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WASHINGTON –U.S. Rep. Mark Pocan (WI–02) today announced his “Snapshots of the Second” photo contest, inviting all of his constituents in Wisconsin’s Second District to submit their photographs of the district. The winning image, selected with the most “likes” on Facebook, will be featured as the cover photo on Pocan’s official Facebook page.
WASHINGTON – U.S. Rep. Mark Pocan (WI-02) today applauded the bipartisan 15-7 vote of a fully inclusive Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) in the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee (HELP) today. ENDA has been introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives and is a priority for Pocan and the Congressional LGBT Equality Caucus.
Editor's note: U.S. Rep. Mark Pocan, a Democrat, represents Wisconsin's second congressional district. He serves on both the Budget Committee and the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and has been appointed an assistant minority whip.
That didn't take long. Just two weeks since the Supreme Court struck down Section 4 of the Voting Rights Act, state legislatures are moving quickly on voter suppression measures.
WASHINGTON—In another transparent attempt to weaken the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) and deny 80 million private sector workers, both union and non-union, the protection they are guaranteed under law, U.S. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell is refusing to allow votes on President Obama’s nominees to the Board. Without a fully-functioning NLRB, hardworking Americans will have no recourse when their rights are violated, creating uncertainty for both workers and businesses. In response, U.S. Rep.
WASHINGTON—One week after student loan rates doubled from 3.4 percent to 6.8 percent for nearly 160,000 Wisconsin students, U.S. Rep. Mark Pocan (WI-02) once again urged GOP leadership to stop balancing the budget on the backs of students and bring up a vote to freeze student loan rates. Last month, Pocan joined his colleagues in signing a discharge petition to bring up for a vote the Student Loan Relief Act of 2013, which would freeze the interest rates on subsidized Stafford loans for the next two years.
WASHINGTON—U.S. Rep. Mark Pocan (WI-02) today released the following statement after the U.S. Senate passed legislation to enact comprehensive immigration reform in a bipartisan 68-32 vote.
More than ever, a college diploma unlocks economic opportunity, provides students with a wealth of new skills and knowledge, and encourages innovation and growth. But more than ever, it also comes with a mountain of student loan debt.
Washington, D.C. -- Madison Democrat Mark Pocan, the only gay married member of Congress, hailed Wednesday's U.S. Supreme Court ruling that said legally married gay and lesbian couples are entitled to federal marriage benefits.
“I am ecstatic," said Pocan at a news conference with House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and several gay House colleagues. "But it shows the path we still have to go."
Pocan’s own marriage will not receive federal recognition as a result of the ruling because his home state, Wisconsin, does not allow same-sex marriage.
What the U.S. Supreme Court has done, with its decision to strike down essential elements of the Voting Rights Act, is wrong.
But the court has not gone so rogue as might immediately seem to be the case in a nation that our civics teachers tell us is committed to democratic values.
Rather, the court’s conservative majority has taken advantage of a gap in the Constitution that must be addressed.
As he heard Wednesday’s rulings from the steps of the Supreme Court, the sole married, gay member of Congress thought about how his own marriage remains unrecognized by his home state.
“We have to be thinking about Wisconsin and the other states where same-sex couples can’t make end-of-life decisions, can't visit hospitalized spouses [in medical emergencies],” Rep. Mark Pocan, D-Wisconsin told CNN.