Tony Wied - Meet the Freshmen

Tony Wied

Tony Wied
PARTY:
Republican
CHAMBER:
House
STATE:
DISTRICT:
8

REPLACING:

Mike Gallagher (R) [i]

WORK HISTORY:

Wied Oil Co. LLC (Owner) [ii]

EDUCATION:

Diploma, Notre Dame Academy (Green Bay); BBA, St. Norbert College [iii]

CAMPAIGNED ON:

Securing the Southern Border; Curbing out of Control Spending; Supporting President Trump; Peace Through Strength; American Energy Independence; Supporting Wisconsin Agriculture; Protecting US Innovation [iv]

ON THE ISSUES

REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS:

In an October 2024 interview, Wied said he believed abortion is a “states’ rights issue and not something that we deal with in the House of Representatives.” He also said, “the federal government should be doing less,” and that “more power needs to go back to the states, even in additional issues other than this.” [v]

IMMIGRATION & BORDER SECURITY:

Calling for “immediate action” to secure the southern border, Wied supports finishing the border wall, reinstating “Remain in Mexico,” and ensuring border agents “have the funding they need to do their jobs.” [vi]

ECONOMY & JOBS:

Wied’s campaign platform includes curbing “out of control spending,” and reducing regulations for farmers and agricultural producers. [vii] In 2019, his association opposed a bill that would have repealed Wisconsin’s Unfair Sales Act, which some argued may have lowered gas prices. [viii]

TAXES:

Wied has described inflation as “the new tax right now.” In July, he signed a pledge to not raise taxes and to use his “commonsense private sector experience to fix Washington’s spending problem.” [ix] [x]

CRIME & PUBLIC SAFETY:

Wied has advocated for securing the southern border as a means to quell rising crime. [xi] He has also called policies like “Defunding the Police & Abolishing ICE” “insane.” [xii]

CLIMATE CHANGE, ENERGY & ENVIRONMENT:

A former gas station chain owner, Wied supports US energy independence and pledges to reduce regulations “to unleash America’s energy potential.” [xiii]

FOREIGN POLICY:

An advocate for “peace through strength,” Wied pledges to “keep our military strong and eliminate any threat of terrorism inside of our borders.” He also highlights technology innovation as a national security issue, arguing the US should “lead the world in the development of crypto and blockchain […] rather than adversarial countries like Russia and China.” [xiv] He has argued “What’s happening in Israel right now and across the world would’ve never happened if Trump was still President!” [xv]

HEALTHCARE & SOCIAL SAFETY NET:

Wied has said that he is enrolled in an Affordable Care Act exchange, and that he sees “a rise in premiums and less payments from my insurance companies.” He added that “I would never do anything to pull that, but I would be in favor of reducing costs for people in some way and I think we need to take a hard look at it.” [xvi]

DEMOCRACY:

In October 2024, Wied said of January 6th insurrectionists, “First off, you have every right. You have a First Amendment. You have every right to protest. And the people there, overwhelmingly, were just protesting. … And what happened there is an atrocity, and I will absolutely fight to make sure that those are, those people are out of jail […] You have every right to protest. This is a free country, but it is very concerning, and I will work on that, and so will President Trump.” [xvii]

SOCIAL ISSUES:

During the campaign, Wied decried the “insanity” of “taxpayer -funded transgender surgeries for illegal migrants,” arguing “These Democrats are absolutely wacky and will find every excuse to waste your tax dollars.” [xviii]


[i] “Representative Mike Gallagher,” Congress.Gov accessed November 7, 2024, available at https://www.congress.gov/member/mike-gallagher/G000579.

[ii] Incoming Rep. Tony Wied, LegiStorm, available at https://www.legistorm.com/person/bio/495551/Anthony_Christian_Wied.html.

[iii] Incoming Rep. Tony Wied, LegiStorm, available at https://www.legistorm.com/person/bio/495551/Anthony_Christian_Wied.html.

[iv] “Issues,” Tony Wied for Congress, accessed November 7, 2024, available at https://tonywiedforcongress.com/issues/.

[v] “WisDems: ICYMI: Tony Wied makes anti-abortion stance clear,” WisPolitics, October 25, 2024, available at https://www.wispolitics.com/2024/wisdems-icymi-tony-wied-makes-anti-abortion-stance-clear/.

[vi] “Issues,” Tony Wied for Congress, available at https://tonywiedforcongress.com/issues/.

[vii] “Issues,” Tony Wied for Congress, available at https://tonywiedforcongress.com/issues/.

[viii] Tom Kertscher, “Did Wisconsin congressional candidate Tony Wied lobby to raise gasoline prices?” Wisconsin Watch, August 29, 2024, available at https://wisconsinwatch.org/2024/08/wisconsin-gas-prices-republican-wied-democrat-lyerly-minimum-markup/.

[ix] Chuck Quirmbach, “What a red district in Wisconsin indicates about national trends on abortion,” NPR, October 3, 2024, available at https://www.npr.org/2024/10/03/nx-s1-5118389/what-a-a-red-district-in-wisconsin-indicates-about-national-trends-on-abortion.

[x] Tony Wied Twitter, July 10, 2024, available at https://x.com/TonyWied/status/1811053777618641350.

[xi] “Issues,” Tony Wied for Congress, available at https://tonywiedforcongress.com/issues/.

[xii] Tony Wied Twitter, September 3, 2024, available at https://x.com/TonyWied/status/1830969375936954403.

[xiii] “Issues,” Tony Wied for Congress, available at https://tonywiedforcongress.com/issues/.

[xiv] “Issues,” Tony Wied for Congress, available at https://tonywiedforcongress.com/issues/.

[xv] Tony Wied Twitter, April 13, 2024, available at https://x.com/TonyWied/status/1779258071677624646.

[xvi] Mark Leland, “8th Congressional District candidates on the issues: Health care,” Fox 11 News, October 28, 2024, available at https://www.fox11online.com/news/beyond-the-podium/tony-wied-kristin-lyerly-8th-congressional-district-candidates-wisconsin-house-of-representatives-health-care-insurance-affordable-act-obamacare-aca.

[xvii] “Lyerly campaign, Harry Dunn’s Democracy Defenders: Respond to Tony Wied downplaying January 6th insurrection,” WisPolitics, October 31, 2024, available at https://www.wispolitics.com/2024/lyerly-campaign-harry-dunns-democracy-defenders-respond-to-tony-wied-downplaying-january-6th-insurrection/.

[xviii] Tony Wied Twitter, September 10, 2024, available at https://twitter.com/TonyWied/status/1833547446405746995.

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