Rep. Peter Schmidt is seeking a second term in the 6th Assembly District, running on a platform of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness as he feels he’s accomplished a lot for Wisconsin as a freshman legislator.
Schmidt, a farmer in the Town of Hartland, has a primary face-off in August against another Republican legislator, Rep. Elijah Behnke, who plans to move to western Oconto County if elected, since the latest legislative maps edged out several communities in Outagamie County and incorporated Menominee County and portions of Oconto County. The primary winner will go up against Shirley Hinze, a Democrat from Shawano, in the November election.
Schmidt gathered about 560 signatures for his nomination forms, almost triple the 200 required to get on the ballot, and he will not be running as an independent, despite rumors circulating around Shawano County to the contrary.
“If you go online to Badger Voters (www.badgervoters.wi.gov), that’s where the Wisconsin Election Commission’s got all the public information,” Schmidt said. “What’s sad to see is I gave everyone the opportunity and said, ‘Let’s run a clean campaign.’ Folks in the boundaries of District 6 are tired of the lies and distortions and disillusions. They want to hear the truth, and I’m not afraid to speak the truth, and I have a track record of telling the constituents, ‘Here’s where we are.’
“It’s very discouraging to see local leaders already playing dirty campaigns, especially with this election cycle, where election violence is expected to be up 40%.”
Schmidt attributed his election to his first term to be the result of him not engaging in mudslinging. He noted that the party-change rumor is not the only one he has heard.
“It just boggles my mind that people abuse their First Amendment right to free speech where they intentionally lie to score,” Schmidt said. “I’m expecting more rumors and more mudslinging as things move forward.”
Schmidt noted he has been pushing for a lot of things in his first term in office to help ease his constituents’ lives. One of those issues was cannabis, and even though the bill didn’t get to the governor’s desk, he’s hoping to push it through next year, especially with the federal government changing the classification of the drug.
“I have met many different constituents and responded to their inquiries and brought forth bills that reflect their beliefs,” Schmidt said. “Medical cannabis was one bill that a bunch of constituents wanted me to advocate for because a lot of people are tired of driving to other states to get their medicine.”
Schmidt is also running on the necessity of upping school districts’ funding for special education programs. He also wants to allow retired teachers to return to education to address the shortages that schools throughout the state are experiencing.
“It’s not fair for firefighters, law enforcement, police officers to be able to do that, but not our teachers,” Schmidt said. “I want to get rid of that loophole. They are as equally important as law enforcement and firemen and EMTs, and there’s such a shortage of teachers.”
Another goal for another term is to address funding for fixing roads. Schmidt said constituents are appreciative of his efforts to get more funding for local and county road projects but urge him to tell the legislature to do more to address the roads in the northern half of the state and not let Madison and Milwaukee get priority.
“The people in Madison, they understand that we’re very good with natural resources, but they don’t always understand the needs of the roads,” Schmidt said. “They like the scenery, but they’re so hypnotized by the beauty that they don’t see how the roads are.”
Constituents are also telling Schmidt to look into issues involving agriculture and election integrity, as well as improvements to state parks. Schmidt noted he also wants to look at better regulations for immigrants, noting that many farms utilize immigrants to grow the food that people eat.
“We are a nation of immigrants,” Schmidt said. “Immigrants bring new perspectives to our community, and that’s something that’s going to get attacked.”
Schmidt plans to do like he did two years ago and campaign door to door, feeling that voters like the approach where candidates come to them to listen to their issues. He said that his purpose is to represent the people, not the political party.
“I have kept true to my word, and I have not taken any lobbyists’ money,” Schmidt said. “That’s something that is a rarity in politics. A lot of people are tired of representatives being bought out.”
As an example, Schmidt pointed out the medical cannabis legislation. The view of many Republicans is that marijuana in any form should remain illegal, even though it’s legal in medical and/or recreational uses in Minnesota, Iowa, Illinois and Michigan, leaving Wisconsin as an island, and the incumbent feels the legislature should be listening to the people who need the cannabis for health reasons.
“That shows I’m listening to the constituents,” Schmidt said. “A lot of people are not in favor of big pharmaceutical companies monopolizing the medical field, and this gives constituents that needed option, but there are too many people afraid to say that they need medical cannabis, especially in my district.”
Schmidt said that to be a free society, there should be fewer restrictions, not more.
“I shouldn’t force someone else, based on what I believe,” Schmidt said. “People should have the freedom to make their own best decisions to get the medicines what they seek.”
lpulaski@newmedia-wi.com
Schmidt seeks to accomplish more in 2nd term
