — President Barack Obama is set to deliver his State of the Union address on Tuesday evening, January 28th. The speech comes just two days before a presidential visit to the Milwaukee area.

President Obama plans to act on income inequality in his State of the Union speech.
He will unveil an executive order to raise the minimum wage for federal contract workers to $10.10 an hour — and will repeat the call he made last year.

“Tonight, let’s declare in the wealthiest nation on earth, no person working full-time should have to live in poverty — and raise the federal minimum wage,” President Obama said on February 12th, 2013.

Democratic Congresswoman Gwen Moore of Milwaukee supports the President.

Paul “Benji” Johnston, 6, climbed onto a 2-foot-high stool, leaned into the microphone, took a deep breath and made his case.

“Why do people hurt other people? Is it because they get mad? Is it because they want something they can’t have?” said Paul, the first-place winner in the kindergarten-second-grade category of the speech contest for the 30th anniversary Martin Luther King Birthday

Celebration, held Sunday at the Marcus Center for the Performing Arts in Milwaukee.

For Paul, a student at Eastbrook Academy, it was all about dealing with naughty while staying nice.

King, he said, was a smart man.

As Gov. Scott Walker prepared to declare the state’s economy “dramatically better” in his state of the state speech Wednesday night, U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore was decrying the Republican’s priorities.

In a stop at the Journal Sentinel to meet with editorial writers, the Democrat from Milwaukee said that unseating Walker was one of her top goals for 2014.

Moore said Milwaukee needed a “miracle” to avoid becoming a “ghost city” after Walker signed legislation ending residency requirements for school and municipal workers.

She declared of governors such as Walker who refused an expansion of Medicaid with mostly federal funding under the Obamacare health law: “People gotta be stuck on stupid waiting for dumb to come.” Walker says he instead made changes that meant “this year, for the first time in Wisconsin history, everyone living in poverty will be able to access health care under Medicaid.”