Undoubtedly, Senator Leibham will serve as a stronger leader for families in the upcoming session as he and his wife, Heather, are expecting their first child in February.
Joe is joined here today by his wife Heather; his parents, Ken and Sue; and his in-laws, Cliff and Joan Hansen."
Senator Fitzgerald Introduced Senator Kedzie
“State Senator Neal Kedzie was first elected to the Wisconsin State Senate in November 2002 and re-elected in November 2006.
The 11th Senate District includes portions of Walworth, Waukesha, Jefferson and Kenosha Counties in Southeastern Wisconsin. Prior to being elected to the Senate, he served three terms in the Wisconsin State Assembly, representing the 43rd Assembly District.
During the 2005-06 session, Senator Kedzie served as the Assistant Senate Majority Leader and Chair of the Senate Natural Resources and Transportation Committee. He is also continuing his service as Chair of the Special Committee on Great Lakes Water Resources Compact Committee.
A trademark of Senator Kedzie's legislative career has been his ability to build consensus among generally polarized groups. This strength has led to the enactment of many significant environmental initiatives, garnering national and even international attention.
Some of those efforts include:
- the 2005 Groundwater Quality Protection Act
- the 2003 Groundwater Quantity Protection Act
- the 2003 Green Tier Act
- the 2001 Isolated Wetlands Act
- and the 2000 Wetland Mitigation Act
Senator Kedzie has resided in rural Walworth County for more than 32 years with his wife Kerrie and three children - Erika, Ryan and Sean - and Kerrie is here today for his inauguration."
Senator Fitzgerald Introduced Senator Schultz
“Senator Dale Schultz has served in the Senate since 1991, representing a large region of southwest Wisconsin.
During his tenure Dale has served on committees covering virtually every issue of the day. Although he has gained expertise in many issues, particularly insurance and natural resources, he is best known as a person with broad understanding of how government works and an ability to cut to the chase to help broker bipartisan compromise.
Last session, Dale served as Majority Leader.
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Among his accomplishments, he helped restore civility and decorum to the institution. He signed the agreement that launched WisconsinEye to bring C-SPAN-like television coverage to Wisconsin government. And he brought historic bills to the Senate floor for votes - notably SB 1 regarding ethics reform which passed with bipartisan support.
Perhaps the main reason why Dale has just been elected to his fourth full term is that he shares his constituents' values. That's because he is as comfortable wearing pinstripes and using a microphone as he is wearing plaid and working on tractors.
Dale is joined today by his wife Rachel, who is Superintendent of the Richland School District, and also other members of his family."
Senator Fitzgerald Introduced Senator Ellis
“Senator Michael G. Ellis served as alderman on the Neenah City Council from 1969-1975. He represented Neenah-Menasha in the State Assembly from 1970 until his election to the State Senate in 1982.
He has been re-elected to represent the 19th Senate district six times since then, twice without opposition. The 19th Senate district includes portions of Winnebago and Outagamie counties.
Senator Ellis has served in leadership positions in the Senate, including Assistant Minority Leader, Minority Leader and Majority Leader.
Senator Ellis is known as a leading voice on the state's budget, ethics reform, campaign finance reform and education funding reform.
Senator Ellis and his wife Sandy own and operate the Ellis Quarter Horse farm and stables near Neenah."
Senator Robson Introduced Senator Lehman
“The Senator from the 21st is beginning his first term in the State Senate. However, he comes to the Senate with a wealth of experience as a public servant. He served his constituents well in the State Assembly for the past ten years and prior to that was alderman from the south side of Racine for 12 years.
He is also well known in his community for years of service as a high school economics & history teacher. He and his wife Cathie, his parents and two of his three daughters are all graduates of Southside Racine Washington Park High School. Last but not least, he is known to bring the famous Racine pastry called the “kringle" to his colleagues in the State Capitol.
Ladies and Gentlemen, Senator John Lehman.
Joining Senator Lehman today are his wife Cathy, as well as other friends and family from Racine. Please stand and be recognized."
Senator Robson Introduced Senator Kreitlow
“The Senator from the 23rd is beginning his first term in the State Senate.
His district includes northern Eau Claire County, all of Chippewa County, and portions of Clark, Dunn, Marathon, Wood, Taylor and Barron Counties.
He is proud to be a UW-Eau Claire Blugold fan and to hail from the Town of Eagle Point in Chippewa County, the area that “Old Abe," Wisconsin's beloved war eagle, once called home.
Ladies and Gentlemen, Senator Pat Kreitlow.
Joining Senator Kreitlow today is his wife of 20 years, Dr. Sharry Kreitlow, who grew up on a dairy farm near Manitowoc. With them are their daughters Samantha and Chelsea, plus Pat and Sharry's first grandson, Mason Patrick Kreitlow. Please stand and be recognized."
Senator Robson Introduced Senator Jauch
“The Senator from the 25th is beginning his sixth term in the Senate and his 25th year in the State Legislature.
He represents far northern Wisconsin, a district that is over 12,000 square miles and is larger than Rhode Island, Connecticut, Delaware and the District of Columbia combined.
He considers northern Wisconsin the most beautiful region of the state. It borders on Lake Superior and contains the headwaters for the St. Croix scenic waterways and the Mississippi River. The region he represents includes Bayfield, rated the best little city in the Midwest and the gateway to the Apostle Island National Lakeshore.
He has passionately championed public education and children issues and is constantly fighting for economic justice for all citizens.
Ladies and Gentlemen, Senator Bob Jauch.
Joining Senator Jauch today is his wife, Cecelia, who recently retired from 33 years of teaching and his two children Jessica and Christopher. Also with him are his mother Jan from Lac du Flambeau and his mother-in-law Irene, from Park Falls. Please stand and be recognized."
Senator Robson Introduced Senator Erpenbach
“The Senator from the 27th is beginning his 3rd term in the State Senate. His district is truly distinctive - from the North side of Madison, the second largest city in the state and State Capitol - to suburban Dane County - to rural Green County and Evansville in Rock County. Its diversity can make balancing the issues and voting very interesting.
He looks forward to continuing to work toward a health care solution, meaningful property tax relief, discussing our education funding model and finding resolution to what he calls “the million dollar monkey on all our backs" -- campaign finance reform. He is an Aquarius, who likes long walks on the beach.
Ladies and Gentlemen, Senator Jon Erpenbach.
Joining Senator Erpenbach today is his family, including his parents, children and other friends. Please stand and be recognized."
Senator Robson Introduced Senator Decker
“The senator from the 29th is beginning his fifth term in the State Senate.
He has had the honor and privilege of representing the people of north central Wisconsin for sixteen years. As an active sportsman who enjoys the outdoors, including hunting and fishing, he is definitely representative of his district.
He is also a journeyman bricklayer and still works in construction when the Legislature is not in session. But first and foremost, he is a legislator who is deeply committed to improving the lives of the residents of the 29th District. With that always in his mind, he plans to continue to work on his ongoing legislative priorities, including education and affordable health care.
Ladies and Gentlemen, Senator Russ Decker.
Joining Senator Decker today is his wife, Kathy. Please stand and be recognized."
Senator Robson Introduced Senator Vinehout
“The Senator from the 31st is the fourth and final new Senator that we welcome today.
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From cranberry bogs to rolling hills of dairy farms and on to bluffs high above the Mississippi River, her Senate District covers all or parts of nine rural counties and the southern half of the city of Eau Claire, including the UW Eau Claire.
With her background as a farmer and former university professor, she is ideally suited to represent the 31st District. She is the 28th senator to serve the district and the first woman.
Ladies and Gentlemen, Senator Kathleen Vinehout.
Joining Senator Vinehout today are her husband, Doug Kane and her son, Nathan. Please stand and be recognized."
Senator Fitzgerald Introduced Senator Kanavas
“Senator Ted Kanavas was elected to serve the 33rd Senate District in the summer of 2001 by winning a special election. Since his election victory in 2001, Senator Kanavas has won two more elections by large margins.
Senator Kanavas' district includes portions of Waukesha, Washington and Dodge Counties.
His focus, since being elected, has been on economic development and job creation initiatives, which have been instrumental in helping make our state more attractive for business retention and attraction.
Senator Kanavas has served on the Joint Committee on Finance, chaired the Senate Committee on Job Creation, Economic Development and Consumer Affairs, and has used his private sector experience to shape high-quality public policy.
In the Senate, Senator Kanavas was a leader in the effort to pass the Broadband Deployment Act, Act 255--which increased venture capital activity in this state. He authored the County Board Reduction Bill, making it easier for county boards to reduce their size. He has also helped craft both the GROW Wisconsin Agenda and Invest Wisconsin Package.
Senator Kanavas has been a life-long resident of the city of Brookfield, where he and his wife Mary are raising their three children--Kelly, Nick, and Kate.
Joining him today are his wife Mary, his daughter Kate, his son Nick and his mother Min Kanavas."
Senator Leibham Introduced Senator Fitzgerald
“Senator Scott Fitzgerald was first elected to represent the 13th Senate District in 1994. Last November he was re-elected to his 4th term. The 13th Senate District includes parts of Dodge, Jefferson, Columbia, Waukesha and Dane Counties.
Scott has been elected by his Republican colleagues to serve as Minority Leader during this legislative session.
In prior sessions, he has served as Majority Leader, Co-Chairman of the Joint Committee on Finance, and Chairman of Senate Corrections Committee. He is a Lt. Colonel in the US Army Reserves.
As co-chair of the finance committee last session, Scott helped craft a budget that froze property taxes, supported public education, cut taxes and fully-funded vital health care programs. He is recognized as a leader who can work across partisan lines to find solutions and is a tireless advocate for Wisconsin taxpayers.
Scott has been honored for his work on behalf of Wisconsin's veterans, farmers and small business owners.
Scott is joined today by his wife Lisa; his sons Scottie, Brennan and Connor; his parents, Steve and Bonnie; and his in-laws, Elvin and Louise Will."
Senator Jauch Introduced Senator Robson
“Each inauguration marks a milestone in our Democracy as duly elected officials are sworn to uphold the Constitution and begin the important work of fulfilling our responsibilities to serve the public will. On November 7th the Wisconsin electorate chose Democrats as majority party in the State Senate and it is my privilege to introduce Senator Judy Robson, the new Senate Majority Leader.
It is an historical occasion for so many reasons and a day of firsts for all of us. Notably Judy Robson will be the first woman in Wisconsin history to hold the office of Democratic Majority Leader.
This historic day affirms an essential principle that Wisconsin women are established as powerful players but also are a part of the basic furnishing of the State Senate.
Judy has earned the distinction of serving as Senate Majority Leader. She has held public office since 1987 representing the citizens of southern Wisconsin. Formerly a nurse, she has been a leading advocate regarding senior citizen and health care issues. As a mother of two sons and one daughter she has passionately worked for a legislative agenda to strengthen families by providing opportunities for education, quality and affordable health care and an ability to achieve the promise of the American dream.
The foundation for Judy's service and leadership are based upon the values of respect for others, her love of the Institution, and her desire to make the Legislative process serve public interests rather than politics.
Across the political spectrum she is respected for her diplomacy, fairness, for her reasonable approach to both public policy and politics and for her dedication to making this Institution and this process worthy of the confidence of Wisconsin citizens.
Judy's commitment is to foster unity rather than division, tolerance rather than political partisanship, cooperation rather than conflict and encouragement for solving the important issues of the day. Judy's leadership will set a high standard for her colleagues and for this body that will match or exceed public expectation.
This is an extremely special day for all of us, but it is most fulfilling for our families.
Joining Senator Robson today are her children; her son Mark, her son Matt and Matt's wife, Linda, her daughter Beth and Beth's husband Mark. Additionally, all four of her grandchildren are here, David, Kyla, Jesse and Ryanne.
Please join me in honoring Senator Robson and her family."
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